Abstract Faced with new trends in healthy eating, there is a need to expand this market. The Argentine Society of Nutrition, based on local and international studies, has suggested that an adequate intake of dairy products not only provides calcium but also provides compounds associated with a decrease in the risk of chronic inflammatory diseases. The objectives of this work were to formulate and develop beverages based on orange juice with the addition of liquid and powdered whey, sweetened naturally, and study the physicochemical, nutritional and sensory characteristics. The samples were homogenized and pasteurized at 85 °C for 30 minutes and the pH value, acidity, solids content and colour were analyzed. A just-about-right (JAR) scale was used to evaluate the intensities of the acid taste, bitter taste and flavour, and also the colour attributes, and a 5-point hedonic scale was used to evaluate the global acceptability of the samples. The intensity analyses showed that the taste and colour were “ideal”. With respect to global acceptability, the pleasant categories scored more than 60% and only 10% considered it unpleasant. The beverage presented a pH value, colour and solids content similar to those of other citrus beverages, and was rated as pleasant by the consumers.