13 Top Vegan Fast Food Breakfast Options to Kickstart Your Day

The possibilities for at-home vegan breakfasts are seemingly limitless. There’s tofu scrambles, omelets made with uncanny egg replacements, and delectable tempeh bacon. But grabbing breakfast on the go is a different beast altogether. Breakfast is easily the most challenging meal to find out and about for vegans, and it usually relies on some adding, subtracting, and substituting. This is easier to accomplish at full-service restaurants, but when it comes time to grab a quick, cheap, fast food breakfast, you know the drill: Keep your expectations low and channel your love of fruit and potatoes.

Although options are slim and most fast food restaurants don’t offer complete, flavor-packed, and satisfying plant-based breakfasts, there are some breakfast items hiding on fast food menus that don’t require you to get extra creative. I spent almost a decade on a strictly plant-based diet, so I understand the trials and tribulations that come with finding quick meals on the go sans animal products. I’ve made a list of some of the best completely-vegan fast food breakfast items, many of which aren’t standout features on the menu and, therefore, tend to go unnoticed. I’ve tried most of these foods myself and supplemented the rest with verified customer reviews. So the next time you’re rushing around on a busy morning, try a pick from this list so your breakfast doesn’t wind up being gas station chips, an unsatisfying piece of fruit, or — the worst option of all — nothing.

Although it’s not nearly as widespread as the other chains on this list, Peet’s Coffee is one of the top fast food chains for vegetarian and plant-based meals. There are Peet’s Coffee locations scattered around the U.S., but they’re most commonly found in California. It’s most famous for its drip brews and espresso concoctions, but its snacks — including breakfast sandwiches and baked goods — also hit the spot.

One of the hardest to find (and most sought-after) vegan dishes is a hearty breakfast sandwich; it’s typically the farthest thing from “vegan” than any food can possibly be. Peet’s is one of the rare fast food heroes that delivers an entirely plant-based breakfast sandwich that eats exactly like a meat-and-egg meal. It will certainly satisfy your cravings for something filling and indulgent. The Everything Plant-Based Sandwich features an Impossible breakfast sausage patty, extra-fluffy JUST Egg patty, and vegan cheddar cheese on an everything bagel. PETA is to thank for pushing Peet’s to create this gem of a breakfast sandwich, giving vegans a much more viable morning meal option than most fast food restaurants offer.

Oatmeal is a favorite breakfast among vegans everywhere. Carbs and whole grains offer energy to tackle the day without the sluggishness caused by excessive fats and oils. I eat a bowl of oatmeal just about every day and relish the fact that it can be customized for a new breakfast for every day of the week. Panera Bread — a slightly upscale fast food eatery with locations all over the U.S. — offers a unique oatmeal with sweetness, crunch, and fresh fruit flavor.

Panera Bread’s steel-cut oatmeal is topped with pecans and strawberries, but what makes it so delectable is the addition of cinnamon crunch topping; the same stuff that tops its famous cinnamon crunch bagel with. The topping — made of sugar, cinnamon, corn starch, and soybean oil — is completely vegan and adds a flavor and texture boost to this oatmeal. Walnuts are usually the nut of choice for oatmeal, but pecans give this oatmeal extra pizazz, a soft crunch, and a  buttery, earthy flavor that pairs perfectly with sweet and tart fresh strawberries.

Burger King is a nostalgic treat for me, especially with its shockingly exceptional breakfast menu. I missed the buttery croissant egg sandwiches during my tenure as a vegan, but I was glad to know that I could still enjoy one of my favorite Burger King breakfast items: French toast sticks. There’s something so appealing about handheld, dippable French toast that can be eaten on the go. Burger King’s interpretation of the breakfast classic tastes much more gourmet than you’d imagine.

French toast sticks have been going strong at Burger King since 1985, whereas other fast food chains, like Wendy’s, added them to their breakfast menus not long ago. So, it’s safe to say BK has had more than enough time to perfect the French toast game. The sticks themselves are 100% vegan, as is the pancake syrup that comes with them. They’re perfectly fluffy and golden brown, slightly crispy, not too oily, and always come out piping hot and fresh. I much prefer real maple syrup over fake syrup, so I usually take my French toast sticks to-go and then dip them in the good stuff at home — they’re worth it.

A bagel is one of the most quintessential breakfast options out there, especially for vegans. Plain and everything bagels are among the most popular vegan food items at Starbucks (sans butter or cream cheese). They’re easy to enjoy on the go and can be customized into a simple vegan breakfast snack that doesn’t require you to munch on a completely undressed, boring bagel.

Starbucks’ avocado spread is the perfect plant-based companion to its bagels. The avocado spread — which is kind of like a limited-ingredient guacamole — includes lime, salt, garlic, and other seasonings for a kick of flavor that isn’t too intense. Avocado spread on a plain bagel is a little bland, but might be a good plant-based breakfast option for kids. I much prefer avocado spread on an everything bagel, where the hint of peppery, citrusy, and garlicky flavors from the spread can meet up with the earthiness of the seed-riddled bagel for a tasty morning wake-up alongside a vegan Starbucks drink. I recommend grabbing two cups of avocado spread, one for each side of the bagel, and eating it open-faced. If eaten like a sandwich, the somewhat-thin spread is likely to come gushing out of the sides of the bagel.

Fast food fans adore Chick-fil-A — and for good reason. While the chain’s chicken sandwiches are undoubtedly the shining stars here, just about everything else on its menu offers elevated quality at a typical fast food price. Although Chick-fil-A’s breakfast items aren’t as popular as the morning grub from other fast food chains, it still has a lot to offer, including a few under-the-radar vegan staples.

Hash browns here are the go-to vegan breakfast item at Chick-fil-A. Unlike other chains, they come in bite-sized nugget form, similar to the hash browns at Dunkin’ — just much better (sorry, Dunkin’). These nuggets have a greater surface area than the patties, which gives them an even better crispiness-to-softness ratio.

If you’re looking for ways to enhance your hash brown breakfast, you can try creating a DIY breakfast sandwich out of Chick-fil-A’s hash browns and an English muffin, which is also vegan. Top this sandwich with Chick-fil-A’s Polynesian sauce or sweet and spicy sriracha to make it more exciting, all while keeping it vegan. Or, enjoy a toasted English muffin on the side with some fruity jam for a sweet-and-salty combo breakfast. A fruit cup also makes an excellent side dish to a hash brown main course, since it acts as a fresh, sweet respite from the oily, salty potatoes.

If you’re vegan, you’re most likely familiar with Impossible Foods. The company is a pioneer of meat-free meats, as in, plant-based meats that taste just like the real thing. The plant meat craze swept the nation in the mid-2010s, and is still going strong today. There are a few fast food chains that incorporate Impossible’s proteins onto their menus, including Starbucks, although Starbucks’ Impossible breakfast sandwich isn’t vegan and can’t be customized. However, Jamba’s can be.

Jamba’s Impossible breakfast sandwich — dubbed the Impossible Handwich — debuted in 2021 and was an instant hit. The sandwich normally comes with Impossible meat and cheddar cheese on a toasted, sprouted grain bun, but the cheese can be omitted for a vegan sandwich of just bread and faux meat. The flavorful bread is extra soft and makes an excellent pairing with the rich, meaty tasty of Impossible breakfast sausage. The Impossible Handwich is incredibly small, hence its cutesy moniker, so be sure to grab a few of them if you’re feeling extra hungry.

McDonald’s leads the fast food scene in America with a whopping $53.1 billion in annual sales, so it’s a bit of a let down that there’s only one vegan breakfast option on its menu (the hash browns aren’t even vegan, oddly enough). The brown sugar and maple oatmeal is loaded with fresh and dried fruit and packs in two servings of whole grains — but remember to order it without cream to veganize it.

McDonald’s maple brown sugar oatmeal is full of fresh apple chunks, raisins, dried cranberries, and brown sugar. It also comes with a packet of McDonald’s own maple-sugar on the side, which contains crystallized maple syrup. I recommend asking for no brown sugar (along with the request for no cream) so that you can customize the sugar content to your liking using the maple sugar packet. An order with brown sugar contains 18 grams of added sugar –and that doesn’t include the addition of a maple sugar packet. But the fresh and dried fruit and whole grain oats makes this breakfast item from McDonald’s a wholesome, plant-based start to your day, as long as you make those slight order modifications. 

It’s hard to imagine eating Taco Bell in the morning, but anyone who’s ever tried the Mexican-American fast food icon’s morning menu knows it’s among the best in fast food breakfast. One of its best offerings is its mouth-watering hash browns, which are, surprisingly, vegan. A breakfast of plain old hash browns dipped in various condiments hits the spot, but it gets old for vegans, who usually have to rely on this fast food mainstay to stay satiated in the morning. Thankfully, the Taco Bell breakfast Crunchwrap exists — though you’ll need to make quite a few modifications to veganize it. 

Normally, Taco Bell’s breakfast Crunchwrap (which is essentially just a wrap folded into an envelope-like shape instead of a classic, tubular burrito shape) comes with hash browns, meat, egg, cheese, and creamy jalapeño sauce — which is not very vegan-friendly. Try ordering the Crunchwrap with hash browns only for a satisfying treat –  sans meat, eggs, and dairy. This heavily-modded breakfast item absolutely requires some hot sauce (I always go Diablo) to give it some flavor and make it less of an all-beige breakfast. Or, give it a veggie boost and opt for your preferred spicy sauce plus guac and pico de gallo to really upgrade it into a menu-worthy vegan breakfast sandwich.

Remember the avocado toast craze of the 2010s? Although the passion for the simple, LA-esque dish has died down quite a bit, Dunkin’ still thinks avocado toast deserves a spot in the limelight, and it’s not wrong. Dunkin’s avocado toast is simple, nutrient-dense, and quite easy to recreate at home. The avocado spread that tops the toast is made up of just avocado, sea salt, black pepper, and lemon juice, unlike Starbucks’ version, which also contains some spicy pepper seasoning. The spread is smeared on sourdough toast that — shockingly — tastes like it came straight from a neighborhood bakery. Then, the concoction is sprinkled with everything bagel seasoning to add a slight crunch and earthy flavor.

Dunkin’s avocado toast makes it a perfectly acceptable breakfast on its own, but you can easily upgrade it to make it more filling. Try tossing a couple of Dunkin’s hash brown nuggets on top, or, if you’re feeling particularly peckish, order two avocado toasts and create a sandwich with the hash browns. They’re not as tasty as other fast food hash browns, but they’re at least entirely plant-based. You can also ask for avocado spread on a bagel or English muffin (both are also vegan) if sourdough isn’t your style.

At Jamba, smoothies aren’t just for drinking. The chain also cranks out unique concoctions using its smoothies as a base, and the Vanilla Blue Sky Bowl is one of its most delicious smoothie-based breakfast bowls. This bowl starts out as the Vanilla Blue Sky Smoothie, which is made of almond milk, vanilla-flavored coconut milk, blue spirulina, banana, and pineapple. The smoothie is blended extra thick, then poured into a bowl and topped with granola, blueberries, strawberries, and coconut flakes.

The Vanilla Blue Sky Bowl is a feast for all the senses. The blue spirulina in the bowl gives it an all-natural pop of color while acting as a superfood to boot. Spirulina is a microalgae that’s loaded with micronutrients, including copper, riboflavin, thiamine, iron, and protein. Its flavor is quite ocean-like, but it easily goes undetected in smoothies.

While the smoothie-version of this bowl is a tasty on-the-go treat, the bowl version adds varying texture to make it a much heartier breakfast. Granola offers a satisfying crunch, while fresh fruit adds juicy bursts of tart sweetness to complement the bowl’s creamy, tropical flavor. This breakfast is particularly delicious during summer, where a chilled smoothie bowl provides energy and acts as a cooling reprieve from the heat.

Burger King’s hash browns are another fast food option that’s entirely plant-based, unlike those from McDonalds, which are made with questionable “beef flavoring” and milk derivatives. BK’s potato patties are little, golden medallions, just like those from Chick-fil-A and Dunkin’. They typically come as a side dish with breakfast sandwiches, but hey — there’s no law against having an all-potato breakfast.

One of the best things about Burger King’s hash browns is that they’re not typically as salty as other fast food hash browns, although this may vary by location. I like being able to control the amount of salt on my potatoes, and would much rather have to add a little from a complimentary salt packet than be stuck with a briny, brackish mess of potato nuggets.

The only vegan dipping sauces at BK are barbecue sauce, mustard, or ketchup. Luckily, they all make perfectly viable dipping sauce options for hash browns. I always opt for mustard for dipping hash browns, since the oiliness of the potatoes and the tangy, zesty taste of mustard makes a great flavor duo.

Peet’s swoops in with another all-vegan breakfast item that doesn’t require any add-ins, subtractions, or modifications to be entirely plant-based. The Southwest breakfast burrito at Peet’s comes with spicy, umami-rich vegan chorizo crumbles and JUST Egg; a liquid egg substitute made from mung bean protein that expertly mimics the taste and consistency of real eggs. Violife plant-based cheddar — made from coconut oil, modified food starch, and vegan flavors — adds a creamy, luxurious texture to the burrito that cools down the spicy chorizo and balance it out.

These ingredients would make a perfectly acceptable breakfast wrap on their own, but Peet’s kicks it up a notch with added protein and flavor from black beans, corn, potatoes, salsa verde, and green chiles, all packed into a warm, soft tortilla. Way to go, Peet’s. Pair this burrito with Peet’s famous Iced golden chai (with dairy-free milk, of course) for a sweet contrast to the spicy peppers and faux sausage in the breakfast burrito.

Starbucks’ oatmeal is a fan-favorite, especially for vegans and those looking for something on the nutritious side. The rolled steel-cut oats come with several toppings to choose from, all of which are vegan (other than the optional addition of dairy milk). These include blueberries, dried fruit, mixed nuts, brown sugar, agave, or any dairy-free milk of your choosing. Almond milk is always a safe choice for oatmeal, but oat milk doubles down on the oaty goodness and adds a more decadent touch. Ask for the milk to be steamed to keep the oatmeal piping hot.

It doesn’t have to stop at the basics. You can upgrade your Starbucks oatmeal with fruits that are typically reserved for drinks. Fresh strawberries are an obvious choice, but don’t overlook the freeze-dried fruits that Starbucks serves in its refreshers. These include dragonfruit, blackberries, strawberries, and lime. I’d omit the lime if I were you, but the other fruits can turn Starbucks oatmeal into a funky breakfast treat.

To choose the best vegan fast food items, I first considered standout options that I’ve personally tried on multiple occasions for the bulk of this list. I spent many years on a strict plant-based diet, and I ate plenty of these breakfast foods staples while traveling or when the craving for a hearty breakfast treat kicked in while I was out and about.

For the foods that I hadn’t personally enjoyed, I supplemented the list with vegan fast food items from reviews. These items are typically regarded positively among plant-based eaters. I aimed for foods that are complete, plant-based meals, but since those are few and far between at fast food restaurants, I included popular vegan sides and incorporated ways to make them more meal-worthy.

For each item on this list, I made sure to scope out its ingredients to confirm that it was, in fact, 100% vegan. Some foods that seem like they should be vegan aren’t, especially when it comes to heavily-processed food, so I left nothing up to assumption.