This is the best ever vegan banana bread and it’s so EASY to make in 1 bowl! With tons of banana flavor and super moist texture, it’s the only recipe you’ll ever need.
Want more recipes that use up ripe bananas? You’ll love my Quick & Easy Vegan Banana Muffins, Vegan Banana Pancakes and Best Vegan Banana Cake.
Don’t let your old bananas go to waste! Instead, mash ‘em up and throw them into this easy banana bread recipe. Every slice is moist, lightly spiced, and just so scrumptious! Enjoy a slice warm with a pat of vegan butter.
The batter is so simple and made in one bowl with easy to find ingredients. In fact, you probably have most, if not all of them in your cupboard right now!
Why I love this banana bread
- Customizable – You can make it gluten free, oil free, nut free and it’s already egg and dairy free! Mix in chopped nuts, chocolate chips or even dried fruit.
- SO EASY – This recipe really couldn’t be easier to make. Mash the bananas, add the wet ingredients, then the dry ingredients and bake.
- Incredibly delicious – It comes out perfect every time, with a beautiful golden crust and moist, tender center.
Ingredients needed (with substitutions)
- Bananas – Use really ripe, spotty bananas for the best results.
- Flax eggs – Made from ground flaxseed and water. If you don’t have flaxseed at home, you can use another egg replacer or use ½ cup of applesauce instead.
- Vegan butter – While vegan butter is the best and will make the banana bread very moist and buttery flavored, any neutral oil works well as a replacement. Applesauce or plain vegan yogurt also works for an oil free banana bread, but the results won’t be as moist and can be a bit gummy.
- Sugar – I use both organic granulated sugar (organic to ensure it’s vegan friendly) and brown sugar, interchangeably. Both work well. You can also use coconut sugar. Feel free to cut the sugar in half for a less sweet banana bread.
- Almond milk – Or you can use oat milk, cashew milk, or any other plant milk you have at home.
- All purpose flour – Or use spelt flour or white whole wheat flour/whole wheat pastry flour. Looking for gluten free banana bread? Try my easy Vegan Gluten Free Banana Bread recipe or simply substitute a gluten free mix.
- Baking soda – To help the bread rise.
- Add ins – I love freshly ground nutmeg and chopped walnuts in banana bread. You can easily customize it any way you like using my suggestions below!
How to make vegan banana bread
You’ll need a standard loaf pan and just one mixing bowl for this recipe. The batter is so easy to make.
Make the flax egg by stirring the ground flaxseed together with the water. Let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes to thicken. Mash the bananas in a large mixing bowl. Scoop them into a measuring cup to make sure you have the right amount.
Stir the melted vegan butter into the bananas.
Add the sugar, milk, and flax egg to the bananas. Stir to combine.
Next, add the flour, baking soda, salt, and nutmeg. Gently stir to combine.
Be careful not to over mix the batter, or your bread could be dense and gummy tasting. Finish by folding in any add ins, such as chopped walnuts or chocolate chips.
Transfer the batter to your prepared loaf pan and bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
The crust will turn a beautiful golden brown in the oven, and might just be the best part!
Let the bread cool in the pan for a few minutes before transferring it to a cooling rack. Slice when it’s cool and enjoy.
Tips for the best banana bread
- Add ins – Cinnamon, vegan chocolate chips, pecans, almonds, pumpkin seeds, or dried fruit like cranberries or raisins.
- Toppings – Gently press sliced bananas, chocolate chips, oats, sunflower seeds, or walnuts on top of the banana bread batter before it goes in the oven.
- Don’t over mix – Gently mix the ingredients together with a wooden spoon or spatula until everything is just combined. Over mixing the batter will leave you with dense bread.
- Let it cool – Let the finished banana bread cool on a wire rack for at least 30 minutes before slicing. This will make it easier to slice and keep it from crumbling all over the place.
Frequently asked questions
This probably means your baking soda is too old. Test its freshness by sprinkling a little into some vinegar. If it’s fizzy, that means it’s fresh. If not, head to the store for a fresh box.
Yes! Either replace the all purpose flour with a gluten free flour blend or follow my Gluten Free Banana Bread recipe instead.
You can replace the vegan butter with applesauce or plain vegan yogurt.
Vegan banana bread will stay fresh for 1 or 2 days at room temperature or up to 1 week in the fridge. Make sure to wrap the finished loaf really well in plastic wrap so it stays moist.
Yes! It freezes really well for up to 3 months. Just wrap it really well and let it cool first.
Banana Bread Muffins
You can make muffins instead of bread with this recipe. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F and fill muffin liners in a pan nearly to the top. Bake for 20-24 minutes, or until done.
Want more vegan quick bread recipes?
- Vegan Chocolate Banana Bread
- The Best Vegan Pumpkin Bread
- 1 Bowl Vegan Zucchini Bread
- Cranberry Orange Bread
- Lemon Blueberry Bread
Best Vegan Banana Bread
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed
- 5 tablespoons water
- 2 large ripe bananas, about 1 cup mashed
- 1/3 cup melted vegan butter or neutral oil
- 2/3 cup granulated sugar or brown sugar, lightly packed
- 1/4 cup dairy free milk oat, almond or soy
- 2 cups all purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground nutmeg, optional but good
- 3/4 cup chopped walnuts or non-dairy chocolate chips, optional
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F and grease a standard loaf pan (8 1/2 x 4 1/2 inches or 9 x 5 inches).
- In a small bowl, combine the ground flaxseed and water. Set aside to thicken; this is your flax egg mixture.
- In a large bowl, mash the bananas with a fork until smooth. Scoop it into a measuring cup to make sure you have about 1 cup mashed, then return it to the bowl. Stir the melted vegan butter into the bananas.
- Now add the sugar, almond milk and flax egg mixture. Stir with a large spoon until well combined.
- Add the flour to the bowl with the wet ingredients, then sprinkle the baking soda, salt and nutmeg if using on top of the flour. Stir gently until just combined, making sure you don't over mix.
- Gently fold in the walnuts or chocolate chips, if using. Pour into the prepared pan, place in the center rack of the oven and bake for 50-60 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Let it cool in the pan for a few minutes, then transfer the loaf to a cooling rack. Let the banana bread cool for at least 30 minutes if possible, as this will make it easier to slice. Serve and enjoy!
Video
Notes
- Oil free: Use applesauce instead of melted vegan butter. I have tested it and while I prefer it with oil, it’s quite good with applesauce.
- Gluten free: Use a gluten free flour mix. May also sub spelt flour or white whole wheat flour for a whole grain option.
- Nut free: Use soy milk, coconut milk or another non-dairy milk instead of almond milk. Any milk will do!
- Sugar: You may use brown sugar or granulated sugar here. Even coconut sugar works. Feel free to lower the amount for a less sweet bread.
- Muffins instead: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, divide into muffin liners and bake for 20-24 minutes, or until done.
- Leftovers/freezing: Cover leftover banana bread and keep at room temperature 1-2 days, or keep it in the refrigerator for up to 1 week. Banana bread freezes very well, too.
Nutrition
*This recipe was originally posted September 2018 and has been republished with new photos and better writing. I’m always improving the content on my website, thank you!
Made it with apple sauce and substituted cardamom for nutmeg. Seriously the best banana bread I’ve had! Super easy to make, and the sweetness level is just right/not too sweet. I’ve made it three times already and it’s turned out great each time!
That’s so great to hear!
Dear Nora,
This is by far the best banana bread I have ever tasted. I made it this afternoon with leftover bananas. Picked whole wheat flour and apple sauce as my options. It was so easy to put together turned out delicious!! Thank you for the awesome recipe. Check out the pic at https://www.instagram.com/p/B-0TTURpe5f/?igshid=6nxv2fecsql9
You’re welcome!
I made this last week with walnuts and it was truly amazing! I’d like to make another loaf with chocolate chips this time but only have soy milk at the moment. Will soy milk work? Will I need to change anything in the recipe, and will it taste the same? Thanks!
Yes soy milk is just fine, hope you love it! It won’t change a thing.
I love this recipe. I tired 3 times at three different times, months apart. Recipe is very reproducible! Same taste, same texture and more fun every time!!
So glad to hear that!
Would this recipe still work if I added walnuts AND cranberries?
Thanks for any insights!
Oh yeah, that would be good!
The bread tastes amazing but for some reason it did not cook properly? I don’t know if my pan was wrong or if the temp was too high? We cooked it at 350 for almost 2 hours and it is still raw and gooey inside. I want to try again… should I use a more shallow pan? I used a traditional loaf pan… please help! It tastes so good on the outside
Oh yes, something went wrong here, it doesn’t make sense that it would still be raw and gooey inside after 2 hours. A traditional loaf pan is correct, 8 1/2-9 inches. I would re-read the recipe and check the ingredients and make sure you didn’t forget anything and that you followed the instructions correctly, as something went wrong here. It’s hard for me to say what without more information. Maybe you didn’t add enough flour? Or did you make a substitution?
Hi! I made this recipe last night, and maybe it was due to the wine I was drinking while making it (lol), but my loaf came out very dense, pale and untextured and I was wondering if you could help me narrow down the issue? I ended up having to add a bit more almond milk than what was called for because it was a bit thick and I also had to sub dairy butter in due running out of vegan butter. Other than those tweaks I can’t really figure out the issue? Will be retrying again in the future!!
I think I have concluded that the issue was to my overmixing of the batter, bummer but will be tweaking next time!
Hi! Yes, the issue is likely that you mixed it, then added more milk and mixed more, and you probably just over mixed it altogether which leads to a dense loaf. Next time, take it easy and follow the recipe exactly, and be really careful not to over mix! It will be perfect.
Made this March 23, 2020 during quarantine. This is really the best vegan banana bread. So,so good. Made this with vegan butter and chocolate chips. If you are looking for something that will fool the non vegan or want to show the vegan or non vegan how good it can be, this is the one to make!! Just like I use to make, but vegan.
I’m so happy you enjoyed the banana bread! Thanks so much.
My apocalypse partner and I ALSO just made this with vegan butter, chocolate chips, chopped pecans, orange zest and fresh chopped ginger sprinkled on top. This is going to thoroughly surprise my parents and two siblings. I’m so excited because the batter itself was so rich and delicious. We even used a bit of maple syrup instead of the brown sugar!
Hi, I’m wondering if I can use coconut oil in place of the vegan butter/applesauce?
Yes I think that should work pretty well, though I haven’t tested it without the applesauce. Hope you enjoy it!
Such a good recipe. I followed it exactly. My husband, a banana bread lover, said it’s the best banana bread anywhere. Thank you!
Wow, that’s so great!
This recipe is legit! Just tweaked a few things, such as cinnamon instead of nutmeg, pure maple syrup instead of the brown sugar. Came out fantastic. Thank you!
You’re welcome!
Sounds yum. Anyone tried this with Chia seeds instead of Flax, to make chia egg? Don’t have any Flax seeds! 🙂
That should work just fine, grind the chia seeds if you can first though.
I used Chia and it worked perfect!
Hello Nora, I love your recipes! I do not have flaxseed. What’s a good substitute? Looking forward to trying out this recipe. I have been craving a good banana bread.
Thank you so much! I think you could just use 1/4 cup of applesauce instead, if you have it. Or another egg substitute, such as Bob’s Red Mill. A little whipped aquafaba would probably work, or maybe even just a bit more mashed banana. Hope that helps and you enjoy!
Best banana bread recipe I’ve ever tried, vegan or non vegan! Thank you. I used rapeseed oil as we had no vegan butter and it was perfect!
So glad it was good!
I plan on making this recipe this weekend, and it looks amazing! I was wondering if you could add 3 or 4 overripe bananas, as i have some that i need to use. Will that affect the recipe? Also, can you use oat flour?
You could probably add the extra bananas in chunks, but if you are adding extra mashed banana, it will throw off the recipe. If you have 4 pretty large ripe bananas, I would recommend doubling the recipe. You can always freeze a loaf. I haven’t tried it with oat flour but it may work. Thank you!
This is now my favorite banana bread recipe! First of all, it has come out absolutely delicious every time I’ve made it. The most recent time I made it, I only had bananas that were on the smaller side, so I used three instead of the two large mentioned in the recipe. I’ve tried this with all purpose flour, half all purpose and half we eat, and 100% wheat flour. Great every time! I also found this recipe was very forgiving, one time I did part weird and part of flour and it was also wonderful. The other thing that I love about this recipe, it is simple, and can be done all in one bowl.
Thanks for the wonderful comment!
Mine turned out really good! I used applesauce instead of oil and it did cook quicker so I pulled it out after 40 minutes that’s with a convection oven.
So yummy! I used hazelnuts as I didn’t have walnuts and some chocolate chips too!
I’m so glad it was good!
I made it using applesauce and it came out dry ?. I took it out after 45 minutes (toothpick came out clean). It was my first time ever making banana bread and I was, so, hoping it turned out… any idea what I could’ve done wrong? The only other thing I different, was, I had whole flax seeds and “ground” them in the blender lol
I feel like the bread comes out a bit drier and less delicious when using all applesauce, but if you must not use any oil it’s still quite good. But it won’t compare to using oil in my opinion! That said, many people have reported loving it using all applesauce. So that is probably why you find it dry. Also, be careful not to measure too much flour, as that will also make it dry.
hi ..can i substitute wheat flour instead and normal butter for apple sauce/vegan butter?
Whole wheat flour? Yes, you could but it will be more dense. I wouldn’t sub all butter for the applesauce, just for the vegan butter. It should work the same.
Looove this recipe. Could I substitute brown sugar for coconut sugar?
I’m so glad! Yes, that is fine.
Hi Nora! I really love this recipe and have made it several times – my family and friends love it as well! Question: I want to make this in a sheet pan so I can frost it with cream cheese frosting. Do you know if this would work, and, if so, what size pan I should use?
I have never tried it, but it sounds amazing! I think it would work in a 9 x 13 inch cake pan. It will take less time to bake, I would check after 20-25 minutes.
Thanks for the input – I will let you know if I try it! 🙂
Thank you for your recipe!! I love it. Just wanted to ask if it would be okay to omit the milk?
It might be dry if you omit the milk, but maybe you could add water instead in a pinch.
Can I use this recipe as muffins?
Yes, you can. They will not take as long to bake though, more like 20-30 minutes.
I have made your banana bread several times, added pecans and chocolate chips in one batch and coconut in another. Taste and texture is lovely. My only disappointment is that there is a huge crack on the top. I have lowered the oven rack, tried different pans – still end up with this crack on the loaf, For home use I don’t really mind but I would like to make them for a bake sale for a fundraiser, not so good looking. What am I doing wrong? How can I get a smooth top?
Thanks, Mary
I’m so glad you like the banana bread! From my experience, all good banana breads have somewhat of a split on top. I think it looks pretty. 🙂 The only other thing I know to try is to lower the temperature 10 degrees and bake a little longer.
Thank you.I will give that a try.
I lowered the temperature, baked it a little longer and it worked – smooth top. For a variation I poured some maple syrup in streaks over the top, looks nice and adds little sweetness.
Thanks Nora for your help.
Mary
Can I substitute applesauce for the vegan egg?
You probably could, yes, though I haven’t tested it.
Will coconut oil work as a substitute for vegan butter or applesauce?
Coconut oil will work quite well, and you can sub applesauce, it will just have that fat free kind of texture to it.