Best Protein Bars Without Artificial Sweeteners
Bars in our database with no sucralose, no acesulfame potassium, no aspartame, no saccharin, no erythritol, and no sugar alcohols. Ranked by Labelgrade. The trade-off is real: every bar in this list contains either substantial natural sugar (dates, honey) or substantial added sugar (cane sugar, brown rice syrup, tapioca syrup). There's no "low-sugar, low-artificial-sweetener, high-protein" bar on the US market — the formulation math doesn't allow it without one of the three.
The ranked list
1. Aloha — Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Plant-Based Protein Bar
B+ 83 / 100 · 14 g protein per bar · 5 g sugar · 240 calories
Aloha Cookie Dough bar: 14g organic plant protein, 10g fiber per 56g bar, no sugar alcohols or stevia. Labelgrade B+ (83/100). How it stacks up vs Quest.
2. Barebells — Caramel Cashew Protein Bar
B+ 83 / 100 · 20 g protein per bar · 1 g sugar · 200 calories
Barebells Caramel Cashew: 20g protein for 200 calories per 55g bar, 1g sugar, maltitol + sucralose. Labelgrade B+ (83/100). The candy-bar-style bar vs Quest, plus the full 6-dimension breakdown.
3. Quest — Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Protein Bar
B+ 83 / 100 · 21 g protein per bar · 1 g sugar · 200 calories
Quest Cookie Dough bar: 21g protein, 14g fiber, 1g sugar per 60g bar (200 cal). Labelgrade B+ (83/100) — the bar every other protein bar is measured against.
4. RXBAR — Protein Bar
B+ 82 / 100 · 7 g protein per bar · 10 g sugar · 130 calories
RXBAR: 7g protein for 130 calories per bar (USDA serving), four whole foods plus natural flavor, no protein isolate. Labelgrade B+ (82/100). The date-sugar trade-off, and how it compares to isolate bars.
5. Pure Protein — Chocolate Deluxe Bar
B+ 81 / 100 · 21 g protein per bar · 3 g sugar · 180 calories
Pure Protein Chocolate Deluxe: 21g protein for 180 calories per 50g bar, Labelgrade B+ (81/100). The protein-per-dollar bar — Quest-level macros, maltitol-sweetened, usually ~half the price.
6. Think! — Brownie Crunch High Protein Bar, Brownie Crunch
B 78 / 100 · 20 g protein per bar · 0 g sugar · 230 calories
think! Brownie Crunch High Protein Bar: 20g protein, 0g sugar, 230 calories per bar — sweetened with maltitol, not stevia or sucralose. Labelgrade B (78/100), with the full 6-dimension breakdown.
7. RXBAR — Chocolate Chip Protein Bar
B 77 / 100 · 12 g protein per bar · 13 g sugar · 220 calories
RXBAR Chocolate Chip: 12g protein, 220 calories, 7 whole-food ingredients (dates, egg whites, almonds, cashews), no added sugar. Labelgrade B (77/100). The date-sugar trade-off explained.
8. Kind — Fruit & Nut Delight Bar
B 76 / 100 · 6 g protein per bar · 9 g sugar · 200 calories
Kind Fruit & Nut Delight: 6g protein, 200 cal per 40g bar. Labelgrade B (76/100) — a clean whole-nut snack bar, not a protein bar. Full breakdown.
9. Atkins — Endulge Caramel Nut Chew Bar
B 75 / 100 · 5 g protein per bar · 1 g sugar · 130 calories
Atkins Endulge Caramel Nut Chew: 5g protein, Labelgrade B (75/100). A sugar-free keto candy bar — 1g sugar, 5g fiber, but 4g sat fat caps the grade.
10. Built — Coconut Puff Protein Bar
B 75 / 100 · 17 g protein per bar · 7 g sugar · 140 calories
Built Coconut Puff: 17g protein, 140 cal — Labelgrade B (75/100). The marshmallow-puff texture, the collagen+whey blend, and why it's only 6g sugar.
11. EAS — Pure Milk Protein Bar Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
B 75 / 100 · 15 g protein per bar · 9 g sugar · 190 calories
EAS Pure Milk Protein Bar Cookie Dough: 15g protein for 190 cal per 50g bar, no artificial sweeteners. 9g added sugar, 4g fiber. Labelgrade B (75/100).
12. EAS — AdvantEdge Pure Milk Protein Bar, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
B 75 / 100 · 15 g protein per bar · 9 g sugar · 190 calories
EAS Pure Milk Protein Bar (Cookie Dough): 15g protein per bar, Labelgrade B (75/100). Dense dairy protein, but real added sugar from 3 syrups. 5-bar value box.
13. GoMacro — Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip MacroBar
B 75 / 100 · 11 g protein per bar · 14 g sugar · 290 calories
GoMacro PB Chocolate Chip MacroBar: 11g plant protein per 69g bar, 290 cal, Labelgrade B (75/100). 6 organic whole-food ingredients, no isolates or sugar alcohols — but brown rice syrup pushes sugar to 14g.
14. Larabar — Cashew Cookie Fruit & Nut Bar
B 75 / 100 · 4 g protein per bar · 16 g sugar · 230 calories
Larabar Cashew Cookie: 4g protein, Labelgrade B (75/100). Just cashews + dates — 16g natural sugar, 230 cal per 1.7 oz bar. The cleanest panel in the bar aisle.
15. KIND — Crunchy Peanut Butter Protein Bar
B- 74 / 100 · 12 g protein per bar · 8 g sugar · 250 calories
KIND Crunchy Peanut Butter Protein Bar: 12g protein, 5g fiber, no artificial sweeteners, 250 cal per 50g bar. Labelgrade B- (74/100). Why peanuts come first.
16. Pure Protein — Birthday Cake Bar
B- 73 / 100 · 20 g protein per bar · 3 g sugar · 200 calories
Pure Protein Birthday Cake: 20g protein, 3g sugar per 50g bar (200 cal). Labelgrade B- (73/100) — cheapest protein-per-bar here, but maltitol-sweetened with 6 dyes.
17. Vega — Sport Protein Bar, Chocolate Coconut
B- 72 / 100 · 15 g protein per bar · 19 g sugar · 250 calories
Vega Sport Chocolate Coconut: 15g vegan protein per 60g bar, Labelgrade B- (72/100). Real rice+pea protein, but 19g sugar (cane sugar + 3 syrups) grades F.
18. Lenny & Larry's — The Complete Cookie (Chocolate Chip)
B- 71 / 100 · 8 g protein per bar · 12 g sugar · 210 calories
Lenny & Larry's The Complete Cookie: a vegan protein cookie with 8g protein per half (16g whole), but 12g sugar keeps it a treat. Labelgrade B- (71/100). A cookie that lifts, honestly graded.
19. Premier Protein — Chocolate Peanut Butter High Protein Bar
B- 71 / 100 · 30 g protein per bar · 8 g sugar · 290 calories
30g protein, 290 cal per bar — Labelgrade B- (71/100). The shake brand's crossover bar: top-tier protein, but 440mg sodium per bar is the catch. Vs Quest & Pure Protein.
20. Power Crunch — Protein Energy Bar, Mocha Creme
B- 70 / 100 · 13 g protein per bar · 5 g sugar · 205 calories
Power Crunch Mocha Creme: 13g protein for 205 calories per 40g wafer bar, hydrolyzed whey, 5g sugar. Labelgrade B- (70/100) — dense protein undone by 6g saturated fat from palm oils.
21. Nature Valley — Nature Valley, Protein Chewy Bars, Peanut Butter, Dark Chocolate, Peanut Butter, Dark Chocolate
C+ 69 / 100 · 10 g protein per bar · 6 g sugar · 190 calories
Nature Valley Protein Chewy Bar (PB Dark Chocolate): 10g protein, 190 cal per bar. Labelgrade C+ (69/100). Why it scores lower than Quest, and what it's genuinely good for.
22. Clif Bar — Clif Kit's Organic Dark Chocolate Almond Coconut Fruit + Nut Bar
C+ 68 / 100 · 4 g protein per bar · 15 g sugar · 190 calories
4g protein, Labelgrade C+ (68/100): Clif Kit's Dark Chocolate Almond Coconut is a 6-ingredient date-and-nut snack bar — 190 cal, 5g fiber, no added sugar.
How they compare
| Rank | Bar | Labelgrade | Protein per bar | Sugar per bar | Sweetener strategy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Aloha | B+ 83 | 14 g | 5 g | — |
| 2 | Barebells | B+ 83 | 20 g | 1 g | — |
| 3 | Quest | B+ 83 | 21 g | 1 g | — |
| 4 | RXBAR | B+ 82 | 7 g | 10 g | Dates only (no added sugar) |
| 5 | Pure Protein | B+ 81 | 21 g | 3 g | — |
| 6 | Think! | B 78 | 20 g | 0 g | — |
| 7 | RXBAR | B 77 | 12 g | 13 g | Dates only (no added sugar) |
| 8 | Kind | B 76 | 6 g | 9 g | Honey + glucose + dried fruit |
| 9 | Atkins | B 75 | 5 g | 1 g | — |
| 10 | Built | B 75 | 17 g | 7 g | — |
| 11 | EAS | B 75 | 15 g | 9 g | Cane sugar + tapioca/brown rice syrups |
| 12 | EAS | B 75 | 15 g | 9 g | Cane sugar + tapioca/brown rice syrups |
| 13 | GoMacro | B 75 | 11 g | 14 g | — |
| 14 | Larabar | B 75 | 4 g | 16 g | — |
| 15 | KIND | B- 74 | 12 g | 8 g | Honey + glucose + dried fruit |
| 16 | Pure Protein | B- 73 | 20 g | 3 g | — |
| 17 | Vega | B- 72 | 15 g | 19 g | — |
| 18 | Lenny & Larry's | B- 71 | 8 g | 12 g | — |
| 19 | Premier Protein | B- 71 | 30 g | 8 g | — |
| 20 | Power Crunch | B- 70 | 13 g | 5 g | — |
| 21 | Nature Valley | C+ 69 | 10 g | 6 g | — |
| 22 | Clif Bar | C+ 68 | 4 g | 15 g | — |
Pick by use case
Best for clean ingredients above all else: RXBAR Chocolate Chip
Seven ingredients (dates, egg whites, almonds, cashews, chocolate, natural flavors, sea salt). Zero added sugar — all 13 g of sugar per bar are from dates. 12 g of protein from egg whites. Highest protein density of any whole-food-only bar in our database (23 g protein per 100 g). The trade-off is the sugar count itself — dates are 60-70% sugar by weight.
Best for maximum protein without artificial sweeteners: EAS Pure Milk Protein Bar
15 g of protein per bar (25% more than RXBAR) from a milk + whey isolate stack. Sweetened with real cane sugar, brown rice syrup, and tapioca syrup — added sugars, but no sucralose, acesulfame K, or sugar alcohols. About 30 ingredients total, but each is recognizable. Best choice if you want the maximum protein and don't mind real added sugar.
Best for snack use (not protein): Kind Fruit & Nut Delight
A whole-food snack bar that happens to contain 6 g of protein. Mixed nuts + dried fruit + honey + glucose. Calories per gram of protein are high (33), making it inefficient for hitting protein targets. But as a between-meal snack with recognizable ingredients, it works.
What's not on this list, and why
- Quest bars — contain sucralose plus erythritol (sugar alcohol). Excluded.
- Premier Protein bars — contain sucralose and maltitol. Excluded.
- Built Bar — contains sucralose. Not yet in our database.
- IQBar — uses monk fruit + stevia (not artificial, but non-nutritive sweeteners). Whether to include monk fruit/stevia in a "no artificial sweeteners" list is a judgment call; we exclude all non-nutritive sweeteners (natural or synthetic).
- Lärabar — whole-food bar (dates, nuts, fruit) similar to RXBAR but lower in protein (3-5 g per bar). We'll add it in the next refresh.
- One Bar — contains sucralose.
The honest trade-off
Every bar on the US market that delivers 15+ g of protein without artificial sweeteners has substantial sugar — either added (EAS Pure Milk, Built Bar's "Natural" line, MyProtein Lean Bar in some markets) or naturally-occurring from whole-food sources (RXBAR, Lärabar). The formulation math is binding: protein extruded into bar form needs binders and sweeteners; without artificial sweeteners, those binders are sugar-based.
If you want low sugar AND high protein AND clean ingredients in a single bar, the category doesn't really exist — you'd need to step outside it (Greek yogurt, protein shakes, jerky, or eating actual food).
How they were graded
All bars graded using the same five-dimension formula at /methodology. Data from USDA FoodData Central.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which protein bars don't contain artificial sweeteners?
RXBAR (all flavors), Kind Fruit & Nut Delight, and EAS Pure Milk Protein Bar are the brands in our database with no sucralose, acesulfame potassium, aspartame, or saccharin. RXBAR and Kind use whole-food sweeteners (dates, honey, glucose). EAS Pure Milk uses real sugar plus tapioca and brown rice syrups — also no artificial sweeteners, though substantial added sugar.
What's wrong with sucralose and acesulfame K?
Both are FDA-recognized as safe and have been studied extensively. The case against them is mostly about preference and gut response: some studies suggest non-nutritive sweeteners may alter gut microbiome composition, some people report digestive discomfort, and there's an argument that "training" your palate to expect sweetness without calories disconnects sweetness signals from satiety. None of this is settled science. If you'd rather avoid them, this list shows the alternatives.
Which bar has the most protein in this list?
EAS Pure Milk Protein Bar at 15 g per 50 g bar (30 g protein per 100 g), beating both RXBAR (12 g per 52 g bar) and Kind (6 g per 40 g bar). EAS achieves the higher protein through a milk + whey isolate stack; RXBAR and Kind use whole-food sources only.
Are RXBARs really sweetened only with dates?
Yes, for the original whole-food line. The dates contribute about 13 g of natural sugar per bar — substantial, but no added cane sugar, no honey, no syrups, no artificial sweeteners. RXBAR sells some flavors with chocolate chips (the chocolate contains a small amount of sugar from the chocolate-making process), but they have zero added sugar overall.
How does the sugar load compare across these bars?
EAS Pure Milk has the lowest sugar (9 g per bar) but uses real cane sugar + syrups (added). RXBAR has 13 g per bar but all from dates (naturally-occurring, zero added). Kind has 9 g per bar from a mix of honey and dried fruit. Per 100 g, EAS is at 18 g sugar, RXBAR at 25 g, Kind at 22.5 g.
Are these bars all gluten-free?
Most variants in this list are labeled gluten-free. RXBAR Chocolate Chip and Kind Fruit & Nut Delight are explicitly gluten-free; EAS Pure Milk Protein Bar varies by flavor (some contain wheat-derived ingredients). Always check the actual package label.
What about Quest bars?
Quest bars contain sucralose and erythritol (a sugar alcohol) and are explicitly excluded from this list. We have a Quest Protein Chips Sea Salt page (which is sucralose-free) but Quest's bar line uses non-nutritive sweeteners.
What about Built Bar, MyProtein Lean Bar, IQBar?
Not yet in our database. We'll add them in future ingestion rounds. Generally: Built Bar uses sucralose, IQBar uses monk fruit + stevia, MyProtein Lean Bar uses sucralose. None match RXBAR's "whole food only" positioning.