Some Cheaper (& Better) UK Huel Alternatives
If you listen to as many podcasts as I do, then you will not have missed an advert for Huel. They are by far the biggest meal replacement shake brand on earth and they sell a range of bars, shakes, and powders. At this point, you're probably sick of hearing the Huel and Athletic Greens adverts (we also have a list of AG1 Alternatives)
What they do is pretty damn good, but many consider their products to be expensive and say there are better alternatives out there.
So, we decided to do some research and find some Huel alternatives that we could try out and see how they compare with the original.
We've tried out everything from CBD for sleep and anxiety to dryrobe alternatives - this should be some fun.
What is Huel?
Huel (a combo of Human & Fuel) is simply a meal replacement formula that is designed for people who can eat cleanly while on the move. It is so easy to grab junk food or something unhealthy when you're too busy to prep and cook a whole meal, that contains all of the essentials you need to have a nutritious diet.
So Huel set out to provide a healthy, nutritious, balanced meal which would be easy to grab and consume and is designed to contain a balance of all 26 essential vitamins, minerals, proteins, essential fats, carbs, fibre and phytonutrients. The products are made from plant-based sustainable ingredients like oats, pea, flaxseed, rice, sunflower and coconut. They produce shakes, bars, Hot and Savoury meals, powders and much more.
Huel has become very popular in the 'high performance' community which includes business leaders, athletes and even busy mums.
If you do want Huel, you can check out the whole range here on Amazon UK.
Are there any Better & Cheaper Huel Alternatives
- Yfood
- Complan
- Ensure Nutrivigor
- Slimfast
- Soylent
- PhenQ
Yfood
Yfood seems to be a start-up in the Eu from German founders, who have a huge footprint in the UK. The company offer a direct alternative to Huel in terms of its branding, ethos and mission statement. There isn't much that separates the two. We published a recent guide in which we found Yfood to be one of the best meal replacement shakes that we've tried.
Yfood is considerably more affordable than Huel and while they do not yet have the reputation, it is clear that they soon will.
You can find their online store here with next-day delivery.
Ensure Nutrivigor
The Ensure meal replacement is often given to people with a prescription by a DR, but you can purchase it from Boots too.
There are also shakes readymade being sold, but it is cheaper to buy the powder form to make your own shakes at home - plus you can add as much as you like. The Ensure shakes are a fantastic Huel alternative and actually contain 27 vitamins & minerals, which is more than any other shake we have found on any of our meal replacement guides.
It has 17g of protein per 460ml serving too, which is more than some purpose-made protein shakes.
Finally, it is the highest-rated meal replacement shakes that we could find on the Boots website, with a rating of 4.5/5 from more than 120 reviews for the Strawberry flavour.
Complan
Complan is properly old-school. It is the original meal replacement and can still be found in supermarkets and pharmacies around the country.
Sometimes, what isn't broken doesn't need to be fixed. If you're not fussy about flashy packaging and branding, and you just want a tried and tested product that works then Complan will be your best friend.
It tastes decent, has everything you need in it and you can even have it warm.
Slimfast
Slimfast needs no introduction to that really popular health brand here in the UK.
The shakes from Slimfast are ideal as a Heul alternative, at least in terms of the shake - they're high in protein which helps you to keep feeling full, they offer a range of flavours (like Chocolate, and Café Latte) so there is something for everyone.
All of the Slimfast shakes contain 23 vitamins and minerals, as well as 14g of protein and 230 calories per serving.
The drawback is that Slimfast do not have as many meal options as Heul. They do have some weight watcher ranges, but they aren't any different to many ready meals you can buy from the supermarkets
Learn more and buy it here: Amazon.co.uk
Hopefully, this article about your alternatives has been interesting, and you found the perfect new replacement for your pocket and your tastebuds.
If there's anything you think we should add, or you have experience with the products that we have included, then please feel free to add a comment in the section below. We always love to hear from readers and your voice here counts.
One Comment
Hannah Kent
I think a table comparing the grams of protein, numbers of vitamins/minerals and the approximate cost per 100g, and also how sustainable are the products in terms of packaging and carbon footprint etc would have been very useful