Butter substitutes
Out of butter? Here are the best substitutes — what to reach for, why it works, and how much to use. Ghee is the top pick.
- 01Gheebest pick
Clarified butter — same rich dairy flavor, higher smoke point.
1:1
- 02Margarine
Built to replace butter in baking and spreading.
1:1
- 03Coconut oil
Solid at room temp like butter; works in baking (adds faint coconut).
1:1
- 04Olive oil
Great for sautéing and savory bakes; use less since it's pure fat.
use 3/4 the amount
- 05Neutral oil
Fine for moisture in cakes/muffins where butter flavor isn't key.
use 3/4 the amount
Cooking with butter?
Paste your recipe into Mise — we'll find every ingredient as a real product you can buy, and swap the ones you can't, like butter, for the closest match in stock.
Turn a recipe into a basket →How we choose these
These are tested kitchen substitutes, chosen for matching flavor, texture, and role — with ratios so the swap actually works. Taste as you go; substitutes shift intensity, not just flavor.
Flavor data: Epicure (Radzikowski & Chen, 2026), arXiv:2605.22391, CC-BY-4.0.