A large egg contains about 72 calories. That’s for a whole, raw egg weighing roughly 50 grams. The number shifts depending on egg size, which part you eat, and how you cook it, but 72 is the baseline most nutrition labels and databases use.
Calories by Egg Size
Egg calories scale predictably with weight. Since a large egg runs 72 calories at 50 grams, the calorie density works out to about 144 calories per 100 grams. Using that ratio:
- Small egg (38g): roughly 54 calories
- Medium egg (44g): roughly 63 calories
- Large egg (50g): 72 calories
- Extra-large egg (56g): roughly 80 calories
- Jumbo egg (63g): roughly 90 calories
If you buy large eggs from a standard grocery store, 72 calories per egg is the number to use.
Yolk vs. White: Where the Calories Live
Most of an egg’s calories come from the yolk. In a large egg, the yolk accounts for about 55 calories while the white contributes just 17. That means the yolk holds roughly 75% of the total energy despite being the smaller portion by volume.
The yolk is also where nearly all the fat lives, along with the bulk of the vitamins and minerals. If you eat only egg whites, you’re cutting calories significantly, but you’re also losing most of the nutritional value. A single whole egg provides about 147 milligrams of choline, a nutrient important for brain function and liver health. The egg white alone contains less than 1 milligram. So while ditching yolks saves about 55 calories per egg, the tradeoff in nutrition is steep.
How Cooking Changes the Count
A raw or boiled egg stays close to that 72-calorie baseline because you’re not adding any fat during cooking. A boiled egg comes in around 78 calories, with the slight bump coming from minor water and density changes during heating.
Frying is where the numbers start climbing. A fried egg runs about 90 calories, and that figure assumes a light coating of oil or cooking spray. Fry it in a tablespoon of butter and you can add another 100 calories from the butter alone. Per 100 grams, fried eggs deliver about 196 calories compared to 155 for boiled, a 26% increase.
Scrambled eggs tend to be the highest-calorie preparation because most recipes call for butter in the pan plus milk or cream mixed into the eggs. Two scrambled eggs made with a pat of butter and a splash of milk can easily reach 200 to 220 calories, compared to about 156 for two boiled eggs. Poaching, like boiling, uses only water, so poached eggs stay in the same low range as hard-boiled.
The cooking method itself doesn’t change the egg’s calories. What changes is the fat you cook with. If you fry eggs in a nonstick pan with no added oil, the calorie count stays very close to a boiled egg.
Protein, Fat, and What Else You Get
A large egg packs about 6 grams of protein and 5 grams of fat, with less than 1 gram of carbohydrates. That protein-to-calorie ratio is one of the best you’ll find in whole foods: you get a gram of protein for every 12 calories.
Beyond the macronutrients, eggs deliver a concentrated dose of several harder-to-get nutrients. That 147 milligrams of choline in a single egg covers roughly a quarter of the daily recommended intake for most adults. Eggs also supply meaningful amounts of vitamin D, vitamin B12, and selenium. All of these concentrate in the yolk, which is why whole eggs are nutritionally distinct from egg whites in ways that go well beyond calories.
Eggs and Feeling Full
For 72 calories, eggs punch above their weight when it comes to keeping you satisfied. Protein suppresses ghrelin, the hormone that drives hunger, more effectively than carbohydrates or fat do. Egg protein, particularly from the yolk, has a stronger satiety effect than many other protein sources.
Research on breakfast habits bears this out. People who eat eggs for breakfast report feeling less hungry both 3 hours and 24 hours afterward compared to those who eat a carbohydrate-heavy breakfast of equal calories. They also tend to eat fewer total calories over the rest of the day. That makes eggs especially useful if you’re trying to manage your weight without feeling deprived. Two eggs at breakfast cost you about 144 calories while delivering 12 grams of protein and enough staying power to reduce snacking before lunch.
How Many Eggs Per Day
The old advice to limit eggs because of their cholesterol content has largely been retired. The American Heart Association’s most recent dietary guidance states that dietary cholesterol is no longer a primary target for heart disease risk reduction for most people, and that moderate egg consumption fits within a heart-healthy eating pattern. What matters more is what you eat alongside your eggs. Pairing them with processed meats like bacon and sausage adds saturated fat and sodium that are more relevant to cardiovascular risk than the egg itself.
For most healthy adults, one to three eggs per day is a reasonable range that aligns with current evidence. If you have existing heart disease or diabetes, your threshold may be different, and it’s worth a conversation with your care team about where eggs fit in your overall diet.