Premier Protein Vanilla Shake (11.5 fl oz): 30g Protein, Labelgrade B+ (80/100)
B+ 80 / 100 — Premier Protein is the protein-per-calorie king of the RTD shake aisle — 30 g of protein for 159 calories is genuinely excellent (a 5.3:1 protein-to-calorie efficiency rivaling whey isolate powder). The Labelgrade is held back by the 30+ ingredient formulation: dual artificial sweeteners (sucralose + acesulfame potassium), three phosphate compounds for emulsion stability, carrageenan, and an extensive vitamin-mineral premix. This is a heavily engineered convenience product. If your goal is hitting protein totals at low calorie cost, the formulation does its job; if minimally-processed is your priority, plain Greek yogurt scores higher.
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Premier Protein Vanilla delivers 30 g of protein for 159 calories in one 11.5 fl oz (345 mL) bottle (USDA FDC 2622652) — one gram of protein per 5.3 calories, which is whey-isolate territory in a shelf-stable, no-blender package. Sugar is 1 g (0 g added), held there by a sucralose–acesulfame-potassium pairing rather than any real sweetener. It earns a Labelgrade B+ (80/100): the protein-per-calorie math is genuinely top of the category, but a roughly 30-item ingredient list keeps it out of the A range. This is the macro-friendly mass-market pick — honest about being an engineered product, not a clean one.
Why the B+
| Dimension | Grade | Score | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein density | C | 63 / 100 | 8.7 g protein per 100 mL. Liquids dilute density by volume, so the per-mL number looks merely average — but the figure that matters here, 30 g per bottle, is excellent |
| Ingredient quality | B- | 71 / 100 | The drag. Two artificial sweeteners (sucralose + acesulfame K), three phosphates for emulsion stability, carrageenan, and a long vitamin-mineral premix. The protein sources themselves (milk protein concentrate + calcium caseinate) are solid |
| Sugar load | A+ | 100 / 100 | 1 g total, 0 g added — about as low as packaged food gets. The cost of that number is the two non-nutritive sweeteners |
| Sodium load | A+ | 100 / 100 | 231 mg per bottle, just 67 mg per 100 mL — low for a savory-leaning dairy drink, despite the salt and phosphate additives |
| Saturated fat load | A+ | 99 / 100 | 0.5 g per bottle. The high-oleic sunflower oil keeps it nearly fat-free without going skim-chalky |
| Fiber | F | 32 / 100 | 1 g, a token amount from the inulin. Not what you drink this for |
The two F-and-C scores aren’t really faults so much as the shape of the product: a liquid protein shake will always read low on per-volume density and near-zero on fiber. The score that’s genuinely earned down is ingredient quality — and that’s the trade Premier is asking you to make on purpose.
The protein-per-calorie case (and the catch)
The number that sells this shake is 5.3 calories per gram of protein. To put that in context: most ready-to-drink shakes that hit 30 g of protein do it at 180–250+ calories because they carry more fat or sugar for taste and texture. Premier strips both — 3 g fat, 1 g sugar — and leans entirely on filtered milk protein and engineered flavor to make the calories disappear. For anyone counting macros, cutting weight, or trying to land a 30 g protein hit inside a tight calorie budget, that efficiency is the whole reason to buy.
The catch is right there in the macro line: the only way a sweet vanilla drink lands at 1 g of sugar is by replacing sugar entirely with sucralose and acesulfame potassium. If you’re indifferent to non-nutritive sweeteners, this is a feature. If you actively avoid them, there’s no version of this exact shake that removes them.
What the long ingredient list is actually doing
The ~30 ingredients look alarming until you sort them. They fall into four buckets, and almost none of them are there for flavor or padding:
- Protein and fat (3 items): milk protein concentrate, calcium caseinate, high-oleic sunflower oil — the actual food.
- Texture and stability (6 items): inulin, cellulose gel and gum, carrageenan, and the three phosphates (tripotassium, dipotassium, sodium hexametaphosphate). These keep the protein suspended and the mouthfeel creamy in a bottle that has to survive months on a warehouse shelf. The phosphates and carrageenan are the additives most people object to.
- Sweet and salt (3 items): salt, sucralose, acesulfame potassium.
- Micronutrient premix (everything in the parentheses): ~20 vitamins and minerals. This is the half of the label that makes Premier read more like a fortified meal replacement than a plain protein drink, and it’s exactly what a stripped-down shake like Quest leaves out.
So the list is long because the product is doing two jobs — delivering protein and acting as a fortified convenience meal. That’s a defensible design; it’s just the opposite of “short and clean.”
Premier vs. Quest: the only true peer
Quest Vanilla (11 fl oz) is the closest thing on the shelf, and the macros are a dead heat: both are 30 g protein, 159 calories, 1 g sugar, and both score Labelgrade B+ (80/100). They diverge on formulation, and that’s the only thing worth deciding between.
| Premier Protein Vanilla (this) | Quest Vanilla Shake | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein per bottle | 30 g | 30 g |
| Calories | 159 | 159 |
| Sugar | 1 g | 1 g |
| Bottle size | 11.5 fl oz | 11 fl oz |
| Ingredients | ~30 | ~10 |
| Sweeteners | Sucralose + acesulfame K | Sucralose only |
| Carrageenan | Yes | No |
| Vitamin-mineral premix | Yes (~20 nutrients) | No |
| Labelgrade | B+ (80/100) | B+ (80/100) |
The honest read: Quest is the cleaner formulation — fewer additives, one sweetener, no carrageenan. Premier gives back a more comprehensive micronutrient premix and a half-ounce more drink. If “shortest ingredient list” is your tiebreaker, Quest wins it. If you’d rather your shake double as a multivitamin, Premier does. Neither is meaningfully better on the macros that brought you here.
Ingredients
Water, milk protein concentrate, calcium caseinate, less than 1% high-oleic sunflower oil, natural and artificial flavors, inulin, cellulose gel and cellulose gum, salt, sucralose, acesulfame potassium, carrageenan, three phosphates (tripotassium, dipotassium, and sodium hexametaphosphate), a vitamin and mineral blend (~20 nutrients including E, A, D3, K1, the B-complex, zinc, iron, copper, manganese, selenium, iodine, chromium, and molybdenum), magnesium phosphate, and sodium ascorbate. (Verbatim source: USDA Branded Foods entry, FDC 2622652.)
Where to buy
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Quick Facts
Per serving · 1 shake (11.5 fl oz / 345 mL)
See how this fits your day — protein calculator · macro calculator
Full nutrition facts
| Nutrient | Per Serving (1 shake (11.5 fl oz / 345 mL)) |
|---|---|
| Calories | 159 |
| Protein | 30g |
| Total Fat | 3g |
| Saturated Fat | 0.5g |
| Trans Fat | 0g |
| Total Carbohydrates | 4g |
| Dietary Fiber | 1g |
| Total Sugars | 1g |
| Added Sugars | 0g |
| Sodium | 231mg |
| Cholesterol | 21mg |
| Calcium | 649mg |
| Iron | 1.8mg |
| Potassium | 179mg |
Scope: This page applies specifically to Premier Protein Vanilla High Protein Shake (11.5 fl oz (345 mL)) · UPC 0643843717041. Other sizes, flavors, or formulations may differ.
How this fits each diet
Each score is computed from the same USDA nutrition + ingredient data, against the published rules of each diet. They tell you "does this food fit this diet" — not whether the diet is right for you.
contains animal-derived ingredients
contains no listed meat or fish
no wheat, barley, rye, or malt detected in USDA ingredient list
Frequently Asked Questions
How much protein is in a Premier Protein Vanilla shake?
30 grams per 11.5 fl oz (345 mL) bottle (USDA FDC 2622652), for 159 calories. That works out to one gram of protein for every 5.3 calories — a ratio you'd normally only get from whey isolate powder mixed with water, not from a ready-to-drink bottle off the shelf.
Why only a B if the protein is so good?
The protein efficiency earns it the high marks. The B ceiling comes from the ingredient list: ~30 items including two artificial sweeteners (sucralose and acesulfame potassium), three phosphate compounds, carrageenan, and a full vitamin-mineral premix. Labelgrade rewards the macros and penalizes the heavy engineering — both are real, and they roughly cancel to an 80.
Does Premier Protein contain artificial sweeteners?
Yes — both sucralose and acesulfame potassium. They're how the shake lands at 1 g sugar with a vanilla flavor; together they do the sweetening that sugar otherwise would. Premier does not sell an unsweetened or stevia-sweetened version of this shake, so if you avoid sucralose and ace-K there's no in-line alternative.
How does it compare to the Quest Vanilla shake?
Identical headline macros — both are 30 g protein, 159 calories, 1 g sugar. The real difference is the formula: Quest uses ~10 ingredients and one sweetener (sucralose); Premier uses ~30 ingredients and two (sucralose + acesulfame K), plus carrageenan and a vitamin-mineral premix Quest skips. Both score Labelgrade B+ (80/100). Pick Quest for a shorter list, Premier for the added micronutrients and a half-ounce more liquid.
Is Premier Protein keto-friendly?
Yes — 4 g total carbs (1 g of it fiber), 1 g sugar, 3 g fat, 30 g protein per bottle fits ketogenic and low-carb macros comfortably. The sucralose and acesulfame potassium are non-nutritive and don't raise blood sugar.
What's the protein source, and is it lactose-free?
Milk protein concentrate plus calcium caseinate — both dairy-derived, so the shake is not vegan. It's not labeled lactose-free either, but the lactose load is low: it's built on filtered milk protein rather than whole milk, so carbs total just 4 g.
How much calcium does one bottle have?
649 mg — about half the FDA Daily Value (1,300 mg) in a single shake. Most of it rides along with the milk protein concentrate and caseinate naturally, rather than being dosed in as a separate additive.
Does it qualify as 'high in protein' under FDA rules?
Easily. 30 g is 60% of the FDA's 50 g Daily Value for protein — three times the 20% a product needs to claim 'high in protein,' and the USDA entry (FDC 2622652) confirms the 30 g figure against the on-package label.