Protein is everywhere nowadays: your Starbucks drink, sprinkled over popcorn and even dominating grocery aisles and conversations online — with certain brands earning a 1,250% search volume spike over the past 30 days, according to Google Trends.
Despite all the buzz and shelves full of options, protein bars have a reputation of not tasting all that good. To get to the bottom of it, we decided to conduct a taste test, ranking well-known and viral brands in terms of taste, texture, chalkiness and overall satisfaction.
Read on to learn about the protein bars that received a seal of approval from our editors and producers, ranked.
Why are protein bars having a viral moment right now?
“Once some protein bars shoot up in popularity, every brand wants to compete,” says Kara Nielsen, chief trendologist at Kara Nielsen Food Trends. “The rise of GLP-1s is driving a lot of this as there is a bigger market for these foods and bars. Here is a new and growing audience seeking targeted protein in convenient, small sizes.”
Nielsen says a “recent intensification” with protein can be linked to “people seeking to lose weight, have a low BMI and focus on protein as the central nutrient in their diet.” She adds that those on GLP-1 medication need to prioritize protein as a crucial part of their diet in order to avoid muscle loss.
What are the benefits to protein bars?
Protein bars are a convenient way to snack nutritiously while on-the-go. Personally, I pack them for plane rides, in my lunch when wanting to cure a midday slump and in my running belt while training.
"Depending on the ingredients, protein bars can aid in someone’s overall protein and caloric intake," says Marley Bigos, a Barry's instructor and certified nutrition coach. "For some, it can be challenging to hit certain caloric or protein requirements for their specific goals, so in addition to being an easy and portable snack, protein bars can aid in overall nutrition consumption."
The best overall protein bar, as taste-tested by editors and producers
Average chalkiness score: 4.6/5 | Average texture score: 4/5 | Average flavor score: 3.8/5 | Average overall satisfaction score: 3.8/5 | Overall average score: 4.05/5
Clif relies on peanut butter and chocolate to help mask the sometimes obvious, oftentimes dull flavor of protein. Our taste testers likened the flavor to a popular candy bar. When biting into it, one look will reveal candy bar-like layers, where you can visibly see the wafer and peanut butter layers underneath a chocolate coating.
It's not as dense as some of the others we tested, which meant it earned high marks for chalkiness and texture. Plus, it packs a high amount of protein, making it an ideal snack for remaining fueled on busy days or in between meals.
More protein bars, as taste-tested by editors and producers
Runner up:
Average chalkiness score: 4/5 | Average texture score: 3.6/5 | Average flavor score: 4/5 | Average overall satisfaction score: 4/5 | Overall average score: 3.9/5
‘Tis the season for pumpkin spice and searches for the limited edition Barebells flavor are up 1,300% over the past 30 days, according to Google Trends, helping it earn the stamp of approval from online users. However, to remain consistent with the chocolate theme across the board, we opted to try Barebell’s chocolate dough flavor.
Testers immediately noticed that it appeared to have little sprinkles inside which helped its texture rate pretty high. It looks, tastes and feels like a standard chocolate bar, free of chalkiness and an odd texture.
Low protein, great taste:
Average chalkiness score: 3.8/5 | Average texture score: 3.6/5 | Average flavor score: 3.7/5 | Average overall satisfaction score: 3.8/5 | Overall average score: 3.73/5
Although this bar has the least amount of protein out of the group, it’s hard to ignore how great it tastes. Most of our taste testers finished the entire bar (after having to ditch some of the other options after a single bite). While many of our taste testers loved the flavor, there was one that isn't the biggest fan of peanut butter, so their score brought this bar's average down a bit in that category.
It has an easy-to-chew texture that doesn’t stick to the sides of your mouth, and a true, chocolatey taste. By taste alone, it’s hard to believe that one of the main ingredients is dates! Plus, it’s plant-based, gluten-free, dairy-free and vegan.
Familiar brand name:
Average chalkiness score: 4/5 | Average texture score: 3.8/5 | Average flavor score: 3.2/5 | Average overall satisfaction score: 3.5/5 | Overall average score: 3.63/5
When thinking of Nature Valley, our minds immediately go to a crumbled up granola bar that's found at the bottom of a school or sports bag at the end of the day. Their take on a protein bar includes a chocolatey coating that prevents it from ending in a crumbly mess, and has a non-chalky texture and taste that our editors preferred over others.
Best texture:
Average chalkiness score: 4.2/5 | Average texture score: 4/5 | Average flavor score: 2.2/5 | Average overall satisfaction score: 3.2/5 | Overall average score: 3.4/5
The only thing playing to this protein bar's downfall was its taste. Upon first bite, we were reminiscing about wafer snacks from childhood, only to quickly realize they lacked the same bursting flavor.
This bar ranked high in terms of texture, proving to not crumble with each bite. It also had a chalk-free texture (which we think has to do with the nutty, peanut butter interior). In our opinions, the interior flavor works really well with the wafer exterior to help prevent it from tasting chalky.
How we taste-tested protein bars
We chose 10 protein bars based on how much buzz they’ve garnered (both in-office and online) and recommendations from editors. Then, five Shop TODAY editors and producers blind taste-tested each one (don’t worry, we didn’t eat a full bar each time).
Throughout the process, we jotted down our scores on a scale of 1 through 5 (1 being the worst, 5 being the best) for the following categories:
- Chalkiness (1 being very chalky, 5 being not chalky at all)
- Texture
- Flavor
- Overall satisfaction
Why trust Shop TODAY?
Sierra Hoeger is an associate editor who started writing and reporting for Shop TODAY in 2022, covering topics such related to travel, clothing, beauty and more. She’s even assisted in other Ranked testing processes, so she’s familiar with the rating system we apply to our product picks.
Meet the experts
- Marley Bigos is a Barry's instructor and National Academy of Sports Medicine-certified nutrition coach.
- Gabrielle Kishner is a registered dietitian nutritionist based in New York City. She mostly works one-on-one with clients to form long-lasting nutrition goals.
- Kara Nielsen is a chief trendologist who specializes in food and beverage trends. She's previously worked at WGSN, CCD Innovation, Innova Market Insights, Sterling-Rice Group and CEB Iconoculture Consumer Insights.
- Natalie Rizzo is a registered dietitian and nutrition editor for TODAY.
How do you add Shop TODAY as a Preferred Source on Google?
Google’s new Preferred Sources feature allows users to manually select their favorite publishers and news outlets for a more customizable experience tailored directly to the reader. Once you’ve opted to receive our content, you’ll begin seeing more of our recent and trending articles displayed within your Top Stories news feed.
The easiest way to add us as a preferred source is to click here and type in “TODAY.com.” Once the box is checked and you’ve refreshed the page, Shop TODAY content will start appearing in your feed.
- Our top picks
- Why are protein bars having a viral moment right now?
- What are the benefits to protein bars?
- The best overall protein bar, as taste-tested by editors and producers
- More protein bars, as taste-tested by editors and producers
- Frequently asked questions
- How we taste-tested protein bars
- Why trust Shop TODAY?
- Meet the experts
- How do you add Shop TODAY as a Preferred Source on Google?