Vega Protein Powder Review: What's In It and How It Tests

Vega is one of the original plant-based protein brands, and its powders are on the shelf at most grocery and vitamin stores. Its best-known product today is Vega Protein + Supergreens, which adds greens like spinach and kale to a pea protein base.

Here's what's in it, what independent testing has found, and who it's a good fit for. We make a competing protein, fitppl Optimal Plant Protein, so keep that in mind as you read. Every number below comes from a label or an independent lab, and we've noted where Vega comes out ahead.

The short answer

• Plenty of protein in one scoop. Protein + Supergreens has 25g of pea protein per 46g scoop, plus 4g of fiber and 1g of sugar.¹
• The greens are a nice extra, but the amounts aren't listed, so you can't tell how much of each you get.
• It isn't certified organic, and it's sweetened with stevia, with three gums and natural flavors.²
• Testing is limited. Consumer Reports didn't test Protein + Supergreens. It tested Vega's sport protein, which had 0.91 mcg of lead and 4.36 mcg of cadmium per serving. Both are under the USP <2232> daily limit of 5 mcg, though the cadmium is close to it.⁴⁶

What's in Vega Protein + Supergreens

The full vanilla ingredient list is pea protein, acacia gum, spinach powder, coconut oil powder, natural flavors, stevia leaf extract, organic kale powder, guar gum, xanthan gum, organic alfalfa grass powder, rosemary extract and broccoli powder.² A container has about 11 servings for $29.99, or about $2.73 a serving.¹²

What Vega does well

• Protein per scoop. 25g in a single scoop is more than many plant powders.
• Greens in the same shake. If you'd like some vegetable powders with your protein, it saves a step.
• Fiber. 4g per serving.
• No added sugar. Just 1g of sugar per serving.
• Easy to find in stores and online.

The trade-offs

• Greens amounts aren't listed. The greens appear in the ingredient list, but without amounts. Acacia gum is listed second, ahead of spinach, and ingredients are listed by weight, so the greens are likely a small part of each scoop.
• Not certified organic. A few of the greens are organic, but the product as a whole isn't USDA Organic.²
• Stevia, gums and natural flavors. These help with taste and texture. If you're trying to avoid them, this isn't the one. See our guide to stevia in protein powder.
• The highest price per serving of the popular plant proteins we've compared, at about $2.73.
• Allergen cross-contact. Vega says it's made in a facility that also processes milk, soy, peanuts, eggs, tree nuts and sesame.²

Does Vega protein powder have heavy metals?

Consumer Reports' 2025 testing found plant-based products had the most lead on average.³ To put the numbers in context, we compare them with USP <2232>. USP <2232> is the U.S. Pharmacopeia's standard for heavy metals in dietary supplements. It sets daily limits of 5 mcg of lead, 5 mcg of cadmium, 15 mcg of inorganic arsenic and 15 mcg of mercury. Following it is voluntary, but it's a common benchmark for testing supplements.⁶

Consumer Reports didn't test Protein + Supergreens. It did test Vega Premium Sport Protein in chocolate, which Vega told Consumer Reports has been renamed Vega Protein + Recovery.⁴ Here's that result next to our own latest test:

Both were under the USP limits. The two had similar lead results, with Vega's slightly lower. Vega's cadmium was higher, at 4.36 mcg, or close to 90% of the USP limit, compared with about two-thirds for Optimal. These results come from different labs, products, batches and years, so treat them as a snapshot rather than a ranking. We publish our full results on the Optimal product page.

Vega vs. fitppl Optimal

Nutrition is from each label, and prices are list prices checked in November 2026.¹²⁵

Who should choose Vega, and who might not

Vega is a good fit if you want a high-protein scoop with some greens mixed in, you like the taste of stevia, and organic certification isn't a priority.

You might prefer something else if you want a certified organic protein, a short ingredient list, or no stevia or gums. Compare options in our guide to the best plant-based protein powders, or look at Optimal, which has 26g of protein from four organic ingredients.

The bottom line

Vega Protein + Supergreens delivers a lot of protein in one scoop, and the greens are a convenient extra. It isn't organic, it relies on stevia, gums and natural flavors, and it's on the pricier side. Independent testing of Vega's sport protein found lead similar to ours and higher cadmium. If greens in your protein shake matter most, it's worth a look. If a simple label matters most, there are better fits.