Every Flavor Of Ben And Jerry's Non-Dairy Pints Ranked
We may receive a commission on purchases made from links.
Ben and Jerry's might just be one of the most quintessential ice cream brands in existence. The company began with two guys selling ice cream in a renovated gas station in Burlington, Vermont in 1978. They had learned how to make the sweet stuff through a correspondence course, and they were ready to take on the world. Over the years, they grew into one of the most popular and well-known ice cream names on the grocery store shelves.
Vegan fans and lactose intolerant lovers of the brand started feeling left out, however, due to their inability to savor classic Ben and Jerry's flavors like Phish Food and Cherry Garcia. In 2014, loyal customers started a petition requesting Ben and Jerry's expand into non-dairy ice cream offerings. Thus asked, Ben and Jerry's delivered. In 2016, Ben and Jerry's first non-dairy flavors were announced: Chocolate Fudge Brownie, Chunky Monkey, Coffee Caramel Fudge, and P.B. & Cookies. Some of the first flavors eventually retired, but new varieties quickly took their places. The brand's non-dairy ice cream line-up now includes 19 different delicious flavors. But which stand head and shoulders above the rest? We're here to find out, by ranking them from worst to best. Grab your spoon and dive in.
19. Boom Chocolatta!
It may seem a bit odd for the bottom flavor on this list be a chocolate-centric one. After all, who could say anything bad about chocolate? We wanted to like this flavor, with its duo of mocha and caramel non-dairy ice cream, sprinkled with chocolate chunks and gluten-free chocolate cookies. Boom Chocolatta! is also one of the brand's Core Concoction flavors, meaning it has a solid center made up of a moist chocolate cookie.
All of this sounds delicious, but the core is somewhat confusing and disappointing. The texture is just off, which kind of ruins the whole experience. Sure, you can eat around it, but who wants to go to all that effort? This flavor gets points for being entirely gluten-free, but reviews on their website agree that it's pretty lackluster. Some customers even compare the core to the flavor of a popsicle stick or chocolatey sand. Luckily, there are plenty more Ben and Jerry's non-dairy ice cream options to choose from, so you don't have to tolerate a wooden-flavored center.
18. Bananas Foster
Bananas Foster is another one of Ben and Jerry's Core Concoction ice creams, with a salted caramel core surrounded by banana and cinnamon non-dairy ice cream, dusted with almond toffee flakes. This flavor is a recent addition, and a uniquely vegan one without a non-vegan counterpart.
Sadly, this ice cream is unbearably sweet. This might sound like a silly flaw to cite in ice cream, until you take a bite of this flavor and see what we mean. Bananas Foster also loses a few points because it's not completely allergen-free. While it doesn't contain gluten or dairy, it does carry nuts, much to the dismay of several disappointed customers who left complaints about this fact on the Ben and Jerry's website. If you really like sugar and bananas, you might like this flavor. Otherwise, steer clear.
17. Cherry Garcia
Cherry Garcia, one of Ben and Jerry's most well-known flavors, is a nod to musician Jerry Garcia. The dairy-free version is packed with chunks of cherries and chocolate, but unlike the original flavor, this one boasts an almond milk base. If you love cherries, then you will love this flavor. But if you're not a cherry fan, well, you might want to skip it. Some customers also complain that this ice cream flavor is closer to almonds than cherries. Our favorite customer comment: "IF MARSHMALLOWS COULD VOMIT, IT WOULD BE THIS. THE BASE HAS A CHUNKY GLUEY TEXTURE THAT IS SICKLY SWEET. THERE IS NO CHERRY FLAVOR TO THIS." Noted.
16. Oatmeal Dream Pie
Of all the non-dairy ice creams on the Ben and Jerry's website, Oatmeal Dream Pie is one of the lowest rated. It's one of their newer flavors, so maybe the ratings will go up over time. But right now, the dissatisfaction is clear. This ice cream is meant to taste like oatmeal cookies, and contains swirls of marshmallows and cookie chunks. With a sunflower milk base, Oatmeal Dream Pie gets points for being both gluten-free and nut-free. However, it does contain soy, a common allergen.
While the flavor isn't half-bad, this ice cream tastes like it's trying really hard to be a different version of Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. But it will never, ever be Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough. Oatmeal cookies are fine, but chocolate chip cookies? Way better. For this reason, Oatmeal Dream Pie is close to the bottom of the list.
15. Peanut Butter Half Baked
While we love peanut butter ice cream, Peanut Butter Half Baked might have too many moving parts. It contains both chocolate and vanilla ice cream, hints of peanut butter flavor, chocolate brownies, and peanut butter cookie dough. The balance is inevitably off: Some bites are all frozen brownie, while other bites are a decent mixture of elements. The flavor is alright, but the texture sometimes comes off as gritty or chalky.
Peanut Butter Half Baked also contains many common allergens, including gluten, soy, nuts, and coconut. Moreover, with peanut butter in the name, we were hoping for more of a peanut butter-heavy experience. But in fact, we were left wondering where it was. We wish that this ice cream would just pick a side — either become full-blown peanut butter, or stick with Half Baked. Trying to do both is a recipe for disappointment.
14. Mint Chocolate Chance
Mint Chocolate Chance was created in honor of Chance the Rapper, who's a big fan of mint chocolate chip and homemade fudge brownies. Chance's surprised face is plastered across this pint, which leaves us wondering if this is the look he makes after taking a bite of this confusing flavor.
Mint Chocolate Chance winds up in the middle of our list for a few reasons. Notably, it gets pretty decent reviews. Some reviewers claim that this is the best mint chocolate ice cream they've ever had, and that the brownies are a nice addition. If you like that classic flavor, then you'll probably dig Mint Chocolate Chance. But if you don't, you should pick something else for dessert. One discouraged customer commented, "Gave it a chance, was not good." Others mention a toothpaste-y quality to the flavor.
13. Phish Food
Ben and Jerry's non-dairy Phish Food is a spin on one of their most classic original flavors, boasting a decadent mixture of ooey-gooey marshmallows, caramel swirls, and fish-shaped chunks of chocolate in a chocolate non-dairy ice cream. Phish Food is named after Vermont jam band Phish, who actually helped create this flavor. Notably, a portion of sales go to the band's charitable WaterWheel Foundation.
This flavor gets rave reviews on the Ben and Jerry's website, with customers saying that it makes their day, is their favorite ice cream, and is otherwise simply perfect. So why isn't it higher on our list? Because of one complaint: The vegan caramel swirl doesn't really taste like caramel. Instead, it comes off as an overly sweet simple syrup. If you can get past that, though, this is a solid flavor.
12. Mint Chocolate Cookie
Mint Chocolate Cookie and Mint Chocolate Chance have a lot in common. They both have a sunflower butter base, which is great for people who have relevant allergies or just aren't a big fan of almond milk ice cream. But instead of housing brownies, Mint Chocolate Cookie takes classic mint chocolate chip ice cream and adds yummy Oreo-like cookies inside (which means this flavor is sadly not gluten-free).
The cookies are definitely a step up compared to the brownies and add great texture to the ice cream experience. Mint ice cream and cookies and cream play well together. The potency of flavor is good — the mint isn't too strong or too weak. We also love that the ice cream isn't pumped with green dye, like typical mint chocolate ice cream. All in all, it's a solid experience.
11. Chocolate Fudge Brownie
You can't really go wrong with Chocolate Fudge Brownie ice cream. This rich, creamy non-dairy version is made up of chocolate ice cream and the standard fudgy brownies. The only downside to this flavor is that the addition of brownies means it's not gluten-free. But if this doesn't bother you, you're in for a treat. Most of the flavor's single star reviews are people bummed that there weren't enough brownie bits in their pints, but they're the unlucky minority.
This flavor is a popular one, with almost 200 reviews on the Ben and Jerry's website. One happy customer reports, "My favorite flavor ... perfect for a chocolate fix." Another shared that this ice cream is their anti-depressant. One lover impressively stated, "Not a vegan but I love this." They went on to reveal that they like this dairy-free version more than the original. Now that's saying something.
10. Karamel Sutra Core
The final contender in the Ben and Jerry's Core Concoctions category, Karamel Sutra Core easily tops the other two. It also compares nicely to the original dairy version. First off, Karamel Sutra Core is a trifecta of chocolate, vanilla, and caramel. Both the chocolate and caramel ice cream contain chocolate flakes, and the core is a gooey column of caramel. Talk about mouth-watering. Bonus points: This flavor is gluten-free.
The delicious core makes every bite of this ice cream into a slightly different and always tasty adventure. Notably, there's not a single one-star rating on the website. In fact, there are only four and five-star scores, with satisfied customers saying this is the best vegan ice cream they've ever had and calling it a win for vegans everywhere. We couldn't agree more.
9. Coconut Seven Layer Bar
The only reason that Coconut Seven Layer Bar isn't closer to the top is because not everyone likes coconut. If you're adverse to the tropical fruit, do yourself a favor and don't buy this. However, if you're even merely indifferent to coconut, you're going to like this ice cream. This frozen treat is packed with chocolate chunks, crunchy walnuts, swirls of caramel, and graham cracker cookies, in addition to the classic coconut.
Out of almost 200 reviews on the Ben and Jerry's website, this flavor gets almost 5 stars. Many customers call it their favorite ice cream, hands down. One happy buyer said, "This is so good, there's really no need to bother the dairy cows any more." It's hard to find something bad to say about this ice cream flavor, except that it's sadly not gluten-free or nut-free.
8. Lights! Caramel! Action!
What can we say — we love caramel. This creamy vanilla non-dairy ice cream is littered with some of our favorite things: salted swirls of caramel, graham cracker cookies, and chocolate chip cookie dough. Lights! Caramel! Action! is a collaboration with award-winning director Ava DuVernay; A portion of proceeds go to DuVernay's ARRAY Alliance, a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting social justice in the arts.
Lights! Caramel! Action! is one of the newest Ben and Jerry's non-dairy flavors and one of the best. While it's not gluten-free or nut-free, it's surely flavorful. The sweetness of the caramel pairs nicely with the crunch of the graham cracker cookies. And really, who doesn't like chocolate chip cookie dough? It's a match made in heaven.
7. Colin Kaepernick's Change the Whirled
More caramel, please! That's what we thought when we took our first bites of this flavor. Colin Kaepernick's Change the Whirled is another collaboration pint, with — you guessed it – Colin Kaepernick. This ice cream is the epitome of something that tastes good and does good. Its caramel-flavored vegan ice cream is studded with fudge chocolate chunks and swirls of both graham crackers and chocolate cookies. The flavors mix well, making this pint a tasty dream come true. Plus, a portion of sales supports Know Your Rights Camp, an organization which works to support Black and brown communities.
With almost 100 reviews on the Ben and Jerry's website, this flavor boasts a strong average rating. The website is littered with comments hailing this ice cream as a delectable treat. One pleased purchaser summed things up by saying, "It tastes so good that I had to triple check to make sure it was dairy free!"
6. Milk & Cookies
This ice cream has all the cookies. Specifically, Milk & Cookies consists of vanilla ice cream with swirls of chocolate cookies and chunks of both chocolate chip cookies and Oreo-style chocolate sandwich cookies. They really don't skimp on the baked goods here, and we couldn't be happier about it. This is another one of the vegan flavors with a sunflower butter base, meaning it's nut-free, but not gluten-free.
The flavor's web page is chock-full of rave reviews. As one reviewer put it, "I can't even tell it doesn't have dairy." Considering half of the pint's name is "milk," this is seriously high praise. Another customer shared that their long search for excellent non-dairy ice cream is over — the flavor, texture, and creaminess of this treat are the closest to full dairy ice cream they've ever found.
5. Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough is one of our all-time favorite flavors, and Ben and Jerry's vegan version doesn't disappoint. This ice cream is what you'd expect: vanilla ice cream packed with chunks of chocolate chip cookie dough and flakes of chocolate fudge. The frozen base melts in your mouth, and the cookie dough is almost too good. Our only complaint, in fact, is that we want more cookie dough.
You know something non-dairy is good when both vegans and non-vegans alike enjoy it, and that's the case with this ice cream flavor. One happy customer reported, "I'm not vegan either and I'm utterly impressed." That's a win. But it doesn't trump our favorite review: "Let me tell you, I went weak in the knees and almost hit the floor the second the taste hit me. At the time of writing this review, I ate it five hours ago and I STILL want to cry because of how dang GOOD it was! It took every molecule of self control I had to not to grab the pint and eat the whole thing at once!" If an ice cream can induce that kind of emotion, it has to be good.
4. Americone Dream
This ice cream is a collaboration with Stephen Colbert, and comes in both dairy and non-dairy versions. The non-dairy Americone Dream boasts a vanilla almond milk base, with chunks of chocolate-covered waffle cone and a rich caramel swirl. It has the perfect amount of sweetness, and the waffle cone pieces add a nice little crunch. Almost everyone loves this flavor; as one Target customer put it, "It's the perfect combination of sweet, salty, and crunchy." This ice cream doesn't just taste good — it makes you feel good, too. A portion of sales go towards The Stephen Colbert Americone Dream Fund, which supports veterans, disadvantaged children, and environmental causes.
3. Netflix & Chilll'd
Who doesn't enjoy a good Netflix and chill night? Well, now you have the perfect ice cream to go with it. Non-dairy Netflix & Chilll'd is a delicious combination of peanut butter ice cream with fudge chocolate brownie chunks and sweet and salty pretzel bits. Whoever had the grand idea of adding pretzels to ice cream needs an award. Unfortunately, this keeps Netflix & Chilll'd from being gluten-free.
It's hard to find a bad review of this flavor: Everyone loves pretzels, peanut butter, and chocolate smashed together. You really can't go wrong with that combo, and this pint is proof. The only complaint we could track down are a few people saying they should really consider making these in bigger containers. We agree — please and thank you!
2. P.B. & Cookies
This ice cream contains all of our favorite things rolled into one: peanut butter, chocolate, and cookie chunks. Non-dairy P.B. & Cookies consists of vanilla ice cream sprinkled with Oreo-like chocolate sandwich cookies and crunchy peanut butter swirls. The flavors mingle marvelously, and the texture is perfect — it's a flawless balance of sweet and salty, as well as creamy and chewy.
Out of hundreds of ratings on the Target website, this ice cream gets darn close to five stars. Many reviewers share that they can't even tell this version is vegan, and almost every comment states that this is their all-time favorite ice cream out there. One obsessed customer said, "If they ever discontinue this I will be hoarding it." You've been warned — stock up your freezer now, just in case.
1. The Tonight Dough
Coming in at number one is The Tonight Dough, a creamy combo of caramel and chocolate ice cream with bits of chocolate cookies, chocolate chip cookie dough, and peanut butter cookie dough. What could be better than cookie dough? Two types of cookie dough. A play on words and tribute to The Tonight Show starring Jimmy Fallon, sales of this flavor go towards a good cause: The SeriousFun Children's Network, which supports camps for kids living with serious illness.
What do online reviewers have to say about The Tonight Dough? Nothing but luminous praise. One ardent customer put it best, saying, " I could get hit by a car and get called ugly by my best friend and be disowned by my family and this ice cream would make me feel better. I am so grateful to be living in a time where this ice cream exists, otherwise I would never get to truly know what good ice cream is." Does it measure up to this review? Yes — it really is that good. A perfect symphony of flavor and texture, The Tonight Dough must be tasted to be believed.