How many calories are in chicken chili?
A 1-cup serving of chicken chili with beans weighs 255 g and carries 252 calories. Per 100 g it runs 99 calories, which makes it one of the lighter hot lunches you can ladle into a bowl. The chicken and the beans together push protein to 26 g a cup, half a day's worth.
You'd need to walk about 50 minutes to burn the 252 calories in a 1-cup (255 g) serving.
How long does it take to burn off chicken chili?
A 1-cup (255 g) serving is 252 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 252 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 50 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 32 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 36 min |
| Jogging | 30 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 56 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 (255 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Chicken chili quick facts
- US servings from one ounce to a big bowl
- Beans or no beans and the canned versions
- Sodium is the row to watch
- How does chicken chili compare?
- Most popular chicken chili brands
- Chicken chili FAQs
Chicken chili quick facts
The number most people need is the one for a bowl of chicken chili with beans, because that is what almost everyone eats. Every clean store-bought chicken chili in the USDA Branded database is a "with beans" product, and home recipes lean the same way. So the base record here is FNDDS 2706425, "Chili with chicken and beans", from the 2021-2023 survey cycle. The bean-free version gets its own numbers further down.
One point on measuring: chili is a heavy, wet food, so a cup of it is 255 g, not the 240 g people assume from a cup of water. That extra 15 g is worth about 15 calories, which is small, but it stacks up if you eat chili twice a week for a year.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 cup (255 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 99 | 252 | — |
| Total fat | 2.08 g | 5.3 g | 7% |
| Saturated fat | 0.56 g | 1.4 g | 7% |
| Carbohydrate | 10.25 g | 26.1 g | 10% |
| Dietary fiber | 3 g | 7.7 g | 27% |
| Total sugars | 1.48 g | 3.8 g | — |
| Protein | 10.2 g | 26.0 g | 52% |
| Sodium | 341 mg | 870 mg | 38% |
% 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 not find here: added sugars and trans fat. USDA does not publish either one for this FNDDS record, so putting a figure in those cells would mean inventing it. Cholesterol comes to 79 mg a cup, 26% of the FDA Daily Value of 300 mg, and potassium to 719 mg, or 15%. The 3.8 g of total sugars is almost all from the tomato and the onion, which is why the added-sugars line would have read near zero anyway.
US servings from one ounce to a big bowl
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 oz | 28 g | 28 kcal |
| 1/2 cup, a side portion | 128 g | 127 kcal |
| 1 cup | 255 g | 252 kcal |
| 8 oz, a small soup bowl | 227 g | 225 kcal |
| 1 large bowl, 1.5 cups | 383 g | 379 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 99 kcal |
Only the 1-cup line and the per-100-g line come straight from USDA. The half cup, the 8-ounce bowl, the 1.5-cup bowl and the single ounce are our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, not USDA servings.
Here is the trap. A "bowl" sounds bigger than a "cup," but an 8-ounce bowl holds 227 g and lands at 225 calories, while a full cup holds 255 g and lands at 252. The bowl is 27 calories lighter. If a diner or a deli sells you a cup and a bowl, ask which is which by weight, because the words do not settle it.
The other thing that moves the count is what sits under or on top of the chili. A half cup of rice underneath adds roughly as much as the chili itself, and a heavy handful of shredded cheese can add more than the second ladle would. The chili is the cheap part of the plate.
Beans or no beans and the canned versions
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| With beans, homestyle | 99 kcal | 1 cup, 255 g | 252 kcal |
| Without beans | 100 kcal | 1 cup, 255 g | 255 kcal |
| White chicken chili | 95 kcal | 1 cup, 255 g | 242 kcal |
| Canned with beans, Hormel | 101 kcal | 1 can, 298 g | 301 kcal |
| Canned white, Hormel | 89 kcal | 1 cup, 247 g | 220 kcal |
| Canned buffalo style, Vietti | 89 kcal | 1 cup, 246 g | 219 kcal |
The bean question barely touches the calorie count: 99 against 100 per 100 g, a difference you could not taste or measure at home. What it does change is the shape of the food. Beans take fiber from 0.5 g to 3 g per 100 g, and they dilute the meat, so protein drops from 14.11 g to 10.2 g per 100 g. Carbohydrate moves the other way, from 2.41 g to 10.25 g, roughly four times higher. Pick beans for fiber and a fuller bowl; skip them for a low-carb plate with 36 g of protein in a cup.
White chicken chili is the lightest of the three at 95 calories per 100 g, or 242 a cup, because it leans on white beans and green chiles rather than a tomato base with oil. Store versions go lower still. Canned white chili from Hormel is 89 calories per 100 g and a Vietti buffalo style with beans is also 89, both around 220 a cup. Supermarket house brands scatter widely: a Spartan chicken chili with white beans is 92 per 100 g, and a Southgate version comes in at just 61.
Watch the can, not the cup. A can of Hormel chicken chili with beans holds 298 g, so eating the whole thing is 301 calories, not the 250-ish you might pencil in from a cup.
Sodium is the row to watch
Nothing in chicken chili is expensive in calories. Fat is 5.3 g a cup, 7% of the Daily Value, and saturated fat is 1.4 g, also 7%. The costly line is sodium: 870 mg in one cup, 38% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value. That is a bit over a third of a teaspoon of table salt, from one bowl of soup.
Canned chili is worse per gram and much worse per container. The Hormel can runs 332 mg of sodium per 100 g, so the full 298 g can delivers about 989 mg, roughly 43% of a day in one sitting. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans put the ceiling at 2,300 mg a day for adults, so if you are watching sodium, a homemade pot where you control the salt is the better pick, and rinsing canned beans before they go in helps too.
The good news is on the other side of the label. A cup gives 26 g of protein, 52% of the Daily Value, which is more than most soups and closer to a piece of chicken than to a bowl of stew. Fiber lands at 7.7 g, 27% of the DV, and that combination of protein and fiber is why a 252-calorie bowl holds most people until dinner. MyPlate counts the chicken and the beans in this dish toward the protein foods group twice over.
How does chicken chili compare?
| Dish | Per 100 g | US serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken chili with beans | 99 kcal | 1 cup, 255 g | 252 kcal |
| Chicken chili without beans | 100 kcal | 1 cup, 255 g | 255 kcal |
| White chicken chili | 95 kcal | 1 cup, 255 g | 242 kcal |
| Chicken stew with pasta | 108 kcal | 1 cup, 255 g | 275 kcal |
Our take: these four are close enough that the choice is not really about calories. Across the whole table only white chicken chili is lighter than the standard bowl, and it saves you 10 calories a cup, which is noise. If you are cutting calories, the lever is the ladle and the toppings, not the recipe. If you want the most protein for the fewest calories, the bean-free version wins outright at 36 g a cup for 255 calories. If you want the bowl that keeps you full longest for the money, keep the beans and their 7.7 g of fiber.
Most popular chicken chili 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) |
|---|---|
| Hormel Chicken Chili with Beans | 101 cal |
| Hormel White Chicken Chili with Beans | 89 cal |
| Spartan Chicken Chili with White Beans | 92 cal |
| Vietti Buffalo Style Chicken Chili with Beans | 89 cal |
| Southgate Chicken Chili with Beans | 61 cal |
| Fresh Foods Market Basil Chicken Chili with Beans | 69 cal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels / USDA FoodData Central.
Chicken chili FAQs
How many calories are in a cup of chicken chili?
A 1-cup serving of chicken chili with beans is 252 calories, weighing 255 g at 99 calories per 100 g. Half a cup comes to 127 calories and a large 1.5-cup bowl to 379. That cup also carries 26 g of protein and 7.7 g of fiber.
How much protein is in chicken chili?
A cup with beans has 26 g of protein, 52% of the Daily Value, from 10.2 g per 100 g. Made without beans it climbs to 14.11 g per 100 g, or about 36 g a cup, because the meat is not sharing space with the beans.
Is white chicken chili lower in calories?
Slightly: white chicken chili is 95 calories per 100 g against 99 for the red version, so a cup is 242 rather than 252. Canned white chili goes lower, around 89 per 100 g and 220 a cup. The gap is small enough that portion size matters more.
Chicken chili with beans or without: which has more calories?
Without beans is 255 calories a cup, with beans 252, a difference of three. What changes is everything else: beans lift fiber from 0.5 g to 3 g per 100 g, lift carbohydrate from 2.41 g to 10.25 g, and pull protein down from 14.11 g to 10.2 g.
How many calories in canned chicken chili?
A can of Hormel chicken chili with beans is 301 calories for the whole 298 g can, at 101 per 100 g. Canned white chili from the same brand is 89 per 100 g, about 220 a cup, and a Vietti buffalo style is 219. Canned chicken chili runs from 61 to 101 per 100 g.
Does chicken chili have a lot of sodium?
Yes: one cup carries 870 mg, 38% of the Daily Value and a bit over a third of a teaspoon of table salt. A full can of Hormel is worse at about 989 mg, roughly 43% of a day. Cooking a pot yourself is the simplest way to bring it down.
How many carbs are in chicken chili?
A cup with beans has 26.1 g of carbohydrate, 10% of the Daily Value, of which 7.7 g is fiber and only 3.8 g is sugar. Drop the beans and carbohydrate falls to 2.41 g per 100 g, about 6 g a cup, which puts it in low-carb territory.
Is chicken chili good for weight loss?
At 99 calories per 100 g it is one of the lighter hot meals, and a 252-calorie cup brings 26 g of protein and 7.7 g of fiber, the two things that keep a lunch filling. The calories that creep in come from rice, cheese and sour cream on top.
Similar foods
- Chinese Chicken and Broccoli — 206 cal per cup
- Clam Chowder — 237 cal per cup
- Pork And Beans — 273 cal per cup
- Turkey deli meat — 89 cal for 3 slices
- Chicken Tikka Masala — 257 cal per cup
- Tuna steak — 185 cal per steak, 6 oz
Count it without the math
Point the camera at the bowl and BodyPal counts the chili for you, beans and toppings included.
