Calories & Nutrition for 91,612+ Foods

What Are Calories?

A calorie, more precisely a kilocalorie (kcal), is the unit used to measure the energy provided by food and drink. Your body uses this energy continuously: to breathe, maintain body temperature, power muscle movement, and support every metabolic process that keeps you alive. When your calorie intake matches your energy expenditure, your weight stays broadly stable. Consume more than you burn and the surplus is stored as body fat; consume less and your body draws on those stores instead.

The NHS recommends that adult women aim for approximately 2,000 kcal per day and adult men around 2,500 kcal per day. These are population averages; your personal requirement depends on your age, height, current weight, and how active you are. Use the Daily Calorie Need tab inside the calculator above to get a personalised estimate based on your details.

Understanding Macronutrients

Every calorie you eat comes from one of three macronutrients: carbohydrates, protein, or fat, each used differently by the body:

• Carbohydrates provide 4 kcal per gram and are the body's preferred fuel source, particularly for the brain and during exercise. The UK government recommends carbohydrates make up around 50% of total energy intake. Breads, grains, and cereals are the most common sources in a typical UK diet.
• Protein provides 4 kcal per gram and is essential for building and repairing muscle tissue, producing enzymes and hormones, and supporting immune function. The UK Reference Nutrient Intake (RNI) for protein is 50g per day. Meat and poultry, fish and seafood, and legumes and pulses are the richest dietary sources.
• Fat provides 9 kcal per gram, more than twice that of carbohydrates or protein, and is vital for absorbing fat-soluble vitamins A, D, E, and K, hormone production, and insulating body organs. The NHS recommends fat provides no more than 35% of daily energy. Browse nuts and seeds or fats and oils to compare fat profiles across common ingredients.

Dietary fibre, a form of carbohydrate the body cannot fully digest, contributes around 2 kcal per gram and plays a crucial role in gut health, blood sugar regulation, and reducing the risk of bowel disease. UK adults are advised to consume at least 30g of fibre per day, yet most people fall well short. Fruits and vegetables and legumes and pulses are among the best natural sources.

How to Use This Calorie Calculator

This tool gives you instant access to calorie counts and full nutrition data for over 98,223 UK foods. To get started, type the name of any food into the search box at the top of this page; results appear as you type. Select a food to see its energy content alongside a complete breakdown of protein, carbohydrates, fat, fibre, sugars, salt, and key micronutrients including iron, calcium, and vitamin C.

You can adjust the serving size using the quantity and unit controls to match what you actually eat, switching between grams, ounces, or common portion sizes. Use the Your Meal tab to build a full day's intake by adding multiple foods; the running total shows calories and macros at a glance. The Compare tab places two foods side by side so you can spot nutritional differences instantly. Not sure where to start? Browse by category below, or try popular pages such as snacks and confectionery or drinks.

FSA Traffic Light Labels Explained

Every food page on this site displays UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) traffic-light labels for fat, saturated fat, sugar, and salt. These colour-coded ratings, green (low), amber (medium), and red (high), are the same system printed on supermarket packaging and give you an instant read on how a food fits into a healthy diet. As a general guide:

• Green for fat: less than 3g per 100g; red: more than 17.5g per 100g
• Green for sugar: less than 5g per 100g; red: more than 22.5g per 100g
• Green for salt: less than 0.3g per 100g; red: more than 1.5g per 100g

Choosing mostly green- and amber-rated foods is a practical, evidence-based approach to building a balanced diet, endorsed by the NHS, Diabetes UK, and the British Heart Foundation.

Why Track What You Eat?

Research consistently shows that people who monitor their food intake, even loosely, make better dietary choices and are more likely to achieve and maintain a healthy weight. Calorie awareness does not have to mean obsessive counting. Simply knowing that a large latte adds around 250 kcal, or that two tablespoons of olive oil contain more calories than a small banana, helps you make informed trade-offs without giving anything up entirely.

Beyond weight management, tracking nutrition helps you spot gaps in your diet: too little protein if you are active, insufficient iron if you feel persistently tired, or hidden salt if you are managing blood pressure. According to the British Nutrition Foundation, most UK adults do not meet recommendations for fibre, oily fish, or fruit and vegetable intake. This calculator covers all of those markers, making it a useful tool whether your goal is weight loss, muscle gain, general wellbeing, or simply eating a little more mindfully.

About Our Nutrition Data

All nutritional values on this site are sourced from established, peer-reviewed databases including McCance & Widdowson's Composition of Foods (the definitive UK food composition tables published by the Department of Health), the USDA FoodData Central database, and guidance from the British Nutrition Foundation. Values are provided per 100g unless otherwise stated and are intended for general informational purposes. Individual products may vary by brand, preparation method, and serving size. For clinical dietary advice, please consult a registered dietitian.