The best blender for protein shakes is easy to use and clean and comes with a personal jar or two to take your shake with you on the go. You may need something that can liquefy hard and fibrous ingredients like greens and seeds, but if you tend to simply toss some ice and protein powder in the jar, an inexpensive blender with a compact design may be what you're looking for.
We've tested more than 85 blenders, and below are our recommendations for the best options for protein shakes. If you're looking for a full-size blender, the models included on our best blenders for smoothies list are also great for protein shakes. See our recommendations for the best personal blenders and the best bullet blenders.
The best blender for protein shakes we've tested is the Ninja Foodi Power Nutri DUO. A personal blender is convenient if you're looking for a blender specifically for shakes. This model doesn't take up too much space on your counter and comes with a pair of 24-ounce personal jars with to-go lids, so you can blend a smoothie and use the blending jar as a travel cup. It has no problem crushing ice, so it's ideal for recipes that involve ice, liquid, and protein powder. If you like fibrous fruits and vegetables like kale, it has no trouble making a practically perfectly smooth blend.
This blender also comes with a 'Smoothie Bowl Maker' jar with arms inside that you can rotate with a knob on top. They act a bit like a tamper, allowing you to stir the ingredients without stopping the machine, which is great if you like to add nut butter to shakes and want to make your own. Unlike many personal blenders, it has a few automatic blending programs, so you can multi-task while your shake blends. However, it's loud, even for a blender, which is a downside if you like an early-morning shake and don't want to wake up the whole house.
If you're looking for something cheaper that can still handle tough shake ingredients like seeds and leafy greens, the Ninja Fit is a great option. This mid-range blender is lighter on features than the Ninja Foodi Power Nutri DUO, making it a bit less versatile and easy to use. It comes with a pair of smaller, 16-ounce personal jars with to-go lids. It can make a smooth blend with a variety of recipes, whether your usual shake is limited to ice, liquid, and powder or includes additions like fruit, vegetables, and nuts.
However, unlike the DUO, it lacks blending programs, and you operate it by pressing down on the jar. You need to keep your hand on the blender constantly when using it, which isn't the most convenient design. While it can produce smooth nut butter to add to shakes, it doesn't come with a 'Smoothie Bowl Maker' jar and isn't as easy to use for that purpose. That said, it's very easy to clean by hand, and the jars, lids, and blades are all dishwasher-safe. It's also much quieter than the DUO.
If you want to spend less and tend to make simple protein shake recipes with ice, liquid, and powder, consider the Oster MyΒlend. While it's not the most powerful blender on this list, it's an inexpensive option for making basic shakes. It has a sporty design and comes with a 20-ounce bottle-shaped jar. The lid is resealable, so you can easily take your shake on the go, and it has a built-in resealable lid that makes it easier to carry. It's not nearly as good as the Ninja Fit at crushing ice, but it can break up ice cubes, so adding ice cubes to your shake isn't an issue.
Unfortunately, it has a somewhat plasticky build quality, and some parts of the motor base feel cheap. Unlike the more expensive blenders on this list, it's not an ideal choice if you like to add fruit or vegetables like kale to your shake since it takes a long time to process fibrous ingredients and makes a less silky blend than the other picks. It's not ideal for processing hard ingredients like nuts, but you can add a spoonful of pre-made almond butter. Unlike the Ninja Fit, you don't need to hold the jar down to blend, so you may find it's more convenient to use. The jar, lid, and blades are dishwasher-safe and easy to clean by hand.
If you want to blend a smoothie after your morning workout or during your lunch break, you might want to consider a battery-powered blender. The ΒlendJet 2 is the best portable blender for protein shakes we've tested. You can take this well-built personal blender with you on the go and blend a protein shake even if you don't have a place to plug it in. It's designed so that you can drink directly from the blending jar, and the whole unit can fit into a backpack or a bigger purse. It's also very quiet, which is nice if you're using it in a shared space.
It can break up ice cubes but doesn't make the uniform, snow-like ice you'd want for frozen drinks. It makes an even grainier blend with fibrous ingredients, so if you add something like kale to your shake, you'll notice unprocessed bits in the final result. It takes a long time to process tough ingredients, and you need to stop and rest the blender periodically so it doesn't overheat, so it's better suited for simple recipes. It comes with a USΒ-A to USΒ-C cable for charging, and the manufacturer advertises the blender to last for about 15 20-second cycles. Unfortunately, no part is dishwasher-safe, but it's easy to clean by hand.
The design of personal blenders makes them the best option if you plan to mostly use your blender for shakes and other drinks. However, if you want a blender for protein shakes that can handle the occasional soup or big batch of margaritas, look at a full-size option like the Vitamix 5200. This very well-built blender only comes with a 64-ounce jar, but it's fantastic for blending single-serve portions and makes an extremely smooth puree with ingredients like fruits and vegetables, seeds, and nuts. It has no problem crushing ice cubes, either.
It makes an equally smooth puree with bigger batches. Unlike personal blenders, its main jar has a two-part lid, meaning you can pour in liquid mid-blend. You can easily use it to whip up a batch of homemade nut butter if you like a spoonful in your shakes. However, unlike the Ninja Foodi Power Nutri DUO, it doesn't have automatic blending programs, meaning you need to stop the blender manually when it's done. Its jar and lid aren't dishwasher-safe either. However, it doesn't take long to blend something like a protein shake, and it's easy to clean by hand, especially when working with liquid ingredients.
The Ninja Mega Kitchen System BL770 is the best mid-range blender for protein shakes we've tested. If you plan to make single-serve shakes but want a full-size blender for the occasional big batch, it's a good option. Using its main jar, it doesn't blend fibrous ingredients like kale as smoothly as the Vitamix, but it has no issue pulverizing ice cubes, so it's well-suited for ice and power-based recipes. There are also three personal jars included, and using these, it makes a nearly perfectly smooth blend with fibrous vegetables and fruit, so it can make a silky shake with most recipes if you're making a single-serve.
However, as a multi-purpose blender, it's not as good as the Vitamix 5200. It can't hot blend, so it's not as helpful for other types of recipes like soup or sauce, and it won't make nut butter as effortlessly. It has a sturdy build but doesn't feel as premium as the 5200 and has a shorter warranty. It has very sharp blades that make it difficult to clean by hand. That said, all of its jars, lids, and blades are dishwasher-safe, and unlike the Vitamix, it has automatic blending programs you can use to avoid standing next to the blender while it's running.
The Oster Pro 1200 is the best budget full-size blender for protein shakes we've tested. While it's not as well-built as the other full-size blenders listed here, it's a versatile option for protein shakes. It comes with a 48-ounce main jar and a 24-ounce personal jar with a resealable to-go lid so you can make shakes to-go. In either jar, it does a fantastic job blending fibrous elements like leafy greens and fruit skin into silky-smooth shakes.
It's also a good option for shake recipes that include ice, liquid, and powder since it easily pulverizes ice cubes in its main jar. However, the manufacturer says not to add more than six ice cubes to the jar at once, so your batch size is a bit limited compared to most full-size blenders. It's very easy to clean by hand, and the jars, lids, and blades are dishwasher-safe. Unfortunately, it has a mediocre build quality, which is a particular concern if you plan to use your blender every day. Oster advertises a U.S. warranty of either three or ten years, depending on the issue with your blender. Many blenders are only covered for one year, but it always depends on where you live and buy your blender.
If you're still looking for a blender, the options on our best blenders for smoothies list are all good options for protein shakes too.
Mar 03, 2023: Reordered picks to focus on single-serve blenders. Removed the KitchenAid K400 and added a link to the 'Best For Smoothies' article.
Jan 03, 2023: Made minor updates to the text and checked that the products are in stock.
Oct 24, 2022: Reorganized the article and added the Vitamix 5200, KitchenAid K400, and Ninja Mega Kitchen System BL770 as full-size options.
Sep 19, 2022: Reorganized article and added the Ninja Foodi Power Nutri DUO, the Ninja Nutri-Βlender Pro with Auto-iQ, and the Vitamix Explorian E310. Moved the NutriBullet Pro to Notable Mentions.
Jul 21, 2022: Checked picks for accuracy and updated the text. There were no changes to recommendations.
Our above recommendations are what we think are currently the best blenders for protein shakes for most people. We factor in the price (a cheaper blender wins over a pricier one if the difference isn't worth it), feedback from our visitors, and availability (no blenders that are difficult to find or almost out of stock everywhere).
If you want to choose for yourself, here is the list of all our blender reviews, sorted by smoothie performance. Be careful not to get too caught up in the details. While no blender is perfect, most blenders are great enough to please almost everyone, and the differences are often not noticeable unless you look for them.