If you’ve been around the block with protein bars, you know it can be challenging to find a brand that’s actually any good. Most of the bars I’ve tried are either too chalky (or chewy), taste like straight sugar alcohols, taste nothing like the flavors they’re supposed to, or are just plain gross. After trying 4 flavors of Barebells, I was pleasantly surprised (to say the least.) I tried the 4 main flavors for this Barebells review: chocolate dough, caramel cashew, cookies & cream, and salty peanut. I’ll get into which flavors are the best (and the worst), the texture, price point, nutrition, and more in this blog. Let’s get into it!
Honest Barebells Review
Mary & I both did a taste test and comparison of the 4 main flavors of Barebells. We wanted to see how they stacked up to the competition (RX bar, think! bar, ONE bar, etc.)
It’s hard to find a good protein bar (even though there are a million and one options nowadays.) We’ve tried almost every protein bar out there at this point. So when I say I’m incredibly happy to have found these, that’s really saying something.
If you’d rather watch our full review and taste test of all 4 flavors, check out our video below 👇
First things first, let’s do a breakdown of the 4 flavors…
Chocolate Dough
I tried Chocolate Dough first because this flavor was the most appealing to me (who can pass up a good chocolate option? Not me!) It tastes like a mixture of chocolate cake and a candy bar. It’s kind of like a Crunch bar because of the crunchy chocolate pieces on top (in protein bar form, of course…)
It’s not too sweet, but there’s definitely sweetness to it. There are sugar alcohols (14g) in these bars to sweeten them, which often don’t sit well with my stomach. But after eating quite a few of these bars (multiple boxes) I haven’t noticed any issue with the sugar alcohols.
One of the main things I noticed when trying these was the texture. They’re not chalky at all, but also not too chewy (at least in this flavor.) It’s hard to find a protein bar with a good texture, so I was really impressed with that.
All the flavors look basically the same: a thin coating of milk chocolate and some sort of chunks on top (in this case, chocolate chunks.)
Rating: 9/10
Cookies & Cream
This one looked almost exactly the same as the chocolate dough (from the outside.) It had the chocolate chunks on top and a milk chocolate coating.
It had a white filling with chocolate chunks inside, basically what you’d expect from cookies & cream. Which I was happy to see since some protein bars’ cookies & cream flavors look/taste nothing like cookies & cream.
I felt like I could taste the sugar alcohols a bit more in this flavor, but it wasn’t overpowering by any means. The flavor was on point and I really enjoyed it.
I’d say this flavor was basically perfect, besides the minor taste of sugar alcohols. (They had to sweeten it with something, though, since there’s low sugar.) It definitely tastes like cookies & cream.
The texture is great. Chewy, but not too chewy, and doesn’t get stuck in your teeth.
Rating: Erin – 9/10; Mary – 9/10
Salty Peanut
I was the least excited to try this one because the flavor doesn’t sound that exciting. I’m not typically a big peanut gal, so I didn’t have high expectations.
This one had crushed up peanuts on top and was coated in milk chocolate. It had a thin layer of (I’m assuming) caramel inside.
The texture of this flavor was a little chewier and tougher than the other flavors. It’s still fairly soft but felt like it took longer to chew and could get stuck in your teeth more easily.
If you’re a big peanut candy bar person, you’ll probably enjoy this one.
Personally, it was my least favorite of the bars. It was Mary’s least favorite, as well, because we’re both not big peanut fans.
I would never choose this one over the other bars, but it still tasted fairly good. I ate the ones in the box, but wouldn’t order this flavor again.
Rating: Erin – 7/10; Mary – 3/10
Caramel Cashew
I didn’t have many expectations for this one, since the flavor didn’t excite me as much as chocolate dough or cookies & cream. I was pleasantly surprised by how delicious this one was, though!
It had a thicker layer of caramel inside, cashew pieces on top, and a nice salty & sweet taste. It’s pretty chewy, but not too chewy. Definitely not chalky at all.
This ended up being my favorite flavor and I ordered a whole box of these. It tastes like a candy bar more than any of the others, and the salty/sweet taste balances it out perfectly. Mary & Jesse thought it tasted like a Twix bar or a Milky Way.
Rating: Erin – 10/10; Mary – 9/10
Summary of the Facts
- Texture – All of these had varying degrees of chewiness, and none of them were chalky at all. They have a great texture for protein bars.
- Sweetness – Not too sweet, but sweetened with sugar alcohols to the perfect level. A few of them have a good balance of salty & sweet.
- Price point – You can get these on Amazon for $28 for the mixed box or $26 for the single flavors. They come in boxes of 12, so it ends up being a little over $2/bar, which I think is reasonable for protein bars.
- Comparison to other protein bars – These are about the same price as most protein bars I’ve tried (or even a bit lower than some.) Flavor-wise, these are some of the best protein bars I’ve had. They’re comparable to Built Bars (which have been my go-to for a while), and some of the Barebells flavors I like even more than those. The texture is the best I’ve had in any protein bar.
- Nutrition facts – 190-200 calories/bar. 7-8g fat. 50-105mg sodium. 19-20g carbs. 3-4g fiber. 1-2g sugar. 13-14g sugar alcohols. 20g protein.
- Best flavor – Caramel Cashew
- Worst flavor – Salty Peanut
Barebells Review – Final Thoughts…
Needless to say, I’ll be buying these protein bars many times in the future. I’ve already ordered a full box of the Caramel Cashew and Cookies & Cream and am excited for them to come in! If you haven’t tried these before, I’d recommend starting with the mixed box, so you can figure out which flavors you like best. It comes with 3 of each of the 4 flavors, so even if you don’t like a certain flavor as much, you won’t waste a whole 12-pack box.
They also have plant-based options or white chocolate bars on Amazon, if you’re more into those types of protein bars.
If you have any questions I didn’t cover in this review, drop it in the comments! Or if there are any other food/drink items you want us to try for future reviews, let us know. We’re always open to suggestions and are happy to try things you guys have questions on.
See you in the next blog! 💛
If you enjoyed this Barebells review, you might be interested in:
- Built Bar Review
- Verb Energy Bar Review
- Liquid I.V. Review
- Fat & Weird Protein Cookie Butter Review
- Other Taste It or Toss It reviews
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