How Many Calories Are in a Burger? Homemade vs Fast Food, Part by Part

Typical calories in a burger

A basic hamburger (a small beef patty, plain bun, ketchup, mustard and pickles) weighs about 100–110g and contains roughly 250–280 calories, about 12–13g of protein, 30g of carbs and 9–10g of fat.

A quarter-pound cheeseburger is roughly double that. McDonald's Quarter Pounder with Cheese, for example, lists 520 calories, 30g of protein, 42g of carbs and 26g of fat.

Sit-down restaurant burgers with a half-pound patty, bacon, cheese, sauce and a brioche bun commonly land between 800 and 1,200 calories before fries.

As a quick reference, one burger usually falls into one of these bands: about 250–300 calories for a small plain hamburger, about 300–350 for a small cheeseburger, about 500–600 for a quarter-pound cheeseburger or a double, and 800 or more for a large restaurant burger with toppings.

Calories by component

Beef patty: a 4oz (113g raw) patty of 80/20 ground beef contains about 290 calories raw and cooks down to roughly 85g and 230–260 calories, depending on how much fat renders out. A 90/10 patty is about 180–200 calories cooked. A thin fast-food patty (about 45g cooked) is closer to 100–120.

Bun: a standard sesame bun is about 120–150 calories. Brioche and pretzel buns are often 200–250. A lettuce wrap is under 10.

Cheese: one slice of American cheese adds about 60–80 calories; a slice of cheddar about 110.

Bacon: each cooked strip adds roughly 40–45 calories.

Sauces: ketchup is about 20 calories per tablespoon and mustard about 5, while mayonnaise is about 90 and many 'special' burger sauces are 70–100.

Vegetables: lettuce, tomato, onion and pickles together add only about 10–20 calories. Fried onions, onion rings, avocado and fried eggs are different: each can add roughly 60–100 calories or more.

Building your own estimate

To estimate a burger with no published nutrition data, add up the parts. A homemade cheeseburger with a 4oz 80/20 patty, a standard bun, one slice of American cheese, ketchup and salad comes to roughly 250 + 135 + 70 + 20 + 15, or about 490 calories.

Swap the patty for 90/10 beef and the total drops to about 430. Add two strips of bacon and a tablespoon of mayonnaise to the original and it rises to about 660. The patty and the sauce make the biggest difference, so get those two right first.

If you are tracking closely, weigh the raw meat before cooking and use the raw value for that weight. This is more consistent than guessing the cooked weight, because how much fat cooks out depends on the pan and how well done the patty is.

Burger calories and protein

Protein depends almost entirely on the meat. A cooked 4oz-raw patty provides about 20–24g of protein whether it is 80/20 or 90/10 beef; the leaner patty simply has less fat. The bun adds about 4–5g and a slice of cheese about 4–6g.

That means a small hamburger has about 12–13g of protein, a quarter-pound cheeseburger about 30g, and a half-pound burger 40g or more. Double patties roughly double the protein, but also the fat.

For protein per calorie, a single quarter-pound patty of lean beef on a regular bun is one of the better fast-food or homemade options. Large burgers with bacon, extra cheese and creamy sauces add mostly fat rather than protein.

Hamburger kcal, calories and kilojoules

On food labels, kcal and calories mean the same thing. The 'calories' on a US nutrition label are kilocalories, so a hamburger listed at 250 calories is 250 kcal.

Labels in Europe, Australia and some other regions also show kilojoules (kJ). One kcal equals about 4.184 kJ, so 250 kcal is roughly 1,050 kJ and 520 kcal is roughly 2,180 kJ. If you see a number in the thousands on a burger, it is almost certainly in kilojoules.

Homemade vs fast food

Homemade burgers are not automatically lighter. A home patty is often bigger than a fast-food patty, so a homemade cheeseburger with a 6oz patty, cheddar and mayo can easily reach 700 calories.

The advantage of cooking at home is control. Choosing 90/10 beef, weighing the patty, using a regular bun and swapping mayo for mustard can bring a satisfying burger down to about 400–450 calories with 30g or more of protein.

Fast food has a different advantage: the numbers are published and portions are consistent, so a chain burger is often easier to track accurately than a homemade one you did not weigh.

Store-bought and frozen patties

Packaged patties and ground beef carry a nutrition label, but read it carefully. Many labels give values for the raw product, and a few give them for the cooked patty. The two can differ by 50 calories or more for the same patty, so check which one the serving line refers to before you log it.

The lean-to-fat ratio on the pack, such as 80/20 or 93/7, is by weight, not by calories. An 80/20 patty is 20 percent fat by weight, but well over half of its calories come from fat, because fat has 9 calories per gram while protein has 4.

Patty size is also listed by raw weight. A pack of quarter-pound patties starts at 4oz each, and a 1/3 lb patty starts at about 5.3oz, so it carries about a third more calories and protein than a quarter-pound patty of the same beef.

Turkey, chicken and plant-based burgers

Lean ground turkey and chicken breast patties are usually lower in calories than 80/20 beef, but check the label. Ground turkey that includes dark meat and skin can be close to beef, and breaded or fried chicken patties are often higher than a grilled beef patty.

Many plant-based patties designed to taste like beef have calories in a similar range to 80/20 beef, so they are not automatically a lighter choice. Bean and vegetable patties are often lower in calories and higher in fiber, but usually lower in protein.

Whatever the patty, the bun, cheese and sauce add the same calories, so the same rules for building a lighter burger apply.

How to build a lighter burger

Pick leaner meat: 90/10 beef, ground turkey breast or a chicken breast fillet saves roughly 50–150 calories per patty compared with 80/20 beef.

Keep one patty and one slice of cheese. Each extra patty adds 200–300 calories.

Use mustard, ketchup or salsa instead of mayonnaise-based sauces, and load up on lettuce, tomato and onion for volume.

Watch the side: McDonald's medium fries list 320 calories, often more than the burger's bun and cheese combined. A side salad or fruit keeps the meal under control.