RXBAR claims to be a healthy snack designed according to a “minimalist” approach, using simple, wholesome ingredients.
However, just because a product contains healthy, whole-food ingredients doesn’t necessarily mean it’s a good fit for the ketogenic diet.
On keto, you only get 30 grams of carbs per day, which means counting net carbs is a must.
In this article, you’ll learn all about RXBARs, their nutritional value, ingredients, taste, and–most importantly–whether or not eating them will kick you out of ketosis.
What are RXBARs?
RXBAR is a Chicago-based company founded in 2012 by two friends who wanted to design the simplest protein bars possible. Kellogg Company (the cereal corporation) acquired RXBAR in 2017.
The energy bars typically contain just 3-4 primary ingredients and feature a minimalist-style label on the front of each package. For example, “3 Egg Whites – 14 Peanuts – 2 Dates.”
Each ingredient fulfills one or more key roles, including protein source, binder, or sweetener. In keeping with their stated “no B.S.” (“no bad stuff”) policy, the whole food ingredients take the place of artificial binders, flavors, and fillers.
According to the makers, RXBARs are intended for use as an on-the-go breakfast, for a convenient snack, or to fuel exercise and post-workout recovery.
RX Bars Nutrition Facts
Here are the nutrition facts for the 6 best-selling RXBARs:
Chocolate Sea Salt
- Serving Size: 1 bar (52 grams)
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Total Fat: 9g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Total Carbs: 24g
- Dietary Fiber: 5g
- Total Sugars: 13g (0g added sugars)
- Protein: 12g
- Calcium: 50mg (4% DV)
- Iron: 2mg (10% DV)
- Potassium: 490mg (10% DV)
Peanut Butter Chocolate
- Serving Size: 1 bar (52 grams)
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Total Fat: 10g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Total Carbs: 22g
- Dietary Fiber: 4g
- Total Sugars: 13g (0g added sugars)
- Protein: 12g
- Calcium: 40mg (3% DV)
- Iron: 2mg (10% DV)
- Potassium: 450mg (10% DV)
Peanut Butter
- Serving Size: 1 bar (52 grams)
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Total Fat: 8g
- Saturated Fat: 1g
- Total Carbs: 22g
- Dietary Fiber: 4g
- Total Sugars: 14g (0g added sugars)
- Protein: 12g
- Calcium: 40mg (5% DV)
- Iron: 1mg (6% DV)
- Potassium: 460mg (10% DV)
Mixed Berry
- Serving Size: 1 bar (52 grams)
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Total Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 1g
- Total Carbs: 25g
- Dietary Fiber: 5g
- Total Sugars: 14g (0g added sugars)
- Protein: 12g
- Calcium: 60mg (4% DV)
- Iron: 1mg (6% DV)
- Potassium: 440mg (9% DV)
Blueberry
- Serving Size: 1 bar (52 grams)
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Total Fat: 7g
- Saturated Fat: 1g
- Total Carbs: 24g
- Dietary Fiber: 4g
- Total Sugars: 15g (0g added sugars)
- Protein: 12g
- Calcium: 60mg (4% DV)
- Iron: 1mg (6% DV)
- Potassium: 420mg (8% DV)
Coconut Chocolate
- Serving Size: 1 bar (52 grams)
- Calories: 210 kcal
- Total Fat: 9g
- Saturated Fat: 2g
- Total Carbs: 22g
- Dietary Fiber: 5g
- Total Sugars: 13g (0g added sugars)
- Protein: 12g
- Calcium: 60mg (4% DV)
- Iron: 2mg (10% DV)
- Potassium: 470mg (0% DV)
RX Bars Ingredients
The simple, natural ingredients in RXBARs may be the biggest draw for consumers.
However, the company recently faced a lawsuit over “misleading labeling.” Namely, the ingredients listed on the front don’t necessarily tell customers the full picture–you have to flip the bar over and read the list on the back to get a clear idea of everything in the bars.
The omitted ingredients were sea salt and “natural flavors,” a large category that includes essential oils and essences. Additionally, the company failed to specify that their fruit pieces were “infused,” which means soaked in apple juice or another fruit juice concentrate to sweeten them.
Whether these complaints have any validity or not is for you to decide.
That said, here are the ingredients (including those not listed on the front label) for the 6 most popular RXBARs:
Chocolate Sea Salt: Dates, Egg Whites, Almonds, Cashews, Chocolate, Cocoa, Natural Flavors, Sea Salt.
Peanut Butter Chocolate: Dates, Peanuts, Egg Whites, Chocolate, Natural Flavors, Cocoa, Sea Salt.
Peanut Butter: Peanuts, Egg Whites, Natural Flavors, Sea Salt.
Mixed Berry: Dates, Egg Whites, Almonds, Cashews, Cranberries, Strawberries, Raspberries, Natural Flavors.
Blueberry: Egg Whites, Almonds, Cashews, Blueberries, Natural Flavors.
Coconut Chocolate: Dates, Egg Whites, Almonds, Cashews, Chocolate, Natural Flavors, Sea Salt, Coconut.
How Do RX Bars Taste? Plus Flavors
RXBARs currently come in an array of 19 different flavors, including limited edition seasonal flavors:
- Apple Cinnamon
- Banana Chocolate Walnut
- Blueberry
- Chocolate Cherry
- Chocolate Chip
- Chocolate Hazelnut
- Chocolate Raspberry
- Chocolate Sea Salt
- Coconut Chocolate
- Coffee Chocolate
- Lemon
- Maple Sea Salt
- Mint Chocolate
- Mixed Berry
- Orange
- Peanut Butter
- Peanut Butter & Berries
- Peanut Butter Chocolate
- Vanilla Almond
And here’s what people have to say about them:
- “The bars taste great. For the flavor and nutrition, I’d give them five stars.”
- “I really like these. They taste great! All the flavors! The limited ingredients are great for my food lifestyle and allergies and food sensitivities. It’s hard to find prepackaged food like this. The only thing I don’t like is they stick to your teeth and are a bit hard to chew. It’s literally a lot of work to eat these and don’t take it out of the wrapper or touch it or you’ll be sticky.”
- “Yes, the texture is a bit odd due to the chewy nature of dates, but that’s one thing I love about these: they take a while to eat. You can’t really scarf it down.”
Here’s a sampling of criticisms from customers:
- “An unfortunate side effect of using dates as a binder is that they not only bind the ingredients together but also bind the bar to your teeth. Anyone who has had an RXBAR knows the feeling of using their tongue to peel off bits of date from their teeth (ew).”
- “Maybe they should take out the fake blueberry flavoring. I’m not expecting the fruits to taste like the grocery story cereal, how about the natural and healthy flavors nature provides.”
- “This [coffee chocolate] bar tastes like coffee that’s been sitting in a pot for too long. The chocolate chunks are nice, but the coffee still overwhelms everything. Hard pass.”
- “They taste ok but they have a weird texture I didn’t like. They stick to your teeth and are a little too chewy for me.”
A lot of the flavor and texture complaints seem to come down to personal preference. Generally speaking, if you enjoy the way whole food recipes taste, you can probably find an RXBAR variety you like.
But if you don’t like extremely chewy protein bars, or if you’re in a rush and don’t want to clean your teeth after snacking, you might not want to reach for an RXBAR.
More importantly, though, are they keto-friendly? Keep reading to find out!
Are RX Bars a Keto-Friendly Bar?
RXBARs contain approximately 17 to 20 grams of net carbs (total carbs minus total grams of fiber). Unfortunately, that’s way too many net carbs for regular consumption on the keto diet.
In other words, RXBARs are not keto-friendly.
By definition, the main requirement of the keto diet is to stay in ketosis. Eating too many carbs inevitably kicks you out of ketosis.
For most people, the upper limit is 30 grams of carbs per day. But in many cases, eating a lesser amount can also end ketosis–the only way to know for sure is to test your ketone levels.
Is it possible that some individuals might be able to eat a single RXBAR occasionally and still stay in ketosis? In theory, yes, but only by avoiding all sources of trace carbs and hidden carbs for the rest of the day.
And two or more RXBARs would almost certainly kick anyone out of ketosis.
Instead of trying to fit high-carb protein bars into your keto diet, we recommend spending your limited carb allowance on healthy, keto-friendly fruits and low-carb veggies.
You can get your protein on the go from grass-fed whey protein, grass-fed collagen protein, or a keto-friendly high protein bar.
RX Bars vs. Perfect Keto Protein Bars
Here’s how RXBARs compare to Perfect Keto Bars, the ultimate low-carb meal replacement snack for the ketogenic diet.
- Ketosis: 17-20 grams of net carbs is way too much to stay in ketosis. RXBARs are not designed for ketosis, whereas Perfect Keto Bars are. Plus, coconut oil and MCT oil in Perfect Keto bars speed up ketosis. If you follow a keto diet, this one’s easy.
- Macros and Nutrition: RXBARs have slightly fewer calories, but if you’re keto, calories aren’t everything. Perfect Keto’s low carb protein bars have more keto fats, meaning they may fill you up longer and blunt cravings, which may lead to more energy and easier weight loss.
- Ingredients: Egg white fractions (found in RXBARs) are a high-quality source of complete protein, but Perfect Keto Bars offer grass-fed collagen, a protein source with added benefits. And whereas RXBARs are sweetened using sugary dates and fruit juice (high in fructose), Perfect Keto’s low carb bars contain stevia and monk fruit as all-natural, sugar-free sweeteners.
| Calories | Net Carbs | Healthy Fats | Protein | Added Sugar or Fruit Juice? | Corn, Soy, Grain, and Gluten-Free? | Contains Dairy? | Artificial Sweeteners or Sugar Alcohols? | |
| Perfect Keto Bars | 220-240 kcal | 1-3g | 17-19g | 11-13g | No | Yes | No | No |
| RXBARs | 210 kcal | 17-20g | 7-10g | 12g | Yes | Yes | No | No |
The Takeaway: Avoid RXBARs On Keto
RXBARs do a pretty good job of delivering on their promises. The ingredient list is simple and natural, and the bars contain a respectable amount of protein.
But are they suitable for a ketogenic diet? No.
The dates, fruit juice, and 17-20 grams of net carbs are easily enough to spike blood sugar, potentially ending your hard-earned state of ketosis.
Aside from the fructose in the form of added fruit juice, RXBARs are probably a perfectly healthy choice, but they’re simply not a good choice if you follow a low-carb, high-fat diet.