Best clear whey protein powders 2024, tried and assessed by experts

For the best all-round clear whey protein powder, look no further than Protein Works’ formulation. So utterly refreshing after a sweaty workout, Protein Works’ clear whey was easy to drink, tasted good and had lots of added beneficial ingredients.

It’s filled with 100 per cent of your recommended intake of Vitamin B6 and B12, which can help fight fatigue and boost your immune system. “The added B vitamins are often neglected, without them one tends to lack energy,” adds Laidler.

It also contains ingredients that have been shown to promote weight loss, such as Acetyl L Carnitine and green tea extract. WHile they’re great all-round ingredients for your body, don’t get too caught up in the “diet” claims—it’s mostly marketing talk – you’ll want this mainly as a post-workout protein supplement, not something that will knock off the pounds.

And in terms of taste, this was absolutely delicious. One of the drinks that we kept coming back to over and over again. We’re particularly fond of the orange and mango flavour, which tasted, quite convincingly, like Rubicon mango juice. It does need to be shaken quite a bit if you don’t want lumps at the top of your drink – or worse – at the bottom, and blending delivers a lot of foam, but get past that and this is a total winner. Side note: High quality protein usually results in a lot of foam, so we didn’t mind too much.  

If you want to get the most protein for your buck, Sci-Mx’s clear whey isolate has you covered. Boasting the highest amount of protein per serving (a wholesome 21g), the brand’s clear whey beats the others we’ve tested for this round-up, and also contains 5g of BCAAs.

Unlike other protein powders, Sci-Mx puts maltodextrin in its blends, a carbohydrate that helps synthesise the protein in your body. “Another high-quality protein,” Laidler says. “The inclusion of maltodextrin could be considered a delivery system post-exercise, but not ideal at other times due to the high glycemic index, without fat content dampening it”..

While it had a good aomount of whey protein content, we found both the tropical punch and apple and blackcurrant flavours tasted a little bitter and quite artificial. It didn’t mix too well either, with lumps forming at the top after rigorous shaking. The artificial smell is quite strong which definitely impacted the taste. The scooper was also smaller than the other protein powders on this list. We preferred the blackcurrant flavour over the tropical one, but it wasn’t as refreshing as some of the others we’d tested.

If you’re looking for a protein powder that tastes as delicious as its nutritional content, we kept coming back to Combat Fuel’s unicorn piss. Yes, that’s really one of the flavours, and it was so, so tasty.

Founded by former British army veteran Alex Berezynskyj, Combat Fuel positions itself as a military and athlete-safe supplements brand, offering rigorous quality control, meaning what you get in the blend has been developed to a high standard. In fact, there are only five ingredients on the back of the tub, so it’s all pretty clean.

A single serving contains 20.1g of protein, and the blend features NuLiv Science’s patented all-natural plant-derived compound AstraGin. “It’s a beneficial addition, enhancing nutrient absorption and supporting gut health,” thinks Laidler.

Out of the protein powders we’ve tried, Combat Fuel’s was one of the best when it came to mixability, producing a smooth, light drink without any lumps – both with a shaker bottle and in a blender. We tried both the Irn Bru and unicorn piss flavours, and both were super refreshing. Dissolving really well, it wasn’t thick at all, and despite the provocative name, unicorn piss tasted a bit like drinking Skittles-flavoured water. Quite sweet, but so, so refreshing after a workout.

The brand who first popularised clear whey protein powder in the first place – Myprotein first launched its clear whey in 2019, and it’s just got bigger ever since. Boasting an enormous selection of 18 different flavours,

With 20g of whey protein per serving, it matches its competitors in terms of protein content, and has a relatively short and clean ingredients list. Unlike some of its competitors, it uses natural flavourings instead of artificial ones. “The use of natural flavouring suggests that it avoids synthetic flavouring agents, which is a plus for those seeking a more natural supplement,” adds Clarkson.

While that does mean that it didn’t taste as nice as some of the others we tried on this list, you know that there aren’t any artificial nasties (disregarding the sweeteners).

It does get lumpy at the top, despite some vigorous shaking. We eventually deferred to our blender to do the hard work, which got rid of all the lumps and gave us a nice smooth drink, though left us with a generous foam top. And despite having natural flavourings, all the three flavours we tried tasted quite artificial. Peach tea was our favourite, tasting fairly refreshing. “Overall, a generous serving of protein and negligible carb quantity would position this drink as compatible with a low-carb diet or lifestyle” says Laidler. “A very high-quality protein.”

If you want something that you can grab and go that isn’t a pre-mixed protein shake off the shelf, then Warrior’s protein water might do the trick. It isn’t made with clear whey protein powder, however, but bovine collagen peptides.

Laidler explains that the protein inside Warrior’s protein water has been extracted and broken down – hydrolysed as we also see with whey – from cow bones, skin and connective tissues of cows. “The major difference here is that collagen does not contain the full spectrum of essential and non-essential amino acids,” he says. “Whereas whey does.”

You’ll also note that it has a generally lower protein amount compared to the others on this list – it contains just 10.2g of protein per serving. “However, the benefits of collagen peptides are going to extend out to other areas of health such as skin, joint, hair and nail health,” Laidler adds. And because it is dairy-free, Laidler says “this would also be the choice to make if you had an actual allergy or significant intolerance of lactose.” 

What we really liked about Warrior’s protien water was the sheer convenience of it. We didn’t have to mix it before or after a workout, we just picked it up and drank. It also tasted the most like a normal regular juice or energy drink – we tried both the berry and tropical flavours and they were both delicious.