The Best Quest Chips Flavors [Ranked and Reviewed] | 2023
Quest chips have become one of the most popular protein snacks over the last couple of years. But do they taste good? Are Quest chips healthy? Will they help me lose weight and lose belly fat? If you are asking these questions, you have come to the right place. Welcome to our Question protein chips review!
They are a great way to add some extra protein to your daily diet and are also pretty good savory snacks for flavor. They are a good balance of taste and healthy snacking.
Around our house, we always have a few bags of various flavors of these high-protein chips.
However, some of the flavors are better tasting than others.
The gluten-free Quest chips come in two styles; savory tortilla chip and potato chip. We will briefly discuss the difference between those and how those factor into our rankings.
So what I thought would be fun is to do a Quest protein chips review of all the currently available flavors of Quest Nutrition protein chips and rank them according to the best tasting to the worst.
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The Current Lineup of Quest Protein Chips
While Quest Nutrition might be better known for its protein bars (like the Birthday Cake and Lemon flavors) and whey powder, the low-carb chips are becoming very popular for those trying to hit their fitness goals.
Quest chips come in eight different natural flavors. While this isn’t very many to select from, the quality of the flavor can vary dramatically between the top and bottom-ranked protein chips.
Here is a list of all Quest chips currently available on the market:
But which is the best Quest chips flavor? While that list of Quest protein chips is in no particular order, it’s time to rank the 9 flavors, from the best-tasting Quest protein chips flavors down to the worst.
The Best Quest Protein Chips of 2023
1. Spicy Sweet Chili – Tortilla Style
Best Overall Flavor and Texture
The spicy sweet chili flavor is an easy choice for us as the best Quest protein chips flavor ranked first.
It’s incredibly delicious and almost feels like you’re cheating on your low-carb diet when you eat these.
But with 19 grams of protein per bag and only 140 calories, you can go easy on yourself.
What makes these spicy sweet chili high protein chips so delicious? Let me tell you why it is our favorite flavor.
For starters, the satisfying taste of the Quest nutrition tortilla chips. These are a great mix of both spicy and sweet flavors mixed together. The flavors are not overwhelming but are potent enough to make each bite enjoyable.
It’s similar to Dorito’s sweet and spicy chip but has much fewer calories.
Additionally, the Quest Nutrition tortilla style protein chips are our preferred texture, as they tend to be a bit more crisp and crunchy whenever eating.
I am also not left with a bunch of flavored dust on my fingers after eating these, unlike other protein chips we will see on the list.
My wife and I love this flavor of Quest Nutrition tortilla style protein chips, and it’s a great pick when we are both on board.
Easily our favorite Quest Nutrition protein chips flavor, earning the spot as the best Quest chips flavor.
2. Chili Lime – Tortilla Style
Lots Of Tangy Flavor!
The chili lime flavor is a close runner-up on the list of the best Quest chips of 2023.
This small bag packs a big flavor punch and is extremely tangy and delicious.
These chili lime protein chips almost give off a slightly sour flavor hint, but not enough to be offputting.
Because it is a tortilla style, again being our preference of style, the texture is perfect, and the satisfying crunch adds to the tangy element of these protein chips.
Even though the calorie count is 140 calories for the bag of chips, the protein in this Quest protein chips flavor is slightly higher than most others, coming in at 20 total grams of protein per bag, compared to other Quest Nutrition tortilla style protein chips with 18 or 19 grams.
Not a huge difference, but enough to note.
3. Hot & Spicy – Tortilla Style
Hotter than Expected, in a Good Way
I’m not going to sugar-coat this; these chips are pretty hot. Certainly not to the level of “1 Chip Challenge” fame, but packs enough spice to have you looking for the closet water.
That’s not to say it’s only about the heat because these chips offer a solid and surprising flavor.
The newest flavor in the Quest chips family, the Hot & Spicy, delivers on its name and then some. I was surprised at how spicy the chips were, and even the lasting after-burn lasted several minutes, even after eating each chip.
That said, it’s not so hot that timid tongues won’t be able to handle it. There are certainly way hotter chips on the market. But this thing sneaks up on you for a protein chip or a healthy snack and gives you something to think about.
The Quest Hot & Spicy protein chips are here to stay, hopefully. They are not our top pick for the best Quest chip flavor, but they are one of the most exciting flavors on the list.
4. BBQ – Original Style Protein Chips
Delicious, But Flaky
The BBQ protein chips were the first flavor we ever tried from the line of Quest chips. It turned out to be one of our favorites as well.
This 140 cal bag of protein chips has one of the most unique flavors out of all the potato chips listed here.
It is certainly a BBQ flavor, but it is not overwhelming. If anything, it’s quite subtle but enough to enjoy.
With 5 grams of fat (.5 of saturated fat) and 19 grams of protein, the barbecue flavor comes in the traditional potato chip style instead of the above tortilla style. There is a little difference here because these low-carb BBQ chips are slightly lighter and flaky, almost airy.
Even though this style of chip is not our favorite, the BBQ flavor makes this one of our top choices in our household.
Yes, the BBQ flavor is that good.
5. Nacho Cheese – Tortilla Style
Pretty Close To The Original Dorito
The Quest Nacho Cheese flavor of potato chips hits the nail on the head in several categories.
It has great flavor and texture and leaves some cheddar cheese powder on your fingertips like a Dorito.
When eating healthy versions of junk food, we often compare them to the original version. The nacho cheese tortilla style Quest protein chip is modeled after the classic Dorito nacho chip.
And I’m glad to report that even though these Quest Nutrition tortilla style protein chips are not identical to Doritos, they are very similar. The Quest protein chip can stand on its own two legs in flavor.
We often mix these Quest Nutrition tortilla style protein chips with chili or taco bowls instead of Doritos for a healthier, protein-filled meal.
And just like regular Doritos, by the time you reach the end of the bag, you’ll have a little bit of cheddar cheese powder on your fingertips to lick off.
Some of these bags report slightly more calories of 150 cal and an increased fat count of 6 g, but all calculations show a slightly inferior protein count of 18 total grams.
Certainly, there is nothing to sneeze at for a bag of chips, but it is slightly lower than some other Quest Nutrition tortilla style protein chips on this list.
6. Sour Cream & Onion – Original Style Protein Chips
Good, But Not Great
The sour cream and onion original-style protein chips have decent flavor but lack some punch that other protein chips on this list have.
It’s not that the sour cream flavor is bad, but it certainly is not their best chip offering.
When you eat the sour cream and onion Quest protein chips, it just seems like something is missing.
Maybe that’s because comparing this flavor with other more popular brand-name flavors is easy, but some elements are missing from these chips.
Additionally, the traditional potato chip, which we had mentioned before, has a slightly different texture and is not our favorite due to its lack of crunch and firmness.
The macros and calories on a bag of these chips are similar to what we’ve seen on others, coming in at about 140 cal for a bag, 19 g of protein, 4 to 5 g of carbs, and low fat.
We do eat the sour cream flavor when available, but they are certainly not our preference.
7. Ranch – Tortilla Style
Almost A Cool Ranch
The Ranch flavor Quest protein chips are a bit of a mixed bag in our household.
They are a top three chip for me, as I like Cool Ranch Doritos, but my wife does not care for this Quest potato chips flavor, so I am splitting the difference in the rankings.
I enjoy these tortilla chips because they remind me of Cool Ranch Doritos with a slightly different flavor. The flavor is still good, but it’s not exactly the same.
But the tortilla style protein chips of these Quest chips help make the tortilla chip better and an enjoyable overall experience.
The caloric and macro breakdowns on these high protein chips are similar to what we’ve seen on others: 19 g of protein, 140 cal, low carbs, and low fat.
Like the nacho flavor above, these ranch flavor chips leave a pretty good amount of flavor dust on your fingers whenever you eat them, which some people might find annoying or great, depending on your preference.
8. Cheddar & Sour Cream – Original Style Protein Chips
A Chip With No Personality
Now that we are getting to the bottom of the list, it’s time to look at some of the most unimpressive and just, frankly, not great-tasting chips.
The Cheddar and Sour Cream was a good choice to place at the end of this list.
Even though the caloric and macro breakdowns of these chips are similar to what we’ve seen on others, the lack of any real flavor makes this one of our least favorites of all the Quest chip options.
It does have some flavor, but it almost seems to be without character or personality.
These are also the traditional style original potato chip, which tends to be flakier and not as crisp, so you lose some crunches while chewing.
This is simply a low carb potato chip that didn’t impress nearly as much as some of the others higher on this list, and because of that, it gets the #7 spot.
9. Loaded Taco – Tortilla Style
Dirt In A Potato Chip Bag
When putting this list together, I knew the number one-rated chip and the last-rated chip.
So here we have the Loaded Taco flavor; as you can see, we are not a fan.
If you were to close your eyes, try one of these protein chips, and try to guess the flavor; you would be hard-pressed to know exactly what the flavor profile was supposed to be.
I’ve tried these tortilla chips many times and still can’t connect the flavor to a loaded taco or sweet potatoes. Honestly, the only reason they are on this Quest chips best flavor list is because they exist….that’s it.
It does have flavor, but it is not a pleasurable one. My wife and I rank this as our least favorite ship, and it’s not even close.
I would rather skip eating potato chips altogether if I have to eat one of these bags.
It has the same great caloric and macro breakdowns as others on this list, again being a low-carb snack with low fat and 19 g of protein, but there’s no saving this flavor.
Are Quest Protein Chips Healthy?
Quest protein chips have become extremely popular because of their low-calorie count and other macronutrient properties, such as minimal net carbs and some amino acids. Because of that, they can help with weight loss goals and help with a calorie deficit.
These are gluten-free and very low-carb snacks, usually coming in somewhere around 5 total grams of carbs, with a few closer to 4g net carbs per serving size.
If you compare that to one bag of Doritos, for example, those will come in around 16 grams of carbs, more than three times as many.
Quest recently update some information on their site regarding the ingredients being used in their products:
“Quest™ has reformulated some of its products to contain vegetable oil, including soybean, which is an allergen, due to issues with the global supply chain. However, the quality, flavor, and texture of the product will not be affected by the small amount of soybean oil added. The company continues to use high-quality dairy-based proteins to provide the necessary amino acids.”
Regarding the protein content, the protein blend in Quest Protein Chips comprises of milk protein isolate and whey protein isolate, which provides the ideal combination for your dietary needs. The fast-digesting whey isolate offers immediate protein to your body, while the milk protein isolate releases protein slowly and helps you stay satiated for an extended period.
Additionally, other potato chips contain nearly 0 g of protein. A similar size bag of Doritos will contain about 2 total grams of protein, compared to the Quest protein chips, which average around 19 total grams of protein.
From a caloric intake standpoint, the Quest protein chips nutrition is typically lower in overall calories, but not by a ton. Their biggest advantage is its high protein intake and low carb counts. This is great for anybody looking to lose weight, get healthy, add more protein to a healthy diet and reduce fat and carbohydrates.
Here is an example of a Quest chips nutrition label:
Crafted from dairy-based proteins for superior flavor and quality, these gluten-free chips make for an irresistible low-carb snack that will give you all the amino acids your body requires.
So, are these protein chips healthy? When it comes to processed foods, you could certainly do much worse.
From the package, here are the ingredients (which might vary by flavor): Acacia Gum, ButterMilk Powder, Cheddar Cheese (Cultured Milk, Salt, Enzymes), Calcium Carbonate, Calcium Caseinate, Chia Seed, Corn Starch, Cream (non-fat milk, cultures), Garlic Powder, Green Bell Pepper, High Oleic Sunflower Oil, Natural Flavors, Onion Powder, Paprika, Paprika Extract (Color), Protein Blend (Milk Protein Isolate, Whey Protein Isolate), Psyllium Husk, Salt, Soluble Corn Fiber, Sour Cream (Cream, NonFat Dry Milk, Cultures), Stevia Sweetener, Spice, Sunflower Lecithin, Tomato Powder, Turmeric Oleoresin (Color), Yeast, Yeast Extract, Whey Protein Isolate Powder.
Quest Nutrition Tortilla Style Protein Chips VS Original Style
As mentioned above, Quest Nutrition has two potato chips styles.
First, the tortilla-style chip, similar to Doritos in shape, looks like a triangle. The other option is more like regular potato chips, similar to what you would expect from a Lays potato chip.
We crave the Quest Nutrition tortilla-style protein chips over the traditional style. The regular tortilla chip options have all the crunch and satisfying taste, are much firmer, and feel fresher. The original tends to be lighter and does not pack as much satisfying crunch as the Quest Nutrition tortilla-style protein chips.
The Quest tortilla-style protein chips are more filling and satisfying to eat.
Our Final Thoughts On Quest Chips
The high protein Quest chips, regardless of flavor, are still some of the best-tasting healthy snacks on the market. Certainly, while some chips taste better than other chips, the higher protein and lower net carbs and fat counts might make up for the lack of flavor on some of these for many.
These are not weight loss chips or some magical snack that will help you drop fat, but with around 140 calories per serving, they can help you have a better, balanced diet to get you on your way to losing belly fat or even muscle growth by way of the added protein in your diet for a healthy lifestyle.
So are Question Protein Chips good? Yes, very. These totally pass the delicious snack taste test.
These are great protein chips for gluten-free snacking, especially for those who like something with a bitter taste.
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Rob is a Certified Personal Trainer and Nutrition Coach through the National Academy of Sports Medicine. For the past 10 years, Rob has been navigating the health and fitness landscape to better himself and those around him, focusing on tools such as calorie and macro counting, intermittent fasting, and HIIT training techniques.
