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Protein on a budget: 20 foods, and what 20 g of protein costs

Protein is the nutrient most worth protecting on a GLP-1, and some of the best sources are among the least expensive things in the shop. We combined the US government's average retail prices with USDA nutrient data to work out what 20 g of protein actually costs — and how many calories come with it, which matters when you can only eat a little.

By the Cafeity teamUpdated 6 min read

The short answer

At US average prices for August 2026, 20 g of protein cost about $0.34 from dried beans, $0.56 from low-fat milk, $0.60 from eggs and $0.82 from boneless chicken breast; lean ground beef was the only food we priced above $2.12 On a small appetite, check the calories that come with the protein too: chicken breast delivers 20 g for about 100 kcal, white rice for about 1,024.

Bar chart of what 20 g of protein cost at US average prices in August 2026: dried beans $0.34, pasta, dry $0.46, milk, low-fat $0.56, eggs, large $0.60, milk, whole $0.66, rice, white, dry $0.69, chicken breast, boneless $0.82, bread, white $0.85, cheddar cheese $1.13, ham, boneless $1.30, ground beef, regular $1.74, ground beef, lean $2.08.
Eleven of the twelve foods cost under $2 per 20 g of protein. Cost per gram is only half the story: see the calories column below.Chart: Cafeity, from US Bureau of Labor Statistics average prices (August 2026) and USDA FoodData Central.

How we worked it out

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes average retail prices for a set of foods every month, collected in 75 urban areas for the Consumer Price Index. We took the US city average for August 2026, the latest available on 2 October 2026, for every protein-rich food it still tracks.1 For each, we took protein and energy from USDA FoodData Central for the food as bought — raw meat, dry beans, dry pasta — and worked out:

  • Cost per 20 g of protein = price ÷ protein in the unit sold × 20. A dozen large eggs is 600 g of egg; a gallon of milk weighs about 3,904 g.2
  • Calories per 20 g of protein, from the same USDA record.

Averages hide a lot: prices differ by region, store, brand and week, and sales change everything. BLS stopped publishing average prices for peanut butter and canned tuna in 2017, and its yoghurt series mixes every kind of yoghurt in small cups, so those are listed separately below without a price.

Twelve foods, priced

Prices: BLS US city average, August 2026. Protein and energy: USDA FoodData Central, for the food as bought. Rounded.
FoodAverage priceProtein per unit20 g protein costsCalories per 20 g proteinData
Dried beans$1.63 per lb97 g$0.34324 kcalAPU0000714233 · FDC 175199
Pasta, dry$1.37 per lb59 g$0.46569 kcalAPU0000701322 · FDC 169736
Milk, low-fat$3.71 per gallon132 g$0.56254 kcalAPU0000FJ1101 · FDC 322228
Eggs, large$2.27 per dozen75 g$0.60228 kcalAPU0000708111 · FDC 171287
Milk, whole$4.23 per gallon128 g$0.66366 kcalAPU0000709112 · FDC 322892
Rice, white, dry$1.11 per lb32 g$0.691,024 kcalAPU0000701312 · FDC 168877
Chicken breast, boneless$4.17 per lb102 g$0.82100 kcalAPU0000FF1101 · FDC 2646170
Bread, white$1.82 per lb43 g$0.85573 kcalAPU0000702111 · FDC 325871
Cheddar cheese$5.98 per lb106 g$1.13350 kcalAPU0000710212 · FDC 328637
Ham, boneless$5.38 per lb83 g$1.30177 kcalAPU0000704312 · FDC 168295
Ground beef, regular$6.92 per lb80 g$1.74283 kcalAPU0000703112 · FDC 2514744
Ground beef, lean$8.57 per lb82 g$2.08209 kcalAPU0000703113 · FDC 2514743

Cheap per gram isn't the whole story

Pasta, rice and bread look inexpensive per gram of protein, but you would need to eat a lot of them: about 569 kcal of pasta or 1,024 kcal of rice to get 20 g of protein. On a GLP-1, when a few bites may be all you manage, protein density matters as much as price.2

  • Best value and dense: eggs, low-fat milk and boneless chicken breast are all inexpensive per 20 g and light on calories for the protein they carry.
  • Inexpensive and filling: dried beans and lentils cost very little per gram of protein and bring fibre, but they are bulky; a small portion alongside a denser protein works well.
  • Worth it in small amounts: cheddar and ham are fine value but come with more fat and, for ham, more salt.

The 2025 joint advisory encourages plant proteins such as beans, peas and lentils, plus dairy, seafood, eggs and lean poultry, and suggests red and processed meats in moderation.3

Eight more budget proteins

These are widely available and usually good value, but BLS does not publish an average price for them, so compare unit prices on the shelf. Protein and calories are from USDA.2

Protein per typical serving and calories per 20 g of protein, from USDA FoodData Central.
FoodServingProteinCalories per 20 g proteinUSDA record
Tuna, canned in water1 can, drained (165 g)32.1 g88 kcalFDC 173709
Tofu, firm½ cup (126 g)21.8 g167 kcalFDC 172475
Salmon, canned3 oz, drained (85 g)19.6 g119 kcalFDC 175175
Greek yoghurt, plain, nonfat1 pot (156 g)16.1 g118 kcalFDC 330137
Edamame, frozen1 cup (118 g)13.2 g194 kcalFDC 168410
Cottage cheese, 2%½ cup (110 g)12.1 g153 kcalFDC 328841
Lentils, dried¼ cup dry (48 g)11.8 g286 kcalFDC 172420
Chickpeas, canned½ can, drained (126 g)8.9 g394 kcalFDC 173800

Shopping tips that stretch protein

  • Read the unit price on the shelf tag (per pound or per ounce), not the pack price.
  • Buy family packs of chicken breast and freeze single portions; raw poultry pieces keep about 9 months in the freezer.4
  • Cook dried beans or lentils in a big batch and freeze in small tubs.
  • Choose store brands for staples such as eggs, milk, yoghurt, beans and canned fish.
  • Keep shelf-stable protein — canned tuna, salmon and beans — for days when you can't face cooking.
  • Waste less. A smaller appetite means more food goes off; see meal prep for small appetites.

Your overall food bill may shrink anyway: in a study of about 150,000 US households, those with someone taking a GLP-1 cut grocery spending by 5.3% on average within six months.5

Keeping a record of it

Cafeity counts protein from a barcode, a search or a photo against your daily target, so you can see which of your inexpensive staples are doing the work.

Cafeity calories and macros screen: 284 of 2,550 kcal, protein 71 of 170 g, carbohydrate and fat, with steps and a how-you-feel mood check-in below.
Protein against your target.
Cafeity Today screen: day 1 of 7 since the last dose with the estimated level at 97% of peak, fibre 21 of 25 g, protein 110 of 100 g, steps, water 850 ml of 2.4 L, the next logged dose and the weight trend.
The day at a glance.

Screenshots: Cafeity for iPhone, version 1.1.

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Common questions

What is the least expensive source of protein?
Of the twelve foods BLS prices, dried beans cost least per 20 g of protein in August 2026 — about $0.34. Eggs ($0.60) and low-fat milk ($0.56) were close, with far fewer calories than pasta or rice for the same protein.12
How much does 20 g of protein from chicken breast cost?
About $0.82 at the August 2026 US average of $4.17 per pound for boneless chicken breast, with about 100 kcal.12
How much protein do I need on a GLP-1?
The 2025 joint advisory gives a practical target of 80 to 120 g a day. Ask your clinician or a dietitian what suits you.3
Are beans a good protein on a small appetite?
They are inexpensive and bring fibre, but they are bulky for the protein they carry. A small portion alongside eggs, dairy, fish or chicken works better than relying on beans alone.
Why is canned tuna not in the price table?
BLS stopped publishing an average price for canned tuna in 2017. It is still a good-value protein: a drained can has about 32 g, according to USDA.2

Sources

  1. Average price data (US city average) for the Consumer Price Index — series used here: APU0000714233, APU0000FJ1101, APU0000708111, APU0000709112, APU0000701322, APU0000701312, APU0000FF1101, APU0000702111, APU0000710212, APU0000704312, APU0000703112, APU0000703113 US Bureau of Labor Statistics, data for August 2026 (retrieved through the BLS public data API, 2 October 2026)
  2. FoodData Central US Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service
  3. Nutritional priorities to support GLP-1 therapy for obesity: a joint advisory from the American College of Lifestyle Medicine, the American Society for Nutrition, the Obesity Medicine Association and The Obesity Society Mozaffarian D et al. 2025 (published in four journals)
  4. Cold food storage chart FoodSafety.gov, US Department of Health and Human Services
  5. The No-Hunger Games: how GLP-1 medication adoption is changing consumer food demand Hristakeva S, Liaukonytė J, Feler L. Journal of Marketing Research, published online December 2025

Written by the Cafeity team from the sources listed here. Figures from prescribing information are quoted as the label states them; trial results are averages from those trials, not predictions for any one person. This page has not yet been reviewed by a clinician — see the editorial policy for how pages are researched and corrected.