Are Bananas a Good Source of Protein? Here’s the Real Number

By | October 26, 2026

Banana is the fruit everyone reaches for — cheap, portable, and the go-to pre- or post-workout snack for millions of people.

It has long topped the USDA’s list of the most-consumed fresh fruits in the U.S. [3].

That reputation makes it easy to assume banana must be doing something for your protein intake too. It isn’t, at least not meaningfully, and that’s fine.

Banana earns its place in your day for entirely different reasons, and once you know what those are, you can pair it with something that actually covers protein.

How Much Protein Is in a Banana?

A 100-gram serving of banana contains about 0.74 grams of protein. A medium banana (around 115 grams) works out to roughly 0.9 grams [1].

For comparison, that’s about one-seventh of the protein in a single large egg, which has around 6 grams [1].

Banana was never going to be a meaningful protein source, and treating it as one just sets up a letdown. What it’s genuinely good at is a completely different story.

What Bananas Actually Do Well

Banana’s real strength is potassium: about 326 milligrams per 100 grams, which supports healthy blood pressure and normal muscle function [1]. It’s also an easy everyday source of vitamin B6, providing around 0.21 milligrams per 100 grams, or about 12% of the Daily Value used on U.S. food labels [1][4].

On top of that, banana carries about 1.7 grams of fiber per 100 grams [1]. Slightly green bananas also contain more resistant starch, a fiber-like carbohydrate that feeds gut bacteria.

None of this is protein, but it’s a legitimate reason to keep eating bananas regularly.

How to Actually Add Protein to a Banana

These are simple pairings, built so a real protein source does the heavy lifting:

  • Smoothie: blend banana with milk or a protein-rich milk alternative and a scoop of protein powder
  • Protein pancakes: mash banana directly into a protein-forward pancake batter
  • Frozen “nice cream”: blend frozen banana with Greek yogurt for a protein-boosted soft-serve texture
  • Protein muffins: fold mashed banana into a muffin batter made with added egg or a protein-rich flour
  • Frozen banana bites: dip banana slices in a protein-rich yogurt coating and freeze

(As full recipes for each of these go live, we’ll link them directly from this list.)

Where These Numbers Come From

Every number in this article comes from USDA FoodData Central, the U.S. government’s food composition database. We use two of its datasets. Foundation Foods is the newer one, built from analyses of real food samples and updated twice a year, but it covers fewer foods. SR Legacy is the older and broader one, compiled from lab analyses, calculations, and published research, and USDA stopped updating it in 2018 [1][2]. We use Foundation Foods when a food is listed there, and banana is.

That’s why you may see different numbers elsewhere. The older SR Legacy entry lists banana at 1.09 grams of protein and 2.6 grams of fiber per 100 grams, while the newer Foundation Foods entry lists 0.74 and 1.7. Different samples, ripeness, and testing methods lead to different results, and many sites still repeat the older figures.

We also mention serving sizes. The FDA’s RACC (Reference Amount Customarily Consumed) is the amount it uses to set serving sizes on food labels. For most fresh fruit it’s 140 grams, which is a little more than one medium banana and works out to about 1 gram of protein [5]. It’s a labeling reference, not a recommendation for how much to eat.

One Thing to Try This Week

Blend a banana with a scoop of protein powder and a splash of milk for a two-minute smoothie that actually covers both fiber and protein — no recipe needed.

FAQ

Bibliography

  1. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. (2026). FoodData Central: Foundation Foods [Data set, April 2026 release]. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov. Entries used: Bananas, ripe and slightly ripe, raw (FDC ID 1105314); Eggs, Grade A, Large, egg whole (748967).
  2. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. (2018). FoodData Central: SR Legacy [Data set, April 2018 release]. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov. Entry compared: Bananas, raw (173944).
  3. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service. (n.d.). Charts of Note: U.S. per capita loss-adjusted availability of the top seven fruits, 2019. https://www.ers.usda.gov/data-products/charts-of-note/101944
  4. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (n.d.). Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels. https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-facts-label/daily-value-nutrition-and-supplement-facts-labels
  5. U.S. Food and Drug Administration. (n.d.). Reference amounts customarily consumed per eating occasion, 21 C.F.R. § 101.12. https://www.fda.gov/media/102587/download

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