What’s the Best Sweetener for Keto?

Here’s a question I’m often asked: What’s the Best Sweetener for Keto?  Everyone is looking for the best zero calorie, low-carb, keto sweetener.

What’s the Best Keto Sweetener?

We’re all bio-chemical individuals with unique makeup, which means our bodies react differently to the same stimuli. In other words, what works for me may not work for you and vice versa.

My Favorite Sugar-Free Keto Sweeteners

If you read my post, What’s the Best Milk for Keto, then you know I don’t believe in one size fits all diets or dietary ingredients, and so here I share a number of options for sugar-free keto sweeteners.

Healthy Keto Sweeteners for Dessert Recipes

Most Keto Diet recipes call for sugar alcohols like xylitol or erythritol (that’s what Swerve and Lakanto are made of) to sweeten low-carb desserts.

Those types of sugar alcohols are not an option for me as I can’t digest them. If you can tolerate sugar alcohols that’s great.

Is Erythritol Safe?

Do you have an autoimmune disorder (MS, Celiac Disease, Hashimoto’s thyroid disease, diabetes, etc) or any type of gut issue?

If so I would be incredibly careful using sweeteners like Swerve and Lakanto, or anything else made of erythritol.

Is erythritol keto? Yes. Is it safe for someone like me? No. To start, for those of us with autoimmune issues, minding our microbiomes is a top priority. Research shows that a healthy gut is the key to a healthy immune system.¹

Sugar Alcohols and Gut Health

Why are sugar alcohols so disruptive to gut health? The reason is two-fold.

First, these zero-calorie sweeteners are polyols (4-carbon sugar alcohols). They can be very difficult for some people to break down, disrupting digestion and causing severe gut dysbiosis. Second, this type of sweetener contains corn.

Swerve and Lakanto Contain Corn

The majority of sugar-free keto diet sweeteners, like Swerve and Lakanto are made from corn, a food that is highly allergenic and incredibly hard on my system.

Corn-Based Sweeteners

I think it’s interesting that so many folks who used to be on a grain-free Paleo Diet, have switched over to the Keto Diet and are now consuming desserts made with large amounts of corn-based sweeteners.

If you’re one of those people I’d love to hear from you about this change and if it was positive or negative for you.

Sugar-Free Xylitol

Xylitol is a zero-calorie sugar-free sweetener often made from birch. I like that it’s a corn-free keto sweetener option (be sure to check the label to make sure the xylitol you buy is derived from birch, not something else).

This sugar alcohol is very hard for me to digest, so I don’t use xylitol. Some people say that this sugar-free sweetener has a cool aftertaste.

Monk Fruit

Some people like to use monk fruit for their sugar-free keto desserts. It’s another good option but not a low-carb sweetener that I have used much.

If you do buy it and want to use pure monk fruit, check the label to make sure it does not have erythritol. The pure Monk Fruit Sweetener that I recommend is made by Julian Bakery and can be bought online.

What’s the Best Sweetener for Keto Diet?

For me, the best sweetener for the Keto Diet is stevia. I’ve found that stevia doesn’t cause digestive distress when I use a pure form that does not contain inflammatory items like corn, erythritol, and other highly processed ingredients that are difficult to digest.

My keto recipes using stevia, are a hit with family, friends, and fans, and you’ll find several of them below!

Which Keto Sweetener Tastes Best?

I use stevia in very small amounts. In recipes sweetened with stevia, a little goes a long way! Although sugar-free stevia is fantastic, it is not perfect. The main issue with stevia is that some people find it has a bitter aftertaste.

If you are wondering which sweetener has the least aftertaste, stevia won’t be the best choice for you. However, when I pair stevia with strong flavors like coffee, chocolate, or citrus I can mask that aftertaste very effectively.

Sugar-Free Keto Dessert Recipes with Stevia

There you have it! If you’re wondering what’s the best sugar-free, low-carb sweetener, for me it’s stevia. If you have an autoimmune disorder, it’s perfect for you. Here are some of my healthy low-carb recipes sweetened with stevia!

Keto Bread with Blueberries

My Keto Bread with Blueberries is the most amazing low-carb bread and I sweeten it with stevia. If you’re in the mood for something plain, try my regular Keto Bread.

Both of these keto breads are amazing toasted and smothered in ghee, which is the perfect low-carb spread.

Sugar-Free Keto Mojito Popsicles

Keto Mojito Popsicles are one of my favorite desserts! I can’t go a single day in the summer without having a batch of these in my freezer.

For this popsicle recipe, I use plain stevia. The mint and lime flavor profile is so incredible and also masks any stevia aftertaste.

Chocolate Chia Pudding

I created my Chocolate Chia Pudding recipe when my awesome mother-in-law (MIL) asked me to create and customize a healthy chocolate chia pudding for her special diet.

This Keto Chocolate Chia Pudding is not only amazingly tasty, with five ingredients it’s super easy to make. My sugar-free Chocolate Chia Pudding is sweetened with vanilla stevia.

3-Ingredient Keto Chocolate Pudding

Creating no sugar keto desserts can be quite challenging, but it’s one I love. When I make a sugar-free dessert, it’s not only free of refined sugar, it doesn’t contain high-glycemic sweeteners like honey or maple syrup.

You’ll love that I sweeten my 3-Ingredient Keto Chocolate Pudding with vanilla stevia.

Sugar-Free Keto Brownies Recipe

My Sugar-Free Keto Brownies recipe is a labor of love for my readers on low-carb high-fat (LCHF) Keto Diets. If your digestion is at all compromised, be careful because the recipe contains erythritol in addition to stevia.

Sadly, because of the sweetener, they are not something I can eat, but Mr. Pantry loves them!

My incredible Keto Nut-Free Zucchini Bread recipe is another one of those recipes that I’ve created for those of you on a sugar-free diet, but that I myself don’t eat.

My Favorite Keto Sweeteners

Now that you have my favorite keto sweetener list. I’d love to hear from you. What is your favorite keto sweetener?

This post is an oldie but goodie from the archives, I first shared What’s the Best Sweetener for Keto in 2019.