Compare Proteins
How to choose between proteins, plus 15 side-by-side comparisons.
Proteins comparisons (15)
How to choose
Protein per calorie: leanest cuts win the math
Chicken breast (31g protein per 165 cal/100g cooked), white fish, shrimp, egg whites, and 95/5 ground beef lead. Salmon, ribeye, and chicken thigh deliver less protein per calorie but more flavor and longer satiety.
Cost per gram of protein: eggs and tuna run away with it
Eggs (~$0.04/g), chicken thighs (~$0.06/g), canned tuna (~$0.06/g), and 93/7 ground beef (~$0.08/g) are the value plays. Salmon, beef tenderloin, and shrimp run 3-5x more per gram.
Cooking forgiveness: match it to your kitchen confidence
Ground beef, chicken thighs, and eggs survive a distracted cook. Chicken breast, lean fish, and shrimp dry out in 60 seconds past done. If you don't own a meat thermometer, default to the forgiving cuts.
Omega-3: only fatty fish delivers in real amounts
Salmon, mackerel, sardines, and anchovies are the only common proteins with meaningful EPA/DHA. Chicken, beef, eggs, and pork bring near zero. If fatty fish isn't a 2x/week habit, an algae or fish oil supplement is the cheap fix.
About comparing proteins
Leaner cuts deliver more protein per calorie at the cost of flavor and satiety per gram. Swapping chicken thigh for breast can swing daily protein by 20g and fat by 15g. The choice between two proteins is rarely small.
Pick based on your daily target (1.6-2.2g/kg bodyweight is the resistance-training consensus) and how you want to spend your fat budget. There's no single best protein. There's the one that fits the meal.
Common mistakes
Eating only chicken breast
Chicken breast is the per-calorie king but every protein brings something else: iron and B12 in red meat, EPA/DHA in salmon, choline in eggs, zinc in shellfish. A single-source protein diet works on a spreadsheet and underdelivers in your bloodwork.
Treating all red meat as cancer-causing
Processed red meat (bacon, deli, hot dogs, sausage) carries the strongest evidence for harm. Unprocessed red meat (steak, ground beef) shows much weaker associations and is well-tolerated at 1-2 servings per week in the long-term studies. Don't conflate the two.
Counting protein from low-protein foods
A cup of cooked rice has 4g protein. A slice of bread has 3g. They add up but they aren't 'protein sources'. Hitting a 140g daily target on those means 30+ servings of carbs. Protein needs come from actual protein.
Frequently Asked Questions
Last updated: Apr 24, 2026