The Best Oat Milk To Use In Lattes, Iced Coffee, Baking, & More

Are you searching for the best oat milk to use in your coffee or recipes? There are a lot of choices on the market these days, but which one should you buy? With all the different editions, flavors, and brands, it’s hard to know where to start.  

Below we break down the best oat milk brands to use in hot and cold coffee drinks and what to look for to cook and bake with oat milk. Our favorite oat milk brand for coffee drinks is Chobani, our favorite oat milk flavor for cereal is vanilla, and the BEST oat milk flavor is Maple Oat Milk, seasonally available at Trader Joe’s. 

Check out our guide below for the best oat milks available today. We’ll tell you what to look for when shopping and share our top picks.

Best Oat Milk For Lattes

Finding your favorite oat milk to use in lattes may require a few taste tests because everyone’s preferences are different, but here are a few tips that might help you narrow your search. 

One of the essential factors to consider when choosing oat milk for lattes is what is the most important to you. The flavor or the consistency? You can easily find a more mild flavored oat milk to let the coffee shine through, but you likely won’t get maximum froth. Or, if you are a fan of latte art, you may choose an oat milk with a heavier oat taste but foams really well. 

Many oat milk brands offer special barista edition oat milk. The vital thing to know here is that regular oat milk is simply made from oats and water, which naturally has a very watery consistency. To make oat milk more suitable for coffee drinks, many manufacturers add oils and stabilizers to create consistency and frothability, similar to dairy milk. They call these a barista oat milk or extra creamy oat milk. This has delighted many coffee connoisseurs; just be aware that your oat milk may contain some additional ingredients. 

With That In Mind, Here Are Our Top Picks For Lattes:

Chobani

Froths well, doesn’t separate, and is capable of good latte art. You can expect a mild flavor that goes great with coffee and matcha drinks. Chobani can be a little more expensive than Oatly or Pacific Foods, but check the prices at your local grocery store and what is available on amazon. 

Recommended:

• Chobani Extra Creamy Edition
• Chobani Barista Edition

Califa

Tastes nice in hot coffee and lattes. The texture is smooth and creamy; the flavor does not overpower the coffee. 

Recommended:

• Califa Barista Blend

Happy Planet Oat Milk

A delicious oat milk, many say the flavor is superior to Oatly when heated because it has less of an oat taste while still adding a creamy neutral flavor. It froths very well and is creamy and delicious. You can also buy in bulk and store this oat milk in your pantry (it does not need to be refrigerated before opening), so you will always have oat milk on hand. 

Recommended:

• Happy Planet Barista Edition

Oatly

Oatly is worth a call out since it is one of the most known oat milk brands. The barista edition is suitable for latte art, but it does have a strong oat taste when heated, so if the flavor is important to you, try one of the other brands! 

Best Oat Milk For Iced Coffee & Cold Brew

We made a separate recommendation list for cold coffee drinks because oat milk will taste different in your coffee drink based on the temperature. 

Here are our top picks for iced coffee and cold brew:

Chobani

The best oat milk for cold brew. Plus, it freezes well, so you can add it as ice cubes to not water down the coffee. Chobani is very creamy; you might even want to water it down slightly if you find it too thick. It tastes fantastic hot or iced; you might even confuse it with high-quality whole milk. It has no bad aftertaste and no overbearing oat flavor.

Recommended:

• Chobani Vanilla Flavor (Tastes like Lucky Charms cereal milk!)
• Chobani Extra Creamy

Oatly

It tastes best in cold coffee drinks, but if you froth or heat it up, the oat flavor can overpower the coffee. So it depends on your flavor preferences. 

Recommended:

• Oatly Full Fat 
• Oatly Barista Edition 

Planet Oat 

Enjoyable flavor for iced coffee. This is the brand that Dunkin Donuts uses in its coffee drinks. (See what brands of oat milk coffee shops use here)

Recommended:

• Planet Oat Extra Creamy 

Best Oat Milk For Oatmeal & Cereal

After coffee, one of the most popular uses for oat milk is cereal and oatmeal. If you haven’t yet, try vanilla-flavored oat milk, you’ll love it. 

Here are the top recommended brands we’ve found around the web. 

• Califia (It pairs perfectly with cereals and has no strong oat taste or aftertaste.)
• Chobani (vanilla flavor) 
• Oatly (Organic or Skim)
• Elmhurst Milked Oats
• Pacific Foods (Organic)

Best Oat Milk For Cooking

Oat milk is versatile and perfect for cooking because the texture is smooth and the flavor is neutral. It is thicker than almond milk and has a nice consistency. 

Choose unsweetened and unflavored oat milk for savory dishes. If you buy oat milk without any added flavoring, it works fantastic for pasta sauces and ramen, and it’s also great in a roux when you need to thicken things up. Checkout our 17 favorite uses for oat milk here. 

Recommended:

• Earths Own
• Elmhurst 1952 Unsweetened Oat Milk 
• Silk Oat Yeah Plain Oat Milk (great option on a budget)
• Trader Joe’s Oat Beverage (have you ever had anything bad from Trader Joe’s? No? Didn’t think so)
• Chobani Original (very versatile oat milk)

Best Oat Milk For Baking

Oat milk is the best for baking, sweets, and anything you want to be thick. It’s starchy and has no noticeable taste, like almond or soy milk. Oat milk’s toasted-grain flavor blends seamlessly into sweet and savory baked goods.

“When baking, you can substitute oat milk for any dairy milk, as it replicates the viscosity of dairy milk so well,” says Stephen Williamson, co-founder and CEO of Forager Project, a maker of oat milk. “Make sure you shake the oat milk before using it, so everything is blended well and you can enjoy the full smooth and creamy texture of the milk.”

Recommended:

• Oatly (original or full fat)
• Simple Truth Organic (original – no strong oat flavor)
• Planet Oat (original or extra creamy)

Best Oat Milk Flavors

Oat milk is very versatile and can be used in many different ways, from drinking on its own to baking; oat milk can substitute for dairy milk in almost any situation. But which flavor do you choose? It all depends on how you are using it. 

• Coffee – choose an unflavored, extra creamy oat milk, or test out flavored oat milk for specialty drinks!
  • Vanilla
  • Maple Oat Milk (Seasonal)
  • Pumpkin Spice flavored milk or creamer (seasonal)
• Smoothies – extra creamy, vanilla, chocolate, or unflavored works best
• Cooking – unflavored & unsweetened
• Baking – unflavored unless you are experimenting with flavors like vanilla!
• Cereal or oatmeal – Vanilla
• Drinking – Chocolate 

Oat milk is a great dairy-free and vegan option for those looking for something creamy to put in their coffee, cereal, smoothie, or favorite recipe. We’ve researched and found the best oat milk for all of these uses!