C4 Whey protein review: is Cellucor's whey worth it?

You know C4 as the pre-workout in the bright tub. Cellucor has taken the same name into protein, and the hook is the flavours: Reese's Peanut Butter and Hershey's Chocolate, the real licensed ones.

So is C4 Whey worth it? Our honest verdict: it is a solid 25g protein blend with standout flavours. You pay a little extra for those flavour licences, and the big tub is where the value really is.

The short answer

• What you get: 25g of protein per serve from a concentrate and isolate blend, low in sugar, with no added sugar.
• Best flavour bet: Reese's if you love peanut butter, Hershey's if you want a safe chocolate, Vanilla Bean if you mix protein into food.
• Which size: the 66 serve tub is clearly cheaper per shake once you know you like the flavour. The 28 serve tub is the one to test with.
• Worth it? Yes, if flavour is what keeps you drinking your shake every day. If you only care about the lowest cost per gram, a plain concentrate will beat it.

What is in it

Each serve gives you 25g of fast-digesting protein from a blend of whey concentrate and whey isolate. That is a standard, useful dose for after training or between meals.

The blend is a sensible middle ground. Concentrate is creamier and cheaper to make. Isolate is filtered further, so it carries more protein per gram and less lactose. Mixing them keeps the texture good without pushing the price to isolate levels.

C4 Whey is built to be macro-friendly: lean calories, low sugar and no added sugar. It mixes smooth in a shaker, so you are not chewing through clumps. One honest note: if dairy upsets you easily, a pure isolate may sit better than a blend.

The three flavours

Taste is personal, so treat these as a guide to what each flavour is going for.

Reese's Peanut Butter

This is the flavour that makes the tub different. C4 Whey Reese's goes for the peanut butter cup taste, so expect it to lean nutty and salty-sweet rather than straight chocolate. If you like peanut butter at all, start here.

Hershey's Chocolate

C4 Whey Hershey's Chocolate is the safe pick. It is a milk chocolate style that works with water or milk and is hard to get sick of. If you are buying for a household, this is the one most people will drink.

Vanilla Bean

C4 Whey Vanilla Bean is the flexible one. On its own it is a mellow vanilla, but its real strength is mixing. Stir it through oats, blend it with frozen berries or add it to pancake batter.

28 vs 66 serves: which size

C4 Whey comes in two sizes, and all three flavours are available in both:

• 28 serves: 980g to 1.13kg, depending on flavour.
• 66 serves: 2.65kg.

Buy the 28 serve tub if you are trying a flavour for the first time. Once you know you like it, the 66 serve Hershey's tub and its siblings are the smarter buy.

How it compares on value

Here is the maths on our prices at the time of writing. Prices change, so check the product page for today's number.

The big tub saves you around 76 cents a shake, close to a quarter cheaper. Over 66 serves, that is roughly $50 less than buying the same amount in small tubs.

Our honest take on value: licensed flavours cost more. If you just want the cheapest protein per gram, a plain concentrate will beat C4 Whey. But a shake you look forward to is a shake you actually drink, and consistency is what builds muscle. If Reese's gets you to hit your protein every day, that is money well spent.

Where NZ Supps fits

We stock all three flavours in both sizes as part of our Cellucor protein range, and both tub sizes clear our $70 free shipping threshold. You will find the rest of the brand under Cellucor NZ, including the pre-workout that started it all. Read the story of C4 for how it got there.

Already a fan of the brand? Our rankings of the C4 Original flavours and our guide to C4 Energy + Amino cover the rest of the line. If you want to compare C4 Whey against other tubs, browse our full whey protein range or take the Find Your Stack quiz.

FAQ

How much protein is in C4 Whey? Each serve gives you 25g of protein from a blend of whey concentrate and whey isolate. That is a solid, standard dose for a post-workout shake or a protein top-up during the day.

Is C4 Whey an isolate or a concentrate? It is a blend of both. Concentrate brings creaminess and keeps the price down, while isolate adds a more filtered protein. If you are very sensitive to lactose, a pure isolate may sit better with you.

Does C4 Whey have sugar in it? It is low in sugar with no added sugar, and it is built to be macro-friendly with lean calories. That makes it easy to fit into a cut as well as a build.

Which C4 Whey flavour is best? If you like peanut butter, Reese's is the flavour that makes this tub stand out. Hershey's Chocolate is the safe all-rounder, and Vanilla Bean is the most flexible for oats and smoothies. Taste is personal, so start with the 28 serve tub if you are unsure.

Is the 66 serve tub of C4 Whey worth it? If you already know you like the flavour, yes. At the time of writing it works out to roughly $2.45 per serve against about $3.21 for the 28 serve tub, which is close to a quarter cheaper per shake.