How many calories are in cheese?
One 1 oz slice of cheddar (28 g) is 113 calories, and cheddar runs 403 calories per 100 g — one of the densest things in the refrigerator door. Grate that same block and a cup of shredded cheddar hits 455. The shape you cut it into moves the number as much as the kind of cheese does.
You'd need to walk about 23 minutes to burn the 113 calories in one 1 oz slice (28 g).
How long does it take to burn off cheese?
One 1 oz slice (28 g) is 113 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 113 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 23 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 14 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 16 min |
| Jogging | 13 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 25 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 (28 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Cheddar cheese quick facts
- US servings, from a cubic inch to a cup of shredded
- Sharp cheddar, Swiss, American and cream cheese
- Saturated fat is the row that runs out first
- Sodium swings almost ninefold across the case
- How does cheddar compare with other cheeses?
- Most popular cheese brands
- FAQ
Cheddar cheese quick facts
Cheddar is the cheese most Americans mean when they say cheese, and it is the block in the photo above, so the numbers here come from the USDA record 173414, "Cheese, cheddar" in SR Legacy. That record carries the full nutrient set — sugars, fiber, cholesterol, potassium — plus the whole household set of American servings: a slice, an ounce, a cubic inch, a cup shredded and a cup diced.
There is a newer analysis of the same cheese, Foundation record 328637 at 408 calories per 100 g, but it publishes no sugar or fiber figures and only two servings. Five calories per 100 g apart, the two records tell the same story; the older one simply answers more questions.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 slice (1 oz) (28 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 403 | 113 | — |
| Total fat | 33.31 g | 9.3 g | 12% |
| Saturated fat | 18.87 g | 5.3 g | 26% |
| Carbohydrate | 3.37 g | 0.9 g | 0% |
| Dietary fiber | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Total sugars | 0.48 g | 0.1 g | — |
| Protein | 22.87 g | 6.4 g | 13% |
| Sodium | 653 mg | 183 mg | 8% |
% 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 would see on a package are missing here on purpose: added sugars and trans fat. USDA does not publish either value for this natural cheddar record, so listing them would mean inventing them. One slice also brings 28 mg of cholesterol, 9% of the FDA Daily Value, and 21 mg of potassium, which rounds to 0%. Cheese is not a potassium food.
US servings, from a cubic inch to a cup of shredded
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 cubic inch | 17 g | 69 kcal |
| 1 slice (1 oz) | 28 g | 113 kcal |
| 1 oz | 28.35 g | 114 kcal |
| 1 cup, shredded | 113 g | 455 kcal |
| 1 cup, diced | 132 g | 532 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 403 kcal |
Every one of those is a USDA household measure for record 173414, not our own scaling, and two of them are worth staring at. A cup of shredded cheddar weighs 113 g and costs 455 calories — just over four slices, tipped onto a taco or a bowl of chili in about three seconds. A cup of the same cheese diced weighs 132 g and costs 532, because cubes leave less air between them than shreds do. Same cup, same cheese, 77 calories apart.
The slice is the serving worth memorizing. If your deli cuts thicker than an ounce, weigh one slice once, and every future entry is that number instead of a guess.
Sharp cheddar, Swiss, American and cream cheese
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical piece | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheddar (main record) | 403 kcal | 1 slice (1 oz), 28 g | 113 kcal |
| Sharp cheddar, sliced | 410 kcal | 1 slice (1 oz), 28 g | 115 kcal |
| Swiss | 393 kcal | 1 slice (1 oz), 28 g | 110 kcal |
| Fontina | 389 kcal | 1 slice (1 oz), 28 g | 109 kcal |
| American, processed | 371 kcal | 1 slice (1 oz), 28 g | 104 kcal |
| Cream cheese | 350 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 99 kcal |
| Reduced-fat cheddar | 316 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 90 kcal |
The spread across that whole table is 25 calories a slice. Sharp cheddar edges above mild because aging drives off water and concentrates what is left, not because it is a richer cheese. Processed American comes in lowest of the natural-looking slices for the opposite reason: emulsifying salts and added moisture dilute the fat.
Reduced-fat cheddar is the one real lever, and it is a small one. It saves about 24 calories an ounce while keeping 27.35 g of protein per 100 g — more protein than full-fat cheddar's 22.87 g, since removing fat leaves protein a larger share of what remains. The ounce figure there is our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g number, not a USDA serving.
Among the generic USDA cheeses on this page, whole-milk mozzarella is the lightest at 299 calories per 100 g. Fresh cheese holds water, and water has no calories. Branded records run lower still, for the same reason: Dodoni feta at 250 per 100 g, Philadelphia reduced-fat cream cheese at 219, Coach Farm goat cheese at 214.
Saturated fat is the row that runs out first
Calories are not what makes cheese awkward in a day of eating. One slice is 113 calories, about 6% of a 2,000-calorie day, but it carries 5.3 g of saturated fat — 26% of the Daily Value. Four slices, roughly 450 calories, would use up the entire day's saturated fat allowance while leaving three-quarters of the calories still to spend.
Scale that to the shredded cup and it gets sharper. A cup of shredded cheddar works out to about 21.3 g of saturated fat, 107% of the 20 g Daily Value, from 455 calories — our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figures. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans put saturated fat under 10% of daily calories, which is where the pressure comes from, not the calorie count.
The trade in the other direction is real too. That cup delivers roughly 25.8 g of protein, 52% of the Daily Value, again our scaling from the 100 g row. Cheese is an efficient protein per bite and an inefficient one per calorie; MyPlate counts 1.5 oz of hard cheese as one cup-equivalent of dairy for exactly that reason.
Sodium swings almost ninefold across the case
| Cheese | Sodium per 100 g | Sodium per 28 g slice |
|---|---|---|
| Swiss | 187 mg | 52 mg |
| Mozzarella, whole milk | 486 mg | 136 mg |
| Cheddar | 653 mg | 183 mg |
| Cheese, NFS (survey average) | 964 mg | 270 mg |
| American, processed | 1671 mg | 468 mg |
Only the cheddar slice figure is a USDA serving; the other per-slice numbers are our arithmetic from each record's 100 g value. The gap between the ends is what matters: processed American carries almost nine times the sodium of Swiss, gram for gram, because emulsifying salts are what let it melt so smoothly. Two American slices on a burger are 936 mg, 41% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value, before the bun or the pickles.
One cheddar slice is 183 mg, which is less than a tenth of a teaspoon of table salt. If you are watching sodium, the switch that actually pays is Swiss or fresh mozzarella instead of processed slices — not less cheese.
How does cheddar compare with other cheeses?
| Cheese | Per 100 g | US serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheddar | 403 kcal | 1 slice (1 oz), 28 g | 113 kcal |
| Swiss | 393 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 111 kcal |
| American, processed | 371 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 105 kcal |
| Cream cheese | 350 kcal | 1 oz, 28.35 g | 99 kcal |
Our take: picking between these four on calories is a waste of attention — 14 calories separate the heaviest from the lightest per ounce. Swiss is the pick if sodium is your constraint, at a fraction of cheddar's per gram. Cream cheese looks lightest per ounce, but it is spread thick and thin over bagels rather than cut into slices, so a real portion is usually two tablespoons or more. For counting purposes, treat all hard cheese as roughly 110 calories an ounce and spend your effort on how much lands on the plate.
Most popular cheese 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) |
|---|---|
| Marburger Farm Dairy Cottage Cheese | 97 cal |
| Dodoni Feta Cheese | 250 cal |
| Philadelphia Reduced Fat Cream Cheese | 219 cal |
| Good Culture Simply Cottage Cheese | 80 cal |
| Good Culture Organic Cottage Cheese | 100 cal |
| Coach Farm Goat Milk Cheese | 214 cal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels / USDA FoodData Central.
Cheese FAQs
How many calories are in a slice of cheese?
A 1 oz slice of cheddar (28 g) is 113 calories, from the USDA cheddar record at 403 calories per 100 g. Sliced sharp cheddar is a shade higher at 115 per slice, Swiss 110 and processed American 104. If your deli cuts thicker than an ounce, weigh one slice and scale from the 100 g figure.
How many calories in 1 oz of cheddar cheese?
One ounce of cheddar is 114 calories at a true 28.35 g, while the 1 oz slice USDA lists at 28 g is 113. A single gram is the whole difference. That 28 g slice also brings 6.4 g of protein, 9.3 g of fat, 5.3 g of it saturated, and 183 mg of sodium.
How many calories in a cup of shredded cheese?
A cup of shredded cheddar weighs 113 g and carries 455 calories, just over four slices' worth. Diced instead of shredded, a cup packs down to 132 g and 532 calories, because cubes leave less air between them. Both are USDA household measures for record 173414, not our own scaling.
Which cheese has the fewest calories?
Whole-milk mozzarella, at 299 calories per 100 g, is the lightest of the generic USDA cheeses here; reduced-fat cheddar follows at 316 and cream cheese at 350. Mozzarella wins on water rather than virtue, since fresher cheese holds more moisture and a gram of it therefore carries less fat.
Is cheese high in sodium?
One 28 g slice of cheddar is 183 mg of sodium, 8% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value. The type decides the rest: Swiss is 187 mg per 100 g, cheddar 653 mg and processed American 1,671 mg, almost nine times the Swiss. Processed slices, not cheese in general, are the sodium problem.
Does cheese have carbs or sugar?
Barely — cheddar has 3.37 g of carbohydrate and 0.48 g of sugars per 100 g, which is 0.9 g and 0.1 g in a slice, under 1% of the Daily Value for carbohydrate. Aging eats most of the lactose. Processed American is higher, at 3.7 g of carbohydrate and 2.26 g of sugars per 100 g.
How much protein is in cheddar cheese?
Cheddar carries 22.87 g of protein per 100 g, which is 6.4 g in a 1 oz slice and 13% of the 50 g Daily Value. A cup of shredded cheddar reaches about 25.8 g, our own arithmetic from the 100 g figure. Reduced-fat cheddar is denser still at 27.35 g per 100 g.
Is cheese good for a weight-loss diet?
At 113 calories a slice it fits easily; at 455 calories a shredded cup it usually does not. The practical move is to slice rather than grate, since the same cheese by the handful runs four times the calories. If you are watching saturated fat, one slice already spends 26% of the Daily Value.
Similar foods
- Oat flour — 105 cal for 1/4 cup
- Thousand Island Dressing — 216 cal per dipping-size container
- Gouda cheese — 75 cal per slice
- Condensed Milk — 122 cal per 2 tbsp
- Honey — 64 cal per tablespoon
- Cheeseburger — 488 cal per cheeseburger
Count it without the math
Point the camera at the plate and BodyPal counts the cheese for you, slice or handful.
