Which Vitamin D Is Best for Vegans? D2, Lichen D3 and Foods

Most vitamin D3 in supplements is made from lanolin, the grease in sheep's wool, so it is not vegan. The vegan options are vitamin D2 from UV-exposed yeast or fungi, vitamin D3 from lichen, fortified plant foods and UV-exposed mushrooms, and all raise the same blood marker. The UK's Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN) said in 2024 that "Both vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 increase blood 25(OH)D concentrations, and both forms prevent and treat vitamin D deficiency", and that the small advantage its review found for D3 "may not be reliable".¹ The NHS says "All types of vitamin D work in this way."² Lichen D3 is the same molecule as animal D3, and no trial has compared the two sources. So "best" comes down to dietary suitability and what you can get. Part of the vitamin D guide within the vitamins and minerals guide.

Why is most vitamin D3 not vegan?

SACN's 2024 review states: "Vitamin D3 used in supplements or fortified foods is primarily derived from lanolin extracted from sheep wool. Vitamin D2 is derived from fungi and UVB-irradiated yeast. Vegan vitamin D3 can be obtained from lichen."³ Fish oil is the other animal source of D3. The capsule matters too: the NHS says colecalciferol capsules "may also not be suitable for you if you are vegan or vegetarian, or have a kosher or halal diet, as they may contain an animal product called gelatine."⁴ NICE, for prescribing: "Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) can be used in people who cannot take vitamin D3 for cultural, dietary, or religious reasons because of the animal sourcing of vitamin D, or the use of gelatine in some preparations."⁵ What vitamin D3 is good for covers D3 itself.

What are the vegan forms of vitamin D?

Four, from two molecules.

• Vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) from yeast or fungi exposed to UV light, the longer-established vegan form.³ What vitamin D2 (ergocalciferol) is goes through it.
• Vitamin D3 (cholecalciferol) from lichen. In the lichen species analysed in a 2001 study, D3 content ranged from 0.67 to 2.04 micrograms per gram of dry matter and rose with the UV-B at the collection site.⁶
• Fortified foods. The NHS lists "fortified fat spreads, breakfast cereals and unsweetened soya drinks (with vitamin D added)" among vegan sources, alongside summer sunlight and supplements.⁷
• UV-exposed mushrooms, the one unfortified plant food with a useful amount.

Is lichen D3 as good as D3 from lanolin or fish?

It is the same molecule, cholecalciferol, handled by the liver and kidneys in the same way; the NHS: "All types of vitamin D work in this way."² What is missing is a trial: none that we could find has compared lichen-derived D3 with lanolin- or fish-derived D3 on blood 25(OH)D, so equivalence is a claim nobody can make yet. UK guidance frames the choice as dietary suitability, not potency by source.⁵ The authorised wordings (normal bones, teeth, muscle function, immune function, calcium and phosphorus absorption) belong to vitamin D as a nutrient and apply to lichen D3 as to any other.⁸

Does vitamin D2 work for vegans?

Yes, and the trials say how it compares. SACN 2024: "Both vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 increase blood 25(OH)D concentrations, and both forms prevent and treat vitamin D deficiency." Its review put D3 slightly ahead, but "due to the limitations, the difference in estimated effect between the 2 forms may not be reliable"; in daily studies at 5 to 25 micrograms it put the D3 advantage at "about 8nmol per litre" and said "these studies confirm that both vitamins D2 and D3 are effective".¹ The NHS: "All types of vitamin D work in this way."² The head-to-head record:

• A 2012 meta-analysis found D3 raised 25(OH)D more than D2 overall; the difference was significant with large bolus doses and "was lost with daily supplementation".⁹
• In a 12-week UK winter trial of 335 women on 15 micrograms a day, both forms raised 25(OH)D against placebo and D3 raised it by about 16 nmol/L more.¹⁰
• A 2024 meta-analysis of daily or twice-weekly dosing (first author employed by a mushroom producer): across 12 daily comparisons total 25(OH)D rose 10.39 nmol/L (40%) less with D2, each form raised its own metabolite similarly, and the gap lost significance mainly at a BMI over 25.¹¹
• At 5 and 10 micrograms a day in a four-week UK trial without sunlight, the rises "did not significantly differ"; the authors called the forms "equipotent".¹²

The pattern is dosing: the gap was largest with big infrequent doses and smallest at the daily 10 micrograms the NHS describes.

Which vegan foods contain vitamin D?

Few, and the amounts depend on fortification. UK figures from the government's food composition dataset, CoFID 2021:¹³

A 2024 meta-analysis of fortification trials found no difference between plant-based and animal-based food vehicles (15.2 against 15.9 nmol/L), with UV mushrooms the one vehicle short of significance (P = 0.06).¹⁵ Are mushrooms high in vitamin D covers sunning, cooking and storage; which foods are highest in vitamin D has the full UK table.

How do you tell from the label whether a vitamin D supplement is vegan?

The NHS advice for vegans is to "Read the label to ensure the vitamin D used in a product is not of animal origin."⁷

• "Vitamin D3" or "cholecalciferol" with no source stated: assume lanolin, the industry default.³
• "Vitamin D3" with "vegan" on the front, or "from lichen": lichen-derived D3.³
• "Vitamin D2", "ergocalciferol" or "mushroom origin": D2, vegan by nature.³
• The capsule: softgels may be gelatine; look for a vegetable capsule, tablet, spray or drops.⁴
• The dose: 1 microgram is 40 IU, so 10 micrograms is 400 IU.¹⁶

How much vitamin D do vegans need, and are vegans short of it?

The same as everyone: the NHS says adults "need 10 micrograms (mcg) of vitamin D a day", that everyone "should consider taking a daily supplement containing 10 micrograms of vitamin D during the autumn and winter", all year for the groups it names, and "Do not take more than 100 micrograms (4,000 IU) of vitamin D a day as it could be harmful."¹⁶ Whether vegans are more often short is not known: in the National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2019 to 2023, 18.2% of adults aged 19 to 64 (about one in six) had 25(OH)D below 25 nmol/L (Table 6.9), 31.4% in January to March (Table 6.15), and fewer than 0.5% of participants were vegan, too few for a separate figure.¹⁷ Can you take too much vitamin D covers the ceiling.

Should vegans pair D3 with K2?

D3-and-K2 products for vegans use K2 (menaquinone-7) made by bacterial fermentation, as in natto, the fermented soya food. The trial record: two years of 720 micrograms of MK-7 with 25 micrograms of vitamin D did not slow aortic valve calcification in 365 older men, and no trial has tested whether K2 changes a vitamin D outcome, so the pairing is a choice rather than a requirement.¹⁸ Vitamin D3 and K2 sets out what each does and the warfarin rule.

Frequently asked questions

Is vitamin D3 vegan?

Sometimes. D3 from lichen is vegan; D3 from lanolin or fish oil is not, and D3 with no source stated is almost always lanolin.³ The question is sourcing, not whether it works. The capsule may also contain gelatine.⁴

Which D3 is vegan?

Lichen-derived D3, stated on the label as "vegan" or "from lichen". Read the source line in the ingredients rather than the front of the pack.

How are vitamin D pills made?

D3 is derived from lanolin, from fish oil or, for vegan products, from lichen; D2 is made from fungi and yeast irradiated with UV-B light.³

Is vitamin D2 vegan?

Yes. Supplement D2 is made from UV-irradiated yeast or fungi.³ SACN: "both forms prevent and treat vitamin D deficiency"; the NHS: "All types of vitamin D work in this way."^{1, 2}

What is the best source of vitamin D for vegans?

No single one: summer sunlight "from late March/early April to the end of September", a daily 10 microgram supplement in either vegan form from October to early March, and fortified spreads, cereals, soya drinks and UV-exposed mushrooms through the year.^{7, 16}

Sources

1. SACN. Fortifying foods and drinks with vitamin D: summary (2024). gov.uk.
2. NHS. Common questions about colecalciferol. nhs.uk.
3. SACN. Fortifying foods and drinks with vitamin D: main report, section 2.6 (2024). gov.uk.
4. NHS. Who can and cannot take colecalciferol. nhs.uk.
5. NICE Clinical Knowledge Summaries. Vitamin D deficiency in adults: vitamin D supplements (August 2026). cks.nice.org.uk.
6. Wang T, et al. Provitamins and vitamins D2 and D3 in Cladina spp. over a latitudinal gradient. Journal of Photochemistry and Photobiology B, 2001. PubMed 11693362.
7. NHS. The vegan diet. nhs.uk.
8. Great Britain nutrition and health claims (NHC) register. gov.uk.
9. Tripkovic L, et al. Comparison of vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 supplementation in raising serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D status: a systematic review and meta-analysis. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2012. PubMed 22552031.
10. Tripkovic L, et al. Daily supplementation with 15 μg vitamin D2 compared with vitamin D3 to increase wintertime 25-hydroxyvitamin D status. American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2017. PubMed 28679555.
11. van den Heuvel EG, et al. Comparison of the effect of daily vitamin D2 and vitamin D3 supplementation on serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D concentration: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Advances in Nutrition, 2024. PubMed 37865222.
12. Fisk CM, Theobald HE, Sanders TA. Fortified malted milk drinks containing low-dose ergocalciferol and cholecalciferol do not differ in their capacity to raise serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D. Journal of Nutrition, 2012. PubMed 22623396.
13. McCance and Widdowson's Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset (CoFID), 2021. gov.uk.
14. Cardwell G, et al. A review of mushrooms as a potential source of dietary vitamin D. Nutrients, 2018. PubMed 30322118.
15. Cashman KD, O'Neill CM. Strategic food vehicles for vitamin D fortification and effects on vitamin D status: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Steroid Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, 2024. PubMed 38141736.
16. NHS. Vitamins and minerals: vitamin D. nhs.uk.
17. National Diet and Nutrition Survey 2019 to 2023: report, Tables 3.7, 6.9 and 6.15. gov.uk.
18. Diederichsen ACP, et al. Vitamin K2 and D in patients with aortic valve calcification: a randomized double-blinded clinical trial. Circulation, 2022. PubMed 35465686.