Best Healthy Vegan Protein Bars (GF too!)
Oh the protein bar. There are probably ten zillion brands of protein bars on the market these days. Unfortunately most of them have more sugar than a candy bar and have really crap ingredients. The nice thing is that there are more and more companies that are coming out with healthier protein bars made with cleaner ingredients. After adopting a vegan diet a little over a year ago I didn’t think that there would be many protein bars out there that weren’t made with whey protein/milk/animal products. I’m so glad I was wrong! There are actually TONS of brands that provide both vegan & gluten free protein bars. #winning
Protein/snack bars can be great in a pinch and I definitely eat them for a treat/ when I’m out and about. I have tried quite a few brands over the past year (thanks to my fit snack box, Whole Foods & Fresh Thyme!) and have found the bars that I think taste the best and provide the best nutrition.
I want to share with you the best protein bars (in my opinion) so you always have a healthy option on hand when you are out of the house for a while and need a health (ish) snack!
- Nugo Dark Bars
I was first introduced to Nugo Brand bars early last summer when I was working at Lifetime fitness and they sold Nugoslim bars. The Nugoslim bars are both GF & Vegan and are quite delicious – BUT the really extra delicious line made by Nugo is the NugoDark bars. I had never seen Nugodark bars in store until after Nugo Bar sent me some NugoDark bars to review. Then I started noticing them in WholeFoods, Fresh Thyme, and other grocery stores. You can check out my Nugo Dark review HERE! to learn more about the flavors and macros!
2. Larabar
Okay, if you haven’t been living under a rock you have probably heard of Larabars. They are made with only a handful of ingredients and most of the flavors are vegan! They have flavors like apple pie, blueberry muffin, cashew cookie, gingerbread, and chocolate chip cookie dough. Even with only 3-5 ingredients these bars taste just like their title! What I love even more about Larabar is that they have a whole Vegan page on their website telling you exactly which products they sell are vegan. How nice is that? No guess work! Check out the direct link to their site on their VEGAN BARS & PRODUCTS!.
3. Health Warrior Superfood protein Bars
Big thanks to Fitsnack for introducing me to these bars! It’s so funny that after you try a new product you start seeing it pop up in stores, online, etc. I have been seeing these bars at Whole Foods, other health food stores, and even normal grocery stores by me. I love that they use plant based pea protein along with chia, oats, and pea crisp making these bars both chewy and crunchy! They have flavors like peanut butter cacao, lemon golden berry, and dark chocolate coconut sea salt.
4. Square Bars
These are the cutest little protein bars. They have amazing flavors, come in a cute little square shape, and are coated in chocolate. Does it get any better than that? Well- it could if they were a bit cheaper! These are on the more expensive side for a single protein bar, but are made with healthy, wholesome ingredients. They have flavors like chocolate coated mint, chocolate coated cherry, chocolate coated peanut butter, and more! You can buy them online from their website or for sites like Vitacost or Thrive market for a bit cheaper than purchasing them in store.
5. Clif Bar/ Luna bar
I am lumping these two bars together because they are made by the same company. Most of the flavors of Clif Bars and Luna Bar are accidentally vegan and gluten free. They do report the ability for trace amounts of dairy due to production facilities, but there are no animal products in the bars themselves making them a “go” for most vegans. Clif and luna Bars are fun because they have so many flavors like Peanut Toffee Buzz, Lemon Cake, White Chocolate Macadamia, Chocolate brownie, and Blueberry crisp. The great things about their products is that they are literally everywhere! You can find Clif bars from places like Whole Foods to gas stations. If you are in a pinch with limited options, Clif bars are a great snack!
6. Rise Protein Bars
I was introduced to these bars while working at Lifetime Fitness as well. We sold them in the Life Cafe and when products passed their expiration date we got to take them home! They only have 2 vegan flavors which are Lemon Cashew and Sunflower Cinnamon. The sunflower cinnamon flavor is made with just five ingredients: Organic sunflower butter, organic coconut nectar, pea protein, cinnamon, and organic vanilla extract. No ingredients you can’t pronounce and nothing yucky that will give you stomach pain! If you see these in stores, try them out!
Did I miss your favorite protein bar? Do you eat protein bars regularly or only in a pinch?
Do you have any GF-Vegan protein bar recommendations for me?? Let me know in the comments!
