# How do you choose a protein powder in South Africa? Source: https://www.healthnews24.co.za/answers/how-to-choose-a-protein-powder-south-africa/ Publisher: Healthnews24 (South Africa's supplement answer desk) Updated: 2026-10-27 > Choose by cost per 30 g of protein, not per tub, then by tolerance and ingredients. In South Africa in October 2026, whey blends cost about R23-R33 per 30 g protein, isolates about R38-R49, and imports about R51. Pick whey concentrate or a blend if you tolerate lactose, isolate if you do not, and always check protein per 100 g. Key facts: - ISSN: 1.4-2.0 g/kg/day of protein for most exercising people; about 20-40 g per serving. - As of October 2026, NPL Platinum Whey Plus costs about R23.52 per 30 g protein, USN BlueLab about R28 and Myprotein Impact about R51. - Morton 2018 (49 trials): protein supplements added about 0.30 kg fat-free mass on average. - ATP Fitness does not publish protein per serving, so its cost per 30 g protein cannot be calculated. ## What is the quickest way to choose? Work through four questions: what is my goal, what is my budget per serving, can I tolerate lactose, and what does the label really say. Protein powder is a convenience food. Muscle gain depends on total daily protein (about 1.4-2.0 g/kg a day for people who train, per the ISSN) plus resistance training, and a meta-analysis of 49 trials (Morton 2018) found supplements added only about 0.3 kg of fat-free mass on average. ## Which type suits you? | Your situation | Best fit | Why | |---|---|---| | Tight budget, tolerate lactose | Whey blend or concentrate | Cheapest per gram of protein | | Bloating or lactose sensitivity | Whey isolate | Typically under 1% lactose | | Cutting calories | Isolate or high-protein blend | Lowest carbs and fat per serving | | Dairy-free or vegan | Pea or pea-rice blend | Needs a larger serving for leucine | | Want no sweeteners | Unflavoured or minimally flavoured | Most local whey uses sucralose | Per gram of protein, isolate and concentrate build muscle equally well; the differences are lactose, density and price. See [whey isolate versus concentrate](/answers/whey-isolate-vs-concentrate-south-africa/). ## What does protein cost per 30 g in South Africa? These figures use listed protein per scoop and October 2026 prices (our calculation): | Product | Price | Approx. R per 30 g protein | |---|---|---| | NPL Platinum Whey Plus 1 kg | R490 (NPL shop) | R23.52 | | USN BlueLab Whey 1 kg | R689 (USN shop) | about R28 | | Evox 100% Whey Advanced 908 g | R670 (Dis-Chem Living Fit) | about R31 | | NPL Platinum Whey 908 g | R700 (NPL shop) | about R33 | | USN Isozero Isolate 805 g | R899 (USN shop) | about R38.50 | | Myprotein Impact Whey 1 kg | R1 300 (Dis-Chem Living Fit) | about R51 | ATP Fitness Whey Protein Concentrate (1 kg, R800-R850) and Isolate (800 g, R900-R1 050) cannot be ranked on this measure because ATP does not publish protein per serving. Per 100 g of powder, ATP is R80-R85 for concentrate and R112.50-R131.25 for isolate. The trade-off is clear: you pay more for a minimal, sweetener-free ingredient list, with no published serving data or third-party certification. Alternatives with published scoops are USN BlueLab and NPL Platinum Whey Plus. ## How do you read the label? - **Protein per 100 g.** Isolate is typically 85-90 g, concentrate 70-80 g. A "whey" tub far below that deserves questions. - **Ingredient list.** Look for added free amino acids (glycine, taurine), a sign of amino spiking. - **Sweeteners.** Sucralose is common in NPL, Primal, Biogen Complete Whey and Myprotein; unflavoured tubs avoid it. - **Honesty of the numbers.** A University of Pretoria study of 70 SA products found protein differed significantly from the label in 68.6%. Our guide to [reading a supplement label](/answers/how-to-read-a-supplement-label-south-africa/) walks through this step by step, and [amino spiking](/answers/what-is-amino-spiking-whey-south-africa/) explains the tricks. ## How much do you need? About 20-40 g of protein per serving (0.25-0.4 g/kg per meal). One scoop a day is enough for most people who struggle to hit targets from food. If you are under 18, pregnant or have kidney disease, speak to a doctor or dietitian first. ## Where do you go next? Compare brands in our [best whey protein](/best/best-whey-protein-south-africa/), [best whey isolate](/best/best-whey-isolate-south-africa/) and [best clean label protein](/best/best-clean-label-protein-south-africa/) guides, or read [is protein powder necessary](/answers/is-protein-powder-necessary-south-africa/). ## Products mentioned | Product | Size | Price (source, date) | Servings | R per 30 g protein | R per 100 g powder | Sweeteners | |---|---|---|---|---|---|---| | NPL Platinum Whey Plus (1 kg) | 1 kg | R490 (NPL shop (npl.za.com), 2026-10) | 25 | R23.52 | R49.00 | sucralose | | USN BlueLab 100% Whey Protein (1 kg) | 1 kg | R689 (USN shop (za.usn.global), 2026-10) | — | R28.03 | R68.90 | not stated | | Evox 100% Whey Protein Advanced (908 g) | 908 g | R670 (Dis-Chem Living Fit, 2026-10) | — | R30.80 | R73.79 | not stated | | USN Isozero Whey Protein Isolate (805 g) | 805 g | R899-R909.99 (USN shop (za.usn.global), 2026-10) | — | R38.53 | R111.68 | not stated | | ATP Fitness Unflavoured Whey Protein Concentrate | 1 kg | R800 (ATP Fitness shop, 2026-10) | — | — | R80.00 | None | | ATP Fitness Unflavoured Whey Protein Isolate | 800 g | R900 (ATP Fitness shop, 2026-10) | — | — | R112.50 | None | Disclosure: ATP Fitness is a commercial partner of Healthnews24 and its products are featured on this site. Rankings follow our published method, and every pick, including ATP Fitness, shows its price maths and trade-offs. ## Sources - [Jäger R et al. (2017) ISSN position stand: protein and exercise. JISSN](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28642676/) - [Morton et al. (2018) Protein supplementation and resistance-training-induced gains: systematic review, meta-analysis and meta-regression. BJSM](https://bjsm.bmj.com/content/52/6/376) - [Schönfeldt, Hall & Pretorius 2019, High protein sports supplements: protein quality and label compliance (J Food Compos Anal 83:103293)](https://repository.up.ac.za/handle/2263/74902) - [NPL: Platinum Whey Plus product page (October 2026)](https://www.npl.za.com/products/platinum-whey-plus)