Looking for your dream protein bar? There are so many innovative, protein-packed and downright delicious protein bars on the market now, so you can find the one (or few) that works for you. Here are some of our tried and tested favourites.
Low sugar protein bars & low calorie protein bars
Low sugar protein bars can make a great replacement for your typical ‘lighter’ snack, which can sometimes be lacking in nutrition. At least with protein bars, you can enjoy a ‘guilt free’ snack that can also help you hit your protein goals.
Here’s some of our favourite naughty-yet-nice, low-sugar protein bars:
A deliciously crunchy way to get your protein fix – each of these bars contain 20g of high-quality protein, with a tiny 1.8g of sugar. Try them in Peanut Butter and Marshmallow flavours, too.
PhD protein bars: the intelligent way to get your daily protein fix without adding unwanted carbs and sugar. Each triple-layered bar packs 20g of protein, with just 2g of sugar. You can also enjoy the following flavours: Dark Chocolate & Raspberry, Cookies & Cream, Peanut Butter Chocolate, White Chocolate Blondie, Salted Fudge Brownie or Birthday Cake.
It may be covered in delish milk chocolate, but this protein bar from BSN is far from sugar laden. Each bar contains a tiny 1.5g of sugar and a whopping 20g of protein. You can also get it in Salted Caramel and Peanut Crunch flavours.
Are you ready to take your protein snacks to a whole new level of tasty? USN Trust Crunch bars can help. These tasty, crunchy treats have 20g of high-quality protein with less than 2.5g of sugar. White choc not your jam? Try the Salted Caramel Peanut or Fudge Brownie flavours which are even lower in sugar!
Perhaps the most famous low-carb and high protein bars on the market, Grenade’s Carb Killa protein bars really do live up the hype. With around 23g of protein per bar (depending on flavour) and under 2g of sugar, you really can’t go wrong with Grenade protein bars Choose from the following flavours: Dark Chocolate Mint, Choc Chip Salted Caramel, White Chocolate Salted Peanut, Carb Killa Birthday Cake, Dark Chocolate Raspberry, Caramel Chaos, Cookie Dough, White Chocolate Cookie, Jaffa Quake or Fudge Brownie.
Best vegan protein bars
Vegans need protein too! You get asked about it enough, right? Well, the thing is, most protein originates from plant sources anyway – so it makes sense to cut out the middleman / middle-cow! Here’s some of our favourite vegan protein bars:
Here to change the game, PhD Smart Bar Plant is the first low sugar protein bar to deliver more than 20g of plant powered protein AND great taste. Each bar is vegan, gluten free and totally delicious, choose from the following flavours: Coconut & Cashew, Chocolate Peanut Caramel or Toffee Popcorn.
The clue is in the name… Enjoy pure vegan indulgence with every bite of this high-protein treat. Each Belgian-chocolate-smothered bar contains 15g of protein and is totally lactose and dairy free. Choose from Belgian Chocolate Caramel, Belgian Chocolate Orange and Belgian Chocolate Mint.
Best tasting protein bars
Are you in team ‘taste over everything’? Well you’re in luck, these sumptuous protein bars put taste first and foremost, because what’s the point in forcing down a foul-tasting protein bar?
Here’s some of our favourite best tasting protein bars:
Buttery, soft and half-covered with yummy milk chocolate – this bar may taste like the regular flapjacks you know and love – but it’s concealing a high protein secret. Enjoy 17g of protein per bar, with lots of fibre goodness from the oats. It also comes in Cookies and Cream and Caramel Crunch – yum!
Ok, so technically this isn’t a protein bar, but MaxiMuscle protein dippers are a gorgeously nostalgic way to help you hit your protein goals. Enjoy dipping these crispy batons into creamy chocolate hazelnut spread for a totally sweet way to up your protein intake.
Again, these protein bites are not technically a protein bar, but they do the same job. You can snack on these tasty treats to help reach your protein goals without really realising. With just 180kcal per serving and around 20g of protein (half a bag), you could take this resealable bag anywhere and enjoy guilt-free snacking all day. Protein bites also come in Cookies & Cream and Strawberries & Cream flavours.
Best protein bars for keeping your energy up
Although high-protein and low-carb protein bars are the norm, some protein bars are purposefully high in natural carbohydrates – for good reason. Our bodies use carbs to fuel our workouts, especially when it comes to endurance and cardio exercises like running, swimming, hiking and bike riding.
Here are some of our favourite high protein and high carb protein bars to help you perform at your best.
This tasty bar is made with wholegrain oats, all-natural nut butters and added protein for slow energy release to help you get through even the most jam-packed of days. Although it’s packed with healthy carbs and 17g of protein, it contains less than 3.4g of sugar – all of the good and (very) little of the bad! It also comes in the following flavours: Billionaires Shortbread and Blueberry Muffin.
Feed your adventure with Clif protein bars. These delicious bars combine whole grains, protein and fibre to help you power through any adventure. Each bar contains around 10g of protein and lots of complex carbs to keep you feeling energised. Choose your flavour: Chocolate Chip, Peanut Butter, Oat Raisin and Walnut or White Chocolate Macadamia Nut
Fresh, powerful and incredibly delicious, Veloforte natural energy bars have been designed to keep you going all day. They’ve taken home Gold at The Great Taste Awards 3 years in a row – so you can trust they taste amazing! Based on an ancient Italian recipe, these bars are 100% natural and provide you with around 5g of protein per bar as well as energy-boosting complex carbohydrates. Try these tasty bars in the following flavours: Classico, Ciocco, Avanti or Zenzero.
Keto protein bars or low carb protein bars
If you’re following a keto diet, protein bars can cause a catch-22 situation – you want the extra protein, but you don’t want all those carbs that often come with them! However, you’ll be glad to know that low carb protein snacks exist that are keto-friendly, like the ones in the BoostBall Keto range.
These all natural, low-carb boost balls contain 5.2g of protein per pack (4 x 10g balls) with a tiny 4g of carbs, 1.4g of which are natural sugars. They’re vegan too! Other flavours include: Raw Choc, Chocca Mocha and Mint Choc Chip.
