The 7 Healthiest Menu Items at Jamba Juice—and 4 to Skip

Jamba Juice started as a small smoothie and juice shop in 1990 in sunny San Luis Obispo, California, at the crest of the juicing wave that swept the nation. As people eagerly sought new ways to nourish their bodies and boost their energy, Jamba Juice became a symbol of this vibrant, health-focused movement and is now known as one of the best smoothie chains in America. With its fresh, made-to-order juices and smoothies packed with fruits, vegetables, and superfoods, Jamba quickly grew in popularity and opened more than 800 locations across the U.S. and internationally.

But by 2019, the health landscape evolved, and so did Jamba Juice. To shed any lingering misconceptions about juice being just another sugary indulgence, the company streamlined its name to simply Jamba and expanded its menu to reflect the broader interests of today's wellness enthusiasts. Now, the Jamba Juice menu offers a wide variety of options that go far beyond juice, including smoothie bowls, waffle and granola bowls, wholesome oatmeal, protein-packed egg sandwiches, baked goods, and more.

What started as a juice craze has become a full-fledged lifestyle brand catering to health-conscious consumers. With so many menu options, here's a look at the seven healthiest menu items at Jamba—and four that are better left behind.

How We Chose the Healthiest Menu Options

If you try to follow a lower-carbohydrate diet, Jamba isn't the place to visit. However, if you're active or an athlete, Jamba offers a variety of great meal substitutes or post-exercise recovery options. For our best bets, we used the following criteria when choosing the healthiest Jamba Juice menu items:

Moderate in calories: Despite the health halo around juice shops, many smoothies and bowls at Jamba top 700 calories. We recommend limiting these carb-rich options to no more than 600 calories. The calories and carbs are lowest in their vegetable juice options.

Lower in sugar: Since most menu items are fruit- and fruit juice-based smoothies (and most have additional sources of sugar), only a few items on the menu are truly low in sugar. As a rule, our recommended items have up to 45 grams of sugar (natural and added). The best choices on the menu, like the fresh-squeezed veggie-based juices, have no added sugars.

Smaller sizes: To keep calories and sugar in check, all the recommended smoothies should be ordered in the smallest available size.  The difference between a small and a large is often more than 200 calories.

Read on to find the healthiest Jamba Juice menu items and a few unhealthy ones. Then, check out The 8 Healthiest Fast-Food Smoothies.

7 Healthiest Jamba Juice orders

Best: Cucumber Orange Cooler

This fruit and veggie juice blend combines orange juice with fresh-juiced cucumber, apple, and lemon. Unlike most of Jamba's smoothies, this drink has no added sugars. It is also rich in vitamin C and folate from the OJ.

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Best: Orange Carrot Twist

This beverage has two simple ingredients: orange juice and carrot juice. This is a nutrient-rich choice as you'll get all the vitamin C, potassium, and folate from OJ combined with the beta-carotene benefits of carrots.

Best: Vanilla Blue Sky

This is one of the lowest-calorie smoothies with one of the lowest sugar counts on the Jamba Juice menu. Even though it has 27 grams of sugar, it is mostly naturally occurring from the bananas and pineapple it contains. With 5 grams of protein, it will keep you satisfied. It is nutrient-rich, providing many essential nutrients, including vitamins C, E, B6, and manganese. The smoothie's blue hue comes from blue spirulina.

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Best: Oatmeal

One of the absolute best choices at Jamba is the oatmeal. The wholesome organic steel-cut oats come topped with strawberries and blueberries. It makes the best bet list because it's low in calories, has no saturated fat, has moderate carbs, and still provides 6 grams of protein.

Best: Impossible Handwich on Multigrain Bun

This grab-n-go sandwich is made from the plant-based Impossible sausage on sprouted grain bread with white cheddar cheese. This is a great breakfast option for those following a more plant-focused diet.

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Best: Turkey Sausage Wrap

This egg and sausage wrap works because it's made with lean turkey sausage rather than high-fat pork or beef sausage. This breakfast item is a great way to start your day as it provides 17 grams of high-quality protein and only a gram of sugar. The protein should help keep you satisfied all morning.6254a4d1642c605c54bf1cab17d50f1e

Best: Greek Yogurt Strawberry + Banana Granola Bowl

This is one of the healthiest Bowl options at Jamba. It's made with bananas, strawberries, nonfat Greek yogurt, and granola.  The yogurt provides 16 grams of protein and 6 grams of fiber, which will help keep you satisfied for longer.

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4 Worst Jamba Options

Worst: Peanut Butter Moo'd Smoothie

This is more akin to a peanut butter shake rather than a smoothie.  Its core ingredients include fat-free frozen yogurt, whey protein concentrates, and a variety of added sweeteners, from sugar to corn syrup.

Worst: Acai Super-Antioxidant Smoothie

This smoothie's first ingredients are vanilla soymilk, sugar, and soy protein. The ingredient list includes several other sweeteners, including juice concentrates and corn syrup. Although it sounds healthy, it has 88 grams of sugar (much of which is naturally occurring), more sugar than two, 12-ounce cans of Coke. The protein and fiber counts are good, but the high calories and sugar make this one of the worst choices at Jamba.

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Worst: Mango-A-G-Go Smoothie

This smoothie is one of the highest in total sugars, which is unsurprising since several of its main ingredients are low-quality added sugars, such as pear juice from concentrate, white grape juice from concentrate, and corn syrup. What's more, for its 510 calories, this smoothie provides 4 grams of fiber and 2 grams of protein.

Worst: Greek Yogurt PB + Banana Waffle Bowl with Chocolate Hazelnut

None of the waffle bowls at Jamba are smart choices if you are trying to level up your eating. This one is extremely high in calories, unhealthy saturated fat, carbs, and sugars. The added sugar in this breakfast dish is nearly 13 teaspoons of sugar.