Best Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Spreads of 2026— The Complete Guide
Why We Wrote This Guide If you've recently discovered that classic Nutella contains skimmed milk powder — welcome to the club. It's one of those quiet disappointments that catches a lot of people off guard. The good news is that the vegan chocolate hazelnut spread market has exploded in the last few years, and some of these alternatives don't just match the original — they genuinely beat it. We tested seven of the most popular vegan hazelnut spreads currently on the market, evaluating each one on taste, ingredient quality, texture, nutritional profile, and price per serving. Whether you want the closest possible swap for Nutella or a cleaner, more nutritious version, there's something on this list for you. Quick Answer: If you want the closest thing to Nutella, go with TBH Hazelnut Chocolate Spread. If you want the cleanest ingredients, Artisana Organics Hazelnut Cacao Spread is the one to grab.
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How We Evaluate Vegan Spreads
Every spread in this guide is verified to contain zero animal-derived ingredients. Beyond that, we score on five criteria:
Taste — Does it deliver that iconic chocolate-hazelnut balance? Does it make you want to eat it off the spoon?
Texture — Is it smooth, glossy, and spreadable without being watery or gritty?
Ingredient Quality — What comes first on the label? Are hazelnuts front and center, or buried under sugar and palm oil?
Nutritional Profile — Sugar content, protein, use of palm oil, and any added red flags.
Value — Cost per ounce versus what you're actually getting.
The 7 Best Vegan Chocolate Hazelnut Spreads
🥇 1. TBH (To Be Honest) Hazelnut Chocolate Spread — Best Overall
Best for: Anyone making the switch from Nutella who doesn't want to compromise on taste.
TBH (which stands for To Be Honest) was built specifically to go toe-to-toe with Nutella on taste while fixing everything wrong with the original formula. It's dairy-free, gluten-free, vegan, and kosher — and it delivers on every front.
Testers from Taste of Home described it as "pure hazelnut and pure chocolate with a nice balance between the two," and after our own testing, we agree. The texture is slightly thicker than classic Nutella, which some people prefer and some find takes a little getting used to. It spreads beautifully on toast and holds up well in baking applications.
Where it really shines is the nutritional comparison: TBH has three times the protein and roughly half the sugar of classic Nutella. That's not a small difference — that's a complete reformulation.
Ingredients: Hazelnuts, cocoa, coconut sugar, coconut oil, sea salt Vegan Certification: Yes Palm Oil Free: Yes ✅ Sugar per serving: ~10g (vs. Nutella's 21g) Where to buy: Major US grocery stores, Amazon Price: ~$10–12 for 10 oz
Rating: 9.2/10
🥈 2. Artisana Organics Hazelnut Cacao Spread — Best Ingredients
Best for: Ingredient-conscious vegans who want the cleanest label possible.
Artisana does something radical: they put hazelnuts first. Not sugar, not palm oil — actual hazelnuts, listed as the number one ingredient. This alone puts it in a different category from most spreads on the market.
The full ingredients list is refreshingly short: organic hazelnuts, organic coconut sugar, organic cacao powder, organic coconut MCT oil, and organic vanilla. That's it. No palm oil, no soy lecithin, no vanillin, no mystery flavourings. The whole thing is certified organic and sustainably sourced.
The taste reflects those quality ingredients — richer and more intensely nutty than Nutella, with a deep cocoa flavour that feels more like artisan chocolate than a mass-market spread. It's slightly less sweet than Nutella, which most adult palates appreciate.
The downside is price and availability. At around $15 for 8 oz, it's a premium product. But if ingredients matter most to you, there's nothing cleaner in this category.
Ingredients: Organic Hazelnuts, Organic Coconut Sugar, Organic Cacao Powder, Organic Coconut MCT Oil, Organic Vanilla Vegan Certification: Yes Palm Oil Free: Yes ✅ Where to buy: Amazon, health food stores, Artisana website Price: ~$15 for 8 oz
Rating: 9.0/10
🥉 3. Nutella Plant-Based — Best for Brand Loyalists
Best for: People who grew up on Nutella and want the exact same experience without the dairy.
This one carries some cultural weight. In 2024, Ferrero officially launched Nutella Plant-Based after five years of R&D — replacing the dairy milk powder with a combination of chickpeas and rice syrup powder. The result is genuinely impressive: the taste, aroma, and texture are intentionally identical to the original.
It's certified vegan by the Vegetarian Society, which is a legitimate third-party certification, not just a brand marketing claim.
However, there are two things to know before buying. First, it carries a "may contain milk" warning because it's produced in the same factory as regular Nutella — fine for most vegans on ethical grounds, but a hard no for anyone with a dairy protein allergy. Second, it still contains palm oil and its first ingredient is still sugar. It's a vegan upgrade, not a nutritional one.
Availability is currently limited to parts of Europe (Italy, France, Belgium, UK), with limited access in the US through import retailers.
Ingredients: Sugar, Palm Oil, Hazelnuts (13%), Chickpeas, Fat-Reduced Cocoa Powder (7.4%), Rice Syrup Powder, Soy Lecithin, Salt, Flavourings Vegan Certification: Vegetarian Society ✅ Palm Oil Free: No ❌ Cross-contamination warning: May contain milk Where to buy: European grocery stores, UK supermarkets, select US import retailers Price: ~€4–6 for 350g (Europe)
Rating: 8.5/10
4. Justin's Chocolate Hazelnut & Almond Butter — Best Texture
Best for: Those who love ultra-smooth, silky spreads with a more complex nutty flavour profile.
Justin's is a well-established US brand that has earned serious credibility in the nut butter world, and their chocolate hazelnut spread is a consistent favourite. What makes it unique is the almond addition — blending hazelnuts with almonds creates a slightly more rounded, less intense flavour than a pure hazelnut spread.
The texture is exceptional. It's glossy, smooth, and spreads like a dream — probably the closest to Nutella's famous consistency of any spread on this list. It melts beautifully in warm applications too, making it ideal for baking, filling crepes, or drizzling over vegan ice cream.
One caveat: Justin's uses palm oil — though it's described as "orangutan-friendly" (RSPO-certified sustainable palm oil). If palm oil is a dealbreaker for you regardless of certification, look elsewhere. If you're palm-oil-tolerant, this is one of the best-tasting options at a reasonable price point.
Ingredients: Dry Roasted Hazelnuts, Almonds, Organic Cocoa Powder, Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Palm Oil (RSPO certified), Organic Cocoa Butter, Sea Salt Vegan Certification: Yes Palm Oil Free: No (RSPO certified) ⚠️ Where to buy: Widely available in US grocery stores, Target, Amazon Price: ~$9 for 10 oz
Rating: 8.3/10
5. Nutiva Organic Hazelnut Spread — Best Budget Pick
Best for: Everyday use when you want quality without the premium price tag.
Nutiva offers their chocolate hazelnut spread in Classic and Dark varieties, both of which are certified organic and vegan. They use sustainably sourced cocoa powder, hazelnuts, and oat flour — giving the spread a slightly different texture from the others on this list, a touch heartier and less glossy.
It's not trying to be Nutella. The flavour is more wholesome and earthy, which some people love and others find less indulgent. The oat flour inclusion is unusual but works surprisingly well for a creamy, smooth consistency.
At roughly $8 for 11.5 oz, it offers the best grams-per-dollar ratio on this list, making it a smart choice for regular daily use on toast, pancakes, or mixed into oatmeal.
Ingredients: Organic Sugar, Organic Cocoa Powder, Organic Hazelnuts, Organic Oat Flour, Organic Sunflower Oil, Salt Vegan Certification: USDA Organic ✅ Palm Oil Free: Yes ✅ Where to buy: Whole Foods, iHerb, Amazon, natural grocery stores Price: ~$8 for 11.5 oz
Rating: 8.0/10
6. ChocZero Dark Chocolate Vegan Hazelnut Spread — Best Low-Sugar Option
Best for: Vegans watching their sugar intake or following a keto diet.
ChocZero takes a completely different approach: sweetened with monk fruit extract rather than sugar, it delivers just 1g net carb per serving, compared to Nutella's 22g. If you've been avoiding hazelnut spreads because of the sugar content, this one changes the equation.
The taste is genuinely good — darker, more intense chocolate flavour than the mainstream options, with the hazelnuts coming through more clearly. The texture is thick and fudgy, which some love and others find slightly heavy. Reviewers consistently note it tastes closer to dark chocolate frosting than classic Nutella, which makes it excellent in some applications (brownies, cakes, dark chocolate-heavy recipes) and less ideal in others.
No sugar alcohols, no palm oil, and no dairy make this a clean option for the health-conscious vegan.
Ingredients: Soluble Corn Fiber, Vegetable Oils (Palm Fruit Oil, Coconut Oil, Cocoa Butter), Roasted Hazelnuts, Cocoa Powder, Sunflower Lecithin, Monk Fruit Extract, Vanilla Beans Vegan Certification: Yes Palm Oil Free: No ❌ (palm fruit oil used) Sugar per serving: 0g added sugar, 1g net carb Where to buy: ChocZero website, Amazon Price: ~$13 for 12 oz
Rating: 7.8/10
7. Fine & Raw Dark Chocolate Hazelnut Butter — Best Artisan Pick
Best for: Those who want a genuinely craft, ethical product with exceptional cocoa quality.
Fine & Raw is a Brooklyn-based chocolate shop, and this shows in the quality of their hazelnut spread. They use ethically sourced cocoa, organic hazelnuts, and whole-ground vanilla — nothing artificial, nothing mass-produced. It's available in Classic and Sugarless formulations.
The flavour is deeply chocolatey in a way that feels distinctly different from anything else on this list — more complex, slightly bitter, clearly made from premium cocoa beans. If you appreciate craft chocolate, this will be immediately noticeable.
The trade-off is price and accessibility. It's harder to find in regular grocery stores and costs more per ounce than the mainstream options. But for a special occasion or as a gift, it's a genuinely impressive product.
Ingredients: Organic Hazelnuts, Organic Dark Chocolate (Organic Cacao, Organic Cane Sugar, Organic Cocoa Butter, Organic Vanilla), Sea Salt Vegan Certification: Yes Palm Oil Free: Yes ✅ Where to buy: Fine & Raw website, select specialty stores Price: ~$16 for 8 oz
Rating: 7.6/10
Here's the comparison section rewritten as prose:
Head-to-Head Comparison
TBH Hazelnut Spread leads the pack with a 9.2 overall rating. It scores a perfect five stars on taste and four on ingredients, is completely palm oil-free, keeps sugar at a reasonable 10g per serving, and costs around $1.10 per ounce — strong value for what you're getting.
Artisana Organics comes in a close second at 9.0. It sacrifices one taste star compared to TBH but earns a perfect five on ingredients — the cleanest label in this entire roundup. Also palm oil-free, with slightly less sugar at 9g per serving, though the premium price of $1.86 per ounce is the highest of any spread we tested.
Nutella Plant-Based sits at 8.5 and matches TBH on taste with five stars, but loses points on ingredients (three stars) due to palm oil and a sugar content of 21g per serving — identical to the classic version. Its saving grace is price: at roughly $0.55 per ounce, it's by far the most affordable option, though currently limited to European markets.
Justin's earns an 8.3, scoring four stars on both taste and ingredients. It uses RSPO-certified palm oil rather than being fully palm oil-free, which earns it a cautionary flag rather than an outright negative. Sugar sits at 12g per serving and it costs $0.90 per ounce — fair pricing for the quality.
Nutiva Organic rounds out the middle of the pack at 8.0, with four stars across both taste and ingredients, no palm oil, and the second-lowest price at $0.70 per ounce. Sugar comes in at 13g per serving — slightly higher than Justin's but within a reasonable range.
ChocZero scores 7.8 and is the outlier in this list. Three stars on taste reflects its different flavour profile — more dark chocolate than classic hazelnut spread — but four stars on ingredients and a remarkable 0g added sugar per serving make it a compelling choice for the health-conscious. It does contain palm oil, and at $1.08 per ounce it's mid-range on price.
Fine & Raw closes the list at 7.6, not because it's a weak product — its ingredient score is a perfect five stars alongside Artisana — but because limited availability and a $2.00 per ounce price tag put it firmly in the artisan/special occasion category. Sugar is the lowest of any spread here at 8g per serving, it's completely palm oil-free, and the taste earns four stars for its genuinely complex, craft-chocolate character.
How to Choose: A Quick Decision Guide
You want the most Nutella-like taste → TBH or Nutella Plant-Based Both nail the taste. TBH wins on ingredients; Nutella Plant-Based wins on nostalgia and accessibility in Europe.
You care most about clean ingredients → Artisana Organics or Fine & Raw Hazelnuts as the first ingredient, organic certified, no palm oil. The premium you pay is worth it if ingredient quality matters to you.
You're on a budget → Nutiva Organic Best cost per ounce without sacrificing ethics or vegan certification. Not the flashiest, but reliable and clean.
You're watching your sugar → ChocZero Nothing else on this list comes close at 0g added sugar. The taste profile is different but genuinely good for the right application.
You're avoiding palm oil entirely → TBH, Artisana, Nutiva, or Fine & Raw Four solid options that are completely palm oil-free without compromising taste.
The Bonus Option: Make Your Own
If you want maximum control over ingredients and don't mind 20 minutes of prep, homemade vegan Nutella is remarkably easy and genuinely better than most store-bought versions.
The basic formula: roasted hazelnuts blended into butter, melted vegan dark chocolate, a pinch of salt, and your sweetener of choice (coconut sugar works beautifully). No palm oil, no preservatives, and you control exactly how sweet or dark you want it.
A batch stores at room temperature for two weeks or in the fridge for a month. It costs a fraction of the premium brands and tastes like something you'd find at a specialty chocolate shop.
What Makes a Hazelnut Spread "Truly Vegan"?
A spread is genuinely vegan when it contains no animal-derived ingredients. For chocolate hazelnut spreads specifically, the main ingredient to watch for is dairy — particularly skimmed milk powder, whole milk powder, or whey, all of which appear in classic Nutella and many mainstream chocolate spreads.
Beyond dairy, check for:
- Vanillin — usually synthetic (vegan), but occasionally derived from castoreum (not vegan). Most brands use synthetic vanillin.
- Lecithin — almost always soy or sunflower in this product category (both vegan).
- Palm oil — technically vegan but ethically contested due to environmental impact. RSPO-certified versions are a middle ground for those who don't want to avoid it entirely.
All seven spreads in this guide are verified clear on the dairy issue. The palm oil question is left to individual choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Nutella vegan? Classic Nutella is not vegan — it contains skimmed milk powder. Nutella Plant-Based, launched in 2024, is certified vegan by the Vegetarian Society. See our full breakdown: Is Nutella Vegan?
Are all chocolate hazelnut spreads dairy-free? No. Many mainstream brands use dairy as a filler or texture agent. Always check the label. Any of the seven spreads in this guide are confirmed dairy-free.
What's the healthiest vegan hazelnut spread? Artisana Organics leads on ingredient quality with hazelnuts as the first ingredient and no palm oil. ChocZero leads on sugar content with 0g added sugar. TBH offers the best combination of taste and improved nutrition (half the sugar of Nutella, three times the protein).
Can I use vegan hazelnut spread for baking? Yes — all the spreads in this guide work well in baking applications like brownies, tarts, croissants, and cakes. Justin's is particularly good for baking due to its silky texture. Avoid ChocZero in recipes requiring caramelization, as monk fruit behaves differently to sugar under heat.
Where can I buy vegan hazelnut spread? TBH, Justin's, and Nutiva are widely available in US grocery stores. Artisana and Fine & Raw are more readily found in health food stores or online. Nutella Plant-Based is currently most accessible in Europe.
Our Final Recommendation
For most people making the switch from Nutella, TBH is the right starting point — great taste, clean ingredients, no palm oil, and widely available. Once you're ready to explore, Artisana Organics opens a different category entirely: a spread that makes you appreciate hazelnuts and chocolate as ingredients in their own right, not just a texture vehicle for sugar.
The vegan spread market has genuinely grown up. You don't have to compromise anymore.
Looking for More Vegan Products?
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