You know the slogan well: America runs on Dunkin’. One of the most popular donut and coffee chains in the US, Dunkin’ Donuts is famous for their MUNCHKINS® – they may not have invented the donut hole, but they definitely made it a thing. And with celebs like Ben Affleck and Charli D’Amelio proving that they, too, run on Dunkin’, the donut shop has only grown in popularity in recent years.
Dunkin’ has long been a great spot for a quick and easy breakfast, with over 50 varieties of donuts and an extensive menu of coffee, snacks, sandwiches and more that rivals coffee giant Starbucks. We know they’ve got variety – so how much of it is vegan-friendly, and what are the best menu options at Dunkin’ Donuts if you follow a vegan (or vegetarian) diet?
We’ll break the bad news to you right away: you won’t find a donut on this list. But the good news is that outside of those doughy sweets, there are over 20 regular menu items that are vegan, and many more that you can easily vegan-ize with non-dairy substitutions. Here’s everything you need to know.
Vegan food items available on the Dunkin’ Donuts menu
Unfortunately, none of the tasty donuts at Dunkin’ are vegan because they’re currently all made with L-Cysteine, an animal-derived amino acid that’s often used as dough conditioner. But if you’re vegan, you do have a few options on the menu as far as ordering a hot meal at Dunkin’ Donuts.
Below are the vegan breakfast, lunch, and snack items available on the current Dunkin’ Donuts menu. Note that some items may be limited or only available in certain locations.
| Vegan Bakery + Breakfast Items |
| Bagels -Cinnamon Raisin, Plain, Sesame, Everything, Multigrain English Muffin Oatmeal* |
| Vegan Snacks + Sides |
| Hash Browns Avocado Toast* Avocado + Roasted Tomato Toast* Avocado Spread |
Dunkin’ Donuts coffee, tea, and specialty drinks that are vegan as is
The drinks category at Dunkin’ offers more vegan-friendly options, since most items that come without milk or cream are typically vegan. That includes any tea or black coffee, several flavored options, and many other specialty drinks on the menu.
Here’s a definitive list of all go-to hot and cold drinks that you’ll regularly find on the Dunkin’ Donuts menu, which are vegan when ordered on their own.
| Vegan Hot Drinks | Varieties |
| Hot Coffee Blends | Original Blend, Dark Roast (Dunkin’ Midnight), Dunkin’ Decaf |
| Americano | |
| Espresso | |
| Mocha Swirl Hot Coffee | |
| Vanilla Almondmilk Latte* | |
| Hot Tea | Bold Breakfast Black Tea, Chamomile Fields Herbal Infusion, Cool Mint Herbal Infusion, Harmony Leaf Green Tea Hibiscus Kiss Herbal Infusion, Decaf Breakfast Black Tea |
| Vegan Cold Drinks | Varieties |
| Iced Coffee | |
| Cold Brew | Black, Coconut Almondmilk*, Toasted Almond |
| Iced Americano | |
| Mocha Swirl Iced Coffee | |
| Vanilla Almondmilk Iced Latte* | |
| Iced Tea | Black Tea, Green Tea, Blueberry Flavored, Raspberry Flavored |
| Almondmilk Iced Matcha Latte | |
| Coolatta® | Strawberry, Blue Raspberry |
| Dunkin’ Energy Punch* | Strawberry, Blue Raspberry |
| Dunkin’ Refreshers | Mango Pineapple*, Peach Passionfruit, Peach Passionfruit Lemonade, Strawberry Dragonfruit, Strawberry Dragonfruit Lemonade |
| Dunkin’ Coconut Refreshers | Mango Pineapple*, Peach Passionfruit, Strawberry Dragonfruit |
Modifying Dunkin’ Donuts drinks to be vegan
Aside from the drinks that are already vegan when ordered as is, there are plenty more menu items that you customize to be vegan-friendly with simple adjustments or swaps. The easiest and most obvious way to do this is to substitute a non-dairy milk alternative when ordering any of Dunkin’ Donuts’ drinks that contain dairy.
That means that all unflavored lattes, cappuccinos, macchiatos, and frozen coffees on the Dunkin’ menu can be easily modified to be vegan. For anything that comes with whipped cream, sweet cream, or cold foam, simply remove it; for anything that’s made with dairy milk, you can easily swap it out for one of their available non-dairy substitutes:
- Coconut milk
- Almond milk
- Oat milk
When it comes to flavored drinks, modifying can be a bit trickier – but you just have to know which flavors to stick to and which ones contain dairy. Luckily, a lot of Dunkin’s syrups and add-ins are naturally vegan, which means a lot of their flavored drinks are safe to modify.
One important thing to note is the difference between Dunkin’ Donuts flavor shots and swirls. Flavor shots are sugar-free syrups or natural flavors, all of which are dairy-free. Flavor swirls, on the other hand, are sweetened, creamy add-ins – most of which contain dairy (and most of Dunkin’s seasonal drinks contain swirls, which is why you won’t see most of those in this run-down). So be sure to double check whether the drink is made with a swirl or a flavor shot, and when in doubt, sub in a flavor shot.
We’ve compiled a cheat sheet of the vegan-friendly syrups and sweeteners available so you know what’s safe to swap in. From there, many more possibilities open up for you to customize a drink to your liking!
| Vegan Flavor Shots |
| Vanilla Caramel Caramel Chocolate* Chai Tea Hazelnut Toasted Almond Blueberry Raspberry Coconut Brown Sugar Cookie* Brown Sugar Cinnamon* |
| Vegan Flavor Swirls |
| Mocha Swirl |
| Other Vegan Bases or Add-Ins |
| Matcha Blend Chai Base Liquid Cane Sugar Cocoa Caramel Sprinkles |
No, Dunkin’ Donuts does not currently offer any vegan donuts – this is because their dough contains the animal-derived amino acid L-Cysteine. However, the CEO of the company has stated that they are looking into a viable vegan donut recipe.
Dunkin’ Donuts offers almond milk, coconut milk, and oat milk as non-dairy milk alternatives. All of these options are vegan, and can be used as a substitute for most drink orders.
Currently, none of Dunkin’ Donuts seasonal drinks (such as the Pumpkin Spice Signature Latte or the Brown Butter Toffee Latte) are vegan. This is because, by nature, most seasonal drinks are made with one or more of the following ingredients: milk, cream, whipped cream, sweet cream, cold foam, and/or flavor swirls – all of which contain dairy. Several seasonal drinks can be easily modified to be vegan, but to be safe, assume that anything seasonal is not vegan as is.
The flavor shots at Dunkin’ Donuts are all non-dairy, unsweetened flavors or syrups that can be added to any drink. The flavor swirls are creamy, sweetened syrups or sauces that almost always contain dairy (with the exception of the Mocha Swirl).
Yes, it can be! The chai base that Dunkin’ Donuts uses is vegan, since it doesn’t contain honey (which you may find in most chai blends). The Chai Tea Latte is served with cow’s milk, but can be substituted for a non-dairy alternative to make the drink vegan.
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