Best Protein Bars for Muscle Gain

Protein bars are probably the most convenient way of hitting your daily protein requirements. They are small, portable, and require no preparation or refrigeration. Simply unwrap and eat.

Protein bars don’t necessarily have the best reputation though, and given the choice between a protein shake and a protein bar, most people will take the shake. There are a couple of reasons for this. 1. The majority of protein bars taste like garbage. 2. Protein bars tend to be fairly expensive when compared to other sources of protein.

Why Choose Protein Bars over Protein Shakes?

The convenience of protein bars make them very appealing in certain situations when eating real food or making a shake just isn’t an option. A few situations where protein bars make for the better option are: camping, hiking, vacations, long car rides, any sort of event that lasts all day such as visiting a theme park, or shopping with women (heh).

If you travel a lot or have a really busy schedule, protein bars really come in handy. Store them in your car, in your desk at work, and in your gym bag or back pack.

Which Protein Bars are Best for Muscle Gain?

There are so many choices out there. Some are meant for the sole purpose of a meal replacement, others are meant to curb hunger, but the majority of protein bars are for building muscle.

It is important to look at the nutrition label to make sure it is high in protein. Some “protein bars” barely have any protein at all. These types are typically marketed towards the general public and people trying to lose weight. These low protein bars are going to taste better because they are made with more carbs/sugar. These may be tempting, but stay far away from them. They will most likely do more harm than good.

What we’re after are the ones with at least 20 grams of protein. These are going to be more expensive than the low protein bars, but that’s okay. Remember, protein bars are for convenience, you shouldn’t be relying on these as your main protein source.

Without further adieu, here are the best protein bars for muscle gain.

Best Tasting: Chef Robert Irvine FortiFx Fit Crunch Meal Replacement Bar.

This is hands down the best tasting protein bar on the market. It contains 30 grams of protein, and only 6 grams of sugar per bar.

Best Value: Pure Protein Bars

At under $1 per bar and packing 20 grams of protein, this is the best value protein bar out there. The taste isn’t too bad either.

Best for Bulking or Meal Replacement: MET-RX Big 100

This is one of my favorite tasting protein bars. It packs a whopping 32 grams of protein, 410 calories, and 26 grams of sugar (which is why it tastes so good). It’s also pretty inexpensive compared to most protein bars. 

Best All Around: Quest 

Quest bars taste awesome, they have a great macro-nutrient profile, and they’re made with high quality proteins. Be careful when reading reviews, there was a recipe change in 2015 and it tasted awful causing people to leave bad reviews, but as of 2017 they have changed the recipe again and they taste amazing.