The Best Pea Protein Powders for Athletes (It’s Time to Replace That Soy Protein!)

Vegans rejoice. There are vegan-friendly alternatives to whey protein powder, and I’m not talking about soy!

One of the best options for plant-based protein is pea protein. It’s high in protein and BCAAs to help you build muscle and boost athletic performance. Let’s find the best pea protein powder.

Why Pea Protein Powder

If you’re looking for vegan protein powder, pea protein might be your best bet. It’s cheap, nutritious, easy to find, and perhaps best of all, offers a palatable texture!

It’s unique among plant-based protein powders because it contains relatively high levels of branched chain amino acids (BCAAs), which are important for increasing muscle growth and decreasing soreness and fatigue.

Consider the alternatives… We’re finding that soy protein isolate is not necessarily a food to eat everyday, if at all. We don’t need the antinutrients or phytoestrogens in our diets. And rice protein, well, it’s like eating sand. Doesn’t matter how cheap it is, I’m never using that again. Hemp protein and pumpkin seed protein are good, but they’re more expensive.

That makes pea protein the obvious choice!

Best Pea Protein Powders

After researching all the top brands and scouring the internet for lesser-known options, these are my recommendations for pea protein powders.

Best Overall: True Nutrition PumpkinPlus Protein

Few brands offer high-quality products at reasonable prices. True Nutrition is one of the few.

I consider True Nutrition PumpkinPlus Protein the best overall pea protein powder for athletes. It tastes good, it’s healthy, and it clocks in at just over $1 per serving (which is half the price of other name brand products!)

PumpkinPlus Protein is a fine powder combining Pea Protein Isolate and Pumpkin Protein. It’s very similar to the well-known – and much more expensive – Aloha protein powder. The PumpkinPlus is my own personal go-to protein each day.

Protein per serving: 23 grams

Flavors: 34 flavor options, including the basics like Unflavored/Unsweetened, French Vanilla, and Chocolate Fudge Brownie, to more exotic choices like Red Velvet Cake, Spiced Rum Cake, Salted Caramel, Toasted Coconut, Horchata, and Chocolate Covered Banana.

Price: $16 per pound ($1.14 per serving)

Website: truenutrition.com

Best Tasting: Ambrosia Planta Protein

If you’re looking for the best tasting protein with the best flavors, I suggest Ambrosia Planta. This is a blend of pea protein and brown rice protein that’s also fortified with 1 gram of SunBCAA, a unique source of BCAAs derived from fermented sunflower protein.

Protein per serving: 20 grams

Flavors: 14 different flavors including exciting options such as Gingerbread Cookie, Sprinkle Cupcake, Blueberry Scone, and Banana Maple French Toast. In addition to the classics like Vanilla, Cacao, and Unflavored.

Price: $49.99 per bag ($2 per serving)

Website: ambrosiacollective.com

(Also available with FREE delivery from Amazon.com.)

Best Value: True Nutrition Pea Protein Isolate

The best value is all about getting the most protein for the least money. Most of the options listed here are about $2 per serving, with some priced at nearly $3 per serving. But a few of them are just $1 per serving.

At just $1.04 per serving, the best value is True Nutrition Pea Protein. You’re buying pure pea protein, in bulk.

Not only is this much less expensive than the fancy blends, it contains more protein per serving. If money is your only concern, this is a good choice.

Personally, I find it to be a pain in the butt! It’s very dusty and hard to work with compared to the blends like you get with True Nutrition PumpkinPlus Protein. But it works, and the taste is acceptable.

Protein per serving: 25 grams

Flavors: 34 flavor options, including the basics like Unflavored/Unsweetened, French Vanilla, and Cookies N Cream, to more exotic choices like Chocolate Churro, Marshmallow Treat, Caramel Macchiato, Cinnamon Bun, Lemon Cake, and Pumpkin Pie.

Price: $14.50 per pound ($1.04 per serving)

Website: truenutrition.com

Best Organic: KOS Organic Plant Protein Powder

If you’re looking for certified organic, you want KOS Organic Plant Protein Powder. It’s an all-in-one protein shake and complete multivitamin. The organic protein blend consists of: organic pea protein, organic flax seed, organic quinoa, organic pumpkin seed protein, and organic chia seed.

USDA Organic, of course.

Protein per serving: 20 grams

Flavors: 8 different flavors including Chocolate, Vanilla, Chocolate Chip Mint, Chocolate Peanut Butter, Blueberry Muffin, Salted Caramel Coffee, and more. (Or choose unflavored and unsweetened, if you prefer.)

Price: $49.99 per bag ($1.75 per serving)

Website: kos.com

(Also available with FREE delivery from Amazon.com.)

Best for Weight Loss: Garden of Life Raw Organic Protein Powder

If you’re looking for a protein powder to help meet your weight loss goals, you want a mix that is high protein, high fiber, and low carb (low or no sugar). This should provide the greatest satiety with the least calories.

Since you are likely cutting calories, a blend of plant-based proteins would be ideal, to give you the most nutrients possible.

Take a look at Garden of Life Raw Organic Protein Powder. This is a blend of 13 different sources of protein to ensure a complete amino acid profile. Each serving contains 22 grams of protein plus 4 grams of branched chain amino acids (BCAAs).

Pea protein is the first ingredient, but there’s so much more. In fact, there are 22 raw organic sprouts including sprouted brown rice protein, buckwheat sprouts, lentil sprouts, and more. You’re also getting live probiotics and enzymes.

Protein per serving: 22 grams

Flavors: Unflavored, Chocolate, Vanilla, and Vanilla Chai

Price: $50.99 ($2.55 per serving)

Website: www.gardenoflife.com

Best for Muscle Building: Vega Sport Premium Protein

If building muscle is a priority, you obviously want your protein powder to be high in protein. But that’s not enough.

That’s why I suggest Vega Sport Premium Protein, a plant protein blend that’s high in protein and BCAAs, but also contains tart cherry to reduced muscle damage and soreness following a workout.

The quicker your recovery, the more you can train, and more training means more muscle building!

This premium blend is mainly pea protein but also contains pumpkin seed, sunflower seeds, and alfalfa proteins. One serving contains 30g protein, 5g BCAAs (including 2.5g leucine), probiotics, and tart cherry.

It’s also certified by NSF International to be free of banned substances.

Protein per serving: 30 grams

Flavors: vanilla, chocolate, peanut butter, mocha, and berry.

Price: $64.79 ($3.24 per serving)

Website: myvega.com

(Also available with FREE delivery from Amazon.com.)

Best for Competitive Athletes: Naked Nutrition 100% Pea Protein

For competitive athletes, who must not consume any banned substances, the safest bet is going to be Naked Nutrition 100% Pea Protein. It contains no artificial sweeteners, flavors, or colors. There’s just one ingredient: yellow pea protein!

(You can also get chocolate and vanilla flavors, which use natural flavors and sweeteners. But you lose a little protein and gain sugar content.)

All flavors are certified by Informed Choice Trusted by Sport to ensure that the product is free of impurities and banned substances for athletes.

Protein per serving: 27 grams

Price: $57.99 ($0.76 per serving)

Website: nakednutrition.com

(Also available with FREE delivery from Amazon.com.)

Best for the Environment: NuZest Clean Lean Protein

If you’re looking for a vegan protein source, it’s quite possible that you’re an environmentally conscious consumer.

If so, consider supporting an environmentally-friendly company and opting for Nuzest Clean Lean Protein.

They take “clean” to a whole new level. It’s not just about the lack of fillers, additives, and artificial sweeteners. It’s about the environment.

Here’s what they say:

Our products are made from the highest-quality European Golden Peas that are grown in Northern France, an area known for its quality soils, clean environment, and sustainable practices. The peas are then transported by waterways to Belgium (further reducing the carbon footprint and environmental impact), where it is processed by an environmentally-friendly private family business. We specifically chose to grow our peas in France rather than cheaper locations due to their strict rules and regulations regarding the use of common herbicides, pesticides, and artificial fertilizers. These rules and regulations are what help make our product clean.

However, we go beyond just the supply chain. Our canisters are made with HDPE plastics that are 100% recyclable and the most sustainable option as it gives off no harmful fumes into the environment and only requires a fraction of the energy used to create it. We’ve also partnered with organizations like One Tribe, EcoCart, and 2030 or Bust to help protect the environment (we’ve saved 105,980, and counting, trees through One Tribe) and make our shop carbon neutral.

Protein per serving: 20 grams

Flavors: Just Natural, Smooth Vanilla, Rich Chocolate, Real Coffee, Wild Strawberry, Coffee Coconut, Chai Turmeric, Vanilla Matcha

Price: $44.95 ($2.25 per serving)

Website: nuzest-usa.com

(Also available with FREE delivery from Amazon.com.)

Honorable Mentions

Here are other pea protein supplements to consider. They didn’t quite make the cut in 2023, but that could change.

(Listed in alphabetical order.)

Aloha
A vegan, plant-based protein powder with pea protein as the first ingredient. This blend of Pea Protein, Brown Rice Protein, Hemp Seed Protein, and Pumpkin Seed Protein provides 18g protein and 4g sugar per serving. It’s available in chocolate and vanilla flavors, and both taste great! Priced at $32.99 for a 15-serving jug (which comes to $2.20 per serving).
aloha.com

Ladder Plant Protein
This is a new brand created by superstar athletes LeBron James and Arnold Schwarzenegger. The pea and pumpkin protein blend offers 21g protein, 9g essential amino acids (EAAs), and 4.5g Branched-Chain Amino Acids (BCAAs) to support lean-muscle growth and improve performance. It also contains tart cherry for recovery. It carries the NSF for Sport Certification. Choose from chocolate and vanilla flavors. At $59.95 for a 30-serving bag, the price ($2 per serving) is entirely reasonable.
ladder.openfit.com

NOW Sports Pea Protein
This certified organic protein is unflavored and only contains yellow pea protein as its sole ingredient. Each serving contains 15g protein and over 2.7g BCAAs. It’s also certified by Informed Sport. Priced at $29.99 for a jug, it’s just 88 cents per serving.
nowfoods.com

What to Look for in Pea Protein Powder

Wondering how to choose a good pea protein powder? This is my criteria for selecting the best ones.

Amount of protein

Depending on serving size, a serving of pea protein can contain anywhere from 15 to 30 grams of protein. That is quite a wide range! As an athlete, you’ll probably want to focus on products offering at least 20g protein per serving.

Flavor

Pea protein is certainly not the worst tasting supplement out there, but it’s not particularly enjoyable all on its own. If you’re going to mix it into a fruit smoothie, the unflavored versions are fine. But if you’re just going to put it in a Blender Bottle with water or milk, you’ll likely want a flavored mix!

The flavor profile of pea protein is quite different than whey protein, so your preferred flavor may be completely different. Look for a product with at least a few different flavors, and ideally, one where you can start out with a variety pack.

Price

Pea protein powder is cheap. Plain pea protein is often $1 or less per serving.

However, plant-based protein blends may cost up to $3 per serving.

The sweet spot seems to be finding a plant protein blend with pea protein as the main ingredient, priced at $2 per serving or less.

No fillers/additives

Some protein powders, like most supplements, contain way too many fillers and additives and not enough protein.

Unless you’re buying a meal replacement shake, there should be very few ingredients other than pea protein.

Pea Protein vs Other Vegan Protein Powders

Pea protein is a form of protein powder extracted from yellow peas. If you’re looking for vegan protein powder, a pea protein blend might be your best bet.

We’re finding that soy is not necessarily an ideal food to eat everyday, and rice protein, well, it’s like eating sand. Hemp protein and pumpkin seed protein are good choices, but they’re a little more expensive.

Pea protein is cheap, easy to find, and offers a palatable texture. It’s unique among plant-based protein powders because it contains relatively high levels of branched chain amino acids (BCAAs) in addition to the protein.

Why Trust Coach Levi?

I’ve been drinking protein shakes for the past 20 years. I’ve tried so many types of protein powders that I’ve lost count.

Unlike some “reviewers” that create these lists, I’m actually in the gym breaking a sweat and burning calories to where I can make use of the extra protein. And in my reviews, I’m taste testing each and every flavor.

I’m also a certified nutrition coach (Precision Nutrition Level 1) so I like to combine my practical experience with scientific evidence.

Crafting Your Own Sports Nutrition Plan

A proper fueling strategy is more than choosing the best protein powder post-workout. You need to eat properly before your rides and during your rides. And stay hydrated.

You may also consider protein bars when you need something portable and shelf-stable. Here’s my ranking of the best protein bars for athletes.