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Subway is a great fast-and-easy take-out restaurant that has tons of options, making it a staple stop for many folks across the country.
I know it’s one of the few places my whole family can stop where everyone can find something they enjoy whether they want a fresh salad or a cheesy sandwich.
One of the things I love most about Subway is that so many of their meals are a great balance of macronutrients, with protein being a highly important aspect of these sandwiches.
That means that after you enjoy your meal you’ll feel satiated and satisfied for hours afterward. Plus it helps to keep energy levels stable!
So, what are the highest protein items at Subway? Any sandwich with the oven-roasted chicken breast is going to make the top of the list, but other great proteins include steak, chicken strips, eggs, cold cuts, meatballs, tuna, and deli meats like turkey breast, ham, and roast beef.
Read on to discover which items at Subway are the highest in protein and how to adjust your order to up the protein content!
The Highest Protein Items At Subway
One of the great things about Subway is that there’s a lot of customization available, but you can also choose from a list of pre-designed sandwiches.
Below I’ll list the classic Subway sandwiches with the highest protein content and then outline some proteins you can use as the base to design your own.
1. Chicken Bacon Ranch Melt
This sandwich takes top slot with a whopping 76 grams of protein in a 12-inch sandwich thanks to a combination of hand-pulled rotisserie chicken, hickory-smoked bacon, and Provolone cheese.
2. Baja Chicken & Bacon Melt
Another solid contender for protein content is the Baja Chicken & Bacon melt.
It has 69 grams of protein in a 12-inch sandwich thanks to a combination of hand-pulled rotisserie chicken, hickory-smoked bacon, and Pepper Jack cheese.
3. Baja Steak & Jack Melt
Our next sandwich comes pretty close to the top slot with 63 total grams of protein per sandwich.
The steak and cheese give you a hearty hit of protein in this delicious sandwich. If you want to up the protein content feel free to add some bacon!
4. Tuna Melt
Another protein-packed choice is the Tuna Melt, which contains about 60 grams of protein per foot-long sandwich.
Tuna is a delicious choice if you’re looking for some protein that comes from the sea as opposed to chicken, beef, or pork.
5. Turkey Cali Fresh
A lot of the sandwiches on this list are pretty heavy thanks to cheese and bacon and other goodness.
But if you want something a little lighter and fresher, that still has a great amount of protein this Turkey Cali Fresh sandwich has 56 grams and that’s without bacon or cheese!
6. Meatball Marinara Melt
A foot-long meatball sub doesn’t have quite as much protein as the steak or chicken sandwiches, but it still has a solid 50 grams of protein, which is nothing to turn up your nose at!
It’s also a yummy choice that’s a little different from the stand steak and cheese or chicken and bacon sandwiches.
7. All American Club Sandwich
Sometimes you want to go with a classic, like the Club Sandwich. This sub is a delicious combo of oven-roasted turkey, Black Forest ham, hickory-smoked bacon, and American cheese.
It’s a little lighter than some other offerings, but still has a solid 50 grams of protein.
8. Bacon Egg And Cheese
I am a sucker for a breakfast sandwich, and they actually make a great high protein choice! A foot-long bacon, egg, and cheese sandwich has 47 grams of protein, making it a fabulously filling way to start your day.
What Meats Have The Highest Protein At Subway?
Now that we’ve gone through some pre-designed Subway sandwiches with the highest protein, let’s take a look at which meats have the highest protein content.
Once you know which meats are highest in protein you can design your own sandwich based on your preference.
Rotisserie Style Chicken
The sandwiches on the menu made with the rotisserie-style chicken consistently rank with the highest amounts of protein, so this is a good choice for folks who want a lean, but protein-rich meat option.
Steak
Steak is another meat on the menu that is consistently in the highest protein sandwiches. However, steak is a little richer than chicken, so it’s best for folks who like a heartier sandwich.
Meatballs
While they aren’t quite as high in protein as steak and chicken, meatballs make another delicious protein source for a filling sandwich.
Tuna
A great choice for folks who maybe don’t want to eat animal protein but enjoy fish. It ranks pretty high in protein content!
Turkey And/Or Ham
Deli meats may not be quite as protein-dense as some other choices, but they are often a little lighter and fresher tasting.
Egg
I love eggs, and they are a fabulous choice for folks who are perhaps vegetarian. Rich in protein and other nutrients, I find egg sandwiches from subway super filling!
How To Alter Subway Menu Items To Increase Protein Content
If you want to add even more protein to your subway sandwiches there are a few little tricks you can try. Remember that foods higher in protein at Subway, in particular, are going to be animal products or their by-products.
Double The Meat
One of the easiest ways to increase the protein content in your Subway sandwich is by doubling the meat. It costs about $1.50 to double the meat on a 6-inch and about $3.00 to double the meat on a 12-inch sandwich.
By doubling the meat you can go from 25 grams of protein in an All American Club Sandwich to 50 grams.
Adding extra meat is a great choice for folks who struggle to meet their daily protein intake or who don’t tend to eat a lot of protein at other meals.
You can also double the meat if you’re working with a trainer to build muscle.
Some other sandwiches (Baja Steak and Jack Melt and Chicken Bacon Melt) will have roughly 60-70 grams of protein without doubling the meat, so it depends on which sandwich you order.
Add Bacon
If you don’t want to go as far as doubling all the meat, but you still want to add some extra protein to your Subway meal, you can add some slices of bacon instead.
Each serving of bacon that you add to your sandwich provides an extra 5 grams of protein.
It costs about $.75 to add bacon to a salad or a 6-inch sandwich. If you’re getting a foot-long sandwich, it costs about $1.50 for extra bacon.
Add Pepperoni
Another choice for some extra protein that doesn’t require you doubling up on ALL the meat in your sandwich is to add some pepperoni.
Each serving of pepperoni added to your sandwich provides an additional 3 grams of protein, which can be a nice little boost to your meal.
Like bacon, it costs about $.75 to add pepperoni to a salad or a 6-inch sandwich. If you’re getting a foot-long sandwich, it costs about $1.50 for extra pepperoni.
Add Extra Cheese
But what if you don’t want to add any extra meat to your sandwich? Is there another way to up the protein?
Well as this header gives away, cheese also provides a little extra protein kick to your meal. So you can also enhance the protein in your Subway sandwich by adding some extra cheese slices.
There are typically 5 types of cheese served at Subway and the protein content ranges from about 2 grams per serving to 4 grams.
I’ll list them below so you can choose your favorite or pick the one with the highest amount of protein.
- American Cheese: 2 grams of protein
- Monterey Cheddar Cheese: 3 grams of protein
- Pepper Jack Cheese: 3 grams of protein
- Provolone Cheese: 4 grams of protein
- Swiss Cheese: 4 grams of protein
To add extra cheese to your sandwich costs about $0.30 per 6 inches and about $0.60 per foot long. These prices make it affordable to add up to 4 grams per serving to your sandwich!
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