Clif Bars are one of the most popular protein bar brands on the market. The company describes their bars as “performance nutrition” made with “nutritious, sustainable ingredients.”

But are Clif Bars actually healthy? Do they contain any unhealthy additive ingredients like preservatives? Why was the brand sued over their health claims? And are Clif Bars better or worse than popular bars like Nutri-Grain bars?

In this article we’ll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in Clif Bars to give our take on whether or not they’re healthy. 

We'll also pick the healthiest flavor, explain why the brand was sued, share our honest experience purchasing and testing Clif Bars, and compare the brand to other popular nutrition bar brands to pick our winners (and losers).

Key takeaways:

• Mostly whole food ingredients
  
• Contains some filler ingredients we consider unhealthy
• We do not consider Clif Bars to be healthy

Ingredient Analysis

The ingredients in the Blueberry Almond Crisp flavor of Clif Bar are shown below:

image source: https://www.clifbar.com/

Oats are nutritious, high in fiber and may even be effective for preventing diseases like atherosclerosis and some types of cancer according to a medical review published in the Foods journal.

Blueberries and apple juice concentrate are fruit-based ingredients providing antioxidants and high levels of minerals.

Clif Bar contains 15% of the Daily Value (DV)  of magnesium according to the Nutrition Facts label.

Clif Bars provide 5 grams (g) of fiber and 11 g of protein, both of which may support weight loss in overweight and obese individuals according to a clinical trial published in the Nutrition journal.

Both fiber and protein increase satiation, and also provide fuel for the body during athletic training, which makes Clif Bars a good option for athletes.

While there are some healthy, whole foods ingredients, there are also a few questionable additive ingredients that health-conscious consumers may wish to avoid.

Citric acid is a preservative and flavor enhancer.

As we documented in our Keto Chow reviews article, this ingredient has been clinically shown to cause whole-body inflammation in a small subset of individuals.

Natural flavors is a broad categorical term that fails to describe the specific flavoring agents used, and a medical review published in the Environmental Health Perspectives journal documented some toxicity concerns regarding some natural flavoring agents and their metabolites. 

Added sugar is included at a 15 gram (g) dose.

While this can help fuel athletes during intense activity, it may not be a healthy option for the average, sedentary American.

We know from medical research that excessive added sugar intake is associated with increased risk of obesity, cardiovascular disease and diabetes, and 15 g is a relatively high amount (30% of the DV).

Overall we consider Clif Bars to be somewhat healthy, but we do not currently recommend them due to the inclusion of citric acid, natural flavors and refined, added sugar.

We Tested Clif Bars

As the author of this article, I wanted to try Clif Bars myself to share my thoughts on the taste and effects.

I bought the Chocolate Chip and Peanut Butter flavors from my local Walmart and ate them as a snack while working when I was too busy to prepare food:

I think these are some of the best tasting protein bars I've had this year, and I like the fact that they taste "natural." You can actually taste the peanuts and chocolate, and that's a much better experience than the artificial flavor from some other brands.

I did get a boost of energy from these bars, probably due to the sugar and protein, and I think they make a decently healthy snack option for people who are short on time.

I don't plan to buy this brand in the future because I believe there are healthier options out there, but it's somewhat tastier and healthier than average.

Overall, I rate Clif Bars 5/10.

Which Clif Bar Flavors are the Healthiest?

We do consider some flavors of Clif Bar to be healthier than others.

The Oatmeal Raisin Walnut flavor is free of citric acid and has less added sugar (14 g).

The Peanut Butter Banana With Dark Chocolate flavor is also free of citric acid and only contains 14 g of added sugar.

We consider the Nut Butter line of Clif Bars to be healthier than the regular line.

All Clif Bar Nut Butter products are free of citric acid and contain less added sugar than regular Clif Bars (around 7 g per bar on average).

Clif Bar Sued Over Health Claims

Clif Bar settled a class-action lawsuit in 2022 for over $10 million, according to Top Class Actions.

The plaintiffs alleged that Clif Bar was engaged in false advertising because the brand was marketing their products as healthy, while they contained a significant amount of added sugar.

Clif Bar also discontinued use of the marketing phrase “the ultimate energy bar,” after the National Advertising Division required that claim to be supported by evidence.

According to Food Business News, Clif provided no comparative information on competitor energy bars proving theirs to be superior nutritionally.

These legal issues don’t affect the healthiness of Clif Bar moving forward, but in our opinion they support our arguments about the relative healthiness of Clif Bars.

Clif Bars vs. Popular Nutrition Bars

Here's how Clif Bars compares to other popular nutrition bars in terms of healthiness, in our opinion:

Pure Protein Bars

Contains artificial sweetener sucralose, which is clinically shown to have negative effects on insulin and blood sugar function.

We consider sucralose to be less healthy than refined, added sugar in moderation.

Clif Bars have the advantage for this reason.

Winner: Clif Bars

Nutri-Grain

Nutri Grain Bars contain two of the same flavoring ingredients we called out as unhealthy in Clif Bars: citric acid and natural flavors.

They also contain carrageenan which we consider unhealthy, and have a lower dose of fiber and protein.

Clif Bars are nutritionally superior.

Winner: Clif Bars

Fiber One

Contains more ingredients that we consider unhealthy than exist in Clif Bars, including corn syrup and carrageenan.

Clif Bars have a healthier formulation.

Winner: Clif Bars

Conclusion

Clif Bars are likely healthier than the average protein bar, but in our opinion they aren’t particularly healthy and we don’t recommend them. 

While Clif Bars do provide a decent amount of fiber, protein and whole foods, they also contain flavoring agents, citric acid (in some bars) and a relatively high amount of added sugar.

The added sugar may be useful for performance athletes, but is probably not the healthiest choice for the average, sedentary American.

Oatmeal Raisin Walnut and Peanut Butter Banana are the healthiest flavors of the original Clif Bar line in our opinion, because they’re free of citric acid and contain lower levels of added sugar.

Clif Bar Nut Butter is a healthier product line than regular Clif Bars due to the reduced added sugar.

We purchased and tested Clif Bar and liked the taste and texture, and they provided decent satiety, but as the author of this article, I don't plan to purchase them in the future because I don't consider them to be healthy.

Clif Bar settled a lawsuit over false advertising about the healthiness of their products which alleged that the products were not healthy because of all of the added sugar.

We consider Clif Bars to be healthier than Pure Protein Bars, Nutri-Grain bars and Fiber One bars.