Is Huel Keto Friendly? The Truth About Carbs in Huel (2026)

Huel on keto... sounds like it could work, doesn't it?

Complete nutrition. Convenient. Your mate at work swears by it.

Sadly, ost Huel products are loaded with carbs that'll boot you out of ketosis before you've finished shaking the bottle.

The good news? Understanding exactly why Huel doesn't work for keto means you can stop wondering and start making better choices.

At The Keto Collective, the Huel question comes up constantly. People see "low carb option available" on the marketing and assume it's keto-friendly. It isn't!

Let's sort this out and go through each Huel product.

You'll discover why standard Huel is a no-go, whether Huel Black is any better (spoiler: not really), and why those Huel bars are hiding some seriously sneaky ingredients. 

Plus, what actually works if you want convenient keto nutrition.

Before we tear into the products, let's get something straight.

"Low carb" and "keto" aren't the same thing. Not even close..

These ratios aren't random. They're the formula that switches your body from burning glucose to burning fat. That metabolic state? Ketosis. It's the whole point.

When you cut carbs and eat plenty of fat, your liver breaks down fatty acids into molecules called ketones. These ketones become fuel for your brain and body instead of glucose.

Get the ratios wrong? You're just eating low carb. Fine for general weight management. But it won't get you into proper ketosis.

Now, people vary. Some folks stay in ketosis with slightly more protein—maybe 25% of calories. Others need to be stricter. But carbohydrate restriction is always the non-negotiable bit.

Keep carbs low, you've got a fighting chance. Consume 38g of carbs in a single shake? You're not doing keto.

Huel calls itself "complete nutrition." And fair play—from a micronutrient perspective, they're bang on. 27 vitamins and minerals. All the essentials covered.

But complete nutrition doesn't automatically mean keto-friendly...

Short answer? No.

Standard Huel Powder has a macro split of 37% carbs, 30% protein, 30% fat.

One 400-calorie serving (two scoops) gives you:

• 38–39g net carbs (depending on flavour)
• 30g protein
• 13g fat

Compare this to the keto requirement of 5–10% carbs. Huel's giving you 37%.

Put it this way. A single Huel shake contains almost double your entire daily carb allowance if you're targeting 20g. Even if you're more relaxed with a 50g daily limit, one shake wipes out 75% of your budget before breakfast is done.

Yeah, that's a no.

The main carb sources in Huel are gluten-free oats and tapioca starch. Both perfectly healthy for most people. But neither are remotely keto compatible.

Here's what happens when you drink a standard Huel shake.

Those oats and tapioca get broken down into glucose. Your blood sugar rises. Your pancreas releases insulin. And that insulin spike does something crucial: it inhibits an enzyme called CPT-1, which transports fatty acids into your cells to be burned for fuel.

Translation? A glucose-heavy meal literally shuts down your fat-burning machinery. For hours after drinking Huel, your body's in storage mode. Not ketosis mode.

Oats might have a lower glycaemic index than white bread. Brilliant. But they're still carbohydrate-dense. A lower GI just means the glucose hits your bloodstream slightly slower. Doesn't mean there's less of it.

Standard Huel follows government guidelines. In the UK, Public Health England recommends about 50% of calories from carbs. 

And that's exactly what keto avoids.

Verdict: Standard Huel is not keto friendly. Not even close.

Right. Standard Huel's out. What about Huel Black?

This is where people get confused.

Huel Black markets itself as the "high protein, lower carb" option. The macro split is 17% carbs, 40% protein, 40% fat.

At first glance, 17% carbs looks promising. Less than half the carbs of standard Huel.

But here's the problem...

17% carbs is still roughly double the 5–10% you need for ketosis. Even at the lower end, 13g in Unflavoured, that's 65% of a strict 20g daily limit in a single meal. Choose Peanut Butter, and you're at 90% of your daily allowance. 

Gone. Before you've eaten anything else.

The maths just doesn't work.

You'll see this claim everywhere in keto circles: "Excess protein converts to glucose through gluconeogenesis."

Sounds scary. Eat too much chicken and your body turns it into sugar!

Except... it's mostly wrong.

Here's what actually happens.

Gluconeogenesis (GNG) is real. Your liver creates glucose from non-carbohydrate sources, including amino acids from protein.

But here's the bit most people miss: gluconeogenesis is demand-driven, not supply-driven.

Your body doesn't automatically convert protein to glucose just because amino acids are floating around. Your liver produces glucose at a fairly constant rate to supply tissues that genuinely need it, like red blood cells that can't use ketones.

A 2013 study in Diabetes found that even under optimal gluconeogenic conditions, dietary amino acids contributed only about 8% of glucose production. The rate stays stable regardless of how much protein you eat.

So eating 40g of protein won't magically "turn into cake" in your bloodstream.

If gluconeogenesis isn't the villain, what is?

Insulin.

Protein, especially the branched-chain amino acids in pea and rice protein (which Huel Black uses), stimulates your pancreas to release insulin. Not as dramatically as carbs, but enough to matter.

Ketosis needs low insulin and high glucagon. When you consume 40g of protein with only 17g of fat (roughly a 2.3:1 protein-to-fat ratio), you get a moderate insulin response without adequate fat to buffer it.

This insulin release inhibits lipolysis, the release of fatty acids from your fat cells. Your body might not be making extra glucose from that protein. But it's also not efficiently burning fat and producing ketones.

That's backwards.

Bottom line: Huel Black won't "kick you out of ketosis" through gluconeogenesis. But its ratios—too much protein, not enough fat, borderline-too-many carbs—make it poorly suited for maintaining ketosis in most people.

Huel knows Black Edition isn't keto-compliant as sold. They publish an official recipe: mix 50g Huel Black with 50g desiccated coconut.

This brings the macros to roughly 12% carbs, 18% protein, 70% fat.

Technically keto friendly!

But let's be honest about what you're actually doing here.

You could get the same macros far more affordably by mixing any protein powder with coconut oil, butter, or double cream.

The hack works mathematically. But it defeats the point of buying Huel in the first place.

Verdict: Huel Black is not keto friendly without significant modification. Even then, you're paying for a workaround.

Here's where things get properly sneaky.

Huel Complete Nutrition Bars are the most problematic product for keto. And the issues go deeper than macros.

Each 210-calorie bar contains:

• 16–19g net carbs (varies by flavour)
• 13–14g protein
• 7–9g fat

That's roughly 36% carbs, 24% protein, 36% fat by calories.

A single bar consumes nearly your entire daily carb allowance on keto. And the macro split is protein-forward, not fat-forward. The opposite of what ketosis needs.

But the real problem isn't the macros. It's the maltitol.

Huel bars contain maltitol in both the chocolate coating and as a sweetener. This matters more than you'd think.

What is maltitol?

A sugar alcohol. It provides sweetness without being classified as "sugar" on the label. Many low-carb products use it because it lets them claim impressive net carb numbers.

But maltitol is not metabolically inert. Not even close.

The glycaemic index reality:

Maltitol has a GI between 35 and 52. Lower than sugar, yes. But nowhere near zero-impact sweeteners like erythritol or stevia.

The absorption problem:

About 50–60% of maltitol is absorbed in your small intestine. Your body converts it to glucose and sorbitol. Studies show maltitol produces an insulin response roughly 50–75% as strong as regular sugar.

Here's where the label lies to you.

When companies calculate net carbs, they subtract all sugar alcohols from the total carbohydrate count. The label maths works like this:

• Total carbs: 23g
• Minus fibre: 5g
• Minus maltitol: 14g
• "Net carbs": 4g

Looks great on the packet.

But that's not what happens in your body.

Because maltitol is partially absorbed and raises blood glucose, experts recommend only subtracting about half of it. The real calculation:

• Total carbs: 23g
• Minus fibre: 5g
• Minus (maltitol ÷ 2): 7g
• Effective net carbs: 11g

So those "low net carb" Huel bars? They're hitting your metabolism more like 11–14g of effective carbs per bar. That's enough to stall ketosis for many people.

Maltitol causes digestive problems. This isn't scaremongering—it's documented in clinical trials.

When maltitol isn't fully absorbed in your small intestine, it passes to your large intestine where bacteria ferment it. The results?

Bloating. Gas. Cramping. And at higher doses—what the scientific literature politely calls "osmotic diarrhoea."

Lovely.

Symptoms kick in at doses of 30–40g. A couple of Huel bars could put you there.

The bars actually carry a warning: "Excessive consumption may produce laxative effects." Required by UK regulations.

Not exactly the smooth keto experience you're after.

Beyond maltitol, Huel bars contain:

• Corn fibre (fibre source)
• Wheat gluten (structure)
• Glycerol (keeps bars moist)
• Rice protein (main protein source)
• Various binding agents and emulsifiers

These are processed bars designed for convenience and complete nutrition. For most people, they do that job.

For keto dieters? The maltitol, the carb-forward macros, the insulinogenic protein without adequate fat—they're working against you on multiple fronts.

Verdict: Huel bars are not keto friendly. The maltitol alone disqualifies them.

Quick mention of their Hot & Savoury range—Mac & Cheeze, Pasta Bolognese, Thai Green Curry, that sort of thing.

These use rice, quinoa, and pasta as their base. The carb content? 50–60g per serving.

That's not borderline. That's not "with modification." That's simply incompatible with any form of keto.

If you're doing keto, Hot & Savoury isn't even a conversation worth having.

Verdict: Categorically not keto friendly.

You might be thinking: "I've seen people eat Huel on keto. They seem fine."

They're probably doing one of two things...

"Lazy keto" tracks only carbs, not the full macro split. Stay under 20–50g carbs per day, job done. No worrying about protein or fat ratios.

For some people, this works. They lose weight. They feel better. Brilliant.

But it's not the same as the ketogenic diet we're discussing, where the goal is to enter and maintain nutritional ketosis. For that, you need proper macro ratios, not just low carbs.

Some people use "keto" as shorthand for any carb-restricted diet. They might be eating 50–100g carbs daily. Low-carb by government standards, yes. Nowhere near ketogenic.

Nothing wrong with that approach if it works for them. But call it what it is: low carb, not keto.

If you want Huel as part of a general low-carb diet, go for it. 

Huel Black with its 13–18g net carbs could fit a 50g daily budget. 

But if you're pursuing nutritional ketosis for the mental clarity, sustained energy, or therapeutic benefits, these products won't get you there consistently.

Huel's micronutrient profile is genuinely impressive. 27 vitamins and minerals. All the essentials. They've done their homework.

But here's what I see constantly.

Huel follows government dietary guidelines. In the UK, those recommend:

• About 50% of energy from carbs
• No more than 35% from fat
• Around 15–20% from protein

Keto flips this entirely:

• 70–75% from fat
• 15–20% from protein
• 5–10% from carbs

You can't have both. 

Huel chose one approach,the mainstream, government-backed approach. Perfectly valid for most people.

But it means Huel products aren't designed for ketosis. They're designed for glucose-based metabolism.

The ketogenic diet works by depleting your glycogen stores and keeping insulin low. When glycogen runs out and insulin drops, your liver starts breaking down fatty acids into ketone bodies.

These ketones, beta-hydroxybutyrate, acetoacetate, and acetone, become fuel for your brain and body instead of glucose.

This is why fat needs to dominate your calories. Not protein. Not carbs. Fat.

Enough carbohydrate and enough insulinogenic protein to keep you in a metabolic grey zone, not quite glucose-dependent, not quite ketogenic.

True keto snacks should have a macro profile that supports fat adaptation:

• 70%+ calories from fat
• Moderate protein (enough for maintenance, not excess)
• Minimal carbs (ideally under 5g per serving)

That's what keeps you in ketosis between meals.

Here's how the numbers actually stack up:

*Huel bar net carbs are likely 4–6g higher in metabolic reality due to maltitol absorption.

Full disclosure: I'm the founder of The Keto Collective, so obviously I'm biased. Take that into account. But I'll explain why we formulated our bars the way we did.

When we created The Keto Collective bars, we started with ketosis biochemistry and worked backwards.

We don't use maltitol, artificial sweeteners, or sugar alcohols that impact blood glucose. We use chicory root fibre (inulin), a natural prebiotic with a glycaemic index of zero.

Inulin passes through without being absorbed. It ferments in your colon, feeding beneficial gut bacteria and producing short-chain fatty acids (particularly butyrate) that actually improve insulin sensitivity.

You're not just avoiding a glucose spike, you're actively supporting metabolic health.

11.8–12.6g of prebiotic fibre per bar. Nearly half your daily requirement. Good for your gut, stable for your blood glucose.

The texture's different from processed protein bars. Less chewy, more natural. Because they're held together with real nuts and seeds, not binding agents and sugar alcohols.

They taste like actual food. Because that's what they are.

If you're attached to Huel and want to make it work for a lower-carb (not keto) approach:

For Huel Black:

• Use smaller portions (half serving = ~7–9g net carbs)
• Add fat: double cream, MCT oil, nut butter
• Treat it as one component of your day, not a complete meal
• Choose Unflavoured for lowest carbs (13g vs 18g for Peanut Butter)

For Huel Bars:

• Accept they're occasional convenience, not a keto staple
• Account for real maltitol impact (add 4–6g to stated net carbs)
• Consider whether the digestive side effects are worth it

The honest assessment:

You can make Huel fit a liberal low-carb diet. You cannot make it genuinely ketogenic without so much modification you've essentially created a different product.

Huel makes brilliant products for what they're designed to do: provide complete, balanced nutrition based on government guidelines.

Their mission is making nutritionally complete food convenient and accessible. They've nailed it. For busy professionals who want to hit their micronutrient targets without cooking, Huel is genuinely excellent.

But convenience nutrition and ketogenic nutrition are different approaches. One prioritises balanced macros according to mainstream standards. The other deliberately skews macros to induce a specific metabolic state.

If you want convenient, complete nutrition with moderate carbs and you're not fussed about ketosis, Huel is excellent.

If you want nutritional ketosis, for mental clarity, sustained energy, appetite control, or therapeutic benefits, you need proper keto macros. Which Huel simply doesn't provide.

Read our article on Huel vs Keto for more info!

If you're doing general low-carb eating and feeling good, Huel Black might fit a 50g daily budget. But if you're pursuing nutritional ketosis for the mental clarity, sustained energy, or therapeutic benefits, these products won't get you there.

Your body knows the difference. Even if the marketing doesn't make it obvious.

For true keto snacks that support ketosis rather than compromise it, The Keto Collective bars are available at keto-co.com. Made with minimal ingredients, no artificial sweeteners, and proper keto macros.

A Note on the Science

This article has been fact-checked against current research on gluconeogenesis, insulin signalling, and sugar alcohol metabolism. Key points:

1. Gluconeogenesis is demand-driven, not supply-driven. High protein doesn't automatically "turn into sugar", the concern with Huel Black's protein relates to insulin response, not glucose conversion.
2. Maltitol's glycaemic index (35–52) and partial absorption are well-documented. Count approximately half of maltitol grams as effective carbs.
3. Keto macro requirements vary between individuals. While 70–75% fat is standard, some maintain ketosis at slightly higher protein. Carbohydrate restriction remains the key factor.

We believe in getting the science right, even when it means correcting our own content.