How many calories are in a bag of microwave popcorn?
One regular bag of microwave popcorn, popped, weighs 85 g and carries 440 calories. Per 100 g the popped corn runs 518 calories. A cup off the top is only 73, so the bag, not the cup, is the number that decides your afternoon. The oil does most of the work.
You'd need to walk about 88 minutes to burn the 440 calories in one regular bag (85 g).
How long does it take to burn off 440 kcal of microwave popcorn?
One regular bag (85 g) is 440 kcal. Enter your weight and the amount you ate to see how long it takes you to burn that off:
lb
| Activity | Time to burn 440 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 1 hr 28 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 55 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 1 hr 3 min |
| Jogging | 52 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 1 hr 38 min |
Times are for a 155 lb adult at a steady pace; change the weight to see yours. The amount is set to the portion in the text (85 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Microwave popcorn quick facts
- US servings, from one cup to the whole bag
- Butter, cheese, kettle and light bags
- Saturated fat and sodium are the rows to watch
- How does microwave popcorn compare?
- Most popular microwave popcorn brands
- FAQ
Microwave popcorn quick facts
The row used here is FNDDS 2708223, "Popcorn, microwave, NFS". It describes the corn as eaten — popped, oil and salt included — and it is the record that carries the household measure people actually hold: one regular microwave bag, 85 g. Kernel records exist too, but nobody eats a scoop of raw kernels, and unpopped weight is a different number entirely.
One thing worth saying out loud: 85 g is the popped weight of what comes out of the bag, not the weight printed on the box in the pantry. A bag of kernels weighs less before it hits the microwave, then the oil and steam do their thing.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 regular bag (85 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 518 | 440 | 22% |
| Total fat | 30.57 g | 26.0 g | 33% |
| Saturated fat | 14.3 g | 12.2 g | 61% |
| Carbohydrate | 54.99 g | 46.7 g | 17% |
| Dietary fiber | 10.2 g | 8.7 g | 31% |
| Total sugars | 0.61 g | 0.5 g | — |
| Protein | 9.13 g | 7.8 g | 16% |
| Sodium | 764 mg | 649 mg | 28% |
% Daily Value is based on a 2,000-calorie diet.
Verified nutrition data
Numbers on this page come from USDA FoodData Central, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s food composition database, and from manufacturer labels where a branded product is named. Last verified September 2026. How we verify our data →
Two rows you will see on a snack label are missing above: added sugars and trans fat. This FNDDS edition does not publish either value for microwave popcorn, so guessing them would be worse than leaving them out. Cholesterol is a clean zero, since the fat comes from vegetable oil, and a bag delivers 197 mg of potassium, about 4% of the Daily Value.
US servings, from one cup to the whole bag
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 cup, popped | 14 g | 73 kcal |
| 1 oz | 28.35 g | 147 kcal |
| 1 100-calorie package | 30 g | 155 kcal |
| 1 snack or mini bag, popped | 43 g | 223 kcal |
| 1 regular bag, popped | 85 g | 440 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 518 kcal |
The cup, the mini bag, the 100-calorie package and the regular bag are all USDA household measures on this record. The ounce is our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, not a USDA serving, and it is there because snack labels talk in ounces.
Now the gap that matters. A cup of popped corn is 73 calories and takes about ten seconds to eat. A regular bag holds roughly six of those cups. People count in cups and eat in bags, which is how a snack that sounds like 73 calories lands at 440.
The 100-calorie package deserves a note of its own. On this NFS record, USDA's 30 g portion works out to 155 calories, not 100 — the round number on those packages belongs to leaner recipes. Run the same 30 g against the light record (409 per 100 g) and you get 123 calories, our arithmetic from that record's 100 g figure. The difference is the recipe in the bag, not the source of the data.
Butter, cheese, kettle and light bags
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical portion | Calories | Sodium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Butter flavored | 518 kcal | 1 regular bag, 85 g | 440 kcal | 649 mg |
| Cheese flavored | 516 kcal | 1 regular bag, 85 g | 439 kcal | 779 mg |
| Kettle corn | 504 kcal | 1 regular bag, 85 g | 428 kcal | 511 mg |
| Low sodium | 496 kcal | 1 regular bag, 85 g | 422 kcal | 264 mg |
| Light | 409 kcal | 1 regular bag, 85 g | 348 kcal | 651 mg |
| 94% fat free | 402 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 114 kcal | 162 mg |
Both the calorie and the sodium figures in the portion column are our own arithmetic, scaling each record's 100 g figure to the portion shown; the per 100 g column is straight from the USDA records.
Butter flavored is the surprise. Its record is identical to the plain NFS row — same 518 calories, same 30.57 g of fat per 100 g — because the oil is already in the plain bag. The butter flavor is seasoning, not extra fat.
Cheese flavored moves the sodium, not the calories: 439 per bag, within a calorie of butter, but 916 mg of sodium per 100 g against 764. Kettle corn trades some oil for sugar, which is why it lands slightly lower at 428 while its total sugars rise to 2.2 g per 100 g. Low sodium is the same idea in reverse: 310 mg per 100 g instead of 764, with the calories barely touched.
Light popcorn changes the shape of the bag more than any flavor swap here. Fat drops from 30.57 g to 10.07 g per 100 g, calories from 518 to 409, and fiber climbs to 13.4 g per 100 g. The salt does not follow: 766 mg per 100 g against 764 in the regular bag. Light is a fat claim, not a sodium claim.
An older SR Legacy record, popcorn made with palm oil, sits at 535 calories per 100 g with 14.6 g of saturated fat. It is a snapshot of an older recipe, and it shows how much the oil choice, not the corn, decides where a bag lands. Brand labels count differently again: one USDA Branded entry lists a serving of 2 Tbsp unpopped kernels (33 g) at 160 calories, so that number covers a measure of kernels, not the popped bag you tip into a bowl.
Saturated fat and sodium are the rows to watch
The calorie count is not the interesting part of this label. Saturated fat is. One regular bag carries 12.2 g, which is 61% of the FDA Daily Value of 20 g — nearly double the 33% the same bag uses of the total fat allowance. A snack that reads as light in the hand takes most of a day's saturated fat.
Sodium runs alongside it at 649 mg, 28% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value. The CDC puts most of America's sodium in packaged and restaurant food rather than the shaker, and a popcorn bag is a textbook example: that is roughly a quarter teaspoon of table salt baked into the oil. If sodium is what you're managing, the low-sodium record moves it furthest, to about 264 mg a bag.
Against that, the fiber is genuinely good. A bag gives 8.7 g, 31% of the Daily Value, and popcorn is a whole grain, which MyPlate counts toward the grain group. Air-popped kernels carry the same fiber without the oil. The corn was never the problem.
How does microwave popcorn compare?
| Popcorn | Per 100 g | US serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Microwave popcorn, popped | 518 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 147 kcal |
| Popped in oil, no butter added | 498 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 141 kcal |
| Popped in oil, with added butter | 525 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 149 kcal |
| Ready-to-eat popcorn, NFS | 530 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 150 kcal |
Our take: ounce for ounce these four are the same snack, spread over nine calories. Microwave popcorn is not worse than stovetop or bagged popcorn — it just arrives in a portion nobody splits. A 1 oz serving of any of them is a snack; the bag is a small meal at 440. If you want the number down, pour a bowl and fold the bag shut, or buy the light version and accept that the salt stays. If you want the bag and the buttery version, plan the rest of the day around 440 calories and 61% of your saturated fat.
Most popular microwave popcorn brands in the United States
Ranked by how widely each product appears among foods sold in the United States, from the BodyPal food database of over 3.3 million products. Calories are the figures printed on each Nutrition Facts label, checked against USDA FoodData Central.
| Product | Calories (per 100 g) |
|---|---|
| Best Choice Microwave Popcorn Bags, Butter | 485 cal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels / USDA FoodData Central.
Microwave popcorn FAQs
How many calories are in a whole bag of microwave popcorn?
440 calories for one regular bag, popped, which USDA weighs at 85 g. That works out to 518 calories per 100 g. The bag also carries 26.0 g of fat, 8.7 g of fiber and 649 mg of sodium, so it eats more like a small meal than a snack.
How many calories in a bag of butter microwave popcorn?
440 calories, the same as a plain bag. The USDA record for butter flavored microwave popcorn is identical to the plain one at 518 calories and 30.57 g of fat per 100 g, because the oil is already in the bag before any butter flavor goes on. The flavoring is seasoning, not extra fat.
How many cups of popcorn are in one microwave bag?
About six cups. USDA weighs one cup of popped corn at 14 g and 73 calories, and a regular bag at 85 g and 440 calories. That is the trap in every popcorn count: people estimate in cups, eat in bags, and end up six times over the number they had in mind.
Is microwave popcorn healthy?
It depends on how much of the bag you eat. One bag gives 8.7 g of fiber, 31% of the Daily Value, from a whole grain. The same bag brings 12.2 g of saturated fat, 61% of the Daily Value, and 649 mg of sodium. A cup or two is a solid snack; the whole bag is a heavier choice.
How much sodium is in a bag of microwave popcorn?
649 mg in a regular 85 g bag, which is 28% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value and roughly a quarter teaspoon of table salt. Cheese flavored runs higher at 916 mg per 100 g. The low-sodium record is the real alternative at 310 mg per 100 g, about 264 mg per bag by our arithmetic.
Does light microwave popcorn have fewer calories?
Yes, 348 calories a bag instead of 440, because fat falls from 30.57 g to 10.07 g per 100 g. Fiber rises to 13.4 g per 100 g, which is a bonus. The salt does not move: 766 mg per 100 g against 764 in the regular bag. Light is a fat claim, not a sodium claim.
How many calories in kettle corn microwave popcorn?
428 calories for a regular 85 g bag, at 504 calories per 100 g. Kettle corn swaps part of the oil for sugar, so total sugars rise to 2.2 g per 100 g while saturated fat drops to 4.59 g per 100 g. It tastes sweeter and lands 12 calories under a butter bag.
How many calories in a mini microwave popcorn bag?
223 calories for a snack or mini bag, which USDA weighs at 43 g popped. That is almost exactly half a regular bag, with about 325 mg of sodium by our arithmetic from the 100 g figure. If the full bag is the problem, the mini bag solves it without changing what you're eating.
Similar foods
- Popcorn — 73 cal per cup popped
- Kettle corn — 74 cal per cup
- Sesame sticks — 151 cal per oz
- Peanuts — 164 cal per ounce
- Peanut Butter — 191 cal for 2 tbsp
- Churro — 189 cal each
Count it without the math
Point the camera at the bowl and BodyPal counts the popcorn for you, bag or cup.
