High protein snacks: 24 ideas with the protein per serving

What counts as a high protein snack on this list?

On this list, a high protein snack has at least 10 g of protein in one serving, and the page checks every snack against that floor. 10 g is where Baylor Scott & White's dietitian starts a practical range of 10 to 20 g for a snack, and the minimum she suggests looking for on a packaged one. It is also what a US package needs per reference amount to say "high in protein": 20% of the 50 g Daily Value (21 CFR 101.54). Healthline's list and Cleveland Clinic's state no protein floor, and several of Healthline's snacks carry 4 to 7 g. All checked October 23, 2026. The floor sorts snacks; it is not an amount you need.

Each snack is for one serving: the ingredients in grams, then one or two steps under its name below each table. Calories, protein, carbohydrate and fat are added up from those grams with the values per 100 g of USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy, for the generic food, not a brand. Oil is counted where a snack uses it; salt, herbs and spices are not. Cherry tomatoes are counted with USDA's values for red ripe tomatoes, year-round average, and beef jerky with its values for chopped and formed jerky, which has more fat per ounce than the Jack Link's label in the store-bought table below: a brand's label is the figure for that brand.

The table also shows whether a snack passes the IZeat healthy check, the definition the Recipes section uses: at least 20 g of protein and at least 80 g of vegetables, fruit or legumes in one serving. Beans, chickpeas, lentils and edamame (whole soy beans) count as legumes; soy foods like tofu are not counted. Sodium, saturated fat and added sugar are not part of it, so a salty snack can pass. 7 of the 24 snacks pass it: tuna with celery sticks, sardines with cherry tomatoes, salmon and yogurt on cucumber rounds, chia pudding with Greek yogurt and strawberries, spinach and feta egg bites, cottage cheese with blueberries and eggs and edamame snack box. Most snacks do not, and that is expected: a snack is smaller than a meal, so it misses on protein, on produce, or on both. A snack that fails the check is not a bad snack; the check is simply built for meals.

IZeat wrote these snacks and computed their figures from USDA values; creators' tested versions will replace them as they are published.

Which high protein snacks need no prep?

These 7 snacks need no cooking: open a pouch, a can or a cup and pair it with fruit, vegetables or nuts. Canned fish, Greek yogurt and cottage cheese bring the most protein here; cheese, nuts and seeds bring it in a smaller weight with more fat.

Sardines with cherry tomatoes

1. Drain the sardines and eat them with the cherry tomatoes.

Greek yogurt with walnuts and honey (vegetarian) (also on the high protein meals list)

1. Spoon the Greek yogurt into a bowl.
2. Top with the chopped walnuts and drizzle the honey over.

Tuna with celery sticks

1. Drain the tuna and eat it with the celery sticks.

Cottage cheese with blueberries (vegetarian) (also on the high protein meals list)

1. Spoon the cottage cheese into a bowl.
2. Top with the blueberries.

Beef jerky with an apple

1. Eat the jerky with the apple, whole or sliced.

String cheese and almonds (vegetarian)

1. Pair one stick of part-skim mozzarella string cheese with the almonds.

Roasted pumpkin seeds (vegan)

1. Weigh out the seeds and eat them as they are.

Which high protein snacks take about 5 minutes?

These 9 snacks take a knife, a spoon, a blender or a toaster, and nothing longer. Greek yogurt, protein powder, canned salmon and ricotta do most of the work.

Whey protein shake (vegetarian)

1. Shake or blend the protein powder with the milk until smooth.

Tuna and yogurt on toast (also on the high protein meals list)

1. Mix the drained tuna with the Greek yogurt.
2. Toast the bread.
3. Spread the tuna over the toast and top with the sliced cucumber.

Chocolate protein yogurt (vegetarian)

1. Stir the protein powder and cocoa powder into the Greek yogurt until smooth.

Roast chicken and mozzarella lettuce rolls (also on the high protein meals list)

1. Lay the lettuce leaves flat.
2. Fill each leaf with roast chicken and mozzarella, then roll it up.

Salmon and yogurt on cucumber rounds

1. Mash the drained salmon with the Greek yogurt.
2. Slice the cucumber into rounds and top each with the salmon.

Cocoa yogurt shake (vegetarian) (also on the high protein meals list)

1. Put the milk, Greek yogurt, cocoa powder and banana in a blender.
2. Blend until smooth.

Greek yogurt dip with crunchy vegetables (vegetarian)

1. Season the Greek yogurt with the lemon juice, salt and herbs.
2. Cut the carrot, pepper and cucumber into sticks for dipping.

Ricotta toast with strawberries (vegetarian)

1. Toast the bread and spread the ricotta over it.
2. Top with the sliced strawberries.

Apple slices with a peanut butter yogurt dip (vegetarian)

1. Stir the peanut butter into the Greek yogurt.
2. Slice the apple and dip the slices.

Which high protein snacks can you make ahead?

These 8 snacks are cooked or set in advance and kept in the fridge or a jar: boiled eggs, egg bites, baked tofu, roasted chickpeas, chia pudding and energy bites. An air fryer works for the chickpeas and the tofu.

Spinach and feta egg bites (vegetarian)

1. Whisk the eggs and egg whites, then stir in the chopped spinach and pepper and the crumbled feta.
2. Pour into oiled muffin cups and bake until set all the way through; keep them in the fridge.

Eggs and edamame snack box (vegetarian) (also on the high protein meals list)

1. Boil the eggs until the yolks are set, then peel them.
2. Cook the edamame from frozen and drain them.
3. Pack the eggs and edamame with the sliced cucumber.

Baked tofu bites (vegan)

1. Press the tofu, cut it into cubes and toss them with the soy sauce and oil.
2. Bake or air fry until golden at the edges; keep them in the fridge.

Chia pudding with Greek yogurt and strawberries (vegetarian)

1. Stir the chia seeds into the milk and Greek yogurt, cover and leave in the fridge overnight.
2. Top with the sliced strawberries.

Peanut butter protein energy bites (vegetarian)

1. Mix the oats, peanut butter, protein powder and honey into a firm dough, with a splash of water if it is dry.
2. Roll into small balls and chill until firm.

Hard-boiled eggs with cherry tomatoes (vegetarian)

1. Boil the eggs until the yolks are set, cool and peel them; keep them in the fridge.
2. Eat two with the cherry tomatoes.

Air fryer roasted chickpeas (vegan)

1. Pat the cooked chickpeas dry and toss them with the oil and spices.
2. Air fry or oven-roast them, shaking once or twice, until crisp; they soften after a day.

Hummus, egg and vegetable plate (vegetarian)

1. Boil the egg ahead until the yolk is set, then peel and halve it.
2. Serve it with the hummus and the carrot and pepper sticks.

Which popular snacks fall short of 10 g of protein?

Several snacks named by Healthline's list and Cleveland Clinic's fall short of 10 g of protein in a usual portion. They still carry some protein; paired with a second protein food, they reach the floor.

What should you check on a store-bought high protein snack?

Read the Nutrition Facts panel of the product you hold: brands, flavors and recipes differ, and the panel is the only figure for that product. The snacks above use generic USDA values; the table below gives the label of one product for each brand named here, as printed when it was read.

• Greek yogurt cups, such as FAGE Total 0% or Chobani plain: check the protein per cup, which follows the cup size, and the added sugar on flavored cups.
• Cottage cheese cups, such as Good Culture: check the protein per cup, which depends on its size.
• Beef jerky, such as Jack Link's: check the protein per serving and the sodium.
• Protein bars, such as Quest or RXBAR: check the protein, the added sugar and the serving, which can be the whole bar or half of it.
• Ready-to-drink shakes, such as fairlife Core Power: check the protein per bottle and the bottle size.

Labels read on October 23, 2026: FAGE Total 0% plain Greek yogurt, 5.3 oz cup (Walmart); Chobani Nonfat Plain Greek Yogurt, 5.3 oz cup (chobani.com); Good Culture Simply Cottage Cheese, 2% Milkfat Classic, 5.3 oz single serve (goodculture.com); Jack Link's Original Beef Jerky (Target); Quest Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Protein Bar (questnutrition.com); RXBAR Chocolate Sea Salt (Target); fairlife Core Power Chocolate 26g protein shake, 14 fl oz (fairlife.com). Where a product page carried two sets of figures, as Quest's did, the table uses the Nutrition Facts panel shown on the page.

Baylor Scott & White suggests looking for at least 10 g of protein per serving on packaged snacks and keeping the added sugar below the protein (checked October 23, 2026). A US package that says "high in protein" has at least 10 g per reference amount, after a correction for protein quality, so the claim and this page's floor meet at the same figure.

Where are the snack lists for a specific need?

14 of the 24 snacks above reach 20 g of protein or more. Full meals, each with at least 20 g, are on the high protein meals list, which shares its 6 snacks with this page. Lists by need each get their own page in the Recipes section as they are published:

• Low calorie snacks keep the calories per serving low.
• High protein low calorie snacks keep the protein high and the calories low.
• Low carb snacks keep starch and sugar low.
• Healthy snacks for work are ones that travel and keep at a desk.
• Healthy sweet snacks start from fruit, yogurt and cocoa.
• Healthy late night snacks stay small.

How do you count a snack in your day?

A snack counts like any meal: add its protein and calories to the day's total, from a list like this one or from the label. The whey protein shake brings the most protein here, 31.9 g. How much protein to aim for in a day depends on you: the protein intake calculator gives a reference from your weight. This page sets no target.

IZeat is the five-star chef calorie tracker that suggests satisfying, great-tasting meals, so you enjoy every calorie you have left. It works inside ChatGPT, Claude or any other assistant: IZeat knows your numbers for the day, which foods fill you up and what you like.

After you connect your assistant, say the snack in one sentence. IZeat logs it and returns calories, protein, carbohydrate and fat for the day, with the source of each figure; with a protein target set, it shows what remains.