Protein head-to-heads · July 2026
Split peas (cooked) vs Vital wheat gluten: which protein is cheaper?
USDA macros joined to current US grocery prices, reduced to the two numbers that decide it: dollars per gram of protein, and protein per calorie.
Vital wheat gluten is 1.6x cheaper per gram of protein ($0.013/g vs $0.022/g), while it also carries more protein per calorie (20.3 g vs 7.2 g per 100 kcal), so it wins on both axes.
| Food | $/g protein | 30 g protein costs | You need | kcal that come with it | Protein/100 kcal |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Split peas (cooked) | $0.022 | $0.65 | 361 g | 419 kcal | 7.2 g |
| Vital wheat gluten | $0.013 | $0.40 | 40 g | 148 kcal | 20.3 g |
Full macros, per serving
| Food (per serving) | Price | kcal | Protein | Carbs | Fat |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Split peas (cooked) (100 g) | $0.18 | 116 | 8.3 g | 20.5 g | 0.4 g |
| Vital wheat gluten (100 g) | $1.00 | 370 | 75.2 g | 13.8 g | 1.9 g |
A week of protein from each
Hitting a common 100 g/day protein target from vital wheat gluten alone costs $9.31 a week; from split peas (cooked) alone, $15.18. That is a gap of $5.87 every week for the same protein. In practice you mix sources: the planner computes the cheapest mix for your exact target and calorie cap, live from the same dataset.
This one is not a trade-off
Vital wheat gluten is both the cheaper protein ($0.013/g against $0.022/g) and the leaner one (20.3 g protein per 100 kcal against 7.2 g). Most matchups force you to pick a side. This one does not, so split peas (cooked) has to win on taste, prep time or what else it brings to the meal, because it is not winning on the numbers.
The amount you actually have to eat
Thirty grams of protein means 361 g of split peas (cooked), against 40 g for vital wheat gluten. That is a real constraint, not a footnote: a price per gram only counts if the serving is one a person will finish. Treat split peas (cooked) as the base of a meal that other protein is added to, not as the protein itself.
What the calories cost you
Getting 30 g of protein from split peas (cooked) brings 419 kcal with it. On a 2,000 kcal day, three servings would be most of your budget before anything else goes on the plate. That is fine when you are eating at maintenance or building, and it is the reason this food falls apart on a cut no matter how good the price per gram looks.
Two budget staples, so the tiebreak is elsewhere
Both of these sit in the cheapest third of everything we track (#6 and #4 of 25), and the difference between them is $0.25 per 30 g of protein. That is small enough that shelf life, prep time and whether you will actually eat it should decide this, not the price column.
Compare against other foods
- Split peas (cooked) vs Oats (dry)Vital wheat gluten vs Oats (dry)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Peanut butterVital wheat gluten vs Peanut butter
- Split peas (cooked) vs Lentils (cooked)Vital wheat gluten vs Lentils (cooked)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Tofu (firm)Vital wheat gluten vs Tofu (firm)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Black beans (cooked)Vital wheat gluten vs Black beans (cooked)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Whey protein (1 scoop)Vital wheat gluten vs Whey protein (1 scoop)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Greek yogurt (nonfat)Vital wheat gluten vs Greek yogurt (nonfat)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Eggs (~2 large)Vital wheat gluten vs Eggs (~2 large)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Chicken breast (raw)Vital wheat gluten vs Chicken breast (raw)
- Split peas (cooked) vs Canned tuna (in water)Vital wheat gluten vs Canned tuna (in water)
Frequently asked
- Which is cheaper for protein, split peas (cooked) or vital wheat gluten?
- Vital wheat gluten, at $0.013 per gram of protein against $0.022 for split peas (cooked) (July 2026 US grocery prices). A 30 g protein serving costs $0.40 vs $0.65.
- Which has more protein per calorie, split peas (cooked) or vital wheat gluten?
- Vital wheat gluten, with 20.3 g protein per 100 kcal against 7.2 g for split peas (cooked), 2.8x leaner. That matters when you are cutting and calories are the binding constraint.
- Which should I buy, split peas (cooked) or vital wheat gluten?
- Vital wheat gluten wins on both axes here: cheaper per gram of protein and more protein per calorie. Unless taste, prep or the rest of your macros say otherwise, it is the better default.
Prices are representative US grocery prices as of July 2026; your store will differ. Educational content, not medical or dietary advice. Dataset: free download, CC-BY.