The species was published under the name Dryandra proteoides by John Lindley in his 1840 A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony, where he described it as having "much the look of a Cape Protea".
Dryandra proteoides was first described by John Lindley in his 1840 publication A Sketch of the Vegetation of the Swan River Colony. He observed that the species shared a notable similarity with the Cape Protea.