Ka’Chava Review: Expert Tested (2024) | Garage Gym Reviews (2024)

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Ka’Chava, a premium-priced meal replacement shake, gets a lot of praise on social media, but sometimes it’s hard to tell if an influencer really loves a product they recommend. To help you decide if Ka’Chava is worth it—it’s expensive, after all—GGR editor and expert product tester Frieda Johnson tried it for a couple of weeks. She rated it on several factors, like formulation, taste, solubility, side effects, and the overall customer experience.

In this Ka’Chava review, we’ll give you all the details about her experience, and let you know who might like it and who should skip it.

Medical disclaimer: This article is intended for educational and informational purposes only. It is not intended as a substitute for medical advice. For health advice, contact a licensed healthcare provider. GGR also recommends choosing a product that has been third-party tested for quality.

We’re Experienced and Honest

Collectively, we’ve tried more than 100 of the best protein powders, meal replacement shakes, and pre-made protein shakes, so we have a lot to say—and we’re always honest about our experiences. As a team of certified personal trainers, certified nutrition coaches, and certified CrossFit-L1 trainers, we take our professional duty to recommend the best supplements and meal replacement shakes really seriously.

A Quick Look at Ka’Chava

Ka’Chava markets itself as “the world’s healthiest shake,” and while we can’t confirm or deny those claims, the ingredients, macronutrients, and micronutrients do look really good. Each shake contains around 85 various superfood ingredients that make it an all-in-one nutrition shake.

That being said, the calories are a little low for a meal replacement shake, but the macros are balanced and Ka’Chava says this was on purpose—they wanted to make a filling shake that wasn’t too energy-dense.

We’ll get more into the formulation later, but here are some tips for now.

Before You Buy

• If you don’t like the flavor, you can exchange it within 30 days for another one or get store credit.
• You’ll get free shipping if you buy two or more bags; otherwise it’s $7.95.
• You can save $10 per bag if you sign up for a subscription.

Is Ka’Chava Worth It?

It really depends. At almost $5 per serving, Ka’Chava is one of the most expensive meal replacement powders we’ve tried. But the ingredient list is almost fully organic, and there are tons of beneficial superfoods in the shake.

RELATED: Best Organic Protein Powder

Cost can be relative, though; what’s expensive for one person may not feel expensive to another. Because of that, we think it’s worth it for some people but maybe not for others.

Ka’Chava Specs

Experience Using Ka’Chava

Frieda Johnson, GGR editor, tested Ka’Chava over the course of several weeks. There were many things she liked about it and some she didn’t. Let’s get into it.

Price Per Serving

We won’t beat around the bush. Ka’Chava is expensive, which is why Frieda gave it a 1 out of 5 rating here.

“Overall, I feel like there are more affordable products out there that are just as good. I plan to continue using this since I have it, but I wouldn’t buy it again,” she says.

One bag, which is only 15 servings, costs $70, which breaks down to $4.66 per serving. If you subscribe through the website, you can save $10 per bag, which brings the price down to $3.99 per two-scoop serving.

Formulation

Frieda gave Ka’Chava an overall score of 4 out of 5 for formulation with one caveat: It gets a 2 out of 5 for calories.

Let’s start with the good. The ingredient list in this shake is impressive. Most of the ingredients are organic, which accounts for its higher price. It combines several different “blends,” which include:

• Plant-based protein blend: A blend of yellow pea protein, whole grain brown rice protein, organic sacha inchi, organic amaranth, and organic quinoa.
• Fiber and omega-3 essential fatty acid blend: The main ingredients here are whole-grain oats, acacia gum, chia seeds, and flax.
• Antioxidant and super-fruit blend: This combines a boatload of superfoods, like coconut flower nectar, acai berry, camu-camu berry, and more.
• Adaptogen blend: Some notable callouts here are maca root, organic shiitake mushroom, and organic reishi mushroom.
• Super-greens/vegetable blend: This has 17 total greens and vegetables, all of which are organic.
• Probiotic/prebiotic blend: A blend of inulin and two types of Lactobacillus bacteria.
• Digestive enzyme blend: All of the enzymes, like amylase, protease, and lipase, that help you break down macronutrients.

Aside from that, there’s no added sugar; it only has natural sweeteners and flavors. And it’s gluten-free, dairy-free, and soy-free.

The macronutrients look good too. There are 25 grams of protein, which is about what you’d get from a good protein powder, 24 grams of carbohydrates (6 of which come from fiber), and 7 grams of fat.

And because there are so many whole-food ingredients, it’s loaded with micronutrients, too. You’ll get anywhere from 6% to 250% of your daily vitamins and minerals, including vitamin A, vitamin C, magnesium, vitamin B12, and zinc (to name a few).

RELATED: Best Magnesium Supplement

Now for the not-so-great. This is marketed as a meal replacement shake, which means it should have enough calories to replace a meal. While everyone’s meal calories look different, of course, these shakes only have 240 calories per serving, which is on the lower side and not enough to actually count as a meal, in our opinion.

Taste and Solubility

Friede gave Ka’Chava’s shakes decent to good ratings for taste and solubility.

She tried the chai flavor and liked it. “It’s a nice change from vanilla/chocolate, although I wouldn’t say it necessarily tastes like chai. It’s not something I would look forward to drinking every day, but it’s pleasant enough to drink once in a while,” she says. She added that she liked that they have more creative flavors than other meal replacements she’s tried, which earned it a total of 4 out of 5 in this category.

As for texture and solubility? That got a 3 out of 5 because it was “a bit gritty, but not undrinkable.”

RELATED: Best-Tasting Protein Powder

Side Effects

Side effects were minimal. Frieda said she felt a little bloated after drinking this, but there was nothing extreme to report, so she rated it a 3.5 out of 5 in this category.

Third-Party Testing

Ka’Chava follows Current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP) guidelines. This is enforced by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and means there are extensive manufacturing controls in place to ensure the strength, quality, and purity of ingredients.

Aside from this, Ka’Chava claims to test its products in-house and says, “A third-party laboratory is used when verification and validation steps are needed.” This is pretty vague and since they also use several proprietary blends, meaning we don’t know for sure the amounts of all ingredients, Frieda scored them a 2.5 out of 5 in this category.

Comparison to Huel Complete Ready-to-Drink

The Ka’Chava meal replacement powder and Huel Complete Ready-to-Drink shakes have some similarities, but there are also notable differences. The most obvious is that the Huel shake isn’t a powder—it’s already pre-mixed and ready to drink; you just shake it up and drink it.

Ka’Chava also has considerably more ingredients, which gives it a better micronutrient profile. Here’s how the two stack up side-by-side. (Keep in mind that this breakdown is per serving, but a 16.9-ounce bottle of Huel contains two servings.)

Customer Experience

GGR editor Frieda Johnson gave Ka’Chava a 4.5 out of 5 for customer experience because of the company’s generous exchange policy. You can try Ka’Chava for 30 days and if you don’t like it, you can swap it for a different flavor or get store credit toward your next purchase.

Ka’Chava also makes it easy to reach a customer service agent. You can chat directly through the site from 9 am to 9 pm EST and quickly request a human instead of an AI bot.

Ordering Ka’Chava

Ka’Chava is available on Amazon or directly through the brand’s site. If you purchase through Amazon, you’ll be subject to their ordering and return policies. Note that you won’t be able to take advantage of the exchange policy if you order through Amazon.

If you order directly through the Ka’Chava website, you can make a one-time purchase or sign up for automatic deliveries for a $10 discount per bag. If you sign up for a subscription, Ka’Chava makes it easy to skip a delivery right through your account dashboard, which is another plus. Ka’Chava also offers a discount for first responders, medical personnel, and students.

If you order two or more bags, shipping is free. For one bag, you’ll pay $7.95.

Customer Reviews

Ka’Chava has tons of customer reviews. There are almost 70,000 on the brand’s website with a 4.6-star average and more than 8,000 on Amazon with a 4.3-star average.

Reviewers say it tastes good, gives them energy, and fills them up. Several reviewers pointed out that they actually scaled back on the serving size because they found two scoops too filling.

“Excellent flavor and texture, and I feel full after. I have a shake a day, sometimes twice as a meal replacement, and don’t feel hungry,” writes one five-star reviewer.

Another, who says they weren’t on a “crusade to lose weight or eat super healthy all the time” writes “I bought a bag because I often look for something quick and easy for lunch at work and have tried a LOT of different meal replacement/protein shakes. Either they taste great and have really iffy nutritional value and high sugar, or they are really healthy, high in protein, low carb and taste like chalky, watery paste…Let me be clear, this does not taste great or amazing, in my opinion. But more importantly (for me at least), it does not taste bad like so many other drinks I’ve tried.”

Final Verdict of Our Ka’Chava Review

There was a lot we liked about the Ka’Chava meal replacement shakes.

• They have an exceptional ingredient list
• They tasted pretty good
• We didn’t experience any major side effects when drinking them
• Their return policies are really fair

But it’s expensive. At almost $5 per serving, these are some of the most expensive meal replacement shakes we tried. Granted, if you’re actually replacing a meal it could be worth it to you.

Full Rating

Ka’Chava Review: FAQs

These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any diseases.

References

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2. Panossian A, Wikman G. Evidence-based efficacy of adaptogens in fatigue, and molecular mechanisms related to their stress-protective activity. Curr Clin Pharmacol. 2009;4(3):198-219. doi:10.2174/157488409789375311