How many calories are in bread crumbs?
A cup of dry plain bread crumbs weighs 108 g and carries 427 calories. Per 100 g the same crumbs run 395 calories, which makes them one of the densest things on the pantry shelf. They are drier than the bread they came from, and they pack tight enough that a cup weighs far more than it looks.
You'd need to walk about 85 minutes to burn the 427 calories in a 1-cup (108 g) serving.
How long does it take to burn off bread crumbs?
A 1-cup (108 g) serving is 427 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 427 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 1 hr 25 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 53 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 1 hr 1 min |
| Jogging | 50 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 1 hr 35 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 (108 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Bread crumb quick facts
- US servings from a tablespoon to a full cup
- Seasoned panko and soft fresh crumbs
- Sodium is the row to watch
- How do bread crumbs compare?
- Most popular bread crumbs brands
- FAQ
Bread crumb quick facts
The record used here is SR Legacy 174928, "Bread, crumbs, dry, grated, plain". That is the canister of unseasoned dry crumbs most people actually have in the cupboard, and it is the one measured in cups and tablespoons rather than by the slice. Seasoned crumbs, panko and soft fresh crumbs each have their own record, and they get their own section further down.
The USDA household measure for this record is one cup at 108 g, so that is the serving column below.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 cup (108 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 395 | 427 | — |
| Total fat | 5.3 g | 5.7 g | 7% |
| Saturated fat | 1.2 g | 1.3 g | 6% |
| Carbohydrate | 71.98 g | 77.7 g | 28% |
| Dietary fiber | 4.5 g | 4.9 g | 17% |
| Total sugars | 6.2 g | 6.7 g | — |
| Protein | 13.35 g | 14.4 g | 29% |
| Sodium | 732 mg | 791 mg | 34% |
% 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 →
There is no added sugars row and no trans fat row here, because the SR Legacy edition of this record does not carry either value. Cholesterol is 0 mg, plain crumbs being a flour-and-water product with no dairy or egg in them, and a cup supplies 212 mg of potassium, about 5% of the Daily Value.
Two things stand out before you even get to the calories. A cup covers more than a quarter of a day's carbohydrate, and it delivers 14.4 g of protein — 29% of the Daily Value from something most people think of as filler. The Daily Values used here come from the FDA nutrition label rules.
US servings from a tablespoon to a full cup
Almost nobody eats a cup of bread crumbs. The cup is the number recipes are written in; the number you log is usually a quarter of it or less.
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 tbsp | 6.8 g | 27 kcal |
| 1 oz | 28.4 g | 112 kcal |
| 1/4 cup | 27 g | 107 kcal |
| 1/2 cup | 54 g | 213 kcal |
| 1 cup | 108 g | 427 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 395 kcal |
Only the 1-cup line and the 1-ounce line are USDA measures. The tablespoon, quarter cup and half cup are our own arithmetic scaled from the USDA 100 g figure, not USDA servings, which is why the tablespoon lands on an awkward 6.8 g.
That quarter-cup line is the useful one. A quarter cup, 27 g, is roughly what sticks to one chicken breast or one pork cutlet once it has been dipped and pressed. So the breading itself is about 107 calories per piece — not the 427 that the recipe's full cup suggests, because a good share of what you pour into the dish stays in the dish. Flour, egg wash and any oil the coating soaks up in the pan are separate and sit on top of that number.
Seasoned panko and soft fresh crumbs
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plain dry grated | 395 kcal | 1 cup (108 g) | 427 kcal |
| Seasoned Italian style | 383 kcal | 1 cup (120 g) | 460 kcal |
| Soft fresh white bread crumbs | 266 kcal | 1 cup (45 g) | 120 kcal |
| Panko, Kikkoman label | 400 kcal | 1/3 cup (30 g) | 120 kcal |
Seasoned crumbs are slightly lighter per gram than plain ones — 383 against 395 — because salt, herbs and cheese powder take the place of some of the starch. The cup still comes out higher, at 460 calories, for one boring reason: USDA weighs a cup of seasoned crumbs at 120 g instead of 108 g. The grind is different, so the cup holds more.
Soft fresh crumbs, the kind you make by tearing up white sandwich bread in a food processor, are the same food with the water still in it: 266 calories per 100 g, and a fluffy cup weighs only about 45 g. That is 120 calories a cup against 427 for the dry stuff. Same measuring cup, more than three times the difference. If a recipe says "1 cup bread crumbs" and you swap fresh for dry without thinking, you have changed the dish by more than 300 calories.
Panko sits at 400 calories per 100 g on the Kikkoman label — a shade above plain dry crumbs, not below. The reason panko feels lighter is the flake, which is coarse and airy, so the label serving of 1/3 cup weighs just 30 g and comes to 120 calories. Store labels move within a narrow band: Progresso Plain lists 390 per 100 g and 129 calories for its 1/4-cup (33 g) serving, Great Value Plain 357 per 100 g and 100 calories for a 1/4 cup (28 g), and Wegmans Whole Wheat Panko is the outlier at 333 per 100 g. Note how each brand picks its own gram weight for a quarter cup — that is the number to check, not the calories.
Sodium is the row to watch
Calories are not where bread crumbs surprise people. Salt is. One cup of plain crumbs holds 791 mg of sodium, 34% of the Daily Value, which is already a lot for something you consider a coating. One cup of Italian seasoned crumbs holds 2,520 mg — 110% of the Daily Value, from a food that adds only 33 more calories than the plain version. That is a little more than a teaspoon of table salt.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans put the ceiling for adults at 2,300 mg of sodium a day. A quarter cup of seasoned crumbs, the realistic amount on one cutlet, still brings 630 mg on our own scaling of that 120 g cup, more than a quarter of the day's allowance before the pan sauce. If you are watching sodium, buy plain crumbs and season them yourself; you keep the flavor and cut roughly two-thirds of the salt.
The other side of the ledger is worth naming. Dry crumbs carry 4.5 g of fiber per 100 g, and they belong to the grains group that MyPlate asks you to fill half of with whole grains — one argument for whole wheat panko beyond its lower calorie count.
How do bread crumbs compare?
| Food | Per 100 g | US serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bread crumbs, dry plain | 395 kcal | 1 cup (108 g) | 427 kcal |
| Matzo, plain | 395 kcal | 0.5 oz (14.2 g) | 56 kcal |
| Matzo, egg | 391 kcal | 0.5 oz (14.2 g) | 55 kcal |
| Wheat bran muffin mix, dry | 396 kcal | 1 oz (28.4 g) | 112 kcal |
Our take: all four of these land within five calories of each other per 100 g, because they are all dried wheat with most of the water driven off. What separates them is how much of each you end up holding. Half an ounce of matzo is 56 calories; a cup of crumbs is 427 — and the only reason is that one is a flat cracker and the other is ground fine enough to pack. Weigh bread crumbs, or measure a quarter cup and stop there. Judging them by eye is what turns a 107-calorie coating into a 400-calorie one.
Most popular bread crumbs 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) |
|---|---|
| Kikkoman Panko Japanese Style Bread Crumbs | 400 cal |
| America's Bakery Bread Crumbs | 385 cal |
| Wegmans Whole Wheat Panko Bread Crumbs | 333 cal |
| Progresso Plain Bread Crumbs | 390 cal |
| Progresso Italian Style Bread Crumbs | 381 cal |
| Great Value Plain Bread Crumbs | 357 cal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels / USDA FoodData Central.
Bread crumb FAQs
How many calories are in 1 cup of bread crumbs?
One cup of dry plain bread crumbs is 427 calories, at 108 g and 395 calories per 100 g. That cup also carries 77.7 g of carbohydrate, 14.4 g of protein and 791 mg of sodium, which is 34% of the Daily Value. Most recipes use far less than a full cup per serving.
How many calories in 1/4 cup of bread crumbs?
A quarter cup of dry plain crumbs is about 107 calories at 27 g. That is our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure rather than a USDA serving, but it matches the coating on one chicken breast or cutlet closely. It also brings 19.4 g of carbohydrate and 198 mg of sodium.
Are panko bread crumbs lower in calories than regular?
No. Kikkoman panko lists 400 calories per 100 g against 395 for plain dry crumbs, so gram for gram panko is marginally higher. It feels lighter because the flakes are coarse and airy: the label serving of 1/3 cup weighs only 30 g and comes to 120 calories.
How much sodium is in Italian seasoned bread crumbs?
Seasoned crumbs hold 2,100 mg of sodium per 100 g, so a 120 g cup is 2,520 mg — 110% of the Daily Value, a little more than a teaspoon of table salt. Plain crumbs are 732 mg per 100 g. Buying plain and seasoning them yourself cuts roughly two-thirds of the salt.
How many carbs are in bread crumbs?
Dry plain bread crumbs have 71.98 g of carbohydrate per 100 g, so a 108 g cup holds 77.7 g — 28% of the Daily Value. Of that, 4.9 g is fiber and 6.7 g is total sugars. A realistic quarter-cup coating comes to about 19.4 g of carbohydrate.
Do bread crumbs have protein?
Yes, more than most people expect: 13.35 g per 100 g, which makes 14.4 g in a cup, or 29% of the Daily Value. It is wheat protein, so it is not a complete source on its own, but a breaded cutlet gets a real protein bump from its coating as well as from the meat.
How many calories does breading add to chicken?
The crumbs themselves add about 107 calories per piece, the quarter cup, or 27 g, that sticks to one breast or cutlet. Flour, egg wash and any oil absorbed in the pan sit on top of that. The crumb layer alone is a smaller cost than the frying method it usually comes with.
Are fresh bread crumbs healthier than dry ones?
Soft fresh white crumbs are 266 calories per 100 g against 395 for dry, and a fluffy cup weighs about 45 g, so it is 120 calories versus 427. They are lower in sodium too, at 490 mg per 100 g. Per gram, though, dry crumbs carry more fiber and more protein.
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Count it without the math
Point the camera at the plate and BodyPal counts the breading along with everything under it.
