How many calories are in chicken salad?
A 1-cup serving of chicken salad weighs 208 g and carries 416 calories. Per 100 g the deli-case version runs 200 calories, so a half-cup scoop lands at 208. Fat, not bread, is what builds the number here: 28.1 g of it in that cup, against just 15.4 g of carbohydrate.
You'd need to walk about 83 minutes to burn the 416 calories in a 1-cup (208 g) serving.
How long does it take to burn off chicken salad?
A 1-cup (208 g) serving is 416 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 416 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 1 hr 23 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 52 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 59 min |
| Jogging | 49 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 1 hr 32 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 (208 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Chicken salad quick facts
- US servings, from a scoop to a whole can
- Sandwiches, sliders and wraps
- Sodium is the row to watch
- How does chicken salad compare?
- Most popular chicken salad brands
- FAQ
Chicken salad quick facts
Two different plates answer to the name. One is a green salad with grilled chicken on top. The other is the creamy, mayo-bound scoop from the deli case that goes onto bread or crackers. This page counts the second one, because that is the version people scoop and weigh, and the numbers below come from the USDA record for it: FNDDS 2706221, "Chicken salad spread", from the 2021-2023 survey release.
That record is the only USDA entry for the salad on its own. The other three chicken salad rows in the database are already-built sandwiches, where bread has been folded into the per-gram math. Keeping the filling separate is what lets you scale it to your own scoop.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 cup (208 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 200 | 416 | — |
| Total fat | 13.52 g | 28.1 g | 36% |
| Saturated fat | 3.45 g | 7.2 g | 36% |
| Carbohydrate | 7.41 g | 15.4 g | 6% |
| Dietary fiber | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Total sugars | 0 g | 0 g | — |
| Protein | 11.64 g | 24.2 g | 48% |
| Sodium | 653 mg | 1358 mg | 59% |
| Cholesterol | 30 mg | 62 mg | 21% |
| Potassium | 183 mg | 381 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 →
There is no added sugars row and no trans fat row on this page, because USDA does not publish either value for FNDDS mixed dishes. Total sugars sit at zero, which is itself worth noticing: a food this rich has nowhere for sugar to hide unless the recipe adds relish or dried fruit. Cholesterol comes to 62 mg per cup, 21% of the Daily Value, and potassium to 381 mg, 8%.
One more thing the label habit hides. Work out the fat share of the calories and the cup is about 61% fat by energy, using the standard 9 calories per gram - our own arithmetic on the USDA figures, not a USDA field. That is the highest fat share of any chicken salad build on this page, sandwiches included, because bread dilutes it.
US servings, from a scoop to a whole can
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 oz | 28.4 g | 57 kcal |
| USDA portion scoop | 42 g | 84 kcal |
| 1/2 cup | 104 g | 208 kcal |
| 1 cup | 208 g | 416 kcal |
| 1 can, 7.5 oz | 213 g | 426 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 200 kcal |
The 1-cup and 7.5-oz can weights are USDA household measures, taken straight from the record. The 1 oz and 1/2 cup lines are our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, not USDA servings, which is why they come out as clean halves and fractions.
The 42 g scoop is the number most people never see, and it is the one that makes chicken salad look harmless. That is the small deli-counter portion, the amount that fits on two crackers or into a lettuce cup: 84 calories. Nobody stops there when the container is open on the counter. A cup, the amount that fills a sandwich for two people, is five times that.
The can is the other trap. A 7.5 oz can reads like a single-serve item, and at 213 g it is barely more than a cup: 426 calories if you eat it out of the can. Store-brand tubs run larger still, usually a pound, which is 454 g and about 908 calories for the tub - again our arithmetic from the 100 g figure.
Sandwiches, sliders and wraps
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical portion | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken salad, half-cup scoop | 200 kcal | 1/2 cup (104 g) | 208 kcal |
| Chicken salad, one can | 200 kcal | 7.5 oz can (213 g) | 426 kcal |
| Sandwich on white bread | 246 kcal | 1 regular (180 g) | 443 kcal |
| Sandwich on wheat bread | 245 kcal | 1 regular (180 g) | 441 kcal |
| Slider or miniature sandwich | 246 kcal | 1 miniature (90 g) | 221 kcal |
| Wrap | 269 kcal | 1 sandwich (200 g) | 538 kcal |
Here is the result that surprises people. A whole regular sandwich on white bread is 443 calories. A plain cup of the filling, no bread at all, is 416. The two slices buy you 27 calories, because bread is far less dense than the mayo it carries, and USDA puts the assembled sandwich at 246 calories per 100 g against 200 for the salad alone. Skipping the bread is not where the savings are; a smaller scoop is.
White and wheat are a coin flip on calories, 443 against 441. The difference is fiber: 1.8 g in the white sandwich, 3.8 g in the wheat one, scaled from the USDA wheat-bread record. Two grams is not a transformation, but it is free, and the wheat version also arrives with slightly more protein.
The wrap is the outlier, and not in the direction the menu board implies. At 269 calories per 100 g it is the densest build on the page, and a 200 g wrap comes to 538 calories with 4.5 g of saturated fat per 100 g - roughly double what either sliced-bread sandwich carries per gram. Tortillas are made with fat; two slices of bread are mostly not.
Sliders behave themselves for one reason only: portion size. A 90 g miniature sandwich is 221 calories. Along with the half-cup scoop at 208, it is one of only two builds in the table under 300, and both get there by being small rather than by being different.
Retail tubs spread wider than the USDA average. Among US branded records, Sycamore Farms Chicken Salad runs 301 calories per 100 g and Premium Kentucky Farms 280, while Gunnoe's comes in at 146 - a lighter, lower-mayo recipe. If your container has a Nutrition Facts panel, use it: the spread between those brands is more than a factor of two, and the USDA 200 sits in the middle of it.
Sodium is the row to watch
Chicken salad is a protein food that behaves like a salty one. A single cup delivers 1,358 mg of sodium, 59% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value used on the Nutrition Facts label. In table-salt terms that is a little over half a teaspoon, all of it invisible inside the dressing. Even the modest half-cup scoop lands at 679 mg, about 30% of the day.
Compare that with the protein it delivers - 24.2 g per cup, 48% of the Daily Value - and the ranking flips: the salt outruns the protein. Per gram, the plain salad is the saltiest of the four USDA chicken salad records too, at 653 mg per 100 g against 473 for the sandwich on white and 603 for the wrap. The mayo base and seasoning, not the bread, are doing that.
Saturated fat is the other row that moves fast. The cup carries 7.2 g, 36% of the Daily Value, from a food most people think of as a lean-chicken dish. If you are watching either number, a half scoop over greens keeps chicken salad on the menu at 208 calories, 679 mg sodium and 3.6 g saturated fat, and MyPlate's protein foods guidance is a reasonable place to see how the rest of a day's protein might be built around it.
How does chicken salad compare?
| Dish | Per 100 g | US serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken salad, plain | 200 kcal | 1 cup (208 g) | 416 kcal |
| Sandwich on white bread | 246 kcal | 1 regular (180 g) | 443 kcal |
| Sandwich on wheat bread | 245 kcal | 1 regular (180 g) | 441 kcal |
| Wrap | 269 kcal | 1 sandwich (200 g) | 538 kcal |
Our take: for weight control, order the sandwich and not the wrap - 443 against 538 is a real 95-calorie gap, and the wrap gives you less bread flavor for it. For fullness per calorie, the plain cup wins: 24.2 g of protein with almost no carbohydrate, and it leaves you free to spend the difference on something with fiber, which chicken salad has none of. The lightest sensible order in this whole set is a half-cup scoop, 208 calories, on greens. What none of these versions escape is the salt, so if sodium is your constraint, the size of the scoop matters more than what you put it on.
Most popular chicken salad 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) |
|---|---|
| Sycamore Farms Chicken Salad | 301 cal |
| Premium Kentucky Farms Chicken Salad | 280 cal |
| Gunnoe's Chicken Salad | 146 cal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels / USDA FoodData Central.
Chicken salad FAQs
How many calories are in 1 cup of chicken salad?
One cup of chicken salad weighs 208 g and carries 416 calories, at 200 calories per 100 g. Fat does most of that work: 28.1 g in the cup, 36% of a day's Daily Value. Protein comes to 24.2 g and carbohydrate to only 15.4 g.
How many calories are in a half cup of chicken salad?
A half-cup scoop is 104 g and 208 calories, exactly half the cup. That is our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, not a USDA serving. It brings 14.1 g of fat, 12.1 g of protein and 679 mg of sodium, which is 30% of the daily sodium limit.
How many calories are in a chicken salad sandwich?
A regular chicken salad sandwich on white bread is 443 calories for 180 g, and the same sandwich on wheat is 441. Bread adds bulk more than density: the filling alone, in a 1-cup serving, is already 416 calories. Wheat doubles the fiber, from 1.8 g to 3.8 g.
How much protein is in chicken salad?
A 1-cup serving gives 24.2 g of protein, 48% of the 50 g Daily Value, scaled from 11.64 g per 100 g. A half-cup scoop still delivers 12.1 g. That is genuine protein-food territory, but it arrives alongside 28.1 g of fat in the same cup.
Is chicken salad high in sodium?
Yes - one cup carries 1,358 mg of sodium, 59% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value, and roughly what you would get from a little over half a teaspoon of table salt. Per 100 g the figure is 653 mg. Even a half-cup scoop lands at 679 mg.
How many carbs are in chicken salad?
Chicken salad is low in carbohydrate: 7.41 g per 100 g, so 15.4 g in a 1-cup serving, only 6% of the Daily Value. USDA lists no fiber and no sugars in the record. The carbs arrive with the bread - a sandwich on white holds about 33 g.
Is chicken salad good for weight loss?
It can work: 416 calories per cup buys 24.2 g of protein, but also 28.1 g of fat. Half that scoop, 208 calories, served over greens instead of bread is the lighter build. If you are watching sodium, the 1,358 mg in a full cup is the number that bites.
Chicken salad wrap or sandwich: which has fewer calories?
The sandwich - a regular chicken salad sandwich on white bread is 443 calories for 180 g, while a wrap comes to 538 calories for 200 g. The tortilla is the reason: 269 calories per 100 g against 246 for the sandwich, and far more saturated fat per gram.
Similar foods
- Potato wedges — 138 cal for 3 oz
- Ear of Corn — 99 cal per medium ear
- Sweet Potato — 103 cal per medium, baked
- Papaya salad — 190 cal per plate
- Carrot — 53 cal per cup chopped
- Onion — 46 cal per cup sliced
Count it without the math
Point the camera at the scoop and BodyPal counts it for you, mayo and all.
