What’s Vegan at Starbucks, Dunkin’, and Other Popular Coffee Chains

For many of us, the day doesn’t truly start until that first sip of coffee. With 75% of American adults drinking coffee—and more than half enjoying it daily—it’s an essential part of modern life. The good news for plant-based coffee lovers? Major coffee chains now offer a growing selection of plant-based beverages and foods, making it easier than ever to grab a dairy-free latte or a quick vegan bite.

While moderate coffee consumption has health benefits, dairy is linked to several health risks, including an increased likelihood of prostate cancer, breast cancer, and diabetes. Fortunately, plant-based milk options—such as oat, almond, coconut, and soy—are widely available, and many coffee chains have even dropped the surcharge for nondairy alternatives.

Beyond beverages, plant-based food options are also on the rise. While fully whole-food, oil-free choices may be limited, those open to some processed options can find an expanding menu of vegan eats, like Peet’s JUST Egg sandwich.

Ready to explore the best plant-based options at your favorite coffee chains? Here’s a guide to what’s vegan at Starbucks, Au Bon Pain, Dunkin’, and more!

Vegan Menu Highlight: The Spicy Falafel Pocket, a new lunch menu item, is a flatbread wrapped around falafel, creamy hummus, roasted red bell peppers, pickled onions, and a spicy herb sauce, and it’s vegan by default; no modifications needed.
Locations: 40,199

Plant-Based Milk Options: Almond, coconut, oat, and soy milk

What to Know: Starbucks plain and everything bagels are vegan and oil-free. (Just be sure to order them without butter or cream cheese.)Beyond the bagels and the above-mentioned Spicy Falafel Pocket, Starbucks is constantly testing its plant-based food items, so the menu has a lot of turnover. That said, the Starbucks drink menu is overflowing with plant-based options. Nearly all specialty drinks can be made vegan upon request, and the drink menu also includes vegan-by-default options, such as the Iced Brown Sugar Oatmilk Shaken Espresso and Brown Sugar Oatmilk Cortado. (Be warned: These drinks are notoriously high in sugar—if you’d prefer to keep things lighter, opt for a drip coffee or an Americano and add your own plant-based milk and sweetener for better control over sugar content.)

Vegan Menu Highlight: The signature Mediterranean Wrap can be made plant-based with one small request: Hold the feta. The wrap offers plenty of staying power without the cheese, featuring hummus, fresh avocado, kalamata olives, tomatoes, red bell peppers, cucumbers, romaine, field greens, and lemon vinaigrette in a whole wheat wrap.
Locations: 250+

Plant-Based Milk Options: Soy milk and almond milk

What to Know: Although the food menu is vegetarian-friendly, there’s a lot of dairy to watch out for at Au Bon Pain. For instance, the black bean burger is made with dairy products, However, many of the breads and soups are vegan. The 12-Veggies Soup is one to try. Additionally, you can grab any of your favorite lattes and mochas with plant-based milk.

Vegan Menu Highlight: You can’t go wrong with the Avocado Toast—toasted sourdough slathered with a simple oil-free spread (avocado, sea salt, black pepper, and lemon juice) and sprinkled with everything bagel seasoning.

Plant-Based Milk Options: Almond milk and oat milk

What to Know: Dunkin’s everything, plain, and sesame seed bagels are vegan and oil-free. Pro tip: Order the avocado spread for a creamy dairy-free bagel topping. (The avocado spread is oil-free, too.)

Vegan Menu Highlight: The Everything Plant-Based Sandwich is a standout veg option among all the chains. This sandwich takes the traditional breakfast sandwich and replaces each standard ingredient with a plant-based alternative, with Impossible Sausages stacked with fluffy JUST Egg and melty vegan cheddar.
Locations: 286

Plant-Based Milk Options: Oat milk, almond milk, or soy milk

What to Know: Peet’s Coffee has a rotating menu of specialty plant-based coffee drinks.

Vegan Menu Highlight: Blue Bottle has two notable options for vegan noshing: The Avocado Toast, which is served on multigrain bread and sprinkled with crushed red pepper, and the Chia Overnight Oats, which feature chia seeds, dried blueberries, sour cherries, pomegranate molasses, oats, and oat milk for a creamy grab-and-go breakfast.
Locations: 78

Plant-Based Milk Options: Almond and oat milk

What to Know: In July 2023, Blue Bottle made oat milk the company’s default across its locations in the United States. With this, it is de facto the most plant-based-friendly coffee chain on the market. So, stop by and show your support!

Menu Highlight: The Falafel & Hummus Wrap is a reliable go-to is packed with turmeric-spiced falafel, roasted red pepper hummus, cucumber, pickled cabbage and carrots, pickled jalapeño, and romaine in a 7-grain wrap.
Locations: 697

Plant-Based Milk Options: Soy milk, coconut milk, oat milk, and almond milk

What to Know: Pret a Manger’s U.S. locations are stacked with some of the industry’s best plant-based meals, including the Mediterranean Mezze Salad with Pret’s Simple Vinaigrette (which is essentially the above-mentioned falafel wrap deconstructed over young salad greens).