How Many Calories in Tequila?
A 25 ml shot of tequila is 53 calories, and not one of them comes from sugar. At 40% ABV it measures 222 kcal per 100 g — identical to vodka and whisky, because at this strength the alcohol is the only thing being counted. The "cleanest spirit" story is true about carbs and irrelevant about calories.
You'd need to walk about 11 minutes to burn the 53 calories in a 25 ml shot.
How long does it take to burn off tequila?
A 25 ml shot is 53 kcal. Enter your weight and the amount you ate to see how long it takes you to burn that off:
lb ml
| Activity | Time to burn 53 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 11 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 7 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 8 min |
| Jogging | 6 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 12 min |
Times are for a 154 lb (11 st) adult at a steady pace; change the weight to see yours. The amount is set to the portion in the text (25 ml); change it to what you actually drank. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Quick facts
- Shots, doubles and mixers
- The margarita multiplier
- How does tequila compare?
- The clean spirit myth
- Most popular tequila brands
- FAQ
Quick facts
Spirits at 40% volume, per 100 g:
| Per 100 g | Amount | % RI |
|---|---|---|
| Energy | 222 kcal (929 kJ) | 11% |
| Protein | 0 g | 0% |
| Carbohydrates | trace | 0% |
| Fat | 0 g | 0% |
| Fibre | 0 g | — |
| Sugar | trace | 0% |
| Salt | 0 g | 0% |
RI = reference intake for an average adult (2,000 kcal). Everything on this table rounds to nothing except the energy — in a distilled spirit, virtually all the calories come from the alcohol itself.
Verified nutrition data
Numbers on this page come from CoFID, the UK government’s Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset, and from manufacturer labels where a branded product is named. Last verified August 2026. How we verify our data →
One quirk worth knowing: the shot works out at 53 calories rather than a straight quarter of 222, because spirits are lighter than water — a 25 ml measure weighs a shade under 25 g, and the energy follows the weight, not the millilitres.
Shots, doubles and mixers
A single UK measure — 25 ml — is 53 calories and one unit of alcohol. A double, 50 ml, is 105. The lime wedge on the rim adds about 1.
Mixers write the rest of the bill. Tequila with slimline tonic stays at roughly 54 calories — the diet mixer contributes about one. Swap in a sugary mixer and the drink stops being a 53-calorie decision, which is the theme of every long drink on the NHS's calories-in-alcohol list.
The units track the calories neatly here: a single is 1 unit and 53 calories, a double is 2 units and 105. If you're counting either number on a night out, the same tally covers both.
The margarita multiplier
A margarita runs about 122 kcal per 100 ml — a typical 150 ml cocktail lands on 183 calories. That's nearly three and a half shots' worth from one glass, and the tequila only put in 53.
The orange liqueur and the syrup do the rest. Order the spirit you like and let the glass stay small; the cocktail menu is where tequila's numbers stop being modest.
How does tequila compare?
| Drink | Serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| Tequila | single (25 ml) | 53 |
| Vodka | single (25 ml) | 53 |
| Whiskey | single (25 ml) | 53 |
| Wine | glass (175 ml) | 133 |
| Margarita | cocktail (~150 ml) | 183 |
At the spirit shelf the contest is a dead heat — every 40% bottle pours the same 53 per single, so choose by taste and price, never by calories. The decision that matters is the glass the spirit ends up in: neat or with a diet mixer you stay near 53; a standard glass of wine more than doubles it; the margarita triples it and then some.
The clean spirit myth
Tequila gets sold as the "clean" spirit — the one that supposedly doesn't touch your blood sugar. The sugar half of the claim checks out: trace, effectively zero, same as any distilled spirit. Nothing about agave survives into the glass as sweetness.
The calorie half doesn't. 222 kcal per 100 g is dense energy, sugar or no sugar, and it counts like any other. Clean is a flavour note here, not a nutritional category — UK drinking guidelines treat every 40% spirit the same because, calorically, they are.
Most popular tequila brands in the United Kingdom
Ranked by how widely each product appears among foods sold in the United Kingdom, from the BodyPal food database of over 3.3 million products. Calories are the figures printed on each label.
| Product | Calories (per 100 ml) |
|---|---|
| El Jimador Tequila | 228 kcal |
| Patrón Silver | 243 kcal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels.
FAQ
How many calories in a shot of tequila?
53 calories in a single 25 ml UK measure. That figure holds for blanco, reposado or añejo — at 40% ABV the alcohol supplies essentially all the energy, and ageing changes the flavour, not the count. The lime adds about one more.
How many calories in a double tequila?
105 calories for a 50 ml double. Straight doubling, because there's nothing else in the glass to count. Add slimline tonic or soda water and the drink stays within a calorie or two of the spirit itself.
How many calories in a margarita?
About 183 for a typical 150 ml margarita, at roughly 122 kcal per 100 ml. The tequila contributes 53; the orange liqueur and syrup contribute the rest. One margarita costs nearly three and a half shots — the cocktail, not the spirit, is the calorie event.
Is tequila keto-friendly?
Carbs are trace — effectively zero, like every straight distilled spirit. That's why tequila appears on low-carb lists. The 53 calories per shot still count, though: they come from alcohol, which no diet gets to ignore.
Does tequila have sugar?
No — trace amounts at most, effectively zero on any label. The agave's sugars are consumed in fermentation and don't pass into the finished spirit. Sweetness in a tequila drink always arrives later, from liqueurs, syrups or mixers.
Tequila vs vodka — which has fewer calories?
Neither — both are 53 calories per 25 ml single, because both are 40% spirits at 222 kcal per 100 g. Picking between spirits for calorie reasons is a waste of a decision. Pick with your palate and spend the attention on the mixer.
How many calories in tequila and slimline tonic?
About 54 — the 53-calorie shot plus roughly one from the diet tonic. It's one of the lightest long drinks you can order, undercutting a 175 ml glass of wine at 133 by more than half.
Is tequila fattening?
Per 100 g it's dense — 222 calories, 11% of a day's reference intake — but per single serve it's a modest 53. The arithmetic that catches people is repetition and cocktails: three margaritas is over 500 calories, while three singles with diet mixers is about 160.
What is the lowest-calorie way to drink tequila?
Neat at 53, or long with a slimline mixer at about 54. Both keep a 25 ml single to one alcohol unit as well. The margarita at 183 is the version to save for occasions rather than rounds.
Similar foods
- Vodka — 53 kcal a single shot
- Whisky — 53 kcal a single
- Margarita — ~183 kcal a glass
- Rosé wine — 138 kcal a 175 ml glass
- Wine — 133 kcal a 175 ml glass
- Pinot Grigio — 131 kcal a 175 ml glass
Rounds counted, no mental arithmetic
Snap the glass and BodyPal logs it — shot, mixer or margarita, calories on the record before the ice melts.
