A decade ago, oat milk was quite off the radar. The market was dominated by common dairy-alternatives such as soy, almond, rice, and coconut milk. All these might have been fairly good options, but none was as mild and creamy as oat milk, nor did they froth as easily - crucial if you want to perfect your latte art!

Oat milk, created by blending oats with water and then straining the mixture, took the world by storm in the late 2010s. It quickly found a place on the shelves of major grocery stores and became a favorite at coffee shops. Today, oat milk is the top dairy-free option in cafés, whereas almond milk still rules in retail. So, as the market overflows with oat milk brands, the question arises - which ones are truly worth procuring?

With multiple brands each offering several oat milk products, discerning which ones to toss into your cart can feel overwhelming. That's why we embarked on a taste test journey. We put nine well-known and broadly accessible oat milk brands to the test.

We chose all brands' basic oat milk bug to maintain consistency. The basic oat milk is typically labeled “Original." This could mean variations in flavor from brand to brand due to differences in processing techniques, but generally, they all had a medium creaminess and mild sweetness, and were unflavored.

These taste tests were done completely blind, and each oat milk was presented chilled and poured into plastic cups for fair assessment by our team of six editors. The scoring was based on flavor, texture, aroma, and personal preferences. We sought oat milks with a mild flavor, slightly sweet taste and no aftertaste. For texture, we looked for the product that felt smooth and coated the tongue like dairy milk.

So, here are the four oat milks you need on your grocery list:

1) Oatly - Oatly is instinctively everything oat milk ought to be. It's savory and creamy with a slightly sweet oat flavor. No wonder as its creator, Rickard Öste, perfected the recipe in 1994. This oat milk adds a luxurious layer to your regular shaken espresso or iced coffee without conflicting with the flavor. Some of our editors felt it might be too creamy for everyday use, but the overall exceptionally tasty nature of this oat milk still makes it the best bet.

2) Planet Oat’s Original Oatmilk - This oat milk can be used for pretty much whatever you fancy. Fall right in the middle between creamy and thin, it peaks both in coffee and cereal. It's so tasty and sweet it reminds us of the milk left in a bowl of Honey Nut Cheerios. Being highly oat-forward, we wouldn't recommend it for savory dishes.

3) Minor Figures Barista Oat - On mere sight, you could be fooled that this is dairy milk, but the taste says otherwise. It possesses a unique tanginess similar to drinkable yogurt, kefir, but its flavor was divisive among our editors. Some loved it, others found it weird. Thus, it might not be a universal choice.

4) Chobani - The most typical taste description for this oat milk was “bland.” We believe that this neutral charm makes it an excellent milk substitute for cooking and baking tasks without risking changing the overall flavor. Our team perceived this oat milk slightly chalky, not outright pleasant to drink, but that would go unnoticed when mixed with other ingredients.

Our taste tests concluded that these four oat milks deserve your attention. Discover the joy of adding them to your coffee, pouring over your cereal, or simply savoring a glass straight away.