I never use margarine unless I'm baking.. then I use Earth Balance because it's vegan. Smart balance didn't use to be vegan.. but I see now that it is. It's not something I use all that often but I'd be willing to try smart balance now.

I'm also vegan and use Earth Balance, mostly just for baking. If Smart Balance has less fat than Earth Balance (or traditional butter, for that matter) I would be hesitant to bake with it, as less fat would certainly affect the outcome of the food.

I love Smart Balance!!! I'm also a huge fan of the olive oil margerine by fleishmans. But as for the Smart Balance, I always go for the light...it honestly tastes better.

Also, marygrace, I'm not vegan, but I do cook with Smart Balance and my food comes out just as delicious, and not much difference (outside of it being healthier).

I too join in the Smart Balance love. They also a make a cooking oil that I use as a substitute for vegetable oil when needed. I think it's a blend of canola, olive and soybean oils with lots of good trans fat.

i always use smart balance yay

I'll look into one of these two. We are a butter household as it is. We don't use it that much but have been on the real stuff for a while.

I love my I can't believe it's not butter.

if they are taking liquid oils and making them solid - isn't that by definition - hydrogenated, and therefore, containing trans-fats?

I agree michlny, I am almost positive that smart balance contains the word hydrogenated somewhere in their ingredient list.

I say this because my mom switched to this stuff after her doctor told her she had high cholesterol, but when I looked at the ingredients, I saw that it had something bad in it, and I told her to just stick to olive oil or regular butter if she had to. I think its better to have a smidgen of butter than something unnatural and chemical.

Also, dont these things never go bad even if you leave them out in the sun for a week, they'll still look the same? See, thats not right!

They might be dairy free, but are they vegan? Most "Lactose-Free" items actually still contain milk. My dad bought some lactose-free icecream for a party and the first ingredient was milk. Doesn't seem healthy to be adding and removing things like that.

Oh, I forgot to mention that I knew Earth Balance is vegan, but I was just cautioning people with milk allergies (like myself )

Only real butter for me! Natural is healthier and tastes so much better.

I love Earth Balance!

They are both really good but I usually buy the Smart Balance because it's lower in fat and calories. I always use real butter in baking!

I use I Can't Believe It's Not Butter...have for years and it's my favorite!

i've used smart balance for years. it's the best.

smart balance is the best! better than margarine.. even natural butter is better than margarine. i don't know what i can't believe it's not butter is made of, but i doubt it is made better for you than smart balance.

I love brummel and brown made with natural yogurt. It tastes great, no trans fats, and has 45 cals a Tbs