A medium apple has about 95 calories. That’s roughly the size of a tennis ball, weighing around 182 grams with the skin on. Most of those calories come from natural sugars and carbohydrates, with a small but meaningful amount of fiber that slows how quickly your body absorbs that sugar.
Calories by Apple Size
Not all apples are the same size, and the calorie difference between a small and large apple is significant. Per 100 grams of raw apple with skin, you’re looking at 52 calories. That scales predictably with size:
- Small apple (about 150 g): ~77 calories
- Medium apple (about 182 g): ~95 calories
- Large apple (about 223 g): ~116 calories
The variety matters less than you’d think. Granny Smith, Fuji, Gala, and Honeycrisp apples all land in that same 52-calorie-per-100-gram range. Sweeter varieties like Fuji have slightly more sugar, but the calorie difference is negligible, typically just a few calories per fruit.
What Those Calories Are Made Of
Nearly all the calories in an apple come from carbohydrates, about 25 grams in a medium fruit. Of that, roughly 19 grams are natural sugars (a mix of fructose, glucose, and sucrose) and about 4.4 grams are dietary fiber. There’s almost no fat or protein to speak of.
That fiber content is worth paying attention to. A medium apple delivers about 17% of the daily recommended fiber intake, and much of it sits in and just beneath the skin. Peeling your apple removes roughly half the fiber. The type of fiber in apples includes pectin, a soluble fiber that forms a gel-like substance in your gut, slowing digestion and helping moderate blood sugar spikes after eating.
This is reflected in the apple’s glycemic index of 39 and glycemic load of 6 per serving, both considered low. For context, anything under 55 on the glycemic index is “low,” and a glycemic load under 10 is also low. So despite containing a fair amount of sugar, a whole apple doesn’t cause the kind of rapid blood sugar spike you’d get from, say, a glass of juice with the same amount of sugar.
Whole Apples vs. Applesauce vs. Juice
How you consume your apple changes the calorie picture and, more importantly, how satisfying those calories feel. Unsweetened applesauce actually has fewer calories per 100 grams (42 calories vs. 52 for a raw apple with skin), because it contains more water. But a typical serving of applesauce is about one cup (around 245 grams), which puts it at roughly 100 calories, similar to a whole medium apple.
The real difference is in how full you feel afterward. Research in adults has consistently shown that whole fruit enhances satiety more than purées or juices, even when they’re matched for calories, weight, and fiber. In one well-known study, apple slices lowered the amount people ate at their next meal more than applesauce or apple juice did. The mechanism is straightforward: chewing slows you down, and solid food takes longer to leave your stomach, keeping you feeling full longer. Whole apples also moderate blood sugar changes more effectively than processed forms.
Apple juice, meanwhile, strips out nearly all the fiber and concentrates the sugar. An 8-ounce glass of apple juice runs about 114 calories, and those calories do very little to curb your appetite.
How Apples Compare to Other Snacks
At 95 calories, a medium apple sits at the low end of common snack options. A medium banana has about 105 calories, an orange around 62, and a cup of grapes roughly 104. Among fruits, apples are middle-of-the-road calorie-wise but stand out for their fiber density and low glycemic impact.
Compared to packaged snacks, the contrast is stark. A standard granola bar runs 150 to 250 calories with far less fiber and often added sugar. A small bag of chips is around 150 calories. The apple’s combination of fiber, water content (about 86% water by weight), and the physical act of chewing makes it one of the more filling options per calorie you can reach for.
Keeping the Skin On
If you peel your apples, you lose more than fiber. The skin contains the highest concentration of the fruit’s polyphenols, plant compounds with antioxidant activity. You also lose roughly half the fiber and a meaningful share of the vitamin C. The calorie difference between a peeled and unpeeled apple is minimal, so there’s no calorie-based reason to peel. From a nutrition standpoint, eating the skin gets you significantly more out of those 95 calories.