Chicken breast, turkey breast, and lean cuts of pork and beef all land near the top, delivering roughly 24 to 31 grams of protein per 100 grams of cooked meat. But the single highest protein meat you can buy is turkey breast, which packs about 34 grams of protein in a 4-ounce cooked serving. That edges out chicken breast, pork tenderloin, and lean beef by a meaningful margin.
The exact numbers depend on the cut, how it’s prepared, and whether you’re comparing by weight or by calories. Here’s how the most common options stack up.
Top Meats Ranked by Protein
Using cooked portions and data from nutrition databases at Washington University and the USDA, these are the standout performers:
- Turkey breast (skinless, cooked): 34 g protein per 4 oz serving, 153 calories
- Venison (cooked): 26.5 g protein per 100 g, with only about 8 g of fat
- Ostrich (cooked): 26.2 g protein per 100 g, with about 7 g of fat
- Bison (cooked): 25.4 g protein per 100 g
- Beef lean round (cooked): 24.9 g protein per 3 oz, 138 calories
- Pork tenderloin (cooked): 24 g protein per 3 oz, 139 calories
- Pork loin (cooked): 24.3 g protein per 3 oz, 178 calories
- Chicken breast (skinless, cooked): 18 g protein per 3 oz, 101 calories
Turkey breast is the clear winner on total protein per serving. Venison and ostrich lead among red meats. If you’re working with more common grocery store options, lean beef round and pork tenderloin are your best bets.
Protein Per Calorie: A Better Comparison
Raw protein grams don’t tell the whole story if you’re watching your overall intake. Some meats deliver more protein per calorie than others, which matters if you’re trying to build muscle on a calorie budget or lose weight while keeping protein high.
Chicken breast and shrimp are the efficiency leaders. A 3-ounce serving of skinless chicken breast gives you 18 grams of protein for just 101 calories. Shrimp is even more extreme: five large boiled shrimp provide nearly 6 grams of protein for only 28 calories. Scaled up, that’s roughly 21 grams of protein per 100 calories.
On the other end, fattier cuts like 80% lean ground beef deliver 21.9 grams of protein but cost you 230 calories for a 3-ounce portion. Chicken thighs, wings with skin, and salmon also carry more calories per gram of protein because of their higher fat content. None of these are bad choices, but if protein density is your priority, lean cuts and white-fleshed fish win.
Wild Game and Less Common Meats
Venison, ostrich, and bison consistently rank among the highest-protein meats in USDA testing. Cooked venison hits 26.5 grams of protein per 100 grams with relatively low fat (about 8 grams). Ostrich is remarkably similar at 26.2 grams of protein, with even less fat at 7 grams per 100 grams. Both outperform most conventional grocery store cuts on a gram-for-gram basis.
Bison matches them closely on protein at 25.4 grams per 100 grams cooked, though it carries significantly more fat (about 16 grams). Rabbit is another lean option, ranging from 19% to 23% protein by weight, putting it in the same range as chicken and pork.
These meats aren’t always easy to find or affordable, but if you have access to them, they’re among the most protein-dense options available.
Organ Meats and Jerky
Organ meats are often overlooked, but they’re solid protein sources. Raw beef liver contains about 20.4 grams of protein per 100 grams, while beef heart and kidneys come in around 17.4 to 17.7 grams. These numbers are for raw weight, so the cooked values climb higher as water cooks off. Liver in particular delivers a dense package of protein alongside vitamins that muscle meat doesn’t provide in the same quantities.
Beef and turkey jerky deserve a special mention. Because jerky is dried, its protein is concentrated: a single ounce delivers 10 to 15 grams. That’s roughly double the protein of a fresh ounce of any cooked meat. The tradeoff is sodium. Most jerky is heavily salted, so it works better as a high-protein snack than a dietary staple.
Protein Quality Matters Too
Not all protein is absorbed equally. Scientists measure protein quality using a score called DIAAS, which accounts for how well your body can actually digest and use the amino acids in a food. Any score above 100 is rated “excellent.”
Meat across the board scores extremely well. Pork loin scores 139 for adults. Medium-cooked beef ribeye scores 130. Even processed options like ham (126) and bacon (117 to 142 depending on preparation) exceed the threshold for excellent quality. The lowest scorer in testing was cooked ground beef at 99 for adults, which still qualifies as “good.”
In practical terms, this means you don’t need to worry much about protein quality differences between types of meat. Whether you’re eating chicken, pork, beef, or game, your body absorbs and uses the protein efficiently. The bigger variable is simply how many grams you’re getting per serving.
Choosing the Right Cut for Your Goals
If your goal is maximum protein with minimum calories, go with turkey breast, skinless chicken breast, shrimp, or pork tenderloin. These give you the best ratio and are widely available.
If you want the highest absolute protein per bite and don’t mind spending more, venison and ostrich are top-tier. They combine very high protein with low fat in a way that’s hard to match with conventional meats.
If you’re just trying to consistently hit a daily protein target without overthinking it, any lean cut of beef, pork, chicken, or turkey gets you to roughly 7 grams of protein per ounce cooked. A piece of meat the size of a deck of cards (about 3 ounces) delivers around 21 grams. Two palm-sized portions per day, combined with protein from other foods, comfortably covers most people’s needs.