The short version: look for 9g to 15g of protein an ounce, under 5g of sugar, and an ingredient list you can read out loud. Sodium will be high whatever you buy, so the useful move is knowing the number rather than hunting for a low one.
We make beef jerky, so read this knowing that. Our own numbers are in the table below alongside everything else, including the one where we come off worst.
The four numbers that matter
In the order you should check them, which is not the order the packet presents them.
Protein per ounce
Look for: 9g to 15g
This is the number jerky exists for. Good jerky runs 9g to 15g per ounce. Below about 8g you are paying for marinade and filler.
Total sugars
Look for: under 5g
The most common failure. Teriyaki and honey styles can run 6g to 12g an ounce, which turns a protein snack into something closer to candy.
Sodium
Look for: the category's weak point
Almost all jerky is salty, because salt is how it is cured and kept. Typical is 400mg to 600mg an ounce, which is 17 to 26 percent of a day in one small bag. There is no low-sodium jerky worth eating; there is only knowing the number.
The ingredient list length
Look for: shorter is better
Beef, salt, a sweetener, spices and a smoke or acid. Once you are reading past about twelve ingredients you are usually into flavour systems and texture agents.
Four things on a label that should slow you down
- Soy sauce, if you avoid gluten. Most soy sauce is brewed with wheat, and it is the single most common way gluten gets into jerky. The declaration will say so if you read the bracket after "soy sauce".
- "No nitrates added" with celery powder. Celery powder is a nitrate source. The claim is technically accurate and practically meaningless.
- Sugar in three places. Brown sugar, cane syrup and pineapple juice in one list are three sugars dressed as two ingredients and a fruit.
- A protein claim on the front and a serving size you would not eat. Check whether the panel is per ounce or per bag. A 3oz bag quoted per ounce reads very differently from the same bag quoted whole.
What the numbers look like in practice
Per ounce. Ours are from our own labels; the two typical rows are the ranges you will find on a supermarket shelf.
| Jerky | Protein | Sugar | Sodium | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1st Tee Cracked Black Pepper | 13g | 5g | 380mg | 90 |
| 1st Tee Sriracha | 17g | 5g | 600mg | 90 |
| Typical supermarket teriyaki | 9g to 11g | 6g to 12g | 500mg to 700mg | 80 to 100 |
| Typical "original" style | 10g to 12g | 3g to 6g | 400mg to 600mg | 70 to 90 |
Our sriracha is the highest-protein jerky in that table and also the saltiest thing on it, at 600mg an ounce. Both of those are true at the same time and the second one is not a selling point. If sodium is something you track, the cracked black pepper at 380mg is the one to reach for, and either way jerky is a snack rather than a staple.
The soy sauce problem
If you avoid gluten, this is the detail that matters more than any front-of-pack claim. Most soy sauce is brewed with wheat, and soy sauce is in the majority of jerky marinades, so a lot of jerky that looks like plain meat and spice is not gluten free at all.
The ingredient list tells you in one line. Ours reads "soy sauce (water, soybeans, salt)", with no wheat in the bracket. Many read "soy sauce (water, wheat, soybeans, salt)". Same two words on the front of the bag, different answer.
Common questions
How much protein is in beef jerky?
Between 9g and 15g per ounce for most brands. 1st Tee cracked black pepper is 13g and the sriracha is 17g per ounce, which is at the top of the range because both are made from whole grass-fed muscle rather than ground and formed meat.
Is beef jerky keto?
Usually yes on the macros, but it depends entirely on the sugar. An ounce at 2g to 5g of sugar fits most keto targets comfortably. A teriyaki or honey style at 10g an ounce does not. Read the total sugars line, not the front of the bag.
How much sodium is in beef jerky?
Typically 400mg to 600mg per ounce, which is 17 to 26 percent of the daily value in one small serving. Ours is 380mg for the cracked black pepper and 600mg for the sriracha. This is the one measure where jerky as a category, ours included, is genuinely high, and it is worth knowing rather than pretending otherwise.
Is beef jerky gluten free?
Not automatically. Most soy sauce is brewed with wheat, and soy sauce is in the majority of jerky marinades. Check the bracket after "soy sauce" in the ingredient list.
The ten second version. Turn the bag over. Protein per ounce in the high single digits or better, sugar under 5g, an ingredient list that reads like food, and a sodium number you have actually looked at. That is the whole method.
Ours is 1st Tee grass-fed beef jerky, cracked black pepper and sriracha, in boxes of 8. If you want the wider version of this argument, we wrote about the best snacks to keep in a golf bag and about whether CLIF Bars are healthy.
