7 Healthiest Protein Coffees—and 3 To Skip

When I first heard about protein coffee, I rolled my eyes and thought: Another social media wellness trend with big promises that fail to deliver. I saw several videos of people claiming that their protein coffee, or what they dubbed "proffee," helped them lose weight. If only weight loss were that simple.

However, after getting over my hang-ups with social media wellness trends, I realized that maybe protein coffee isn't such a bad idea. Protein coffee, which is exactly what it sounds like—coffee with added protein—makes perfect sense for people who tend to drink coffee in lieu of breakfast, like me.

There are solid benefits to incorporating protein into your morning coffee. Sports nutrition experts recommend that athletes and bodybuilders get 20 to 40 grams of protein regularly to maintain and build muscles. Eating more protein also benefits weight management by preserving muscle while losing fat and helping control hunger.

Many social media proffee drinkers credit the protein and caffeine combination for aiding in weight loss. Caffeine increases energy expenditure and fat metabolism and may support weight management, though your body can develop a tolerance to caffeine over time, which decreases its effectiveness.

Given the potential benefits of protein coffee, it's worth considering as part of your morning routine. But with so many options available, how do you choose the healthiest one? To help, we had a dietitian review the nutritional information of various protein coffees and select the best options based on several nutritional factors. Read on to discover which protein coffees made the cut, and if you want to make your own at home, check out 10 Best Protein Powders For Weight Loss, According To a Dietitian.

How We Choose the Healthiest Protein Coffees

• Coffee: Since we're looking for a coffee drink that provides protein, we want a product that lists coffee as one of the main ingredients.
• Protein: We looked for products with at least 10 grams of protein per serving.
• Sugar: Coffee drinks are notorious for having tons of added sugar. The goal of protein coffee is to improve the nutritional quality of the popular beverage, not turn it into a sugary treat. So, we looked for protein coffees with little or no added sugar.
• Saturated fat: The Dietary Guidelines recommend limiting saturated fat to less than 10% of calories or no more than 22 grams a day on a 2,000-calorie diet. We prioritized protein coffees that were lower in saturated fat.
• Ingredients: We also wanted a drink with a short list of ingredients and little to no artificial ingredients.
• Caffeine: It's important to pay attention to the caffeine content in protein coffee drinks. Getting too much of the stimulant may affect sleep or make you feel anxious. Health experts recommend limiting caffeine to 400 milligrams a day. We made note of how much caffeine is in each drink so you can have control over your total daily intake.

Best: Slate Mocha Latte

Those who are serious about coffee and getting enough protein might want to consider Slate Mocha Latte. This ready-made protein coffee lists coffee as the first ingredient and packs in an impressive 20 grams of protein per serving. It's lactose-free, using skim milk as the protein source in combination with the lactase enzyme, and offers 40% of the daily value for calcium and 25% for vitamins A and D.

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Best: High Brew Coffee Creamy Cappuccino + Protein

Protein and fiber are why High Brew Coffee Creamy Cappuccino + Protein makes the list of healthiest protein coffees. Fiber isn't something you usually see in coffee drinks, but High Brew's protein coffee has 3 grams of fiber from added chicory root and meets 10% of the daily value.

This protein coffee is lower in protein than other options on this list, with 12 grams, but it's an excellent source of calcium, meeting 25% of the daily value, thanks to its reduced-fat milk and milk protein isolate. Sweetened lightly with cane sugar, it has 6 grams of added sugar, meeting 12% of the daily value. Given that sweetened drinks are a major source of added sugar, it's essential to keep an eye on this, especially since a balanced diet should have less than 10% of calories from added sugar. Despite the sugar content, the short and simple ingredient list makes this protein coffee a relatively healthy option for those looking for a ready-made coffee with both protein and fiber.

Best: Super Coffee Hazelnut Latte

Super Coffee is a dairy-free option with 10 grams of protein from pea protein, a high-quality plant-based source. It uses monk fruit and sucralose for sweetness rather than added sugars, resulting in less than 1 gram of sugar per serving. Though generally recognized as safe, there's some concern that artificial sweeteners like sucralose may affect gut health if consumed in excessive amounts.

This protein coffee is high in saturated fat due to MCT oil, which is claimed to support brain function and focus. Though there's some evidence supporting MCT oil for cognitive function, there's no clinical data that this fat promotes long-term brain health.

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Best: Alani Nu Protein Coffee

Alani Nu Coffee is a cold-brewed protein coffee that's low in calories and a good source of protein from milk protein concentrate. It comes in flavors including maple donut, vanilla, and salted caramel. We like this protein coffee because it's ready-to-drink and has a list of familiar ingredients, including coffee, cream, and sugar. It's also lower in caffeine, with 100 milligrams per serving.

Best: Chike Original High-Protein Coffee

If you have a weakness for flavored iced coffee, you may want to consider Chike Nutrition's protein coffee. It's a powdered protein coffee drink that comes in fun flavors like mocha mint, caramel, and chocolate peanut butter. You mix it with water or milk for an additional boost of protein.

The nutrition information listed above is for the original flavor, but all flavors have 20 grams of protein and 1 gram of sugar per serving. All the protein comes from whey protein, a high-quality protein that stimulates muscle protein synthesis and is a popular dietary supplement among athletes and bodybuilders.

Best: Truvani Protein + Energy

Though caffeine is one of the reasons many people start their day with a cup of java, some people are more sensitive to the stimulant than others. Truvani Protein + Energy is made for those who want protein coffee with less caffeine, providing 87 milligrams per serving.

The protein coffee powder is vegan and dairy-free. It contains 12 grams of protein from plant sources, including pea protein, chia seeds, and pumpkin seeds. It's also low in calories and sugar and meets 7% of the daily value for fiber.

Truvani Protein + Energy contains MCT oil, so it's high in saturated fat, meeting 15% of the daily value.

The protein coffee is made from natural ingredients but contains active ingredients you might find in dietary supplements, like Lion's mane, a functional mushroom that may support stress management, and maca root, an herbal supplement people take for health and fertility. Though likely safe for most healthy adults, talk to your doctor about the ingredients in Truvani Protein + Energy before adding it to your daily routine.

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Best: OWYN Doubleshot Protein Coffee Shakes

OWYN Doubleshot Protein Coffee Shakes proves it's possible to get a higher-protein coffee without milk. The ready-made vegan protein coffee uses a plant-based protein blend to provide 20 grams of high-quality protein in every serving. It also has more caffeine—180 milligrams—than the other vegan options.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

We also like this coffee drink because it provides 11% of the daily value for fiber and 40% of the daily value for iron and has no added sugar. OWYN's protein coffee is higher in total fat than the other coffees but is low in saturated fat.

The one drawback of the protein coffee is that it's more like a protein shake than a coffee drink. Though coffee extract is listed as the second ingredient, it makes up less than 2% of the drink.

Protein Coffees To Skip

Worst: Bolthouse Farms Protein Plus Coffee

Bolthouse Farms is known for its fruit and vegetable smoothies, and the brand also has a line of protein drinks. Unfortunately, the Protein Plus Coffee drink is one you might want to skip.

Although the drink may provide an ample amount of protein, it also contains many calories, fat, and sugar. One serving of Bolthouse Farms protein coffee meets 18% of the daily value for saturated fat and 72% of the daily value for added sugar, which is more sugar than a 12-ounce can of cola.

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Worst: Premier Protein Cafe Latte Protein Shake

Another protein coffee format is a coffee-flavored, caffeinated protein shake. Premier Protein says this option has as much caffeine as one cup of coffee but doesn't specify exactly how much caffeine that is.

With 30 grams of protein per serving, Premier Protein Cafe Latte Protein Shake has more protein than most coffee drinks. However, it's more of a coffee-flavored protein shake than a protein coffee. If you're looking for a true protein coffee, you may want to skip the coffee-flavored protein shakes.

The shake is low in fat and sugar and a good source of essential vitamins and minerals, but it has a long list of ingredients, including artificial flavors and sweeteners.

Worst: Quest Nutrition Vanilla Latte Iced Coffee

Quest Nutrition Vanilla Latte Iced Coffee ticks many of the healthy protein coffee boxes. It lists coffee as the main ingredient, has a fair amount of high-quality protein, is sugar-free, and meets 11% of the daily value for fiber.

However, it made the list of drinks to skip because it contains artificial sweeteners and additives. It also has 200 milligrams of caffeine per serving, some from coffee and some as added caffeine. Though not over the recommended daily limit, it leaves little room for other caffeinated drinks.

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