Transparent Labs vs. Naked Whey: Head to Head, Who’s the Cleanest? (Tested!)

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I have spent many months testing both Transparent Labs Grass-Fed Whey Isolate and Naked Whey Grass-Fed Whey and have published in depth reviews of both on Feastgood.com. 

Since publishing these reviews, I have had many people asking the same question: Which of these two proteins is the cleanest?

The goal of this article is to compare Transparent Labs protein to Naked Whey head to head to determine which protein comes out on top as the cleanest. 

To do this, we will first define what “clean” means, and then compare these proteins across the following key criteria: 

• Ingredient Transparency
• Protein Source
• Added Ingredients
• Quality Assurances
• User Experience Factors

After tallying the results from each category (more details below), Transparent Labs comes out as the winner for me. 

This, however, is extremely nuanced. If the most important factor for you is having as few ingredients as possible, then Naked Whey is the best option. 

Transparent Labs, however, offers a higher protein percentage, more transparent quality assurances and testing, and has a significant advantage where taste and mixability are concerned. 

Ultimately, deciding which brand is best for you will depend on your personal priorities and what you want most from your protein powder. 

Key Takeaways

• Naked Whey has the most minimal formula, with the unflavored option having only 1 ingredient and the flavored options having no additives aside from flavoring. 

• Naked Whey uses added sugar and has more calories and a lower protein percentage than Transparent Labs who use calorie-free stevia. 

• Transparent Labs has publicly disclosed third party testing results which makes it easier to verify their quality and claims for purity

Note: If you want to try either of these proteins, I have already done the work to find you the best cost. If I find better prices, I will update the links below. 

Buy Transparent Labs Grass Fed Whey Isolate here

Buy Naked Nutrition Whey here

What Is Transparent Labs Grass-Fed Whey?

Transparent Labs uses 100% grass-fed whey from American cattle raised without the use of growth hormone, growth factor, or anabolic steroids. 

Grass-fed whey is considered a gold standard in the industry since cows that are fed a grass-only diet generally have a higher quality of life. It is suggested that grass-feeding cows have a positive effect on the quality of the milk they produce, but most studies have shown that these benefits aren’t passed down to the whey powder by the time it goes through processing. 

• Related: Grass-Fed Whey Protein vs Regular Whey Protein

They use exclusively whey isolate, which has undergone some of the most thorough filtration resulting in a protein powder that digests easily and has very low carbohydrate and fat content. 

The low fat content helps keep the overall calories fairly low, and the removal of most of the sugar means that the Transparent Labs Isolate is virtually lactose-free and may be a suitable option for individuals with a lactose sensitivity. 

While the carbohydrate content does vary slightly by flavor, between 1 and 3 grams, every flavor of Transparent Labs Protein offers 28g of protein per scoop. At 120-140 calories per serving, this means that Transparent Labs Whey provides 80-93% protein per scoop, making it an excellent protein source. 

To put this into context, some flavors of Naked Whey have as low as 55% protein per scoop, meaning 45% of the calories found in the product come from carbs or fats. 

The unflavored Transparent Labs Protein contains only one additional ingredient, sunflower lecithin. This ingredient is added to protein powder to help the protein powder dissolve, reducing the likelihood of clumping or experiencing a chalky texture.

Transparent Labs has 14 different flavor varieties available. These flavors use a combination of stevia, salt, natural flavors, cocoa powder, peanut flour, cinnamon, and grape powder to achieve these flavors. 

One key significant benefit of Transparent Labs is that their protein is third-party tested, and the results are publicly available on the website. This means that you can enter your specific lot number and see the testing results to know that your product is free of contaminants and that it actually contains the amount of protein that it claims to. 

Transparent Labs Whey is also Informed Choice Certified and Informed Protein Certified. This is an added level of reassurance that this is a high-quality protein that is safe for use by elite athletes who undergo drug testing for their sports. 

Transparent Labs Whey costs $2.00 per serving. This is above the average cost of whey protein which we calculated to be around $1.34 per serving, but this cost is on par or below similar products who use high-quality grass-fed whey with no artificial additives. 

Transparent Labs Grass-Fed Whey Isolate tastes great and mixes well, and won the top two spots for taste when compared head to head in a blind taste test with other naturally-flavored protein powders. 

Want more info?  Read my in-depth Transparent Labs Grass Fed Whey Review here.  

• Related article: Chocolate Protein Powder Tier List – 15 Flavors Tested

Pros 

• Grass-Fed Whey: Grass-fed cows are generally happier and produce higher nutrient milk than grain-fed cows. They also may be pasture-raised and have a higher quality of life which may be a moral preference

• High percentage of protein per scoop: Transparent Labs has very low carb and fat content and provides up to 93% protein per scoop.

• Only 1 added ingredient: The unflavored protein powder only contains 1 added ingredient, sunflower lecithin, to improve the mixability of the protein. 

• Great taste with a wide variety of flavors: Transparent Labs is available in 15 different flavor varieties. In 2013 I tested every available flavor and while I had some favorites, I found them all to be suitable additions to my regimen

• Third-Party Tested and Informed Choice Certified: Transparent Labs makes all of their testing results publicly available which allows you to verify the quality and purity of your product. The added certifications make it safe for use by drug tested athletes. 

Cons 

• Uses “natural flavors”:  Natural flavors is a catch-all term for products that originate from a natural source like a spice, fruit, herb, or animal product but these can still be highly processed. There is also no regulation for the term “natural” so the quality and type of ingredients can vary greatly. 

• Uses sunflower lecithin: Though Transparent Labs clearly displays the amount of sunflower lecithin in each flavor of their protein, and sunflower is largely preferred to soy lecithin for its quality, those who want to avoid any additives may see this addition as a negative.

Who Should Take It? 

Transparent Labs Grass-Fed Whey Isolate is a good option for: 

• Individuals who prioritize high-quality ingredients

• Individuals who want a variety of flavors

• Those looking to minimize carbs and fats

• Individuals with a lactose sensitivity, since this product is virtually lactose-free and may be less reactive than other proteins. 

• Drug tested athletes who require Informed Choice or Informed Protein certifications

What Is Naked Nutrition Whey?

Naked Nutrition Whey (which I will refer to as Naked Whey in this article for clarity) is a protein powder made from grass-fed whey, similar to Transparent Labs. 

Unlike Transparent Labs who uses an isolate protein, Naked Whey uses whey concentrate. This type of protein has not undergone the same degree of filtration as an isolate, and as such it retains more of its natural fat and carbohydrate content. 

Whey concentrates typically mix up a little bit thicker than whey isolates, and have a lower protein percentage but also a lower cost per serving than whey isolates. 

The unflavored variety of Naked Whey contains only one ingredient: Whey protein concentrate. 

This protein offers 25g of protein with 2g of fat and 3g carbs. These are not added carbs and fats, but are naturally occurring in the whey. At 120 calories per serving, the unflavored Naked Whey provides 83% protein per scoop, putting it into the high end of our criteria for a “Good” protein source. 

One notable thing with Naked Whey is that the calories, carbs, fats, and cost per serving vary based on the flavor you purchase. 

On the farthest end of the spectrum, the Chocolate Peanut Butter flavor has 180 calories per serving, but the same 25g of protein as the unflavored. This means that only 55% of the calories in each serving come from protein, with 45% of the calories coming from fat and carbs. 

Each flavor also has a different amount of servings per 5lb container. If we stick to the above example, the Chocolate Peanut Butter flavor only has 52 servings per container (making the cost $3.26 per serving) but the Unflavored protein has 76 servings per container, costing $2.24 per serving. 

Where Transparent Labs uses stevia extract and natural flavors to create their flavored options, Naked Whey uses organic coconut sugar and a combination of organic cacao powder, organic natural flavors, organic dried strawberries, peanut flour, and sea salt for theirs. 

The addition of real coconut sugar instead of stevia (which has zero calories) means that the calories and sugar content of Naked Whey is higher than other whey proteins with as many as 13g of carbs and 5g of added sugar per serving. 

Like Transparent Labs, Naked Whey is Informed Choice certified, which means that it does undergo third-party testing and is safe for use by drug-tested athletes. 

Unlike Transparent Labs, Naked Nutrition does not have the results of their testing publicly available.

Naked Nutrition is available in six different flavor varieties: Unflavored, Chocolate, Double Chocolate, Vanilla, Strawberry, and Chocolate Peanut Butter. 

Looking for more info?  Read my in-depth Naked Whey review here

Pros 

• Zero additives: If you want to avoid any additives in your protein, the unflavored option only contains 1 ingredient: whey protein concentrate. 

• Informed Choice Certified: Naked Whey is Informed Choice Certified, meaning it undergoes additional third-party testing as a quality assurance and is safe for use by drug-tested athletes. 

Cons 

• Poor Taste and Mixability: I specifically tried the chocolate flavor and in a taste test of more than a dozen chocolate protein powders, the two Naked Whey chocolate flavors ranked at the bottom of the list. Despite the use of coconut sugar and organic cocoa, this product was neither sweet nor chocolatey.  

• Low protein percentage: Aside from the unflavored option, the added coconut sugar in Naked Whey increases the overall calorie content and lowers the total protein percentage, as low as 55%.

• High Cost: Natural protein powders that use grass-fed whey tend to cost more than other proteins on the market since high quality ingredients cost more money. When compared to similar proteins, Naked Whey has a significantly higher cost per serving (As much as $3.26 per serving)

Who Should Take It? 

Naked Nutrition Whey Protein is a good option for: 

• Someone who wants to avoid all non-nutritive sweeteners (e.g. stevia, sucralose)

• Athletes who undergo drug testing 

• Those with a more generous supplement budget

• Individuals who have no dairy allergies or sensitivities

• Individuals who prioritize minimal ingredients over taste and mixability

Main Differences: Transparent Labs Whey Isolate vs Naked Nutrition Whey

Ingredient Transparency

The Winner: Tie

Both brands pride themselves on the quality of ingredients they use and use american-sourced grass-fed whey. 

Transparent Labs has the advantage in that they disclose exactly how much of each ingredient is used and they provide the third party testing data for their products. 

On the other hand, Transparent Labs uses “natural flavors” in all of their flavored proteins which has no regulation and can still include ingredients that are highly processed. 

Overall, both brands do a great job with ingredient transparency.  

*For the nutrition facts, I have compared the two chocolate flavors head to head, since those are the ones I tested and give a more accurate depiction of what kind of additives each one contains. 

Protein Source

The Winner: Transparent Labs

Both products use grass-fed whey protein, but Transparent Labs uses an isolate protein which has a higher protein percentage and less sugar and fat. 

The isolate protein which has virtually all of the sugar removed means that it will also be virtually lactose-free making it a potentially suitable option for individuals with a lactose sensitivity. 

If we compare the unflavored proteins, Transparent Labs has 93% protein per scoop and Naked Whey has 83%. Both are good sources of protein, but Transparent Labs has the clear advantage. 

When we compare the flavored options, the added sugars in Naked Whey drops the overall protein percentage per serving significantly. 

While this is due to added sugar and not the actual protein used, this could be significant for people who follow a diabetic-friendly or keto diet and cannot tolerate the added sugars. 

The whey concentrate used by Naked Whey will also naturally contain higher levels of lactose and is more likely to cause negative side effects in individuals with dairy sensitivities. 

Added Ingredients

The Winner: Naked Whey

When it comes down to which protein powder has the fewest added ingredients, Naked Whey is the clear winner. 

In the unflavored options, Naked Whey has only 1 ingredient: whey protein concentrate. Transparent Labs is still a very minimalist item, but has the addition of sunflower lecithin for mixability. 

Overall, Naked Nutrition uses significantly fewer ingredients to flavor their protein powder and chooses to forego any lecithins.

In the flavored options, both products use natural flavors, cocoa, vanilla, and salt in their formulas. Transparent Labs adds stevia as a non-nutritive sweetener to keep the overall calorie content lower and protein percentage higher. 

Naked Whey on the other hand, uses raw coconut sugar to sweeten their protein powder which increases the carb and calorie content and lowers the protein percentage. 

Quality Assurances

The Winner: Transparent Labs

Both Naked Nutrition and Transparent Labs are Informed Choice certified, ensuring that their products are free from contaminants and safe for use by drug-tested athletes. Transparent Labs has the advantage of having their testing results publicly displayed online for anyone to see, which Naked Whey does not offer. 

Both brands pride themselves on using high quality ingredients and grass-fed whey which is hormone-free. 

Transparent Labs has invested in the Informed Protein certification, which has all of its testing results available here. 

You can also find their third party testing results directly on the Transparent Labs website here. 

Naked Whey does not have the Informed Protein certification and does not have their testing results publicly available. 

User Experience

The Winner: Transparent Labs

When it comes to taste and mixability, Transparent Labs has the clear advantage with a superior taste and easy drinking texture. I found Naked Whey to be gritty and unpalatable. 

I can appreciate that for some individuals, their number one priority is going to be finding a protein powder that uses as few ingredients as possible in their formulas. In this case, Naked Whey does win out. 

For me, however, there’s no advantage to a protein powder if I find it so unpleasant that I won’t even drink it. This has been my honest experience with Naked Whey. I find the taste extremely bitter despite the high sugar content and the texture was really gritty and difficult to drink. 

When I did a blind taste test putting different chocolate proteins against each other to determine which had the best taste and texture, the two Transparent Labs chocolate proteins took the top two spots, and the two Naked Whey flavors held the worst spots. 

That being said, there’s something for everyone and there are some reviews on the Naked Whey website praising it as the best tasting product they’ve ever tried. 

Where To Buy