Wondering which flavors of Equip Prime Protein and Equip Prime Bars are worth grabbing and which you might want to skip? I’ve got you!
Two things to start: I want to be very upfront with the fact that I have an affiliate relationship with Equip. And if you find this post helpful, I’d be so appreciative if you used my link or discount code… plus it gets you a discount! (Equip Discount Code: WFH) I have even more tips on saving money on Equip below. And second: Even though I am an affiliate, this Equip protein flavor review is extremely honest. Ahem, I even compare one of the flavors to a urinal cake, so… yeah, I think they have some really great flavors and also a couple of losers.
I’m not a muscle-y gym person that will slam down bad tasting health elixirs without batting an eye. I’m a pretty normal person who prefers to eat real food, but needs a little help from protein powder. And while a protein shake isn’t something I necessarily drink for pleasure, I still would like it to taste decent.
My reputation for giving high quality food recommendations is extremely important to me. And as someone that has a high protein requirement and has tried a lot of different protein powders, I know there is nothing more disappointing than buying an expensive bag of protein powder only to hate it. Of course, we all have different tastes, so I hope this Equip protein flavor review helps you choose the one that’s right for you!
How to save money on Equip Protein Powder and Bars
Shopping on the Equip website is like shopping at Kohl’s or Bed, Bath & Beyond: you never buy without a coupon!
New Customers: If you’ve never ordered before, my Equip Discount Code “WFH” will get you 10% to 20% off, depending. I think it goes up and down. I’m not exactly sure the inner workings there. New customers can use my discount code and buy anytime.
Returning Customers: If you’ve used my (or anyone else’s discount) once, you can’t use it again UNLESS it’s during a sale, then you *can* use code ‘WFH” again! Equip has a sale every month, usually for 1 to 2 weeks duration, and usually in the 10% to 20% off range. My coupon code will get you whatever the advertised sale discount is. If you’re a returning customer, make sure to wait and do your Equip stock-up during a sale.
General things to know about the taste of Equip Prime Protein
Does Equip protein taste like beef?
Yes and no. To me and my discerning palate, the unflavored Equip protein smells similar to unflavored beef gelatin powder or collagen peptide powder… and it’s a little bit hard to describe. Beefy? No, not really. Savory? Also no. A hint of barnyard? Perhaps.
HOWEVER, I find that products like this, including Equip protein, only smell this way and don’t taste this way. AND this flavor is easily covered up by basically anything. You add chocolate, you add berries, this smell and flavor disappears. Just like how if you smell unflavored gelatin powder it smells a little funky, but raspberry jello smells and tastes absolutely delicious.
Stevia/No Sugar or Stevia-Free/Low Sugar?
Most of the Equip protein powder flavors come in two options: “Stevia” and “Stevia-Free.” Get the stevia-sweetened option if you like stevia, and if having a zero carb protein powder is important to you. The stevia-free option is sweetened with a combo of coconut sugar and monk fruit, and I greatly prefer it (even though I can tolerate stevia). I think it has a better, cleaner taste, and then of course, none of that stevia aftertaste.
EQUIP PROTEIN FLAVOR REVIEWS: PRIME PROTEIN POWDER
If you are looking for exquisitely detailed descriptions, tasting notes, and Equip protein flavor reviews for their prime protein powders, you’ve come to the right place! (And check back again, as I’ve tried *almost all* the flavors, and I’ll add to this post as I try more and as they come out with new flavors!) And by the way, they sell a sampler bag with 5 different flavors if you want to try for yourself before you decide on a whole bag.
Chocolate
This is a great no-frills chocolate protein powder. It’s richly chocolately… and while I won’t say it tastes like a fudge brownie or a dense chocolate cake, the chocolate flavor is reminiscent of a rich chocolate dessert. If anything, I would say it tastes similar to the flavor of hot chocolate.
I think it has a very “clean” flavor. It’s got a good dose of salt, there is no funny aftertaste, and it’s just a really nice, palatable chocolate protein shake.
This is my favorite flavor and the one I most highly recommend. It’s a classic and their best seller for a reason. If you’re new to Equip and trying to choose a flavor— definitely go with this one if you like chocolate.
In short: Get this flavor if you like chocolate! This is the best.
Vanilla
I’ll tell you right off the bat that this is my least favorite Equip flavor. Vanilla just doesn’t hide the collagen-y flavor very well. When opening the bag, this smells like a vanilla car air freshener with a hint of urinal cake. Not joking.
When mixed with water it becomes much milder. The vanilla taste mellows and isn’t nearly as strong as its scent, and thankfully the hint of urinal cake disappears.
If you are a fake vanilla-lover and for some reason can’t have any of the other flavors, you can probably choke this one down. If I were getting protein powder to add into a smoothie, I’d go with the unflavored over this— your fruit will cover the collagen flavor and you won’t have that slightly unpleasant weird vanilla aroma hanging around.
In short: Get this flavor if you literally can’t have any of the other flavors.
Chocolate Churro
This actually does give churro vibes, so kudos to Equip for that. I thought this was just going to be their chocolate protein with cinnamon added but it’s a lot more than that. They’ve added a little coconut milk powder for creaminess, which gives it a more dessert-like quality (and I can’t discern a coconut taste, fyi).
You know what this tastes like? If you put Cinnamon Toast Crunch cereal in a rich chocolate milk… which at first sounds weird, but is actually fantastic and delightful considering this is a healthy protein drink. I really really enjoy this flavor. It’s a collab with another brand and I hope they make it a permanent flavor.
This would make an EXCEPTIONAL “hot cocoa” or just general warm-beverage-in-the-morning drink. It gives a cozy feeling and would be perfect for the colder months.
In short: Get this flavor if you like cinnamon toast crunch cereal and chocolate milk.
Cookies & Cream
Does it taste like an Oreo cookie? No, not even a little. It does taste vastly different than the regular chocolate protein powder though. I think they’ve used a different type of cocoa (maybe darker cocoa?). There’s also quite a bit of coconut milk powder, which I can ever so slightly taste it in this one. I imagine they added more of that when trying to get a “cream center” taste.
It’s creamy, lightly chocolate-y, fairly salty (this aspect *does* remind me of an Oreo!), and has an earthy coffee-like undertone (but doesn’t actually have coffee in it fyi).
It’s fairly complex for having so few ingredients, and while it doesn’t taste like an Oreo, I do like it. Most days I prefer the regular chocolate, but it’s nice to mix it up every now and then.
In short: Get this flavor if salty chocolate with a hint of earthy coffee and coconut sounds good to you.
Banana
Once mixed with water, this Equip Banana Protein Powder smells like banana candy… like banana runts or banana laffy taffy. (I’ll admit that the last time I had banana candy was probably 20+ years ago!) To be perfectly honest, I do love a fresh banana, but banana was never my favorite flavor of candy.
The smell doesn’t exactly translate to the taste. It does taste like banana candy, but a little muddier than that. They use “natural banana flavor” and no real banana, which I’m sure is because it would take a lot of banana to actually flavor this, and that would send the carbohydrate content skyrocketing. It’s sweet and fruity, and it doesn’t taste bad. I think if you’re crazy about banana candy, you’ll like this. There is a teeny hint of coconut flavor (from the coconut milk powder) which is translating a little bit to a piña colada taste.
Do you know where I think this would shine? In a mixed fruit smoothie where you want a banana or tropical-esque flavor, but not the sugar content of an actual banana. I think this would also be good mixed with a little chocolate protein powder for chocolate-banana, or with strawberry protein powder for strawberry-banana. I suspect that kids or teens would love this flavor!
In short: Get this flavor if you love banana candy, you want banana-flavored smoothies, or you’re feeding it to kids or teens who like banana.
Cinnamon Roll
Most of the Equip flavors use “natural flavoring” (which I’m personally fine with) and I think they’ve added a hint of natural butter flavor and vanilla to this one. It does have a warm buttery cinnamon roll vibe. (I hate when companies call something “cinnamon roll” and then it’s just cinnamon.) Equip has done a good job of actually trying to make this taste like a cinnamon roll.
While it’s not at the top of my list, I think the flavor is quite pleasant. It’s one of the best non-chocolate flavors I’ve tried! It would be especially nice for the colder winter months or around the holiday season. This one would also be great stirring into a warm glass of milk.
In short: Get this flavor if you want a flavored protein powder that isn’t chocolate.
Chocolate Mint
It smells exactly like a Thin Mint cookie!!! I am delightfully surprised. If you love the Equip Chocolate protein powder and you like mint but are scared to get the Chocolate Mint flavor because you aren’t sure you’ll like it… you will.
Interestingly, most of the other Equip products use “natural flavors,” but this one uses vanilla extract, peppermint extract, and honey powder to flavor it (at least at the time I’m posting this). I wonder if they did that to have another option without natural flavors for people who don’t or can’t eat those.
The flavor of this is very clean and refreshing. The mint is lovely and potent (but not overpowering), and has the sweet mint taste of an Andes Mint, but lingers in your mouth like you’ve just eaten a York Peppermint Patty. If you like mint chocolate, you’ll like this one for sure!
In short: Get this flavor if you like mint-chocolate-flavored things like Thin Mints and York Peppermint Pattys.
Mocha
The chocolate flavor of this isn’t quite as rich as the other chocolate flavors. I think they toned down the chocolate to let the coffee shine a little more. This reminds me of eating a chocolate-covered coffee bean: how the coffee is a little intense at first, but then the chocolate helps mellow it, but the predominant flavor is coffee. It has a nice strong wonderfully-bitter black coffee essence, thanks to the instant coffee they’ve added. And while I do appreciate that they didn’t try to use a “natural flavor” for the coffee part… for me personally, I don’t necessarily want caffeine in my protein shake. But maybe you do? I can see how some people would hate that and others would love it.
Equip does very well with all their chocolate flavors, and this is a solid choice. Lightly chocolatey with a good bite of coffee that lingers in your mouth for a while after, and is overall well-balanced.
In short: Get this flavor if you want caffeine with your protein shake and you love a strong cup of coffee.
KIDS Milk Chocolate
I was hoping this would taste like creamy chocolate milk. It doesn’t… it’s lightly chocolatey and tastes sweeter than the adult/regular chocolate flavor. It’s sweeter than I’d personally need or want, but it *is* made for kids… which sadly I am not anymore. :)
This flavor also has a whole long list of fruits added to it, which I assume is for the nutrition and not flavor because I do not detect any fruit flavor at all, just the chocolate.
One thing I noted about this flavor was that once it was mixed, I feel like I could smell the collagen-ness. I couldn’t taste it, but when my nose went into the cup to take a sip, I was hit with it. That being said, this was still pleasant enough to drink and I do think that kids would enjoy it. And… I don’t have kids, but if I did, I’d just give them the regular chocolate protein powder because it tastes good and they’ll like it, and it’s less expensive.
In short: Get this flavor if you’re worried people will think you’re crazy for giving your kids protein powder and want it in kid-labeled packaging.
EQUIP PROTEIN FLAVOR REVIEWS: PRIME BARS
Do Equip Protein Bars taste good? If you are looking for exquisitely detailed descriptions, tasting notes, and Equip flavor reviews for their prime bars, you’ve come to the right place! (And check back again, as I plan to try new flavors if/when they come out with them.) By the way, if you want to try all 4 flavors before comitting to a whole box, they offer a sampler box!
TLDR; The best Equip Prime Bar flavor is Chocolate.
Equip Coupon Code: “WFH” saves you $$!
Chocolate
In my opinion, the chocolate equip protein bar is by far their best. The bottom line: If you like chocolate, definitely get the chocolate flavor bars. If you don’t like chocolate, only then then consider one of the other options.
The chocolate flavor is light, almost in the same way a tootsie roll tastes like chocolate. The texture reminds me of a tootsie roll too, like if you crossed a protein bar with a tootsie roll. I LOVE THIS. The texture is slightly short— it breaks cleanly without being overly chewy. The texture is firm but doesn’t work your jaw too hard, and it doesn’t stick to my teeth.
I really like that the flavor is subtle and not too sweet or too chocolate-y. I don’t necessarily need it to taste like a rich chocolate brownie, especially since I am often eating it at breakfast. It feels mild and pleasant.
Peanut Butter
Do you remember those peanut butter taffy candies… I think they were called Peanut Butter Kisses? They were wrapped in orange and black wrappers and I’d get a couple in my Halloween bucket every year as a child of the 80s. (And I definitely didn’t appreciate them back then!) Or, do you remember Mary Jane candy? These bars taste sort of like those types of peanut butter taffy candies! That is, if you crossed a protein bar with them.
The peanut butter flavor is light to medium and there are little chunks of peanuts. There is a hint of raisin-y fruitiness in the background that I believe is coming from the dates. I also detect a teeny bit of a molasses flavor, which I think makes this bar taste a little more grown-up and old-fashioned candy-esque. The texture is slightly more chewy than the chocolate flavor, and not quite as short.
This is my second favorite flavor after chocolate.
Churro
Opening the package, this smells like sweet cinnamon. And I do wish it tasted as good as it smells. It doesn’t taste bad… I can eat it, but I do think there is room for improvement in this one.
I so appreciate that this is made with real food and really clean ingredients. The cinnamon flavor comes from real cinnamon, but in doing so I think they’ve added so much cinnamon that it gives off a hint of bitterness. The bar is sweetened with dates, honey, and coconut sugar. There’s a little cocoa butter in there that is giving a hint of buttery-ness reminiscent of a cinnamon roll (not a churro though).
The bar itself is a little bland (that’s not necessarily bad). It’s lightly sweet, it does taste of cinnamon, and the dates give it an under note of fruitiness. This flavor is a similar texture to the others, but a little harder and more chewier than the Chocolate.
This is my third favorite flavor, quite a ways behind Chocolate and Peanut Butter, but above Mixed Berry.
Mixed Berry
The texture of this bar is slightly more dense and chewy than the chocolate and is a little harder on the jaw. The fruit flavor is more deep, jammy, and of dried fruit than it is fresh or bright tasting. It eats almost like if you crossed a very chewy fruit leather with a protein bar. The strawberry flavor is most prominent, and it tastes a little overcooked.
I appreciate that they didn’t use artificial or even natural flavors— just the flavor from real dried (dehydrated, not freeze dried) fruits. This means the fruit flavor is mild.
This is my least favorite of the 4 main flavors, but if you like very chewy deeply dried fruit, you’ll probably like this.
KIDS Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough
I really enjoy the flavor of this bar– I think they’ve used real vanilla extract, which gives it that sweet chocolate chip cookie aroma. It has little pieces of chocolate chips in it, and the coconut sugar gives it those deep brown sugar notes. While I wouldn’t say it’s exactly like eating cookie dough, the flavors are all there and it is pleasant.
This bar appears to be half or a third the size of the regular adult prime bars. It’s little and adorable! And I actually love the size of these for myself. I don’t have kids, but I would buy these for me because I don’t always want a whole regular size protein bar. The perfect purse snack!
The texture of this bar is quite chewy and a little on the hard side (though my house is also really cold right now– I bet a few seconds in the microwave would soften this up!). It was a little bit of a jaw work out for me, so I’m having a hard time imaging a kid being able to eat this unless it was warm.
This is tied with Peanut Butter for my second favorite flavor… I kinda hope they make this in a large size bar for adults!
Why Equip? Because I’m the Canary in the Coal Mine
I’m a sensitive little flower, always have been. I can’t drink chlorine-treated city water, I can’t walk down the smelly laundry detergent aisle at the store, and if I don’t eat enough protein *from meat* then I don’t function well.
I’ve tried a lot of protein powders over the years and have never found a vegetarian one that felt like it fueled me. Pea protein, rice protein, hemp protein… none of them feel like they give my body any tangible nutrition.
Whey protein has worked well for me, but then a few years ago I discovered beef isolate protein, like the type that Equip uses! I love that it’s very clean, they can make it taste decent, and it’s nourishing. I feel like it actually gives my body nutrition that it can use. And when I get adequate protein I have more energy, a clearer mind, and better sleep. So getting quality protein is super important to me. Karl and I have both been using Equip protein for over 4 years now.
If you want detailed information about their process for making pasture-raised beef protein powder and the benefits, I’ll let you visit their website for that. This post is for the fluffy stuff like the flavors!
Do you have trouble mixing Equip Protein Powder? I can help!
One thing I like about Equip is that they don’t add flowing and dissolving agents. But that means you have to put a tiny bit of effort into mixing it. If you’re putting it into a blender– that’s no problem and I recommend adding it at the very end.
If you’re mixing Equip protein powder with water, it will clump up into balls that won’t dissolve if you just fill your cup with a lot of water. So here’s what I do: Get a small cup, like a jelly jar or a coffee mug. Add a scoop of protein powder to the bottom of the cup, then add just a small amount of water, like 1-2 tablespoons (I’ve never actually measured… you’ll soon learn to eyeball the right amount to add). Now use a fork to stir vigorously and turn the powder and water into a thick paste. Now add a little more water and stir to thin it out, then add the final amount of water you want to have for your shake, and stir. Voila! And non-clumpy protein shake!
