How we calculate

• Prices are the online shelf price shown on each retailer's own product page (coles.com.au, woolworths.com.au, aldi.com.au) when last checked. We don't use third-party price feeds. Specials are included as shown on the day.
• Nutrition (protein and energy per 100 g or 100 mL) comes from the nutrition information panel on the retailer's product page. ALDI shows its panel only as a pack photo, so ALDI values are transcribed from that image and the image link is stored in our data.
• If we can't verify either the price or the nutrition for a product, we leave it out. Nothing is estimated or made up.
• Product photos are shown straight from each retailer's website so you can recognise the pack, and link to the retailer's product page. Product images belong to their respective retailers and brands. If a photo can't load, you'll see a category icon instead.

• Price per 100 g = the retailer's unit price (for example "$1.09 per 100 g") or, if missing, pack price ÷ pack weight.
• Protein per $1 = protein per 100 g ÷ price per 100 g. Higher is better value.
• Protein per 100 kcal = protein per 100 g ÷ calories per 100 g × 100. Higher means a leaner protein source. Where a panel only lists kilojoules, calories = kJ ÷ 4.184.
• Cost for 30 g protein = 30 ÷ protein per $1, roughly the cost of one high-protein meal's worth.

• Serving size is the one printed on each product's own nutrition panel (for example "Serving size: 170 g" or "2 eggs (104 g)"). We only use a serving size stated in grams or millilitres; if the label doesn't give one, the card shows per 100 g instead and says so. Nothing is estimated.
• Price per serve = price per 100 g as eaten × serving size ÷ 100. "As eaten" means drained weight for tins that state it and edible egg for eggs, the same basis as the rankings.
• Protein and kcal per serve = the label's per-100 g values × serving size ÷ 100. For Woolworths we also check this against the label's own per-serve protein and drop the serving size if they disagree by more than 15%.
• Specials: when a retailer shows a "was" price, the per-serve "was" figure uses that price, so the saving per serve is the difference between the two.
• Use the View menu above any list (per serve, for 30 g protein, protein per $1 or per 100 g) to switch which figure each card shows. Every figure is also on each product's own page.

The ring on each product is its Value score: the share of all 460 products we track that it matches or beats on grams of protein per dollar, from 1 to 100. A score of 80 means it gives at least as much protein per dollar as 80% of the range. It ranks price only: it says nothing about taste, other nutrients or protein quality.

• Scores are recalculated at every price check, so they move as prices change. On catalogue specials the score uses the special price, compared with every other product’s shelf price.
• On product pages, the protein ring shows protein per serve against a 30 g reference (a common amount of protein for one meal), and the energy ring shows the share of the label’s calories that comes from protein (4 kcal per gram).
• Every ring uses the same label and price data as the rest of the site; nothing is estimated.

Aisles group genuine protein products of the same type (yoghurt with yoghurt, tuna with tuna) across all three stores. Each aisle has a minimum protein rule, mostly at least 8 g protein per 100 g, with stricter rules for bars (15 g), pasta and cereal (15 g), powders (50 g) and ready meals (20 g per meal), and 4.5 g per 100 mL for milk and drinks. Products on special are shown first and badged with the was and now price. Everything else stays in the full rankings.

• Source: each week we read the supermarkets' own published weekly catalogues: the Woolworths weekly catalogue (the same catalogue feed woolworths.com.au/shop/catalogue shows, for Brisbane, QLD) and ALDI's Special Buys pages. The Coles catalogue only loads in a browser behind bot protection, so Coles isn't included.
• Matching: a catalogue offer is matched to a product only by the retailer's own product number (stock code), never by name, so a deal on one flavour or size isn't applied to another. Offers listing several prices for different products are skipped.
• Prices: the "now" price is the catalogue's sale price. The "was" price comes from the catalogue's "Save $x" or "was" text; if it has neither, we compare with our last checked shelf price and say so.
• Per serve and protein per $1 at the special price apply the sale price to the same verified label data as everywhere else on the site.
• Woolworths publishes next week's catalogue on Monday afternoon for specials running Wednesday to Tuesday. Catalogue prices are for Queensland and can differ in other states and stores.

• Tinned fish and legumes: labels usually give nutrition per 100 g drained, while the price covers the whole can including liquid. Where the label states how much drained food is in the can (servings × serving size, marked "drained"), we re-base the price onto that drained weight, so protein per dollar compares like with like. Those products say "Ranked on drained weight" under them. Where the label doesn't say, we use the whole-can price and the product carries a note, so it may look slightly better value than it is.
• Eggs: nutrition is per 100 g of edible egg; the pack weight includes shells.
• Dry goods (like dry lentils) are compared by dry weight; they roughly double to triple in weight once cooked.
• Liquids are compared per 100 mL.
• Protein powders are compared per 100 g of powder. Where a label gives values per scoop, we convert to per 100 g.
• Protein quality differs between foods (for example, animal versus plant proteins). These rankings measure quantity and cost, not quality.
• Fresh, unpackaged meat (like loose chicken breast) often has no nutrition panel online, so it isn't included yet. Chicken mince, cooked, shredded and sliced chicken with a panel are included.
• Variable-weight packs (for example "300 g – 600 g") are ranked on the retailer's per-kg price.

Prices were last checked on 22 October 2026. We aim to refresh prices daily. Prices change often and may differ in your store or state. Always check the retailer before buying.

Grams of protein aren't the whole story. Each product shows a general protein-quality note based on its main protein source:

• Complete protein means the source provides all the essential amino acids in proportions that meet human requirements. Animal proteins (dairy, whey, egg, meat, fish) and soy score highly on the FAO's protein-quality measures (DIAAS/PDCAAS).
• Pair with grains: legumes such as lentils, chickpeas and beans are typically lower in the sulphur amino acids (methionine and cysteine). Eating them alongside grains across the day (rice, bread, oats) fills the gap. They're still excellent, cheap protein.
• Leucine is the amino acid most linked to switching on muscle protein synthesis; around 2.7 g in a meal (the amount in 25 g whey) is often used as a reference point in research. Figures are typical values for the protein source, from published amino-acid analyses, not measurements of each product.
• Mixed sources (bars, ready meals, blended powders) depend on the recipe, so we don't label them.
• This is general information about protein sources, not individual advice.

1. FAO (2013). Dietary protein quality evaluation in human nutrition. FAO Food and Nutrition Paper 92. https://openknowledge.fao.org/handle/20.500.14283/i3124e
2. Gorissen SHM et al. (2018). Protein content and amino acid composition of commercially available plant-based protein isolates. Amino Acids 50:1685–1695. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00726-018-2640-5
3. van Vliet S, Burd NA, van Loon LJC (2015). The skeletal muscle anabolic response to plant- versus animal-based protein consumption. J Nutr 145:1981–1991. https://doi.org/10.3945/jn.114.204305

Protein Aisle is built by an Accredited Practising Dietitian. The methodology, categories, caveats and protein-quality notes were written from a dietitian's perspective. Prices and nutrition panels are collected automatically from retailer websites; individual products are not individually reviewed.

Protein Aisle isn't affiliated with any retailer. Brands may in future pay to be featured; featured placements will always be clearly labelled and will never change a product's ranking or numbers.

This is general information to help you compare products. It isn't personalised medical or dietary advice. For advice about your own needs, see an Accredited Practising Dietitian.

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