What’s the best car? That’s an impossible question to answer.

If by “best” you mean “most reliable brand,” Consumer Reports says it’s Mazda.
If by “best” you mean “best fuel economy,” Car and Driver says it’s the Mitsubishi Mirage.
If by “best” you mean “highest satisfaction rating,” J.D. Power says it’s the Audi A3.
If by “best” you mean “best electric car,” U.S. News says it’s the Tesla Model S.

Clearly, you can’t call a product “the best” until you’ve set some ground rules to judge by. And that’s unquestionably the case when evaluating coffee creamers.

Are you looking for the best-tasting coffee creamer? The healthiest coffee creamer? The best non-dairy creamer, or the best dairy-free creamer? (No, they’re not the same thing.)

• Coffee-Mate might rank as the best creamer, but if you’re lactose-intolerant, you can’t drink it.
• International Delight might have the best lactose-free creamer, but if you’re vegan or have a milk allergy, you can’t drink it.
• Califia Farms might make the best non-dairy creamer, but if you’re allergic to nuts, you can’t drink it.

And on it goes.

That’s why our list of the best coffee creamers is divided into categories. Whether you just want a yummy creamer, or the healthiest – whether you want a vegan non-dairy creamer, or one that’s keto-friendly – we have you covered.

Let’s explain our categories, and then get to the delicious details.

Here’s the easy answer: it’s a substitute for the milk or cream you might ordinarily add to your coffee.

Here’s the more important answer: it’s an unregulated mixture of ingredients designed to taste and act like milk or cream. It might contain soy, nut milk or pea protein; it might contain oil or corn syrup; it might contain added sugar or sugar substitute; it might even contain milk or cream.

Ingredients like almond or soy milk are understandable. It also makes sense that some companies might include a little milk or cream, or add sweeteners.

But what’s the deal with oil and corn syrup?

Dairy substitutes don’t have the same consistency and “mouth feel” as milk or heavy cream, so they usually won’t be as thick when you add them to coffee, and won’t “feel” the way that coffee drinkers expect. Some won’t even mix into a cup of coffee; they’ll just sit on top. Additives like oil and corn syrup are often used as thickening agents, to make a coffee creamer seem more like a real dairy product. (Some use a different but still problematic thickening agent, carrageenan.)

Those ingredients might make a creamer taste delicious or act more like whole milk. But needless to say, oil and corn syrup aren’t always healthy choices. That’s why we have two different categories of creamer: “best taste” and “healthiest.”

Adding a little milk or cream to a commercial coffee creamer can be an issue, too. Many people regularly use creamers because they’re lactose intolerant, meaning they have a sensitivity to the lactose, or “milk sugar,” that’s in dairy products. A coffee creamer containing milk or cream is simply not an option for them.

People with a milk allergy have a different issue. It’s not the lactose that affects them; instead, their bodies reject the milk proteins (casein and/or whey) naturally contained in dairy products. So they need a dairy-free creamer to be safe. Vegans who avoid all animal products are in the same basic situation, only able to use dairy-free creamers.

(Amazingly, a creamer that’s labeled “non-dairy” isn’t safe for those with milk allergies or vegans, only the lactose-intolerant. That’s because the government says companies can use the term non-dairy even if a product contains casein, whey, or their derivatives. No, we don’t understand the reasoning, either.)

That gives us another category for our list: the “best dairy-free” creamers won’t contain lactose or milk proteins.

We’re going to add a final category. Since low-carb eating is such a big thing, “best keto creamer” will take care of those who are on the keto diet or similar eating plans like paleo or Whole30.

We could come up with even more types of coffee creamers to list separately, but that’s more than enough. Let’s get to the good stuff – most of which can easily be found in your local grocery store and on Amazon.

(Spoiler alert: Our choice for overall best coffee creamer is Super Creamer from Super Coffee. You’ll find it listed in the “Best Keto Creamer” category.)

Starbucks Hazelnut Mocha Flavored Creamer

It probably won’t surprise you that Starbucks coffee creamers, relatively new to the market, make this list. We’ve chosen the hazelnut/mocha creamer, which is inspired by the taste of the chain’s hazelnut mocha macchiato. But they offer a variety of other flavors including white chocolate (inspired by their white chocolate mocha), toffeenut (based on their toffeenut latte), and pumpkin spice (based on you know what).

Starbucks makes a delicious liquid coffee creamer that mixes very well, but since it’s made with milk, sugar, heavy cream, buttermilk, soybean oil, cocoa powder and sugar, its nutrition numbers aren’t great. There are 40 calories, 1.5 grams of fat and a whopping six grams of carbs per tablespoon of creamer. Then again, if you’re buying a creamer based on your love of Starbucks drinks, you probably aren’t overly concerned about how healthy your morning coffee will be. (One piece of good news for the health-conscious: Starbucks creamers are carrageenan-free.)

International Delight Cinnabon Creamer

Well, you can feel a little better about putting a tablespoon of this creamer into your coffee, since the numbers are slightly better than Starbucks’: 35 calories, 1.5 grams of fat and five grams of carbs, and it’s cholesterol-free. Those aren’t the selling points, of course; this creamer is based on the flavor of Cinnabon’s cinnamon rolls, complete with a hint of the cream cheese frosting.

It’s dairy- and lactose-free since it’s made primarily from palm oil and cane sugar, but it does contain carrageenan and the milk-derivative sodium caseinate, so it’s not a non-dairy product. It is delicious, though. There are many other tasty flavor choices from International Delight, including Irish Crème, amaretto, caramel macchiato and French vanilla, and crazy options like Cold Stone Creamery Sweet Cream, Almond Joy, Hershey’s chocolate caramel and Fruity Pebbles.

Honorable Mention: Nestlé Coffee-Mate’s Natural Bliss products.