Best vegan yoghurt in the UK ranked

11 Dec

Dairy-free yoghurts are very common in supermarkets these days so we decided to taste, test and rank the best vegan yoghurt in the UK so you can spend your money wisely.

We’ve reviewed six vegan yoghurts and ranked them based on taste, texture, ingredients, health factors, price and what live cultures they might have in them. Then we’ve given each a score out of five to see which is best.

Vegan yoghurt pros and cons

There are plenty of good reasons why someone might want to choose a vegan yoghurt over dairy yoghurt whether it be environmental, ethical or dietary.

But unfortunately there can be some downsides to vegan yoghurt we should also be aware of:

Cost - most of the yoghurts reviewed here are more expensive than dairy yoghurts
Long ingredient lists - some of the yoghurts reviewed here have a large amount of ingredients and additives (such as thickeners and stabilisers) compared to dairy yoghurts
Health measures - vegan yoghurts have different health profiles to dairy yoghurts so it’s good to be aware of this before buying them. For instance, coconut yoghurt has a lot of saturated fat, and is low in calcium and protein (unless they are added)
Taste - while some vegan yoghurts (especially coconut) can taste fantastic, others struggle to match the texture and creaminess of dairy yoghurt

Best vegan yoghurt in the UK – quick summary

Best vegan yoghurt overall: The Coconut Collab coconut yoghurt - Score: 4.5 out of 5

Best oat yoghurt: Oatly oatgurt Greek style - Score: 4.25 out of 5

Best soy yoghurt: Alpro Greek style plain yoghurt - Score: 3.5 out of 5

Best high protein vegan yoghurt: The Coconut Collab protein yoghurt - Score: 3.25 out of 5

Cheapest vegan yoghurt: Asda soya yoghurt - Score: 2.5 out of 5

Best vegan yoghurt overall

The Coconut Collab coconut yoghurt

Score: 4.5 out of 5

This coconut yoghurt has a nice creaminess, thanks mostly to it being 10% fat… Also the downside of coconut yoghurt is that 90% of this fat is saturated fat.

The ingredient list isn’t too long for a vegan yoghurt and includes some plant flours and fibres - but nothing nasty.

The taste is fresh and creamy but perhaps a little starchy.

And it includes four types of live cultures.

Price: £2.50 for a 350g tub from Asda.

Best oat yoghurt

Oatly oatgurt Greek style

Score: 4.25 out of 5

This oat yoghurt has a very thick texture and looks like paint.

It has many ingredients like plant starches and plant proteins as well as added minerals, but there is nothing very concerning. It is pretty high in fat though (10%).

The taste is quite interesting. The first spoonful was an assault on the tongue and tasted very much like I imagine an oat paste would. But after a short time the palate adjusts and it actually becomes pretty decent and nicely creamy.

Price: £2.60 for a 400g tub from Tesco.

Best soy yoghurt

Alpro Greek style plain yoghurt

Score: 3.5 out of 5

This is basically like a thick soy yoghurt (and less strange than some others reviewed below…).

It has the classic earthy soy taste which I don’t love to be honest. And the aftertaste is quite acidic.

The texture is nice and thick though.

Otherwise, the ingredient list is fairly long with added vitamins and minerals and two types of live cultures. And it is quite high in protein (5.6%).

Price: £2.30 for a 400g tub from Ocado.

Best high protein vegan yoghurt

The Coconut Collab protein yoghurt

Score: 3.25 out of 5

This is an interesting yoghurt which includes coconut water and oil, as well as almond paste and soy protein. So it’s not really a true coconut yoghurt.

The taste reflects this Frankenstein nature… It’s sort of like coconut but then this very earthy character kicks in and dominates. And there’s a strong almond/soy aftertaste.

In summary, the flavour isn’t too enjoyable.

It is both high in fat (10%) and high in protein (5.9%). And it has four types of live cultures.

Price: £2.75 for a 350g tub from Tesco.

Alpro plain with oats yoghurt

Score: 2.75 out of 5

This is another weird yoghurt. It’s not an oat yoghurt as you might expect, but more like a soya yoghurt with oat flakes.

This creates a strange runny texture with bits of oats in it which doesn’t really work imho.

The taste is quite sour initially and finishes with you chewing oats. And it has an earthy aftertaste. In summary, the taste is suboptimal.

Otherwise, it is quite low in fat (1.9%) and has a long ingredient list which at least includes added fibre, three types of live cultures and vitamins and minerals.

Price: £2.30 for a 400g tub from Sainsbury’s.

Cheapest vegan yoghurt

Asda soya yoghurt

Score: 2.5 out of 5

This yoghurt has more simple ingredients than any yoghurt reviewed here and it comes at a cheap price.

Unfortunately the texture is very runny and the taste is very earthy and otherwise bland. There’s also a strong acidic finish which is out of balance

But it is low in fat (2.6%), low in sugar and has a decent amount of protein (4.7%). And it has two types of live cultures.

Price: £1.24 for a 500g tub from Asda.

Factors we considered in our ratings

Below are some of the questions we asked ourselves when deciding on a rating for these vegan yoghurts.

Health factors

Is it high in fat or protein? Does it have a lot of sugar? Does it have a huge ingredient list with questionable additives? How many live cultures does it include?

Texture

Is it runny or nice and thick? Does it have a good level of creaminess?

Flavour

Is it satisfying? Does it have any defects? How is the acidity? Does it have a nice aftertaste? Is the taste in balance?

Price

The main question is: does it provide good value? We expect quality products to be more expensive, but they still have to be priced within reason. On the other side of things, a product which is priced very competitively will get a ratings boost based on the value it provides.

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