Gaining muscle on a vegan diet can be challenging, especially since many protein powders are made with whey from cow’s milk. Luckily, there are plenty of plant-based alternatives. To help you navigate your options, from pea to pumpkin seed, we consulted experts and taste-tested a variety of vegan protein powders to suit every preference and budget.
“Pea, rice, hemp or soy as single-ingredient powders are all great options. Or, a blend of those along with pumpkin seed powder (which is rich in magnesium, zinc, and other essential nutrients) and quinoa works well,” says VeganMacros101 vegan fitness influencer and nutritionist Vicki Jones. “Something to take into consideration is that blend formulas usually digest the best and also have the smoothest texture! Pea, rice or hemp can be a little chalky.”
Ryan Adams, the founder of vegan nutrition coaching programme Slim and Sustain, suggests looking for a protein powder with as few ingredients as possible. “Some vegan protein powders use a long list of artificial ingredients for flavour,” advises Adams. “I think some stevia to provide sweetness is perfectly acceptable, but when something has lots of refined sugars, things like maltodextrin, which is commonly used as a filler in all protein powders, or artificial sweeteners like sucralose, then it’s not so great. It’s also best to avoid vegan protein powders that contain large quantities of vegetable oils or added fats, which are used to give a richer taste.”
With this in mind, we decided to put some of the best vegan protein powders to the test. All were tested in the same way to find the most effective, tastiest, and best-value options for building muscle on a plant-based diet.
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The best vegan protein powders for 2026 are:
How we tested
We tested each vegan protein powder over a number of weeks, assessing them for taste, consistency, and any nutrition benefits they offered. You can find our full testing criteria at the end of this guide.
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