Which protein brands do Indian buyers talk about most?
Optimum Nutrition leads buyer discussion among profiled protein brands at 31%, followed by Nakpro (16%), The Whole Truth (12%), MuscleBlaze (11%) and Amul (10%) (NBW Brain, September 2026). Share of discussion measures attention, not market share.
The finding in brief
- Optimum Nutrition is discussed almost twice as often as the next brand.
- The top five brands account for 80% of the discussion among profiled brands.
- Share of discussion can rise with controversy, such as a price rise, as well as with use.
From the report
Share of customer discussion by brand
Optimum Nutrition
31%
Mid-range in sample
Nakpro
16%
Mid-range in sample
The Whole Truth
12%
Price not comparable
MuscleBlaze
11%
Premium-priced in sample
Amul
10%
Price not comparable
AS-IT-IS
8%
Price not comparable
Cosmix
6%
Price not comparable
Avvatar
6%
Price not comparable
“Are they better? No. Do they taste good? No. Do they have equivalent protein content? Yes. Are they cheap? Hell yeah.”
What it means for brands
Being discussed is not the same as being chosen. MuscleBlaze has 11% of the discussion but loses more buyers than it gains through switching (−62%).
Questions
- Is share of discussion the same as market share?
- No. It shows which brands buyers talk about in the evidence, which reflects attention and controversy as well as use. Market share needs sales data.
- Is this based on sales data?
- No. NBW Brain findings come from what Indian buyers say they did and why, in their own words, coded to a fixed codebook and checked against independent market research. They are not purchase data and not a representative survey, so shares describe the evidence, not the whole market.
How to read this: shares describe the evidence, with the base (n) shown. Findings come from what Indian buyers say they did and why, in their own words. Not purchase data and not a representative survey.