CLIF Energy Bars Taste Tested & Reviewed

Taking a brief detour from reviewing protein bars to take a look at the range of Energy Bars by CLIF. When are these most useful on a hike? Are they good for you? Which one tastes the best?

CLIF Energy Bars are a popular choice among hikers, known for their balanced combination of carbohydrates, protein, and fats, making them a convenient and effective energy source for outdoor adventures.

Each bar provides roughly 250-280 calories, with 40-45g of carbohydrates, 9-10g of protein, and 5-7g of fat, depending on the flavour.

Suitability for Hiking

CLIF Bars are specifically designed for endurance activities, making them ideal for hiking, particularly on moderate to strenuous trails. The high carbohydrate content provides sustained energy, while the protein and fats aid muscle repair and promote feelings of fullness.

They also include added vitamins and minerals, such as B vitamins, calcium, and magnesium, which support energy metabolism and muscle function.

The Nutrition Panel is on the back, just peel off the info booklet

Are They Healthy?

In moderation, CLIF Bars can be considered a healthy snack for active individuals. They are made with whole ingredients like oats and nuts, though they do contain a fair whack of added sugars (about 17g per bar, which places them all around 25g sugar/100g serve), which are useful for quick energy on a hike. If you're eating them at home and aren't exercising, the sugar content is excessive. I typically aim for less than 5g sugar/100g as a general rule. While hiking, I'm not too concerned if it's higher as I need the energy.

As a great touch, they also include a selection of micronutrients including potassium, vitamin E, magnesium, iron, and phosphorus. This isn't common in snack energy bars and is great to see.

Hikers with dietary restrictions should check labels, as these aren't gluten or soy free, and most have nuts or are exposed to nuts during the production process.

Really like seeing brand stories communicated on packaging too

Best Time to Eat Them

• Before Hiking: Eat a CLIF Bar 30-60 minutes before starting your hike to top up glycogen stores, especially if you haven’t had a proper meal.

• During Hiking: They’re a great mid-hike snack for longer treks, particularly if you’re tackling steep inclines or need an energy boost.

• Post-Hike: While not a dedicated recovery snack, they can serve as a stop-gap until you access a meal with more complete protein sources.

Ok! So we know these are an awesome option for the trail, now to choose which one to buy.

CLIF Energy Bar Taste Test

Time to taste test!

CLIF White Chocolate Macadamia Energy Bar

Nutrition Information (per serve)

Energy: 265 calories

Protein: 9.8g

Fat: 7.5g

Carbohydrate: 36.9g

Sugars: 17.3g (25.5g/100g)

Fibre: 5g

Sodium: 233mg

Contains: Macadamia, gluten, soy.

Aroma

Smells like a buttery biscuit mix or cookie dough.

Texture

The Macadamia Bar is soft and gritty with a consistent crunch. It’s chewy and slightly sticky but that disappears after the first few chews. It’s more dry than it is wet, but I wouldn’t label it as one of the other – the consistency is doughy.

Taste

This energy bar is simultaneously savoury and creamy. There's a slight pop of sweetness from the white chocolate drizzled on top, which is delicious. The flavour is mild overall and nutty. It’s got a subtle flavour that isn’t dominating and is highly palatable.

Compared to other CLIF Energy Bars?

It's a sweeter version of the peanut butter energy bar.

Overall Flavour Score

5/5. It’s beautifully balanced in all respects.

It looks like it'd be tough and hard on your teeth, but it's delightfully soft

Want to try the White Chocolate Macadamia Energy Bar? Grab one here!

CLIF Chocolate Brownie Energy Bar

Nutrition Information (per serve)

Energy: 258 calories

Protein: 10.3g

Fat: 5.8g

Carbohydrate: 37.8g

Sugars: 17.1g

Fibre: 5.4g

Sodium: 183mg

Contains: Gluten, soy.

Aroma

As soon as you crack open the packet you're met with a deep, rich, dark cocoa smell.

Texture

This is a dense bar. The inconsistent crunchy choc bits throughout break up the dough beautifully. There’s a good balance between wet and dry, but it's definitely more on the dry side. It’s not chewy but dry enough that you need a decent amount of chews to break it down.

Taste

The chocolate flavour takes at least five or six chews to develop. The flavour is strongest in the aftertaste. It’s not milky chocolate, despite the very distinct rich chocolate taste. There’s no bitterness at all. It’s not creamy either and is very much like a brownie in bar form.

It felt healthy too, which is exceptionally rare for a chocolate-flavoured protein bar.

Compared to other CLIF Energy Bars?

More dense in consistency than the choc macadamia, and not as sweet.

Overall Flavour Score

4.5/5. The flavour arrived late and it would have been nicer to experience it for longer.

This is as dry and dense as it looks

 Want to taste the Chocolate Brownie Energy Bar? Grab one here!

CLIF Crunchy Peanut Butter Energy Bar

Nutrition Information (per serve)

Energy: 268 calories

Protein: 11g

Fat: 7.8g

Carbohydrate: 35.3g

Sugars: 16.9g

Fibre: 5.2g

Sodium: 230mg

Contains: Peanuts, gluten, soy.

Aroma

Very fresh and strong raw peanut smell.

Texture

It has the same consistent texture as the macadamia bar. It’s just slightly wetter and a bit more sticky, particularly on the outside.

Taste

It has a creamy natural peanut taste that's consistent throughout. The sweetness counteracts the nutty, dry, savoury flavour without being overwhelmingly sweet.

Compared to other CLIF Energy Bars?

It’s a lot sweeter than the brownie flavour.

Overall Flavour Score

5/5. My favourite.

The outside is pretty sticky but the inside isn't

Want to taste the Crunchy Peanut Butter Energy Bar? Grab one here!

CLIF Blueberry Almond Crisp Energy Bar

Nutrition Information (per serve)

Energy: 256 calories

Protein: 11.2g

Fat: 5.6g

Carbohydrate: 37.1g

Sugars: 17.4g

Fibre: 5.4g

Sodium: 177mg

Contains: Almonds, gluten, soy.

Aroma

Smells like a blueberry muffin and is very appealing.

Texture

Very similar to the macadamia energy bar, but the ingredients are more crunchy and nutty. Not as soft overall either but you're nowhere near breaking your teeth or anything, it's very good.

Taste

This Blueberry bar has a strong nutty flavour with a consistent sweet pop of berry in every bite. The blueberry taste fades quickly to leave a savoury nutty residue.

Interestingly the sweetness of the berries makes a comeback in the aftertaste. Overall it tastes healthy with a hint of naughtiness in the sweet aftertaste.

Compared to other CLIF Energy Bars?

This is unique compared to the rest. The nutty texture is distinct, and it clearly tastes the healthiest of the lot.

Overall Flavour Score

5/5. Delicious and savoury.

Want to taste the Blueberry Crisp Energy Bar? Grab one here!

CLIF Cool Mint Chocolate Energy Bar

Nutrition Information (per serve)

Energy: 258 calories

Protein: 10.1g

Fat: 6.1g

Carbohydrate: 27.3g

Sugars: 17.3g

Fibre: 5.8g

Sodium: 139mg

Contains: Gluten, soy

Aroma

This Mint Chocolate Bar has a fresh mint smell with a slight chocolate hint in the background

Texture

It has a much softer consistency than the other bars so far. It’s also more moist however has a similar level of crunch. The chunks of chocolate are delightful. The coolness of the mint is refreshing.

Taste

Again the chocolate flavour is slow to develop, emerging about three or four chews in. The flavour is a mild dark chocolate. The mint is very subtle in taste compared to the intensity of the aroma. There is a mild minty aftertaste.

The chocolate flavour isn’t too obvious, it feels quite mild and understated for a flavour that normally smacks you in the face. This could present as a positive or negative depending on taste preferences.

Compared to other CLIF Energy Bars?

Very soft consistency, especially compared to the Choc Brownie Bar.

Overall Flavour Score

4.5/5. It’s more of a mint bar than a chocolate bar.

Want to taste the Cool Mint Chocolate Energy Bar? Grab one here!

CLIF Peanut Butter Banana Energy Bar

Nutrition Information (per serve)

Energy: 258 calories

Protein: 10.3g

Fat: 8g

Carbohydrate: 35.7g

Sugars: 17.1g

Fibre: 5.3g

Sodium: 226mg

Contains: Peanuts, gluten, soy

Aroma

The smell of the Peanut Butter Banana Bar is confusing and it’s difficult to identify a dominant smell or identify the banana,

Texture

This is another soft protein bar and is quite moist like the mint bar. It has small bits of chocolate that noticeably melt in your mouth.

Taste

This energy bar tastes like natural sweet banana bread in bar form, with a nutty undertone. The flavour takes five or six chews to really develop but once it does it’s very pronounced and full. It’s creamy, and buttery smooth with great depth.

Compared to other CLIF Energy Bars?

Quite different to the rest of the range in that the flavour is intense. The rest are very mild.

Overall Flavour Score

4.5/5 Because it was slow to develop only. Otherwise a 5.

Want to taste the Cool Mint Chocolate Energy Bar? Grab one here!

CLIF Chocolate Chip Energy Bar

Nutrition Information (per serve)

Energy: 256 calories

Protein: 10.2g

Fat: 6.1g

Carbohydrate: 37.9g

Sugars: 17.4g

Fibre: 5.4g

Sodium: 131mg

Contains: Gluten, soy

Aroma

This bar reminded me of ANZAC biscuits. The other taste-tester detected a frankly bizarre cinnamon smell (which I had zero hint of), but I’m including it for the other cinnamon-heads out there. Neither of us could detect a hint of chocolate.

Texture

Very similar to the rest. Nice crunch, mostly soft. Had a slight awareness of melting chocolate but it wasn’t immediately obvious amongst the standard crunch.

Taste

Dark chocolate chips gave the odd, very mild hit of chocolate, which was a nice contrast to the otherwise nutty-tasting bar. The base is almost vanilla in flavour.

It’s very plain and not what I’d expect of a chocolate chip bar. There are chocolate chips but unless you actively pay attention it’s unlikely you’ll taste the chocolate. It’s still a nice, savoury creamy bar, but I wouldn’t call it chocolate chip in anything but appearance.

Compared to other CLIF Energy Bars?

Same reliable and enjoyable consistency. Mild flavour too.

Overall Flavour Score

4/5. Despite not matching its own description, it was still yummy and I’d eat it again.

Want to taste the Chocolate Chip Energy Bar? Grab one here!

Final Thoughts

CLIF Energy Bars are a practical and nutritious choice for hikers needing a portable energy source. Their balance of macronutrients supports endurance and muscle maintenance, but the added sugars make the bars most suitable for active days rather than casual snacking.

Always pair them with adequate hydration and other nutrient-dense foods for optimal hiking performance.

Disclaimer

I reached out to CLIF and they kindly sent me these bars to taste test and review. The brand had no influence over what I said, or how I reviewed them – my opinions are my own. The bars were way nicer and more enjoyable than I was anticipating and I've since purchased them multiple times to take on hikes and outdoor adventures.