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Getting the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables each day can be enough to drive you bananas. Even so, many of the key vitamins and minerals our bodies require come from fruits and vegetables, which is why they're so important. Additionally, they provide you with dietary fiber, an important non-digestible carbohydrate that keeps us regular and helps promote gut health. In general, nutrition experts usually recommend eating a minimum of 2 cups of fruits and 3 cups of veggies per day. This can be a tall task considering the busy lives of athletes and active people. What if there were a way to complement your fruit and veggie intake with a nutritionally dense supplement that contains many of the same nutrients? Well, many greens supplements (and other veggie supplements, like Superbeets) on the market aim to do just that.
Best Greens Powders - Our Top Picks
- Best Overall Greens Powder: Athletic Green AG1
- Best Greens Powder for Cyclists: Transparent Labs Prebiotic Greens
- Best-Tasting Greens Powder: Bulletproof Greens
- Best Greens Powder for Energy: Onnit ShroomTech Greens
- Best Greens Powder with Probiotics: Kylea Total Living Drink Greens
- Best Greens Powder for Runners: Garden of Life Raw Organic Perfect Food
- Best Greens Powder for Triathletes: Vibrant Health Green Vibrance
These supplements typically contain extracted forms of fruits and vegetables to give you many of the same benefits of eating them whole, in a more convenient package. While greens supplements shouldn't totally replace your fruit and veggie intake, taking them on days where you're lacking is a great way to prevent falling short. Some even include additional ingredients to help aid in promoting athletic performance and recovery. With all of the greens powder options available, it can be a bit overwhelming to decide which one is the best for your goals, which is why the ACTIVE Reviews Team has sorted through the top greens products on the market to give you the best greens powders of 2022.
Why Trust Us?
The health and safety of ACTIVE's readers are of the utmost importance to us. To ensure your well-being when consuming supplemental nutrition, we prioritize products that are independently tested by a third party. Additionally, we consulted with ACTIVE's Advisory Board, which includes nutritionists, competitive athletes, coaches, and certified trainers to make certain that the products that we feature are of the highest standards. The ACTIVE Reviews Team is passionate about bringing you products that we trust and would personally use.
Best Overall Greens Powders - Athletic Greens AG1
SPECS
- Price (scale of $-$$$): $$$
- Flavor options (scale of 1-3): 1
- Source/type: Antioxidant greens powder
- Serving size: 1 scoop (12g)
- Calories per serving: 50
- Artificial sweeteners: None
Greens powders vary greatly in the ingredients that they contain, so a greens powder that's perfect for one athlete may not be so great for another. For the best overall greens powder, we wanted to select a high-quality product that would be suitable for most athletic populations. Athletic Greens was one of the early greens powder producers for active people starting back in 2010, and they have a good track record. Their flagship product AG1 is among the most comprehensive greens powders on the market, which is why we've selected it as our choice for the best overall greens powder.
AG1 supplies an extensive active ingredient list that includes vitamins and minerals, a superfood complex, probiotics, and an enzyme and mushroom blend to promote digestion and immunity. Their antioxidant blends can help reduce oxidative stress in the body which can be brought on by intense exercise, aiding in recovery. In addition, their blend of plants and herbs contains compounds called adaptogens, which may help reduce stress levels.
PROS
- Comprehensive active ingredient panel to promote immunity and recovery
- Contains adaptogens which may help reduce stress
- Provides digestive enzymes and probiotics to support digestion and gut health
- Third-party tested by NSF
- Vegan-friendly
CONS
- On the expensive side at over $3/serving
- Ingredients are provided in blends, hiding the specific amount of each ingredient
Read the full Athletic Greens review.
Best Greens Powder for Cyclists - Transparent Labs Prebiotic Greens
SPECS
- Price (scale of $-$$$): $$
- Flavor options (scale of 1-3): 1
- Source/type: Prebiotic greens powder
- Serving size: 1 scoop (16.17g)
- Calories per serving: 60
- Artificial sweeteners: None noted
At the competitive level, the sport of cycling can be a bit unforgiving on the body at times. Training often requires riding over 100 miles per week at a fast pace. As you can imagine, this requires equal attention to recovery to ensure the continued ability to train at such a high intensity. One supplement that may have the antioxidant potential to help promote recovery is greens powder. While most fruit and veg should come from the diet, these powders can help boost vitamin, mineral, and antioxidant intake. For the best greens powder for cyclists, we found Transparent Lab's Prebiotic Greens to be a cut above the rest.
This blend of greens is noticeably more simple than many other products on the market, providing only science-backed ingredients to support recovery. Each serving includes 3 grams of spirulina, 3 grams of chlorella, and 8 grams of prebiotic fiber. Spirulina is an antioxidant-containing blue-green algae that has been shown to have cardiovascular and immune-boosting benefits. Chlorella is another type of algae that's known to be a good source of vitamin B12 and iron, two important nutrients for cyclists.
The prebiotic fiber this product contains can help increase the amount of healthy bacteria in the gut and promote immune health. This trio of potent ingredients makes Transparent Lab's Prebiotic Greens a solid choice for serious cyclists looking to support their recovery.
PROS
- Simple ingredient panel providing only science-backed ingredients
- Transparent labeling
- Comes in flavored or unflavored version
CONS
- Lacks full spectrum of fruits and veggies that some users may be looking for
- Users report mixability and flavors concerns
BUY: Transparent Labs Prebiotic Greens
Best-Tasting Greens Powder - Bulletproof Greens
SPECS
- Price (scale of $-$$$): $$
- Flavor options (scale of 1-3): 1
- Source/type: Naturally flavored antioxidant greens powder
- Serving size: 1 scoop (7.9 grams)
- Calories per serving: 25
- Artificial sweeteners: None noted
When it comes to greens powders, it's no surprise that many of them don't taste particularly great. This is due to the unpalatable nature of many of the extracts included in most of these supplements. Most people realize this and are able to make the sacrifice to yield the potential health benefits that these supplements may provide. Others just can't stomach the taste and would prefer a greens powder that is a bit more tolerable in the flavor department.
Flavored with natural pineapple flavor and stevia leaf extract, Bulletproof Greens provides a palatable taste even when just mixed with water. Not only is the flavor decent, it provides a comprehensive panel of ingredients that includes vitamins and minerals, nootropics, and digestive enzymes.
PROS
- Naturally flavored with pineapple and stevia
- Comes in jar or packets
- Vegan-friendly
CONS
- Uses ingredient blends, which disguises the individual amounts
- Digestive enzymes may cause an upset stomach for some users
Best Greens Powder for Energy - Onnit ShroomTech Greens
SPECS
- Price (scale of $-$$$): $$
- Flavor options (scale of 1-3): 1
- Source/type: Greens powder with energy-supporting mushroom blend
- Serving size: 1 packet (5.1g)
- Calories per serving: 15
- Artificial sweeteners: None noted
Whether you're a full-time athlete or recreational gym-goer, it takes a great deal of physical and mental energy to train day in and day out. While many people turn to caffeine for an energy boost, it can come with its own side effects like dependence and sleeplessness. Thankfully there are other non-stimulant supplements on the market that can also proficiently boost energy levels without the side effects. One such supplement is Onnit's ShroomTech Greens, which uses a science-backed mushroom blend to support energy levels.
This supplement provides a straightforward ingredient panel that supplies two main blends: an organic greens blend for antioxidants and phytonutrients and a patented PeakO2 mushroom blend to support energy levels. One of the premier mushrooms in the blend, cordyceps militaris, has been shown to aid in energy production in the body. With each serving providing about 14 kale leaves, four spinach leaves, and one broccoli floret, this greens powder is loaded with whole-food nutrition.
PROS
- Contains mushroom blend that can boost energy production in the body
- Organic ingredients and vegan-friendly
- Comes in packets making it great for on-the-go nutrition
CONS
- On the expensive side at close to $2.00/serving
- Lacks many ingredients typically found in green powders
Best Greens Powder with Probiotics - Kylea Total Living Drink Greens
SPECS
- Price (scale of $-$$$): $$$
- Flavor options (scale of 1-3): 1
- Source/type: Antioxidant greens powder with probiotics
- Serving size: 1 scoop (40g)
- Calories per serving: 120
- Artificial sweeteners: None noted
Considering that our guts make up about 70 percent of our immune system, ensuring that we take in nutrients to keep them functioning well is extremely important, especially for athletes. Our guts contain trillions of healthy bacteria that work in unison with our body to provide immunity among a number of other health functions. Some specific foods that we eat can help supply additional healthy bacteria called probiotics. Probiotics can also be taken in supplement form as a convenient way to support your immune system.
With a 295 milligram probiotic blend of three different bacteria, Kylea's Total Living Drink Greens supplies a sufficient amount of healthy bacteria to boost your daily intake. Aside from the probiotics, it also contains a wide range of other antioxidant and immune-boosting ingredients. To say this is a full spectrum greens powder would be an understatement. This product approaches immune support from all angles providing athletes with an extensive array of high-quality ingredients.
PROS
- Comprehensive greens powder that includes 3 types of probiotics
- Provides 27 common vitamins and minerals
- Free of artificial ingredients
CONS
- Expensive, at over $3/serving
- Contains added sugars
- Uses ingredient blends, which hides the amount of each individual ingredient
BUY: Kylea Total Living Drink Greens
Best Greens Powder for Runners - Garden of Life Raw Organic Perfect Food
SPECS
- Price (scale of $-$$$): $$
- Flavor options (scale of 1-3): 1
- Source/type: Raw antioxidant greens powder
- Serving size: 1 scoop (6.9g)
- Calories per serving: 25
- Artificial sweeteners: None noted
While running comes with a number of positive health benefits, doing it at a high level puts a good deal of oxidative stress on the body, regardless if it's on a treadmill or on the pavement. Oxidative stress is an imbalance between free radicals (atoms that can damage cells) and antioxidants (substances that can reverse the effects of free radicals). Although a certain amount of this stress is needed for runners to improve, too much of it can have detrimental impacts toward recovery.
One of the ways to reduce oxidative stress is to eat a diet that is high in antioxidants, which often come from fruits and vegetables. They also can be consumed in supplement form, like from greens powders. One greens powder that provides a particularly good balance of antioxidants for runners is Garden of Life's Raw Organic Perfect Food. This antioxidant-packed greens powder contains a variety of nutrient blends that may help promote recovery from running training.
PROS
- Contains raw ingredients to preserve antioxidant content
- Third-party tested by NSF
- Comes in different container sizes
- Vegan-friendly
CONS
- Some users don't like the taste
- Provides ingredients in blends, disguising the amount of each individual ingredient
BUY: Garden of Life Raw Organic Perfect Food
Best Greens Powder for Triathletes - Vibrant Health Green Vibrance
SPECS
- Price (scale of $-$$$): $$
- Flavor options (scale of 1-3): 1
- Source/type: Full-spectrum antioxidant greens powder
- Serving size: 1 scoop (11.26g)
- Calories per serving: 40
- Artificial sweeteners: None noted
Due to the unique training demands placed on triathletes, ensuring proper recovery and immune system support is key. Completing strenuous training sessions day in and day out can place a cumulative oxidative stress on athletes. A major part of recovering is eating a nutritious diet that includes a variety of antioxidant-rich fruits and veggies. With the specific requirements for these athletes in mind, we've selected Vibrant Health's Green Vibrance as the best greens powder for triathletes due to their comprehensive ingredient panel and transparent labeling.
This brand does away with proprietary blends and provides a full breakdown of all of the ingredients that their product contains and their purpose. This transparency allows triathletes to fully analyze the label to see exactly what each ingredient contributes. The ingredient categories contained in this product include organic cereal grasses, plant-based micronutrition, antioxidant life preservers, immune support, adaptogens, skeletal support, fiber, liver support, enzymes and tonics, as well as probiotics. All of this is provided in a 11.26-gram scoop. When combined, these ingredients can help promote recovery from exercise, support the immune system, and promote digestive health.
PROS
- Provides a comprehensive formula with the goal of providing whole-body immunity
- Fully transparent labeling
- Comes in different container sizes
- Vegan-friendly
CONS
- More expensive than some other greens powders we reviewed
- Only available in 1 flavor option
BUY: Vibrant Health Green Vibrance
Read the full Vibrant Health Green Vibrance Superfood Powder review.
What to Consider When Shopping for Greens Powders
Active Ingredients
In general, most greens powders will include a number of ingredient blends with the most common ones being:
- Vitamins and minerals: Help you meet the daily value for common nutrients
- Antioxidant blend: Help reduce oxidative stress and promote recovery from exercise
- Greens blend: Green vegetables and grasses for additional antioxidants and immune-supporting benefits
- Probiotic blend: Provide healthy bacteria and promote gut and immune health
- Digestive enzyme blend: These are typically included to help you better absorb the other ingredients provided
- Mushroom blend: Some mushrooms have been shown to have energy and immune-boosting effects
Dosing
Considering that most greens powders use proprietary blends of various ingredients, it can be difficult to determine how much of each ingredient the supplement actually contains. That said, there are some greens products on the market that fully disclose the amounts of each ingredient contained. If knowing how much of each ingredient is in the product is something that is important to you, it's best to seek out an option that uses transparent labeling.
Price
Like any supplements, the prices of greens powders vary drastically from product to product, with some of them costing as much as $3.50 per serving and others as little as $0.50 per serving. This often depends on the extent of the ingredients that are provided, as more comprehensive greens powders tend to be more expensive. When shopping for a greens supplement, keep your budget in mind to find the best balance between ingredient quality and cost.
Third-Party Testing
Third-party testing is when companies send their products to an outside lab to test them for quality, purity, contaminants, and banned substances. It is especially important to select a third-party tested supplement if you compete in a drug-tested federation. Many of the greens powders we've included here are third-party tested for your convenience.
Potential Interactions
Some of the ingredients contained in greens powders may interact with certain medications. Therefore, if you are taking any medications, it's best to check with your healthcare provider before starting any greens supplements.
Benefits of Greens Powders
The benefits of greens powders will vary based on the ingredients the specific product contains. That said, greens powders typically contain fruit and vegetable extracts which are high in vitamins, minerals, antioxidants, and phytochemicals, all of which can have immune-boosting benefits. This is especially useful for athletes looking to enhance their recovery from intense training. Many greens powders also contain probiotics which are healthy bacteria that can promote gut health and also support your immune system. Lastly, some products contain fiber, an important non-digestible carb that can support digestive health and help regulate cholesterol.
How to Consume Greens Powders
In general, most greens powder manufacturers will recommend you take 1-2 scoops of their supplement with 8-12 ounces of water. Some products are unflavored which allows them to more easily be added to other beverages. Some brands even recommend adding greens powders to baked goods to boost the nutrition content. Many people prefer to take greens supplements in the morning to start their day off, but they can really be consumed any time of day.
FAQs about Greens Powders
What do greens powders do for you?
Greens powders help busy people supplement their fruit and vegetable intake by providing extracted forms of fruits and veggies. Considering that greens powders are high in vitamins and minerals, they may also help you fill in gaps in your diet from other food groups. For athletes in particular, taking a greens powder is a simple way to help boost your immune system and promote recovery from training.
Do greens powders help with gut health?
In most cases, yes. Many greens powders contain probiotics (healthy bacteria) and prebiotics fiber (food for healthy bacteria) which can boost gut health and support a healthy immune system. In addition, they provide high amounts of vitamins and minerals that the gut needs to thrive.
Can greens powders replace vegetables?
Greens powders should not be taken as a means to replace fruit and vegetable intake. They should be consumed in addition to them. That being said, if you happen to be lacking on your fruit and veg intake for the day and don't think you'll get in the recommended servings, a greens supplement can be used in a crutch to make up for the nutritional deficit. In general, you still should aim to eat at least two servings of fruit and three servings of vegetables per day.
Do greens powders reduce bloating?
While there's no research that specifically links taking greens with a reduction in bloating, greens powders do have the potential to regulate digestive issues. Considering that many greens powders contain probiotics and digestive enzymes, they may promote digestive health and you may see a reduction in bloating as a side effect of this. If you are experiencing significant bloating, it's best to consult your healthcare provider rather than relying on a greens supplement.
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These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.