What Can I Substitute for Rice Milk?

Showing Australian names and measurements · change country in the menu

Swap for rice milk: oat milk, 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk. Verdict: straight swap

Oat milk covers the moisture, gentle sweetness and browning of rice milk, with a little more body. Full details

Checked 25 October 2026 · Rankings aren't for sale

What's it doing in this dish?

You're making a dairy-free cake, muffins or pancakes and the recipe calls for rice milk as the liquid.

oat milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk
soy milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Oat milk matches the moisture, sweetness and browning almost one for one, while soy milk's extra protein helps the crumb set and brown evenly, so either keeps the bake dairy-free without changing the method.

You're blending a smoothie, cooking porridge or soaking overnight oats and want a light, mild liquid.

oat milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk
almond milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Here rice milk is only providing moisture and a little sweetness, so oat milk is the closest match and almond milk works just as well if you add a touch of honey or fruit to make up the sweetness.

You're making a dairy-free white sauce, soup or mash and need a liquid that will not taste sweet.

soy milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk
oat milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Rice milk's sweetness is a drawback in savoury food, so less-sweet soy milk often gives a better result, and its protein and oat milk's body both help a roux-thickened sauce turn out creamier than rice milk would.

You're cooking for someone who avoids dairy, soy and nuts, which is why the recipe chose rice milk in the first place.

water and sugar — 250 ml water plus 4 g sugar for every 250 ml rice milk
oat milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Water with a little sugar covers the moisture and sweetness while avoiding every common allergen, and oat milk is dairy-, soy- and nut-free but is generally not labelled gluten-free in Australia, so only use it if gluten is not a concern.

You're not cooking dairy-free at all and simply ran out of the rice milk you usually use.

full-cream milk — 250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Full-cream milk handles the moisture and browning better than rice milk thanks to its fat and protein, so baking and sauces come out richer and more tender, just a little less sweet.

What Rice Milk does in a recipe

moisture · primary — Rice milk is mostly water, so it hydrates flour, loosens batters and thins sauces much as plain water would.
sweetness · secondary — The rice starch is broken down into sugars during processing, giving it a noticeably sweet taste with no added sugar.
flavour · secondary — Its flavour is light and slightly cereal-like, so it rarely shows through in a finished dish.
browning & colour · secondary — Its natural sugars caramelise in the oven, though with almost no protein it browns less than dairy milk.

Every substitute, ranked

Substitute	Amount	Verdict
oat milk	250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk	Straight swap
soy milk	250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk	Straight swap
full-cream milk	250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk	Straight swap
almond milk	250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk	Straight swap
water and sugar	250 ml water plus 4 g sugar for every 250 ml rice milk	One catch
coconut milk (carton)	250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk	Close enough

oat milk

Straight swap· probably in your pantry

250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Oat milk covers the moisture, gentle sweetness and browning of rice milk, with a little more body.

Covers: moisture, sweetness, flavour, browning & colour
Taste: It tastes slightly more like porridge oats but just as sweet.
Texture: It is a little creamier, so batters and sauces come out marginally thicker.
Looks: Baked goods brown about the same or slightly more.
Best for: pancakes and muffins, porridge and smoothies, dairy-free white sauces

Dairy-freeVeganNut-free

Tried this swap? How did it work?

soy milk

Straight swap· probably in your pantry

250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Soy milk supplies the same moisture and its extra protein helps batters set and brown, though it is less sweet.

Covers: moisture, flavour, browning & colour
Misses: sweetness
Taste: It is less sweet with a faint bean flavour in plain recipes.
Texture: Cakes and pancakes are slightly firmer and sauces a touch thicker.
Looks: Baked goods brown more evenly than with rice milk.
Best for: cakes and muffins, pancakes, savoury sauces

Dairy-freeVeganNut-free

Tried this swap? How did it work?

full-cream milk

Straight swap· probably in your pantry

250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

If dairy is not a concern, cow's milk does every job rice milk does and adds richness and protein.

Covers: moisture, flavour, browning & colour
Misses: sweetness
Taste: It is richer and less sweet, with a clear dairy flavour.
Texture: Batters are more tender and sauces creamier.
Looks: Crusts and tops brown more deeply.
Best for: baking, white sauces, porridge

Gluten-freeNut-free

Tried this swap? How did it work?

almond milk

Straight swap· probably in your pantry

250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

Almond milk is just as thin and light, so it replaces the moisture directly but brings less sweetness.

Covers: moisture, flavour
Misses: sweetness, browning & colour
Taste: Unsweetened versions taste flatter with a faint nutty note.
Texture: The texture is much the same, thin and light.
Looks: Baked goods may be a shade paler.
Best for: smoothies, muffins, overnight oats

Dairy-freeVeganGluten-free

Tried this swap? How did it work?

water and sugar

One catch· probably in your pantry

250 ml water plus 4 g sugar for every 250 ml rice milk

Water covers the main moisture role, and a little sugar stands in for rice milk's natural sweetness.

The catch: Stir about 4 g of sugar into each 250 ml of water until dissolved, and skip the sugar in savoury dishes.

Covers: moisture, sweetness
Misses: flavour, browning & colour
Taste: It tastes cleaner with none of the light cereal note.
Texture: Cakes can be very slightly drier and less tender.
Looks: Baked goods come out a little paler.
Best for: pancake batter, dairy-free cakes, savoury batters

Dairy-freeVeganGluten-freeNut-free

Tried this swap? How did it work?

coconut milk (carton)

Close enough

250 ml for every 250 ml rice milk

The carton drink is thin enough to match rice milk's moisture, but its coconut flavour comes through.

Covers: moisture, browning & colour
Misses: flavour, sweetness
Taste: A clear coconut flavour shows in plain cakes and sauces.
Texture: It is slightly richer, giving a softer crumb.
Looks: There is little visible difference.
Best for: smoothies, tropical cakes, curry-style sauces

Dairy-freeVeganGluten-free

Tried this swap? How did it work?

Commonly tried, but skip these

People reach for these, and they let you down.

canned coconut milk

Skip it

People reach for the can because it is dairy-free and already in the cupboard, but it is many times fattier and thicker than rice milk, so it weighs down batters and swamps the flavour unless heavily diluted with water.

Tried this swap? How did it work?

When to buy the real thing

You're feeding someone who must avoid dairy, soy, nuts and gluten all at once, and the recipe relies on a milk-like liquid.
Instead: Buy rice milk and check the label for allergen statements, or use the water and sugar swap, because every other milk listed here fails at least one of those restrictions.
You're making a rice-based drink where the light, cereal flavour of rice milk is the whole point.
Instead: Make your own by blending cooked rice with about four times its volume of water and straining it through a fine sieve, accepting that it will be less sweet than the carton kind.

Rescue a swap gone wrong

The cake came out heavy, dense and greasy, with an oily top.

Why: Undiluted canned coconut milk was used, and its high fat weighed down a batter built for a thin, low-fat liquid.

Can't be fixed — next time: This bake cannot be rescued, so next time use carton coconut milk or dilute the canned kind with plenty of water before measuring.

The dairy-free sauce looks grainy or has split into curds.

Why: Soy milk can curdle when it meets acid such as lemon juice, wine or tomato while very hot.

Fix: Take the pan off the heat and whisk hard or blitz with a stick blender until smooth, and next time stir in acidic ingredients off the heat at the end.

The pancakes or muffins are noticeably paler than usual.

Why: Almond milk or plain water lacks the natural sugars in rice milk that caramelise and give colour.

Fix: Add a teaspoon of sugar to the remaining batter and cook the pancakes a little longer over slightly higher heat, or bake muffins a few minutes more until golden.

The batter is thicker than the recipe describes and will not pour easily.

Why: Oat milk and soy milk have more body than thin rice milk, so the same volume makes a stiffer batter.

Fix: Stir in water about 15–20 ml at a time until the batter reaches the right consistency, rather than adding it by the spoonful from an overseas recipe, since an Australian tablespoon holds 20 ml and others hold 15 ml.

Key numbers

Fat: about 1%This is far below full-cream dairy milk, so it adds almost no richness.
Protein: under 0.5%The very low protein is why it will not foam for coffee or set a custard the way dairy or soy milk does.
Carbohydrate: about 9–10%Much of this is sugar from the broken-down rice starch, which explains the sweet taste.

Differences between countries

Sold as rice drink (United Kingdom)

UK rules reserve the word milk for dairy products, so cartons are labelled rice drink rather than rice milk. Look for that name on the shelf if a recipe calls for rice milk.

Sold as rice beverage (Canada)

In Canada, plant-based alternatives are usually labelled as a beverage rather than a milk, so rice milk appears as rice beverage. The product does the same job in recipes.

Applies to Australia

Labelled rice milk (Australia, New Zealand, United States)

In Australia, New Zealand and the US the carton is normally called rice milk. Recipes from any of these countries mean the same thin, sweet carton drink.

Where to buy it

Applies to Australia

Australia · easy to find

long-life milk aisle or health food aisle

It is usually sold in shelf-stable cartons, so it needs refrigerating only once opened.

United Kingdom · easy to find

long-life plant drink aisle

Look for rice drink on the label rather than rice milk.

New Zealand · easy to find

long-life milk aisle or health food aisle

The range is usually smaller than for oat, soy or almond milk.

United States · easy to find

shelf-stable plant milk aisle or refrigerated dairy case

Both shelf-stable and chilled cartons are common, and they work the same way in cooking.

Canada · easy to find

shelf-stable plant beverage aisle

It is usually labelled rice beverage.

What is Rice Milk called in other countries?

rice drinkrice beverage

Measurements differ too, not just names: the kitchen conversion chart covers cups, spoons and oven temperatures across these countries.

Questions people ask

Is rice drink the same as rice milk?

Yes, rice drink and rice beverage are simply the names used where the word milk is restricted to dairy. The product is the same thin, naturally sweet liquid and can be used one for one in any recipe that calls for rice milk.

Can I use rice milk instead of regular milk in baking?

Yes, you can swap it one for one by volume, so 250 ml rice milk replaces 250 ml milk. Because it has almost no fat or protein, cakes and muffins come out a little less rich and slightly paler, and the crumb can be a touch drier.

Does rice milk froth for coffee?

Not well, because it has less than 0.5% protein and protein is what holds the bubbles in a milk foam. It will warm and lighten coffee, but for a frothy latte, soy or oat milk holds a foam far better.

Is rice milk gluten-free?

Rice itself is gluten-free, but not every carton is guaranteed gluten-free. Some products are made with barley-derived ingredients or in shared facilities, so check for a gluten-free statement on the label if you are cooking for someone with coeliac disease.

Can I make custard with rice milk?

Yes, but expect a thinner, sweeter and less rich custard than one made with dairy milk. A cornflour-thickened custard sets reliably with rice milk, while an egg custard depends entirely on the eggs to set because rice milk adds almost no protein. Measure cornflour with care if the recipe gives it in tablespoons, because an Australian tablespoon holds 20 ml and a UK, New Zealand, US or Canadian one holds 15 ml.

Can I leave rice milk out of a recipe?

No, not without replacing the liquid, because rice milk is there mainly to hydrate the flour and loosen the batter. If you have no plant milk at all, use the same volume of water with a little sugar stirred in for sweet recipes, or plain water for savoury ones.

Where Rice Milk comes from

Commercial rice milk is made by milling rice with water and treating it with enzymes that break the starch down into sugars, which is where its sweetness comes from. The liquid is then strained, and many brands add a little vegetable oil and calcium before packing it in cartons.

Rice Milk is usually dairy-free, vegan, gluten-free, nut-free — check the label, and see the disclaimer.