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How to Order Vegan at In-N-Out Burger

By PhilippeIngredient checks · Updated Oct 2026 Reviewed Oct 2026 · US menu
THE VERDICTFries and a Wish Burger

In-N-Out works for vegans if you keep it simple. The fries are cooked in 100% sunflower oil and are vegan. Order a 'Wish Burger' (bun, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles and chilies) with ketchup and mustard instead of the spread.

In-N-Out has no vegan patty, cheese or mayo, and the shakes and hot cocoa are dairy.

In-N-Out has one of the shortest menus in fast food and no plant-based patty, but it's still a workable stop for vegans. The fries are vegan, and there's an off-menu order, the Wish Burger, that staff know well. This guide covers exactly what to say at the counter, which fry styles and sauces to choose, every drink, and what to skip.

What's vegan at In-N-Out

Item Status How to order it
French fries Vegan Fresh-cut, cooked in 100% sunflower oil. Ask for them "well done" if you like them crisp.
Wish Burger (veggie burger) With swaps Ask for a Wish Burger with no spread, then add ketchup and mustard.
Protein-style Wish Burger With swaps The same, wrapped in lettuce instead of a bun. No spread.
Raw onion, lettuce, tomato, pickles, chopped chilies Vegan
Grilled onions Check Cooked on the same flat-top as the beef.
Ketchup, mustard, black pepper Vegan
Sodas, pink lemonade, iced tea, black coffee, hot tea Vegan No plant milk for coffee.
Spread Not vegan Mayo-based; contains egg.
Cheese, grilled cheese, animal style Not vegan Dairy and spread.
Shakes, root beer float, hot cocoa, milk Not vegan Dairy.

How to order a vegan Wish Burger

The Wish Burger isn't on the menu board, but it's a long-standing order and staff recognise the name. If you get a blank look, ask for "a burger with no meat and no cheese".

What to say: "A Wish Burger, no spread, with ketchup and mustard, please."

Then customise it:

  • Extra crunch: ask for extra lettuce, extra tomato and pickles.
  • Heat: add chopped chilies, In-N-Out's pickled yellow chilies.
  • Onions: raw onion is fully vegan. Grilled onions taste better but share the beef grill (see cross-contact below).
  • No bun: ask for it protein style and it comes wrapped in lettuce.

It's a light meal on its own, so most people pair it with fries. Some vegans bring a cooked plant-based patty or their own vegan mayo from home and add it at the table.

Are In-N-Out fries vegan?

Yes. In-N-Out cuts Russet potatoes in each restaurant and cooks them in 100% sunflower oil. Fries are the only thing that goes in the fryer, so there's no chicken or fish cooked in the same oil.

You can ask for your fries cooked several ways:

Fry style What it means Vegan?
Regular Standard cook Vegan
Light Cooked less; softer Vegan
Well done Cooked longer; crisper Vegan
Extra well Very crisp Vegan
No salt / extra salt As it sounds Vegan
With chopped chilies Chilies added on top Vegan
Animal style Topped with cheese, spread and grilled onions Not vegan

A popular hack is lemon pepper fries: ask for pepper packets and lemon wedges and shake them over your fries yourself.

Sauces and condiments

Sauce Status Notes
Spread Not vegan A Thousand Island-style sauce made with mayonnaise, so it contains egg.
Ketchup Vegan Now made with sugar rather than high-fructose corn syrup. Sugar may be bone-char filtered; most vegans don't count that against it. More on sugar.
Mustard Vegan
Chopped chilies Vegan Pickled yellow chilies.
Salt and pepper Vegan In-N-Out switched its salt packets to sea salt in 2026.

Drinks

Drink Status
Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Cherry Coke, 7Up, Dr Pepper, Barq's root beer Vegan
Pink lemonade Vegan
Iced tea (unsweetened; sweet tea in Texas and Tennessee) Vegan
Coffee and hot tea Vegan, served black
Shakes (chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, Neapolitan) Not vegan
Root beer float Not vegan
Hot cocoa and milk Not vegan

What's not vegan at In-N-Out

  • All burgers with patties, including Animal Style and Protein Style versions, and the off-menu Flying Dutchman.
  • Grilled cheese, which is a bun with cheese.
  • Spread, and anything ordered "animal style".
  • Shakes, floats, milk and hot cocoa.

Is the bun vegan?

In-N-Out doesn't publish a full ingredient list for its buns, so we can't confirm it. Vegan guides generally treat them as free of dairy and egg. In 2026 In-N-Out removed sesame flour from its buns in 10 states, which shows the recipe can vary by region. If you need certainty, ask at your location, or order protein style.

Cross-contact

The fries are the only fried item, so the fryer is used for potatoes only. The flat-top grill is shared with beef, so grilled onions and the toasted bun may touch the same surfaces. If that matters to you, ask for raw onions and an untoasted bun.

Ordering tips

  • Say "no spread" clearly, and check your burger before you drive off. Spread is the default and the most common mistake.
  • At the drive-thru, order the Wish Burger by name and repeat "no spread, no cheese".
  • Watch for limited-time items, which are rare at In-N-Out but may contain dairy or egg.
  • Bring your own plant milk for coffee or vegan mayo if you want them; In-N-Out doesn't stock either.

Where you'll find In-N-Out

As of mid-2026, In-N-Out operates in 10 states: California, Nevada, Arizona, Utah, Texas, Oregon, Colorado, Idaho, Washington and Tennessee. The menu is the same everywhere, except for sweet tea in Texas and Tennessee and regional bun differences.

How In-N-Out compares with other burger chains

Chain Vegan burger? Vegan fries? Our verdict
In-N-Out Wish Burger (no patty) Yes Fries and a Wish Burger
Burger King Impossible Whopper, no mayo Yes One of the better burger chains
Wendy's No Yes Sides only
McDonald's No No (US fries contain milk) One of the hardest chains

The bottom line

A Wish Burger with no spread, chopped chilies and a side of well-done fries is a decent, cheap meal. If you want a real plant-based patty, Burger King is the better choice. See the full vegan fast food guide for 15 US chains.

FAQ

Does In-N-Out have a vegan burger?
Not a plant-based patty. The closest is the off-menu Wish Burger: a toasted bun with lettuce, tomato, onion, pickles and chilies. Order it with no spread and add ketchup and mustard.
What is the In-N-Out Wish Burger?
The name staff use for a burger with no meat and no cheese. You can also just ask for a 'veggie burger'. It comes with spread unless you ask for it without.
Are In-N-Out fries vegan?
Yes. They're fresh-cut potatoes cooked in 100% sunflower oil, and they're the only deep-fried item on the menu, so there's no meat in the fryer.
Is the In-N-Out spread vegan?
No. It's a mayonnaise-based sauce similar to Thousand Island dressing, so it contains egg.
Are animal-style fries vegan?
No. They're topped with cheese, spread and grilled onions. Ask for fries with chopped chilies, or grilled onions on the side, instead.
Are In-N-Out buns vegan?
In-N-Out doesn't publish a full ingredient list for its buns, so we can't confirm it. Vegan guides generally treat them as free of dairy and egg. If you need certainty, ask at your location or order protein style.
Are In-N-Out shakes or hot cocoa vegan?
No. The shakes are made with dairy ice cream, the root beer float includes a vanilla shake, and the hot cocoa is not plant-based. There's no plant milk.
Is In-N-Out ketchup vegan?
Ketchup contains no animal ingredients. In-N-Out switched to a ketchup made with sugar instead of high-fructose corn syrup; some vegans avoid cane sugar that may be filtered with bone char, but most don't.

Keep checking

Vegan Options at Burger King (US, UK and Ireland)SOMEVegan Options at McDonald's: US, UK and IrelandSOMEVegan Options at Wendy'sSOMEVegan Fast Food Guide: What to Order at 15 US ChainsFood Guides

Sources and how we checked

We reviewed the ingredient information below in Oct 2026. Recipes change, so check the pack, especially if you have an allergy.

Spotted a recipe change? Tell us and we'll re-check.