Miyoko's European Style is the only cultured vegan butter on the market, and that fermentation is the difference. Founder Miyoko Schinner applies traditional European butter-making techniques to organic cashew milk, producing a tanginess and depth that oil-based competitors simply cannot replicate. Tasting Table ranked it #1 of 12 vegan butters, calling it the "perfect balance of salt and bitterness" with the lowest sodium on their list (65mg per serving). Powers of 10's professional baker scored it 9.4/10 after three months of testing, noting "authentic browning properties" and "excellent structure during creaming." VegNews readers voted it Best Butter 2025 for the second consecutive year.
The blind test results tell the real story. Powers of 10 served cookies made with Miyoko's to 10 non-vegan tasters, and 7 of them couldn't distinguish the batch from dairy-butter cookies. No other vegan butter tested came close to that result.
The stick format makes it a genuine 1:1 substitute for dairy butter sticks in baking. It browns like real butter (actually faster, so watch your timers). Organic certified, no palm oil, short ingredient list: coconut oil, cultured cashew milk, sunflower oil, sunflower lecithin, sea salt.
What It Won't Do
Price is the obvious issue. At roughly $0.81 per ounce, Miyoko's costs nearly four times what Country Crock charges per ounce. The cashew base means anyone with tree nut allergies is out. Distribution has improved (Target and some Walmarts now carry it), but it's still harder to find than mainstream brands. The 2-week open shelf life is shorter than oil-based competitors that last for weeks.
Country Crock's olive oil plant butter earned a perfect 10/10 from Sporked, the only vegan butter in their roundup to hit that score. Reviewer Danny Palumbo called it "pure decadence," noting the olive oil base adds a bitterness and depth that standard vegetable-oil margarines lack. He liked it so much he took it home and cooked eggs in it all week.
Make It Dairy Free chose Country Crock as their overall winner across a 5-brand head-to-head, citing cost, taste, and ease of use. Powers of 10's baker scored the stick format at 9.6/10, noting it "performs equivalently to dairy butter sticks" in baking with precise measurements.
The value math is straightforward: $3.49 for 16 ounces (four sticks) versus $6.49 for 8 ounces of Miyoko's. That's $0.22/oz compared to $0.81/oz. You get nearly four times the butter per dollar. And Country Crock is stocked at Walmart, Target, Kroger, Albertsons, Publix, and basically every grocery chain in the country.
What It Won't Do
Tasting Table ranked the olive oil version #10 of 12, describing a "waxy" texture with a "cardboard-like aftertaste." That's a harsh contrast to Sporked's perfect score, and it highlights Country Crock's biggest weakness: it's polarizing. The olive oil flavor reads as rich and savory to some palates and artificial to others. The ingredient list includes palm fruit oil and palm kernel oil, which matters to buyers who avoid palm for environmental reasons. It's not organic and has more processed ingredients than premium competitors.
Who Should Buy Which
Miyoko's Creamery European Style Cultured Vegan Butter
Cultured cashew butter that fools non-vegans in blind tests
- You bake regularly and want results indistinguishable from dairy butter, especially for pastries, shortbread, and buttercream
- You care about fermentation, organic certification, and a short ingredient list you can pronounce
- You're hosting mixed vegan/non-vegan dinners and want butter that won't draw attention to itself
- You have access to Whole Foods, Target, or Sprouts for regular shopping
- You eat butter as a spread and want something with genuine depth, not just salt and fat
Country Crock Plant Butter with Olive Oil
Olive oil depth at a third the price per ounce
- You go through butter weekly for cooking, toast, and everyday meals, and price per ounce matters
- You need stick format for precise baking measurements without the premium price
- You shop at mainstream grocery chains and want something consistently in stock
- You're transitioning from dairy butter and want the easiest switch with minimal flavor adjustment
- You cook with butter often (eggs, sauces, sauteing) and the olive oil depth is a feature, not a bug