Best vegan protein powders
Plant proteins have lower leucine fractions than whey (~7–8% vs 10.5%) — most need a slightly larger serving to clear the MPS trigger.
The vegan protein tax
Every gram on a whey, casein, or milk-blend label is a gram you actually get — DIAAS scores ≥ 1.0 clamp to 100% delivered. Every plant-based powder in this database loses 10–20% of its labeled protein once adjusted for digestibility (DAY), across all 26 powders we carry, not a cherry-picked few. Why that discount exists — and why it is a dose problem, not a completeness problem — is explained on complete protein, scored by DIAAS.
| Product | Protein | Leucine | Density | Quality |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vega Sport Premium Protein plant blend | 30g 170 kcal | 2.34g Try 1.5× | 70.6% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| Garden of Life Sport Organic Plant-Based Protein plant blend | 30g 170 kcal | 2.34g Try 1.5× | 70.6% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| NOW Sports Pea Protein pea | 24g 100 kcal | 1.97g Try 1.5× | 96% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| Transparent Labs Organic Vegan Rice & Pea Protein plant blend | 24g 150 kcal | 1.97g Try 1.5× | 64% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| Ka'Chava Whole Body Meal Shake plant blend | 25g 240 kcal | 1.95g Try 1.5× | 41.7% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| Orgain Organic Protein plant blend | 21g 150 kcal | 1.64g Try 1.5× | 56% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| Truvani Plant Based Protein plant blend | 20g 130 kcal | 1.64g Try 1.5× | 61.5% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| NOW Sports Soy Protein Isolate soy | 20g 90 kcal | 1.6g Try 1.5× | 88.9% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| KOS Organic Plant Protein plant blend | 20g 170 kcal | 1.56g Try 1.5× | 47.1% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
| Sunwarrior Warrior Blend Organic plant blend | 18g 100 kcal | 1.48g Try 1.5× | 72% Platinum | Complete (mod.) |
NEXT IN THIS GROUP Best whey protein, ranked by leucine The animal-source baseline — 10 products, same leucine basis. CROSS THE DATASET Beat a scoop with food How whole-food staples compare on cost per 100 g of protein. UNDERSTAND THE METRIC Why leucine, not protein The methodology behind the MPS-trigger threshold, explained.