Ranking and reviewing all of the Barebells Protein Bars I can get my hands on to find the best and worst flavors!
Barebells protein bars are known for their candy-like texture and taste, specifically their “regular” protein lineup, which this tier list covers. Their company was founded in 2016 and has expanded its line to include a variety of protein bar types and flavors over the years, featuring limited-edition, holiday, and seasonal flavors.
Notably, these do differ from their Soft Protein Bars, which I’ve reviewed here.
Review & Verdict
These bars are being marketed as something more candy-bar-like–and you know what? It’s pretty accurate! Some flavors aren’t sweet enough, though; several fall quite sweet on the sugary scale! Not to mention, these have several layers that candy bars often have and that other protein bars lack.
In terms of direct flavor and taste, most, but not all, are generally authentic and non-artificial, depending on what you’re trying. So, don’t worry, you won’t find anything off-putting or weird with these!
Most have a similar texture, which occasionally varies depending on the flavor. They tend to sport a generous amount of rice crispy-like pieces on top of a smooth shell, a thin layer of represented flavor below that, and a soft, thick, slightly chewy, and often marshmallow-ish filling. And as I mentioned, compositions do differ somewhat from these norms depending on what flavor you’ve chosen.
Lastly, as a side comparison to their Soft Protein Bar line, these are generally chunkier, crispier, more fulfilling, and have more nuanced layers, so don’t be misled by buying those! Essentially, these are better in almost every metric, providing one of the best protein bar experiences around to pick from should you find yourself in the protein aisle.
Ranking
1. Peanut Butter & Jelly
As soon as I unwrapped it, I felt it. I could feel how soft this bar was, and I immediately knew it was full of jelly. I could literally feel the bar wiggle!
The composition is almost typical of a Barebells bar, featuring some crunchy bits at the top and a super-soft center; however, this center also has a layer of grape jelly running through it, making it even more pliable and soft than most on this list already! Most of the filling has the mouthfeel and appearance of a chewy, super-soft marshmallow, making the entire bar incredibly easy to bite through and so chunky!
It’s also very sweet, with a sugary smoothie grape jelly flavor, light chocolate, and only just a hint of peanut butter. The combination of chocolate and sweet jelly complements each other, making this one of the sweeter Barebells bars. If anything, they could have added more peanut, but as it is now, it’s a delicious sugary sweet bar!
2. Lemon Cheesecake
One of the best compositionally textured Barebell protein bars on this list. First, it has a generous amount of crispy pieces, and when you bite in immediately, you’re met with a thin, sticky, and soft layer of lemony goo — this is different from most other bars on this list. Below that is a moderately sweet, creamy, chewy ganache-like filling. All together, it’s a wonderful and nuanced mouthfeel.
The lemon itself isn’t too punchy; it’s more on the sweeter side, but not overly so. It definitely reminds me of a cheesecake for how smooth and moderately sweet it is, sporting a good balance of lemon and creaminess. I think it’ll satisfy those who appreciate this lemon flavor and those who also don’t want to be punched in the mouth with sourness. Overall, it’s one of the most unique mouthfeel and sweeter bars on this Barbell protein tier list!
3. Wild Cherry
In a sense, this resembles a much more toned-down version of a Cherry Pop-Tart. It has a candy cherry taste, with crunchy red and white pieces at the top, a thick shell, and an inner white ganache. Though it’s definitely not as punchy or sweet, nor as artificial either. Granted, there is enough candy cherry taste to give you a decent helping of almost-cherry-candy bitterness to notice. It’s also one of the sweeter bars on the list overall. I do think the creaminess from the white shell and filling works well with the cherry layer on top, essentially making it taste like a candy cherry smoothie with bits of crunch from the crispy pieces on top. Lastly, interestingly, the bar as a whole feels a little bit softer than many others on this list.
4. Cookies & Caramel
For some reason, these remind me of a very mild Snickers. They have a very similar flavor profile, but less sweet and, of course, no distinct nutty taste. Basically, it’s as chewy, thick, and crunchy as one, though, with a gooey caramel layer, as this one is more solid. Still, you can taste a similar, semi-sweet milk chocolate and an equal part caramel, and coupled with the crispy pieces, honestly, the Snickers vibe is there. The “cookies” flavor is there; however, it falls more on the milder side compared to the other flavors represented, as there doesn’t seem to be many explicit cookie pieces on the inside, and for whatever reason, this bar has a smidge of sweetener artificial background taste.
5. Creamy Crisp
Creamy Crisp is one of the most different bars here. Despite the name, it has substantially fewer crispy pieces on top that even fall off when you bite in. Also, it’s thinner, less dense, and softer overall, nearly melting in your mouth if you let it sit long enough.
Flavor-wise, there is a distinct dark chocolate gooey layer below the shell, then a small chewier (but very lost) layer. It sounds good, but compared to others on this list, it’s less fulfilling due to this more lackluster mouthfeel. On the other hand, it’s slightly sweeter than most on this list, which is nice.
Notably, I do think this does a better job at conveying cookies and cream over the official Barebells Cookies & Cream flavor. This, in my opinion, comes down to the fact that it’s a little sweeter–not super sweet for a protein bar by any means, but it’s enough to bring out the creaminess and slight dark chocolate flavor more.
6. Coco Caramel Almond
Extremely soft, one of the softest Barebells on the list. It tastes like one of their Soft Protein version combined with a Built Puff. The outside is a dark chocolate shell with just a few tiny, crunchy pieces that aren’t too noticeable; there are fewer of them here compared to the other bars. Biting in, a thin layer of gooey caramel sits on top of an almost marshmallow-like paleish white center. It has a slight pull and some chewiness, as if they had mixed marshmallow with the protein filling.
Taste-wise, it’s mostly a sugary, candy-like caramel with a hint of chocolate and almond that gives it a small boost. The caramel is the driving flavor, while the chocolate and almond complement it, alongside its relatively high level of sweetness.
The standout was the texture of this — a thick, soft, pliable caramel marshmallow bite, yum!
7. Cookies & Cream
Compared to its less thick and dense Creamy Crisp, Cookies & Cream is slightly less sweet overall and has a more artificial, creamy, cookie-ish taste. It has a generous amount of crispy pieces on top, a creaminess all around, and small pieces of dark chocolate cookie on the inside that are supposed to represent cookies. Compared to Creamy Crisp, it doesn’t hit you as hard, and overall, it feels like a differently branded cookies and cream protein bar comparatively.
More on the composition: The center is a thick off-white brown with even more dark chocolate crunchy pieces. Overall, it’s a decent enough cookies and cream bar, though a little artificial and not too sweet–some added sugar would have gone a long way here!
8. Birthday Cake
An all white bar with funfetti-looking pieces embedded on the inside, with the usual crispy pieces out. It’s a distinct artificial vanilla, not so much birthday cake, though for whatever reason the artificialness doesn’t drag it–birthday cake is usually artificial after all. It’s sweeter than others on this list, which accentuates the vanilla flavor. It’s a bit creamy too, though, again, more aiming for a sweet, artificial vanilla flavor. I would have labeled this a vanilla protein bar instead of Birthday Cake.
9. Pumpkin Spice
First bite, you’re hit with a pleasantly, mildly sweet pumpkin. Paired alongside an equally sweet milk chocolate, they balance each other well, though none of the flavors necessarily really stand out. This can be good for someone who wants a protein bar that’s less sweet with no big artificialness either. Lastly, to note, it does say pumpkin spice, and while I do taste a little bit of those traditional pumpkin spice flavors, it isn’t as punchy as traditional pumpkin spice, instead leaning towards smoothness and creaminess.
Flavors aside, it has the typical Barebell protein bar layers: soft shell and inside, as well as a few crunchy bits on top.
10. Caramel Cashew
Instead of crispy parts at the top, it seemed like they opted for a few soft nuts instead, making this bar feel more uniform than the others on this list. Even the center is just the thick ganache part, missing other layers that Barebell protein bars often have.
What you essentially get from this bar is a very small nutty part that just seems too light, some chocolate, and some caramel. It’s pleasant and inoffensive, avoiding being overt with its mild flavors and sweetness. I do wish it had more of the usual represented textures, like most of the others here. However, I appreciate the mild sweetness, and thus, I believe the flavors work surprisingly well — nothing artificial, it’s light, and stays in its lane.
11. Peanut Butter
Peanut butter is a strictly regular, mildly to moderately sweet, authentic peanut with hints of chocolate-flavored protein bar. The bar seems to have a few mixed in peanuts, too, right below the rice pieces on top, which makes for a slightly nuanced bite. The ganache is also quite thick compared to others, a little stiffer too, for better or worse. What this bar comes down to is that it’s basically a kind of plain, traditional peanut bar. Nothing sticks out, nothing is offensive or artificial, either. Needs more chocolate if anything.
12. Salty Peanut
Salty Peanut is a bit like the Peanut Butter flavor, but with fewer crunchy pieces overall, making it more uniform and dense. Weirdly, it’s a thinner bar overall too–It feels like it was smooshed a bit! Additionally, to note, it’s a smidge sweeter with a hint of salt, which brings out the authentic peanut flavor even more. The saltiness is subtle but appreciated.
So, if you want better textures and a more fulfilling bar, get the Peanut Butter; if you want something more dense and rich in terms of flavor, get Salty Peanut. Other than that, they’re reasonably close to one another; I think either will satisfy those who enjoy peanut-based flavored treats.
13. White Chocolate Almond
I bit into this without fully reading the package, and I thought it tasted like a form of vanilla. However, after reading the label and chewing on it, I realized it’s actually more of a white chocolate-like flavor, or a combination of the two. Also, it does say almond, but… where? There’s no nutty taste here that I could find!
To me, it has a little bit of an artificial protein bar taste, while also sporting some mix of vanilla and white chocolate. It’s not too sweet and frankly, comes out too mild in my opinion. There is also the issue of its composition, which, instead of a good portion of crispy rice pieces on top, throws you a too little amount of unnoticeable almond slices. It’s disappointing in a way, and what you end up getting overall is mostly a too lightly sweet vanilla-based bar. Still, not bad, but could be so much better!
14. Peppermint Bark
This is different than most on this list. It has smaller crispy pieces that aren’t as noticeable, and it’s definitely a lot softer–you bite through this much easier. It feels less dense and more so focuses on being overly soft and even pliable as you bite in, kind of like a marshmallow in a way. Observing the bar: there is a tiny, thin red coating below the crispy pieces and below that, much of the makeup of the bar–a soft ganache-like filling that also has a similarly light texture to the shell itself; it’s very uniform, resembling the Salty Peanut flavor.
When it comes down to the flavor, it’s mild to moderately sweet with a pleasantly smooth peppermint taste–nothing too rich or powerful here, it’s definitely a creamy, white chocolate peppermint taste that will suit even the many those who dislike peppermint. So, the flavor is good enough; however, my real issue is that it doesn’t feel as thick as the others; it’s quite soft and thinner.
15. Raspberry Cream
Generously covered with what appears to be white chocolate bits and a thin white shell. It features two layers on the inside: a super-thin soft raspberry layer and a white, protein-like part.
This seems more uniform than many of the other barebells on here. Sure, there are some light crispy pieces on top, but that layer of raspberry is relatively thin, essentially making for a regular, chewy, protein-filled bar. Out of the bars in this list, the composition is fairly average: chewy, dense, with a few crispy pieces on top that leave a bit more to be desired.
The flavor is a creamy, sugary white chocolate-like flavor with a smaller note of raspberry. Honestly, I wouldn’t have even guessed raspberry without looking at the package, because it’s much milder than I expected; there’s no punchiness or sourness here. There is also a mild artificial protein taste, which is something to note; I personally found it a bit off-putting as I ate through this bar.
Overall, a more creamy, slightly artificial-tasting Barebells bar. The sweetness is about right–it’s middle of the road, not too much or too little–although the raspberry is simply too light and seems to be overpowered by everything else. This bar just feels too normal and underwhelming.
16. Key Lime Pie
Definitely the coolest looking bar here! It almost has a translucent white shell, which shows off a thin, bright green layer below it. And of course, like most others on this list, it has a generous amount of crunchy, crispy pieces on top, and an average sweetness level overall. There is a clear key lime paste without too much sourness, landing more on a candy-sweet side rather than something extra authentic. It’s good, and it does give off a creamy lime pie-based taste. Unfortunately, while it’s a good bar, it just didn’t vibe with me well; I much prefer chocolate and other flavored Barebell protein bars.