Updated for 2023! Some of you may try to argue me (read on for the reasons why), but yes, by ingredients there are dairy-free Girl Scout cookies. In fact, these gems are labeled as egg-free and vegan, too. I know what you are thinking, “Sure, they have one measly tasteless wafer cookie, right?” Au contraire. This infamous cookie collection now has six cookie varieties that are made without milk or egg ingredients. And that includes a gluten-free one, too!
My curiosity was initially piqued when I received an email from my sister soliciting buyers for her oldest daughter’s girl scout troupe. I had assumed that all Girl Scout Cookies were off limits, but decided to do some research. I posted my initial findings, which were positively surprising. Now that niece is in her twenties, and the dairy-free Girl Scout Cookie options are still going strong.
Each year I update with the latest flavors, ingredients, and information. You can jump ahead to the different sections in this post with these links:
- The Dairy-Free Girl Scout Cookies Line-Up
- Two Very Different Cookie Manufacturers
- Ingredients & Allergen Labeling for Each Cookie
- Notes on Cross-Contamination Potential
- Dairy-Free Girl Scout Cookie Recipes
The Dairy-Free Girl Scout Cookies Line-Up
At last check, the following Girl Scout cookie varieties were made without milk and egg ingredients, and were also vegan by ingredients. Please see the next section for full ingredient lists, allergen notes, and more.
- Caramel Chocolate Chip (starting in 2023) – “Chewy gluten-free cookies with rich caramel, semisweet chocolate chips, and a hint of sea salt”
- Lemonades – “Savory slices of shortbread with a refreshingly tangy lemon icing”
- Peanut Butter Patties – “Crispy vanilla cookies layered with real peanut butter and blanketed with a chocolaty coating”
- Raspberry Rally – “Thin, crispy cookies infused with raspberry flavor, dipped in chocolaty coating”
- Thin Mints – “The Girl Scout Cookie Sale’s number one seller”
- Toast-Yay! – “French toast–inspired cookie dipped in delicious icing and full of flavor in every bite.”
Notes from our Dairy-Free Girl Scout Cookies Annual Updates
- 2023 – Time to rejoice! The dairy-free cookies from last year are returning, and this year, the vegan-friendly Raspberry Rally is joining the mix. It’s the Girl Scout’s first foray into an online only cookie. And as of this year, all cookies will be available for nationwide shipping. But wait, there’s more. Their Caramel Chocolate Chip gluten-free cookie has also gone dairy-free, egg-free, and vegan!
- 2022 – This is a somber year for fans of dairy-free Girl Scout cookies. ABC Bakers discontinued their S’mores cookies (the version from Little Brownie Bakers has always contained dairy), and they finished the phase out of their Thanks-a-Lot cookies. This year’s new cookie, Adventurefuls, is also dairy-ful.
- 2021 – This year we have all of last year’s cookies, plus they added dairy-free Toast-Yays!
- 2020 – Same cookies. The new Lemon-Ups are not dairy-free. But, ABC Bakers has made their milk allergen warning more clear. See the notes below. Rumor has it that the Thanks-a-Lot are retiring after this year, so stock up if they’re your favorite!
- 2019 – Same cookies, no major updates. ABC Bakers added a gluten-free Caramel Chocolate Chip cookie, but it isn’t dairy-free.
- 2018 – Same cookies, but we added ingredients and allergen notes here and the ABC corporate name and website changed.
- 2017 – The Cranberry Citrus Crisps were discontinued, but vegan Girl Scout S’mores were introduced by ABC Bakers.
- 2016 – All of the dairy-free Girl Scout Cookie options remained unchanged.
- 2015 – The Little Brownie Bakers manufacturer changed their Thin Mint formula to be kosher pareve. This makes Thin Mints the first nationwide dairy-free Girl Scout Cookie offering. The Girl Scouts added a new gluten-free cookie too, but alas, it isn’t dairy-free.
- 2014 – To make room for new Cranberry Citrus Crisps in the dairy-free Girl Scout cookies 2014 line-up, the Mango Crèmes were discontinued.
- 2013 – The Mango Crèmes replaced the short-lived Belgian-style Shout Outs!
Very Important Notes on the Dairy-Free Girl Scout Cookies
Different Cookie Manufacturers!!!
There are two Girl Scout cookie manufacturers, both of which list the cookie ingredients on their websites. The above mentioned cookies are all produced by ABC Bakers. Interestingly enough, the core corporation behind ABC Bakers also runs a company called Norse Dairy Systems, but that is another story.
The other manufacturer, Little Brownie Bakers, changed the formula of their Thin Mints for 2015, so that they are now dairy-free! And the new Raspberry Rally Girl Scout Cookies are also dairy-free and vegan from both manufacturers. But do not mistake their Tagalongs and Lemon Ups, which do contain dairy, for the Peanut Butter Patties and Lemonades made by ABC Bakers.
Since my sister’s list of cookies available included all of the Little Brownie Bakers selection and none from ABC, this leads me to believe that the two companies split up who they supply to either by region or troupe. Sadly, this means your local troupe may not have ABC’s dairy-free Girl Scout cookies selection. If you’re craving more than Thin Mints, check online. I did spot a few troupes selling them on Ebay (is that in the rules?). Also, I’ve heard rumor that troupes may be able to request who the cookies are ordered from.
Ingredients & Allergen Labeling
In 2020, ABC Bakers added a “may contain” statement to all of their cookies. Previously, some had a “warning” label and others didn’t. This shouldn’t be news to dairy-free consumers, since I’ve always noted here that their cookies are certified OU-D, which means shared equipment with product containing dairy.
ABC Bakers has confirmed that nothing changed in their processes – the potential cross-contamination risk is no more or no less than in years passed. But they have now opted to add a “may contain” statement for top allergens on all of their cookies. This statement is very vague. See my notes below on cross-contamination potential.
Caramel Chocolate Chip (by ABC Bakers)
Heads Up! This is a new recipe in 2023. Boxes produced in prior years do contain milk. Verify which box you are purchasing as old inventory could still be in circulation.
Ingredients: oat flour, brown sugar, semi-sweet chocolate chips (sugar, unsweetened chocolate, cocoa butter, sunflower lecithin, natural flavor), canola oil, water, tapioca starch, coconut oil, invert sugar, egg replacer, molasses, natural flavor, sea salt, leavening (baking soda, monocalcium phosphate), xanthan gum, cream of tartar, sunflower lecithin.
- Contains: No top allergens
- Allergen Information: From the company: “Our Gluten Free Caramel Chocolate Chip Cookies are certified gluten free under Gluten-Free Certification Organization (GFCO). While allergens are present in the overall bakery, our gluten free cookies are produced in a dedicated allergen free room. In reference to production of these delicious cookies, we have a compliant allergen management policy, which includes verified and validated allergen cleaning methods employed prior to each production run of these delicious cookies. Verification of cleaning is done by swabbing using 3M Clean Trace swabs to detect even trace amounts of any protein. The cookies are 100% free of any allergen.” However, please note the company still has a kosher OU-D certification shown online for this cookie. We are waiting to find out if this will be changed to parve, or if the kosher certifier thinks a “D” for dairy equipment is still warranted.
Raspberry Rally (by Little Brownie Bakers)
Ingredients: enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, vitamin b1, [thiamin mononitrate], vitamin b2 [riboflavin], folic acid), sugar, vegetable oil [palm kernel, palm and soybean oil), cocoa, contains 2% or less of invert sugar, cocoa processed with alkali, conrntarch, salt, leavening (monocalcium phosphate, baking soda), soy lecithin, citric acid, natural and artificial flavors, red 40, sorbitan tristerate.
- Contains: Wheat, soy
- Allergen Information: It is “manufactured in a shared facility with peanuts, tree nuts, milk & egg.” They have both certified kosher parve and certified kosher OU-D showing online. We are waiting for confirmation on which one it is.
Raspberry Rally (by ABC Bakers)
Ingredients: enriched wheat flour (flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, vegetable oil shortening (palm and palm kernel oil), invert sugar, cocoa (processed with alkali), salt, natural and artificial flavor, baking soda, soy lecithin, citric acid, vegetable juice (color), tartaric acid.
- Contains: Wheat, soy
- Allergen Information: As always, it is “Manufactured in a shared facility with: milk, peanuts, coconut.” We assume it will be certified kosher OU-D. That information isn’t out yet.
Thin Mints (by Little Brownie Bakers)
Ingredients: Enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, vitamin B1 [thiamin mononitrate], vitamin B2 [riboflavin], folic acid), sugar, vegetable oil (palm kernel, palm and soybean oil), cocoa, caramel color, contains 2% or less of cocoa processed with alkali, invert sugar, leavening (baking soda, monocalcium phosphate), cornstarch, salt, sorbitan tristearate, soy lecithin, natural and artificial flavors, oil of peppermint.
- Contains: Wheat, soy
- Allergen Information: No cross-contamination warning shown online and certified kosher parve.
Thin Mints (by ABC Bakers)
Ingredients: Enriched wheat flour (flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, vegetable oil shortening (palm and palm kernel oils), cocoa (processed with alkali), caramel color, high fructose corn syrup, salt, baking soda, soy lecithin, natural and artificial flavor.
- Contains: Wheat, soy
- Allergen Information: As always, it is “Manufactured in a shared facility with: milk, peanuts, coconut” and certified kosher OU-D.
Toast-Yay! (by ABC Bakers)
Ingredients: Enriched wheat flour (flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, palm oil, vegetable oil shortening (palm kernel and palm oils), cornstarch, invert sugar, cinnamon, salt, food starch-modified, leavening (baking soda, sodium acid pyrophosphate, monocalcium phosphate), soy lecithin, maple syrup, annatto extract (color), natural flavor, caramel color.
- Contains: Wheat, soy
- Allergen Information: It is “Manufactured in a shared facility with: milk, peanuts, coconut.” and certified kosher OU-D.
Lemonades (by ABC Bakers)
Ingredients: Enriched wheat flour (flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), sugar, vegetable oil shortening (palm and palm kernel oils), cornstarch, corn syrup, leavening (sodium acid pyrophosphate, baking soda), salt, natural and artificial flavor, soy lecithin, annatto extract (color), citric acid, malic acid.
- Contains: Wheat, soy
- Allergen Information: As always, it is “Manufactured in a shared facility with: milk, peanuts, coconut” and certified kosher OU-D.
Peanut Butter Patties (by ABC Bakers)
Ingredients: Sugar, peanut butter (peanuts, palm oil, corn syrup solids, salt), enriched flour (wheat flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, folic acid), vegetable oil shortening (palm and palm kernel oils), cocoa (processed with alkali), high fructose corn syrup, leavening (baking soda, monocalcium phosphate), soy lecithin, salt, natural and artificial flavor.
- Contains: Wheat, soy, peanuts
- Allergen Information: As always, it is “Manufactured in a shared facility with: milk, peanuts, coconut” and certified kosher OU-D.
Cross-Contamination Potential
The above mentioned cookies produced by ABC Bakers are all certified kosher OU-D. They are made without milk ingredients, but the “D” likely means that they are processed on shared equipment with other milk-containing cookies. If you are dealing with a severe milk allergy or intolerance (or if you are concerned about cross-contamination of ingredients during the manufacturing process for any reason), then you must double check with the company to see if their processes are “safe” for your needs. Milk Allergy Mom weighed in on her own experience several years ago, but every person could be different and processes can change.
The Thin Mints made by Little Brownie Bakers are certified kosher pareve, but that still doesn’t guarantee safety if potential cross-contamination with dairy is a concern for you. Always contact the company.
Dairy-Free Doesn’t Necessarily Mean Healthy
Remember, these boxes of “American tradition” are treats. They have improved their recipes over the years, but they are still sugary indulgences. While I hesitate to actually recommend them from a health perspective, I do recognize the importance and symbolism of Girl Scout cookies for millions of people. So please, hold off on the food policing and let the dairy-free community enjoy a classic cookie or two!
Dairy-Free Girl Scout Cookie Recipes!
As another option, you can bake your own Dairy-Free Girl Scout Cookies! Here are two delicious recipes from my kitchen.
101 Comments
Doesn’t the chocolate covering on the pbp and hin mints have milk in it?
Not with the ABC Cookies manufacturer. See the “Very Important Notes” section in the post for clarification.
Chocolate is often dairy-free (particularly semi-sweet and dark)
I’m a buyer of ABC cookies, for decades. I bought my first mints this March 2019 and the flavor has definitely changed. If the ingredients haven’t changed maybe the measurement of each ingredient changed. The flavor definitely changed how many i will end in a sitting. Barely 4 cookies. I will be sharing the rest.
That’s so interesting, I didn’t realize the taste change.
Bought the s’mores based on your article for my wife who suffers from rheumatoid arthritis. Its says “contains milk and wheat” right on the label…..
It sounds like you bought the S’mores Cookies from Little Brownie Bakers, which are made with milk. Please read my article in full. As noted in several spots, there are two bakers, and it is the ABC Bakers’ S’mores Cookies only that are made without milk ingredients. If your local troops only sell the cookies made by Little Brownie Bakers, then only the Thin Mints are made without dairy.
Only the lemon looked ok for us this year.
I have heard this. I also looked at a box of thin mints and they labeled milk in it. I think this is very misleading and in very poor judgement that anyone especially girl scouts would promote otherwise!! You have been the only one that I have heard explain the situation. No matter what the situation is girl scouts should be 100% reliable for misleading and false advertisement! I will no longer buy girl scout cookies.
Thank you much for the dairy free. Have bought mainly from ABC bakers but have had from both companies.
Anxious to try toast yays.
I hate to burst your bubbles, but technically there aren’t any truly vegan Girl Scout cookies. They all contain sugar which is bone-char processed. I highly doubt the manufacturers would spend extra money just to buy vegan sugar.
I just sent them a question about that because it is not showing it as organic or cane. People think that just because there supposedly isn’t dairy that they can say it is vegan. So tired of people claiming something is vegan when it isn’t.
They have promoted them as vegan, and I’ve been told by several strict vegans that the sugar is vegan. But check yourself to be sure if concerned!
This article is marginally out of date. According to information which I am fairly certain is correct (and am looking to verify (read a few months ago and looking for source), ALL thin mints are now dairy, regardless of the bakery.
Hi Jeff, according to both manufacturers websites, this information is still correct. I updated it last year, and the status/ingredients have not changed – at least they aren’t reporting a change as of yet.
While I know this discussion happened a couple of months ago, I thought I would add some info…
Which bakery is used varies from council to council. In my state, there are two primary councils and a third council which is mostly in another state but covers a couple of towns in my state. My council uses ABC Smart Cookies (thankfully). The other primary council uses the other bakery.
I can say that my dairy (and several other allergies including peanuts/tree nuts) has eaten the Thanks-A-Lot and Thin Mint cookies for the past few years and has had no issues.
Also, I just wanted to add for the previous commenter – Tagalongs are on the list. They are known as Peanut Butter Patties from ABC Smart Cookies. 🙂
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Each girl scout council should have a website. The council in my region lists information for their cookies on the council website. It lists the nutrition information and ingredients for each type of cookie. It appears as if all of the cookies listed by my region’s council are not the ABC cookies. There are no dairy free cookies listed. So, I would think that individual troops probably have no say in where they order the cookies from. The whole council is most likely the same.
Where can I buy them? My siblings are allgeric to milk and we heard of these cookies and we wondered where we can order some. This would make my siblings very happy to eat Girl Scout cookies
Allison, inquire with local troops to see if they carry the ABC cookies and see the comments on this post – other readers have some great suggestions!
Is any girl scout cookie gluten and dairy free, or just gluten free?
No, they haven’t come out with a gluten-free cookie yet!
I am a Mother of a Girl Scout and a co leader for 2 years now. We live in MI and our state is split by which company bakes our cookies. I also know that our area switched bakers a few years back, and have done so several times in years past. Because of this I recommend asking/checking each year you order cookies. Better safe than sorry! 🙂
Thank for this info! Now if they’d only make some or all of them vegan, gluten and soy free, a lot more would be sold!
Just FYI…I was looking at the ABC Smart Cookies website and the Mango Creams have “No trans fats, hydrogenated oils, or preservatives”. Which is great news cause I have them in my pantry…they taste great by the way! 🙂
Here is the link if you want to check them out.
http://www.abcsmartcookies.com/new-mango-cremes-with-nutrifusion%E2%84%A2
This is good news! A few cookies now and then won’t hurt, especially if you are exercising regularly. I never understood why the thin mint was a best seller. I’d rather have a mint chocolate (hard to find vegan, but not impossible). The other flavors sound great, so I’d probably have to try at least 2 or 3 boxes. I do dislike all the plastic packaging, however, so that might help me control my spending and consumption!
Now, if only the girl scouts would get on the gluten free bandwagon already!
They should make cookies sugar free, dairy free, gluten free. Lots of people would buy these.
I found out about the different bakers a few years ago. What I have done is calling the closest state with the correct baker and order them directly. They will ship them to you if you pay shipping. Nevada head office is who I have used, they are fantastic!
I believe it is by either state or region that they are divided by. I live in Iowa and when I questioned dairy in Girl Scout cookies, I was directed to the Girl Scouts of Iowa website where I found that we have the vegan Thin Mints. Not sure if all states have their own website, but it’s worth a look. And if you can’t pass up the display at the store, you can, of course, check the ingredient label.
Thank you! Thank you for this post! My order just arrived. I didn’t think I would be able to try them but lo and behold I have ABC Bakers Peanut Butter Patties.
Is there any way by looking at a box to be able to tell which Manufacturer it came from?
I am lactose intolerant, and have been craving girl scout cookies, but I don’t want to risk a reaction. Thank for the informative post!
It should say on the box – but see the names above and on their website – they may differ.
Thanks, Alyssa. My husband just ordered more at work last week. 😉 That explains why sometimes I see Thin Mints with milk and sometimes I don’t. Thanks for the clearing that up! 🙂