As far as breakfast goes, sometimes the simpler, the better. Maybe that’s why we’ve always had an affinity for a big bowl of cereal. Not to knock more complex morning meals, but cereal’s two-step preparation means we get to spend more time sleeping—or actually following through on our promise to stretch each morning.
While cereal might seem like a food that’s vegan by default, a handful of common ingredients say otherwise. The main thing to watch for is milk or whey protein, which will be listed in the allergens section. But there are a few other ingredients—like gelatin, honey, and even vitamin D3 (often derived from sheep’s lanolin)—that you’ll want to scan the full ingredients list for.
Vitamin D3 shows up in many mainstream cereals that would otherwise be vegan, such as Trix, Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and Chex. Some vegans avoid cereals made with vitamin D3, while others—especially if D3-free options aren’t available—choose them because they don’t contain ingredients like milk. The choice is yours.
The good news: plenty of 100 percent vegan options can be found in most major grocery stores. Here are some vegan-friendly cereal brands and picks—split into categories like best organic, best for protein, best for kids, and best for fiber—that have us reaching for a second bowl.
Best organic vegan cereals
Cascadian Farms
1 Cascadian Farm
Many of Cascadian Farm’s cereals feel like organic, vegan takes on classics from the big-name breakfast brands. Graham Crunch calls to mind Golden Grahams, Cinnamon Crunch is an arguably healthier spin on Cinnamon Toast Crunch, and the Raisin Bran is, well, just like Raisin Bran—but organic.
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One Degree Organic Foods
2 One Degree Organic Foods
This organic brand makes its cereals with sprouted grains or whole-grain seeds that have begun to sprout. The main benefit of sprouted grains is that they contain a higher percentage of nutrients. One Degree’s vegan cereal options include the Sprouted Brown Rice Cacao Crisps and the Sprouted Brown Rice Crisps.
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Whole Foods
3 Whole Foods 365
Whole Foods’ 365 brand offers 100-percent plant-based and organic cereals. It’s also easy to find out which ones are vegan on the Whole Foods website, which is a plus in our books. Some of the vegan-friendly 365 kinds of cereal include the Morning O’s, Brown Rice Crisps, Frosted Flakes, and the Crunchy Cinnamon Squares.
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Best vegan protein-packed cereals
4 Three Wishes
If you’re in need of a gluten-free, grain-free cereal with added protein, Three Wishes is your guy. These chickpea flour and pea protein-based O’s come in several vegan flavors, including Strawberry, Cinnamon, Frosted, Cocoa, and even Marshmallow. At no more than three grams of sugar per serving, thanks to monk fruit, it’s also not overly sweet.
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Catalina Crunch
5 Catalina Crunch
This high-protein (11 grams per serving!), high-fiber cereal is perfect for eaters trying to follow a vegan and keto diet. There might not be any sugar in these crunchy bites, but nostalgic flavor still abounds. Maple Waffle, Dark Chocolate, and Cinnamon Toast … the options abound.
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6 Seven Sundays
Seven Sundays Oat Protein cereals pack five grams of plant-based protein per serving, thanks to upcycled oat protein. They’re sweetened with simple, natural ingredients like maple syrup and fruit juices. We also love the brand’s sunflower cereal range, made with upcycled sunflower seeds and available in flavors like Real Berry, Real Cocoa, and Maple Sea Salt.
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Love Grown
7 Love Grown
If you want to boost your fiber and protein intake first thing in the day, Love Grown is a great choice. The plant-based cereal brand offers several nutrient-dense options, including its Original Power O’s, which contain seven grams of plant protein, five grams of fiber, and zero sugar.
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Best vegan cereals for kids
Nature’s Path
8 Nature’s Path
We love it when a brand clearly labels the vegan options on its website, and Nature’s Path happens to have quite a lot of them. This organic brand can be found practically anywhere, from your local crunchy granola health food store to mainstream supermarkets. The vegan options include EnviroKidz Gorilla Munch Corn Puffs, Mesa Sunrise, Maple Sunrise, Millet Rice, and EnviroKidz Choco Chimps.
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Quaker Oats Company
9 Cap’n Crunch
Depending on your personal stance on vitamin D3, it can be a problem ingredient in many cartoon character-fronted kinds of cereal. But not here. All of the Cap’n Crunch cereals are vegan-friendly, including the Classic, Peanut Butter, Berries, and Oops! All Berries. This also extends to the Mega Berries Snack Pouches.
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10Barbara’s
This popular brand has plenty of vegan options. These include most of the flavors from the “Puffins” range, including Peanut Butter and Cinnamon. Multigrain Spoonfuls and Morning Oat Crunch are also plant-based.
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Trader Joe’s
11 Trader Joe’s
Trader Joe’s sells plenty of breakfast cereals under its private label brand. Some of the vegan-friendly TJ’s cereals include Pumpkin O’s and Tiny Fruity Cuties, which is a cute, colorful option for kiddos. Check out our guide to plant-based food at Trader Joe’s for even more animal-free options.
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Quaker Oats Company
12 Quaker Life
Quaker Life cereal—made with whole grain oat flour, corn flour, whole wheat flour, and sugar—is a simple, familiar favorite, perfect for fussy eaters. Don’t sweat the potentially unfamiliar ingredients, like calcium carbonate, disodium phosphate, niacinamide, and folic acid. These are all added vitamins and minerals. And, if you’re not sure what annatto is, it’s a natural food coloring derived from the red seeds of the tropical achiote tree.
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Best fiber-rich cereals
Purely Elizabeth
13 Purely Elizabeth
Each box of this healthful brand’s cereal combines crispy oat and ancient grain flakes with crunchy superfood clusters, dried blueberries, and almonds for an irresistible taste and texture. Plus, they’re a good source of fiber, with around four grams per serving. We love pairing this blueberry-oat varietal with vegan yogurt and berries.
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14 Kashi
Kashi may be known for using the occasional honey and glycerin in its cereals and granolas, but it has vegan options aplenty. You’ve got your pick of flavors like Cinnamon Harvest, Peanut Butter Crunch, Island Vanilla, and more. Kashi is an excellent choice if you’re trying to increase your fiber intake. Peanut Butter Crunch, for example, boasts 10 grams per serving.
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Grape-Nuts
15Grape-Nuts
Grape-Nuts Original Cereal is a classic—the perfect super-crunchy, plant-based blank canvas for your favorite fruits and dairy-free milk. It also delivers a solid nutritional boost: made with 52 percent whole grains and offering seven grams of fiber per serving.
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For more vegan grocery guides, read:
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Kat Smith is a Queens, NY-based freelance writer and editor who loves cooking and discovering local vegan hidden gems.
Here at VegNews, we live and breathe the plant-based lifestyle, and only recommend products we feel make our lives amazing. Occasionally, articles may include links where we might earn a small commission, but in no way does this effect the editorial integrity of VegNews.
