The Best Protein Shakes of 2026
The best protein shake is Premier Protein: 30 g of protein, 160 calories and 1 g of sugar, for $2.21 a bottle on Amazon. It costs the least of the 6 low-calorie, high-protein milk shakes we priced, so it is also our pick for weight loss.
By Erin Rose Updated October 18, 2026 How we score
Our pick for: Most people
- Protein
- 30 gFrom milk protein
- Calories
- 1601 g of sugar
- A shake
- $2.2112-pack, $26.49 on Amazon
- Per 30 g of protein
- $2.21Lowest of the low-calorie milk shakes
- Sweetened with
- Sucralose and ace‑KNo sugar added
- Testing list
- None foundChecked October 18, 2026
Why we pick it One bottle has 30 g of milk protein, enough to build muscle at one sitting even for older adults, with 160 calories and 1 g of sugar. It is the lowest cost per 30 g of protein of the 6 low-calorie milk shakes we priced.
What you give up It is not on a testing list or lactose-free, it has carrageenan (a thickener some people avoid), and it uses sucralose and ace-K, two no-calorie sweeteners. If those matter to you, see the best shake for your needs below.
The best protein shake for your needs
Premier suits most people. If one of these matters more to you, buy the shake made for it. Each has at least 30 g of protein, and prices are for one shake from a 12-pack.
Best shake on a testing list: Dymatize Performance Shake
It is the only one of the 17 shakes we checked that is on a public testing list. Informed Choice buys samples from stores and tests them for drugs banned in sport, so it suits athletes who are drug-tested. It matches Premier on protein, calories and sugar, for 62 cents more a shake than Premier. The 12-pack we link is Cocoa Pebbles flavor.
Dymatize Performance Shake
$2.83 a shake · 30 g protein · Informed Choice
Best shake without sucralose or ace-K: Oikos Pro
It is sweetened only with stevia and has no carrageenan, a thickener some people avoid. Compared with Premier, it has 20 more calories and costs 13 cents less a shake.
Oikos Pro
$2.08 a shake · 30 g protein · 180 calories
Best plant-based shake: OWYN Pro Elite
It is made from pea and pumpkin seed protein, with no milk and 0 g of sugar. Of the 6 bottled shakes Consumer Reports tested for lead in 2025, it had the least, and it was the only one CR called fine for daily use. It costs about twice as much as Premier.
OWYN Pro Elite
$4.17 a shake · 32 g protein · 200 calories
Best high-protein shake: Core Power Elite 42g
It has 42 g of protein in one bottle, for people who lift hard or are big eaters. It is made from filtered milk and labeled lactose-free. Its 7 g of sugar all comes from the milk.
Core Power Elite 42g
$4.00 a shake · 42 g protein · 230 calories
The best protein shake for weight loss
Pick a shake with about 30 g of protein and 160 calories or fewer, and drink it in place of a snack, not on top of your meals. Premier fits and costs the least. It is not a meal replacement: at 160 calories it is a snack, so eat real meals around it.
Protein helps while you cut calories. In 24 trials averaging 12 weeks, people on higher-protein diets at the same calories lost about 0.8 kg (1.7 lb) more, and kept about 0.4 kg more lean mass, than people on standard diets (Wycherley 2012).
| Shake | Calories | Sugar | Price a shake |
|---|---|---|---|
| Premier Protein | 160 | 1 g | $2.21 |
| Ensure Max Protein | 150 | 1 g | $2.33 |
| Orgain 30g Protein Shake | 160 | 1 g | $2.40 |
| Pure Protein | 140 | under 1 g | $2.58 |
| Dymatize Performance Shake | 160 | 1 g | $2.83 |
| fairlife Nutrition Plan | 150 | 2 g | $3.08 |
These shakes are within 20 calories of each other, so price is the better way to choose. Want the most protein per calorie? Slate Ultra 42g has 42 g in 190 calories, for $4.17 a shake.
If you take Ozempic, Wegovy or Zepbound
These drugs cut appetite, and part of the weight you lose can be muscle. A 2025 advisory from four obesity and nutrition groups says higher targets of 1.2 to 1.6 g of protein per kg a day have been proposed during weight loss, and that a protein shake can help when you can’t eat much. It also says protein alone is not enough: lift weights or do strength work at least 3 times a week (Mozaffarian 2025). A small 30 g shake like Premier is an easy way in. Ask your prescriber about your own target.
How to choose a protein shake
Look for about 30 g of milk protein
In young men, 20 g of protein after a workout switched on muscle building as much as 40 g did (Moore 2009). Older adults need more per meal, about 0.4 g per kg, which is close to 30 g for most people (Moore 2015). Milk protein has all the amino acids muscle needs. Plant protein has less leucine, the amino acid that starts muscle building, so pick a plant shake with 30 g or more.
Check for 0 g of added sugar
Most good shakes have no added sugar and 1 to 2 g in all. Shakes made from filtered milk, like Core Power, show up to 7 g, and that sugar comes from the milk.
Compare the cost of 30 g of protein, not the bottle
A 42 g shake can cost less per gram than a 20 g one that looks cheaper. The table below lists every shake by its cost per 30 g of protein.
Use a testing list if you are drug-tested
Only 1 of the 17 products we checked is on one: Dymatize’s shake.
Are protein shakes safe?
Three things are worth knowing before you drink one every day.
Lead
Consumer Reports tested 6 bottled shakes in 2025. Only OWYN Pro Elite came in under its daily level of concern (88%). The others ran 128% to 199%, and CR rated them OK only occasionally. It did not test the Premier, Dymatize, Oikos or Core Power shakes, so we have no lead result for them.
No-calorie sweeteners
Most shakes use sucralose and ace-K; some use stevia or monk fruit. In 2023 the World Health Organization advised against using these sweeteners, stevia included, to control weight, and called its advice conditional because the evidence is weak. The FDA allows all of them in food.
Kidneys
If you have kidney disease, ask your doctor before adding a daily shake. Extra protein can be a problem when the kidneys are already weak.
All 17 protein shakes compared
Cheapest per 30 g of protein first. Some prices include an Amazon deal that day, so the order can change.
| Shake | Cost per 30 g of protein | Why it is or is not a pick |
|---|---|---|
| Atkins Strong30 g · 190 cal · 1 g sugar | $1.88 | 33 cents less per 30 g than our pick, but 190 calories |
| Muscle Milk Pro 33g33 g · 200 cal · 3 g sugar | $1.90 | 31 cents less per 30 g than our pick, but 200 calories, 40 more than our pick |
| Oikos Pro30 g · 180 cal · 1 g sugar | $2.08 | Best without sucralose or ace-K (stevia only) |
| Premier Protein30 g · 160 cal · 1 g sugar | $2.21 | Best overall: 30 g for 160 calories, the lowest cost of the low-calorie milk shakes |
| Ensure Max Protein30 g · 150 cal · 1 g sugar | $2.33 | 30 g for 150 calories; 12 cents more per 30 g than our pick |
| Orgain 30g Protein Shake30 g · 160 cal · 1 g sugar | $2.40 | 30 g, 160 calories, monk fruit and stevia; 19 cents more per 30 g than our pick |
| Quest 45g Shake45 g · 230 cal · 2 g sugar | $2.50 | 45 g, the most protein here, with 230 calories |
| Muscle Milk Pro 42g42 g · 250 cal · 4 g sugar | $2.55 | 42 g, stevia only, but 250 calories, the most here |
| Pure Protein30 g · 140 cal · under 1 g sugar | $2.58 | 140 calories, the fewest of the 30 g shakes; 37 cents more per 30 g than our pick |
| Dymatize Performance Shake30 g · 160 cal · 1 g sugar | $2.83 | Best on a testing list: the only one of these 17 (Informed Choice) |
| Core Power Elite 42g42 g · 230 cal · 7 g sugar | $2.86 | Best high-protein: 42 g, lactose-free |
| Slate Ultra 42g42 g · 190 cal · 1 g sugar | $2.98 | The most protein per calorie (42 g in 190); 77 cents more per 30 g than our pick |
| fairlife Nutrition Plan30 g · 150 cal · 2 g sugar | $3.08 | Lactose-free, 150 calories; sold on Amazon by another seller, 87 cents more per 30 g than our pick |
| OWYN Pro Elite32 g · 200 cal · 0 g sugar | $3.91 | Best plant-based: least lead of the shakes Consumer Reports tested |
| Core Power 26g26 g · 170 cal · 5 g sugar | $4.03 | Only 26 g of protein and 5 g of sugar; Core Power Elite costs less per 30 g |
| Orgain Plant 20g20 g · 140 cal · 0 g sugar | $4.12 | Only 20 g of protein; OWYN Pro Elite has 32 g |
| Iconic20 g · 140 cal · 0 g sugar | $6.25 | Only 20 g of protein; the highest cost per 30 g here |
Questions people ask
How many protein shakes a day is OK?
One a day is enough for most people. A shake fills a gap; most of your protein should still come from food. Adults need at least 0.8 g of protein per kg of body weight a day, about 54 g for a 150 lb person, and more while losing weight or training (how much protein you need).
Which protein shakes are lactose-free?
Of the shakes on this page, the fairlife shakes (Core Power and Nutrition Plan) and Slate are labeled lactose-free, Ensure Max Protein is labeled suitable for lactose intolerance, and the plant shakes (OWYN, Orgain Plant) have no milk. Premier is not lactose-free. Many people with lactose intolerance can handle 12 to 15 g of lactose at a time, so a small amount may not bother you (Shaukat 2010).
Are protein shakes good for older adults?
They can help. Older adults need more protein per meal to build muscle: about 0.4 g per kg of body weight, or about 30 g for most people (Moore 2015). One 30 g shake gets there.
Is a ready-to-drink shake better than protein powder?
Not better, just easier. Powder usually costs less per 30 g of protein, and you can mix it with milk or fruit. A bottle needs no shaker and travels well. The best protein powder.
How we picked
We read the label of 17 ready-to-drink shakes on each brand’s own site, priced each 12-pack on Amazon on October 22, 2026, and checked NSF Certified for Sport, NSF/ANSI 173, Informed Sport and Informed Choice for each on October 18, 2026. We rank by protein, calories, sugar and cost per 30 g of protein. We did not taste or lab-test any shake. The top guides we read in October 2026 (Garage Gym Reviews, Fortune, Health.com and Food Network) each named a different shake first, and none gave the cost of 30 g of protein.
Sources
- Moore DR, et al. “Ingested protein dose response of muscle and albumin protein synthesis after resistance exercise in young men.” Am J Clin Nutr. 2009. PubMed 19056590
- Moore DR, et al. “Protein ingestion to stimulate myofibrillar protein synthesis requires greater relative protein intakes in healthy older versus younger men.” J Gerontol A Biol Sci Med Sci. 2015. PubMed 25056502
- Wycherley TP, et al. “Effects of energy-restricted high-protein, low-fat compared with standard-protein, low-fat diets: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.” Am J Clin Nutr. 2012. PubMed 23097268
- Mozaffarian D, et al. “Nutritional priorities to support GLP-1 therapy for obesity: a joint advisory from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, the American Society for Nutrition, the Obesity Medicine Association, and the Obesity Society.” Obes Pillars. 2025. PubMed 40673264
- Shaukat A, et al. “Systematic review: effective management strategies for lactose intolerance.” Ann Intern Med. 2010. PubMed 20404262
- World Health Organization, “WHO advises not to use non-sugar sweeteners for weight control in newly released guideline,” May 15, 2023. who.int
- Consumer Reports, “Protein Powders and Shakes Contain High Levels of Lead,” October 14, 2025. consumerreports.org
- Testing lists, read October 18, 2026: Informed Choice (lists “Performance Protein Shake (USA)” from Dymatize), Informed Sport, NSF Certified for Sport and NSF/ANSI 173.
- Labels: each brand’s product page, read October 18, 2026 (Muscle Milk Pro 33g from a grocery store listing; its brand page did not load).