Methodology
How every number on this site is calculated, and where the underlying nutrition data comes from.
The Protein Density score
Every food gets a single number: the percentage of its calories that come from protein.
Protein Density = (protein_g × 4) / total_calories × 100
We multiply protein grams by 4 because protein supplies 4 kcal per gram (the same convention used by FDA and USDA labelling). The result is a percentage between 0 and 100, where higher = more protein-efficient per calorie eaten.
The four tiers
| Tier | Density | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| Platinum | ≥ 40% | Whey isolate · egg whites · lean turkey · plain Greek yogurt 0% |
| Gold | 25–39% | Quest bar · chicken breast · cottage cheese · most "high protein" yogurts |
| Silver | 15–24% | Whole eggs · tofu · jerky · 2% milk |
| Avoid | < 15% | "Protein" granola bars · peanut butter · most "protein" cereals · Kind bars |
Tier thresholds are deliberately strict. A 40% threshold for Platinum means the food contributes much more protein per calorie than the average diet (~15–20% of calories from protein in a typical Western pattern), so substituting it materially improves your protein-to-calorie ratio.
The protein intake calculator
Two formulas combine to produce your personalised target:
- Basal Metabolic Rate (BMR) via the Mifflin-St Jeor equation, chosen for its accuracy across body composition (Frankenfield et al. 2005, J Am Diet Assoc):
Male: BMR = 10·kg + 6.25·cm − 5·age + 5 Female: BMR = 10·kg + 6.25·cm − 5·age − 161
- Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE) = BMR × activity multiplier (1.2 sedentary → 1.9 extremely active).
- Protein target = bodyweight (kg) × goal-specific coefficient:
- Maintain weight: 1.2–1.6 g/kg (Phillips & Van Loon 2011)
- Lose fat: 1.6–2.2 g/kg — preserves lean mass under deficit (Helms et al. 2014)
- Build muscle: 1.6–2.2 g/kg — meta-analysis ceiling (Morton et al. 2018)
- Adults aged 50+ are biased toward the upper end of each range to combat anabolic resistance (Bauer et al. 2013).
The GLP-1 calculator
GLP-1 receptor agonists (semaglutide, tirzepatide, liraglutide) cause both rapid weight loss and reduced caloric intake. Without intervention, 25–40% of weight lost on these medications is lean mass (Aronne et al. 2024, SURMOUNT-1 BoCo analysis).
We use 2.0 g/kg of goal weight as the recommended target — the midpoint of the 1.6–2.4 range that the literature supports for muscle preservation under significant deficit. We then estimate daily caloric intake from a self-reported appetite score (1–10) and compute the required average protein density needed to hit the target within those calories. If that density is ≥ 40%, the user must rely primarily on Platinum-tier foods; we make this explicit instead of pretending any "high protein" snack will do.
Data sources
- USDA FoodData Central — primary source for verified macronutrients on US-available foods. Government data, public domain. fdc.nal.usda.gov
- Open Food Facts — global, crowdsourced product database. Used for branded packaged-goods coverage where USDA gaps exist. Open Database License. openfoodfacts.org
- Brand-published nutrition labels — used as a tiebreaker when USDA and Open Food Facts disagree.
We do not display retail prices on Day 1 of the site. The "$ per 100g of protein" metric is on our roadmap and will launch when we wire pricing data ingestion.
Disclaimer
ProteinBenchmark is educational. Nothing here is medical advice. If you're on medication (including GLP-1 agonists), pregnant, breastfeeding, have kidney disease, or any chronic condition, talk to a registered dietitian or your doctor before changing your protein intake.