Best Protein Shakes (30+ flavors!)

4.91 from 50 votes

Published 1/5/2020 • Updated 7/10/2024

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Whether you’re looking for a post-workout protein shake or a new protein smoothie to switch up your regular routine, we’ll teach you how to easily make a protein shake with 30+g protein in it!

If you’re anything like us (hello busy moms!), you’re trying to find different ways to sneak protein into your diet. Protein shakes are one of the fastest and easiest ways to do so…plus most FFF protein shake recipes taste like dessert.

While protein powder is our favorite source of protein because you can get around 25g of protein per serving, we’re also sharing other protein options in this post along with many flavor variations.

Our go-to protein shake recipe includes frozen fruit, protein powder, almond milk, and Greek yogurt. It’s a great starting point to get a decent amount of protein per serving and to make it your own!

How to Make a Protein Shake

Base – Fruit vs. Ice: Start with a base of around 1 cup of ice or 1 cup of frozen fruit. My favorite base is frozen banana, but mixed berries are a close second. Add it right into your high-speed blender.
Protein: Next, choose your protein source(s). We typically use multiple protein sources when making a protein shake. For example, you could do a serving of protein powder + a teaspoon of chia/flax seed + a tablespoon of nut butter.
Sweetener: Now, decide if you’d like to add a sweetener. Depending on how sweet your protein powder is or what base fruit you used, you may not need to add one! If you are going to add one, we suggest an all-natural sweetener such as maple syrup or honey.
Liquid: Start with about 1/3 cup to 1/2 cup of liquid and add more from there. There’s nothing worse than a protein shake that’s too runny, so start conservatively. Feel free to use any liquid you like such as water, orange juice, almond milk, etc.
Blend: Now it’s time to blend it all up! The better the blender, the smoother your protein shake is going to be! If things are having a hard time “smoothing,” this means you need to add more liquid.

More Tyes of Protein to Use in Protein Smoothies

Since protein shakes are all about the protein, we thought we’d lay out all of the best protein sources to add to your protein shake and how much protein/serving you can get out of each. Here you’ll find vegan, gluten-free, paleo, and keto protein options!

Protein Powder

Protein powder is such an easy way to get an adequate amount of protein in your shake because 1. there are so many different options and 2. it’s really easy to find at the grocery store! We wrote a Guide to Protein Powder that goes more in-depth in our favorite brands!

Best Protein Powders

Check out our top protein powder recommendations for baking, smoothies, and everything in between.

Garden of Life

Raw Organic Protein

Simply Tera's

Pure Whey Protein

Sun Warrior

Protein Powder

Garden of Life

Organic Whey Protein

Aloha

Organic Protein Powder

Nuts/Nut Butter

Nuts and nut butters are a favorite and delicious protein source to add to your protein shake. Not only will you get protein, but you’ll also pack in the fiber and healthy fats, too!

Almonds (23 almonds) – 6g protein
Peanuts (28 peanuts) – 7g protein
Cashews (18 cashews) – 5g protein
Walnuts (7 walnuts) – 4g protein
Pecans (19 pecans) – 3g protein

Seeds

Whether you’re topping your protein shake or adding them right into the mix, seeds are an excellent vegan, paleo, and keto-friendly protein addition!

Chia Seed (1 tablespoon) – 2g protein
Flax Seeds (1 tablespoon) – 2g protein
Hemp Seeds (1 tablespoon) – 3g protein
Pepitas (1 tablespoon) – 3g protein

Fruit/Veggies

Most protein shakes begin with the base of frozen fruit because it’s easy to blend up and super flavorful. Here, I wanted to point out some of the highest-protein fruits and veggies out there that you can also add to your protein smoothie to really amp it up.

High-Protein Fruit

Guava (1 cup) – 4g protein
Avocado (1 medium avocado) – 4g protein
Kiwi (1 cup) – 2g protein
Blackberries (1 cup) – 2g protein

High-Protein Veggies

Spinach (1 cup) – 5g protein
Kale (1 cup) – 3g protein
Sweet Potato (1/2 cup, mashed) – 2.5g protein
Cauliflower (1 cup) – 2g protein

Other Protein Sources

We didn’t want to leave out some other easy and tasty protein sources that you can add to your shakes to get an extra boost of protein! Greek yogurt is a personal favorite of mine and makes your smoothies super creamy!

Greek Yogurt (1/2 cup 2%) – 11g protein
Cottage Cheese (1/2 cup 2%) – 10g protein
Beans (1/4 cup lima beans) – 4g protein

FAQ

Are protein shakes good for you?

The healthiest protein shakes are the ones you make in your own blender because you can control what goes in them. The goal here is low sugar + high protein and no additives.

Benefits of protein shakes

Protein shakes are an excellent thing to drink after a workout. In addition to post-workout, protein shakes can be used as a meal preplacement if they have enough calories ore even a high-protein snack.

Protein shake before or after workout?

Our preferred time to drink a protein shake is post-workout, but it has been said that either before or after a workout will provide the same benefits!

Blender Recommendations

Every delicious protein shake begins with a good blender. Ain’t that the truth!? I spent years using a dully/crappy blender only to realize that a quality blender really is the key to life. Here are some of our blender recommendations in all price ranges!

High: We currently have the middle of the line Vitamix 5200 and LOVE it. It truly is life-changing when it comes to shakes and smoothies because you get the creamiest texture as can be in no time! ~$400 investment
Medium: Our old blender, that I still love for the record, was the Kitchen Ninja System. She lasted us almost 4 years and it was pure bliss! No, it’s not as good as the Vitamix, but it does come with smoothie specific cups and even a food processor attachment! ~$150 investment
Low: My very first smoothie blender was the good ol’ Nutribullet. At under $100, it really does the trick if you’re specifically using it to make smoothies! ~$60 investment.

4.91 from 50 votes

Basic Protein Shake Recipe

Use this basic protein shake recipe as a starter recipe in making your very own uniquely flavored protein shake that you can drink post-workout!

By: Lee Funke

Prep: 5

Cook: 0

Total: 5

Servings:

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Ingredients

▢ 1 cup frozen strawberries and bananas, any kind of fruit works
▢ 1 serving vanilla protein powder, we used Garden of Life Whey
▢ 1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt, we used 2%
▢ 1/2 – 1 cup plain, unsweetened almond milk

Instructions

Add all of the ingredients into a high-speed blender.
Blend on high for 1 minute, stopping to scrape the sides, if needed. Add more almond milk to thin things out as needed.
Serve immediately.

Tips & Notes

Variations: feel free to use any kind of frozen fruit such as berries or mango. Any kind of protein powder works (chocolate, plain, vanilla). Instead of almond milk, try oat milk or orange juice.

Nutrition

Calories: 282 kcal, Carbohydrates: 23 g, Protein: 33 g, Fat: 8 g, Fiber: 4 g, Sugar: 13 g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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Our Best Protein Shakes

Strawberry Protein Shake

You’re going to love this Strawberry Protein Shake because it tastes exactly like strawberry cheesecake. This protein powder smoothie recipe is made with just a few simple ingredients: frozen strawberries, bananas, vanilla protein powder, Greek yogurt, and almond milk.

Banana Protein Shake

This Healthy Banana Protein Shake is packed with a short list of real ingredients and blended together to perfection! Boasting 16 g of protein per serving and oh so flavorful, this protein shake recipe will fuel your body post-workout or as a sweet treat. Enjoy!

Triple Berry Protein Shake

This Triple Berry Protein Smoothie is packed with clean ingredients and a whopping 12 grams of protein per serving. Made with mixed berries, banana, protein powder, almond milk and chia seeds, this protein smoothie will start your day off right!

PB&J Protein Shake

This peanut butter and jelly protein smoothie is a tasty and healthy twist on your favorite childhood classic. Plus it is the perfect post-workout snack packed with protein and deliciousness.