A single large egg white contains about 17 calories. That’s roughly a quarter of the 72 calories in a whole egg, with the yolk accounting for the remaining 55 calories. Nearly all of those 17 calories come from protein, making egg whites one of the leanest protein sources available.
Full Nutritional Breakdown
One large raw egg white provides 3.6 grams of protein, essentially zero fat, zero cholesterol, and zero carbohydrates. The protein is what accounts for almost every calorie. Per 100 grams (roughly three large egg whites), the numbers scale to 43 calories and 10.8 grams of protein, with only trace amounts of fat.
Egg whites also carry a handful of useful micronutrients. A single large white delivers 0.14 mg of riboflavin (a B vitamin involved in energy metabolism), 6.6 mcg of selenium (an antioxidant mineral), and about 54 mg of potassium. These aren’t huge amounts, but they add up if you regularly eat multiple whites at a time.
Egg White vs. Whole Egg
The yolk is where the fat, cholesterol, and most of the vitamins live. One yolk contains about 55 calories, roughly 4.5 grams of fat, and all of the egg’s cholesterol (around 186 mg). Swapping a three-egg omelet for a three-egg-white omelet drops the meal from about 216 calories to just 51, and eliminates the fat and cholesterol entirely.
The tradeoff is that you lose fat-soluble vitamins like A, D, and E, plus nutrients like choline and iron that are concentrated in the yolk. If your primary goal is cutting calories or avoiding cholesterol, whites are the clear choice. If overall nutrient density matters more, keeping at least one yolk in the mix makes sense.
Protein Quality and Muscle Benefits
Egg white protein is considered a gold standard for bioavailability, meaning your body absorbs and uses a very high percentage of it. Research on young adults found that egg white protein supplementation combined with exercise effectively increased lean body mass and muscle cross-sectional area over five weeks. Animal studies have found egg white protein may be more efficient at promoting muscle gain than other common proteins like casein or whey, and this advantage appears to come from more than just its amino acid profile.
There’s also evidence that egg white protein helps with body composition beyond muscle. Studies in animals showed that egg white feeding reduced visceral fat (the deep abdominal fat linked to metabolic problems), even when total food intake stayed the same across groups eating different protein sources.
Common Serving Sizes and Conversions
If you’re using liquid egg whites from a carton or cooking in bulk, these conversions help:
- 1 large egg white: about 33 grams, 17 calories, 3.6 g protein
- 3 large egg whites: about 100 grams, 43 calories, 10.8 g protein
- 1 cup (250 mL): 8 to 10 large egg whites, roughly 136 to 170 calories
Most carton egg whites list their serving size as 3 tablespoons (46 grams), which works out to about 25 calories. Check the label, since some brands add small amounts of ingredients that can shift the count slightly.
Cooking Changes the Calorie Count Slightly
Raw and cooked egg whites have essentially the same calorie content, since cooking doesn’t add or remove calories on its own. What changes the number is what you cook them in. A teaspoon of butter adds about 34 calories, nearly doubling the calorie cost of a single egg white. Using a nonstick pan with cooking spray keeps the count close to the raw figure. Boiling eggs and discarding the yolk is the simplest way to get a pure, no-added-fat egg white.