Food labels give protein per serving, but most of what we eat has no label: a chicken breast, a bowl of lentils, eggs. This calculator adds up the protein in up to five foods plus eggs, using laboratory values from the USDA FoodData Central database, and compares the total with your daily target.
How it is calculated
Each food has a protein value per 100 g. The calculator multiplies it by the weight you enter: protein = weight in grams × protein per 100 g ÷ 100. Ounces are converted at 28.35 g per ounce. Eggs are counted as large eggs of 50 g each, without the shell.
Weigh food the way the table describes it. Meat, fish, beans, rice and pasta are listed cooked, because that is how you weigh them on the plate. Cooking removes water but not protein, so cooked meat has more protein per gram than raw. For milk and soy milk, 100 ml weighs about 100 g.
Example
A day that starts with 2 large eggs and 40 g (1.4 oz) of oats, then 170 g (6 oz) of Greek yogurt and 150 g (5.3 oz) of chicken breast: 12.6 + 5.3 + 17.3 + 46.5 = 81.7 g of protein. For a 75 kg (165 lb) person who trains, the protein calculator gives a target of about 105 g, so about 23 g are still missing: roughly 75 g (2.6 oz) more chicken or 260 g (9 oz) of cooked lentils.
Why the numbers differ from other lists
Protein varies by cut, brand and cooking. Lean sirloin has more than fatty ground beef, nonfat Greek yogurt more than full-fat. Treat the results as a good estimate. For packaged food, the label on your product is more accurate than any table.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate protein in my food?
For packaged food, multiply the grams of protein per serving on the label by the servings you eat. For food without a label, weigh it and multiply the weight by the protein per 100 g, then divide by 100. Example: 150 g (5.3 oz) of cooked chicken breast × 31 g ÷ 100 = 46.5 g of protein.
How to measure protein in food at home?
You cannot test protein at home; labs measure it chemically. What you can do is weigh the food on a kitchen scale and use a database value, as this calculator does. Weigh cooked food as cooked and dry food as dry, because water changes the weight but not the protein.
How much protein is in one egg?
A large egg has about 6.3 g of protein (50 g, or 1.8 oz, without the shell). About 3.6 g of it is in the white and the rest in the yolk. A medium egg (44 g) has about 5.5 g, an extra-large one (56 g) about 7 g.
Is 5 eggs 30g of protein?
Yes, about. Five large eggs have 31.4 g of protein. With medium eggs it is closer to 28 g.
How many eggs do I need to eat to get 20 grams of protein?
Three large eggs give 18.8 g, four give 25.1 g. So 20 g takes a little more than three eggs. Egg whites alone take more: six large whites give 21.6 g.
Are 2 eggs enough protein?
Two large eggs give 12.6 g of protein. That is a light meal: a review on muscle building suggests about 0.4 g per kg of body weight per meal, which is 30 g for a 75 kg (165 lb) person. Add 170 g (6 oz) of Greek yogurt, or toast with peanut butter, to reach the range.
What food is the highest in protein?
Per 100 g (3.5 oz) in this list: hulled hemp seeds (31.6 g), cooked chicken breast (31.0 g), pumpkin seeds (30.2 g), then turkey breast and sirloin steak (29.5 g each). Seeds are high in fat and calories, so in practice lean meat, fish, egg whites, Greek yogurt and tofu give the most protein per calorie.
How to get 100 grams of protein a day?
Spread it over three or four meals. One example: 3 large eggs (18.8 g), 170 g (6 oz) of Greek yogurt (17.3 g), 150 g (5.3 oz) of chicken breast (46.5 g) and 200 g (7 oz) of cooked lentils (18.0 g) add up to 100.7 g.
Read more
- How much protein per day to lose weight for a womanWhile losing weight, aim for 1.8 to 2.4 g of protein per kg of body weight, the same rule as for men. A table by weight from 120 to 250 lb, a sample day with 134 g, and when to use your goal weight instead.
- How much protein do you need by age?Protein needs per kilogram are highest in toddlers, settle at 0.8 g/kg in adults and rise again after 65. A table of the official values by age, what they mean at your weight, and why experts ask older adults to eat more than the RDA.
Sources
- USDA Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central
- USDA FoodData Central: SR Legacy dataset (April 2018), downloads
- Schoenfeld BJ, Aragon AA. How much protein can the body use in a single meal for muscle-building? JISSN, 2018
By Calcelate Team. Formula from the sources above.
- 2026-10-06 · Formula and texts checked
- 2018-04 · Reference data as of this date