How many calories are in a chicken sausage link?
One bun-size chicken sausage link weighs 75 g and carries 145 calories. Per 100 g the sausage runs 193 calories, with 19.65 g of protein and 705 mg of sodium. The small breakfast link most people picture is a different size entirely: 20 g and 39 calories, less than a third of the griller.
You'd need to walk about 29 minutes to burn the 145 calories in one bun-size link (75 g).
How long does it take to burn off 145 kcal of chicken sausage?
One bun-size link (75 g) is 145 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 145 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 29 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 18 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 21 min |
| Jogging | 17 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 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 (75 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Chicken sausage link quick facts
- US servings, from a breakfast link to a full cup
- Breakfast link, griller link and the pork blend
- Reduced-sodium and Italian-style versions
- Sodium is the row to watch, not calories
- How does chicken sausage compare?
- Most popular chicken sausage link brands
- FAQ
Chicken sausage link quick facts
The number above comes from FNDDS 2706200, "Turkey or chicken sausage", the USDA record for cooked poultry sausage with no pork in the mix. It is the one entry that carries household portions for all three shapes sold in American stores: the thin breakfast link, the fat bun-size griller, and the cocktail size. If you are holding a cooked link off a skillet or a grill, this is your row.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 bun-size link (75 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 193 | 145 | — |
| Total fat | 12.24 g | 9.2 g | 12% |
| Saturated fat | 2.98 g | 2.2 g | 11% |
| Carbohydrate | 1.09 g | 0.8 g | 0% |
| Dietary fiber | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Total sugars | 0 g | 0 g | — |
| Protein | 19.65 g | 14.7 g | 29% |
| Sodium | 705 mg | 529 mg | 23% |
% 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 retail label are missing here on purpose: USDA does not publish added sugars or trans fat for this record, so listing either one would mean inventing it. Cholesterol and potassium are published — one link gives 69 mg of cholesterol (23% of the Daily Value) and 274 mg of potassium (6%).
US servings, from a breakfast link to a full cup
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 breakfast size link | 20 g | 39 kcal |
| 1 oz, cooked | 28 g | 55 kcal |
| 1 patty | 35 g | 68 kcal |
| 1 bun-size or griller link | 75 g | 145 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 193 kcal |
| 1 cup, sliced | 138 g | 266 kcal |
| Two bun-size links | 150 g | 290 kcal |
The breakfast link, the patty, the bun-size link and the cup are all USDA household measures for this record, so those weights are not guesses. The two-link line is our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, not a USDA serving — but it is the plate most people actually build, and 290 calories is a very different breakfast from 39.
That gap is the single most useful thing on this page. Two products share the word "link" and differ by 3.7 times: the thin breakfast link at 20 g and the griller at 75 g. Log the wrong one and a modest breakfast turns into a 106-calorie error, or the reverse.
Breakfast link, griller link and the pork blend
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical piece | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Breakfast-size link | 193 kcal | 1 link (20 g) | 39 kcal |
| Bun-size or griller link | 193 kcal | 1 link (75 g) | 145 kcal |
| Chicken-and-pork sausage link | 307 kcal | 1 bun-size link (75 g) | 230 kcal |
| Smoked chicken, beef and pork link | 216 kcal | 1 link (84 g) | 181 kcal |
The blend is where the calorie count moves. Turkey or chicken sausage with pork added runs 307 calories per 100 g against 193 for the all-poultry version — 59% more energy for protein that barely changes, 22.7 g against 19.65 g. Fat almost doubles, from 12.24 g to 23 g per 100 g. If a package says "chicken sausage" but lists pork in the ingredients, you are eating the 230-calorie link, not the 145.
Retail labels sit a little lighter than the USDA average, because most national brands lean lean. Bilinski's lists 147 calories per 100 g, Jones Dairy Farm 153 and Johnsonville smoked chicken sausage 161, while Jimmy Dean applewood links reach 188 and Aidells chicken and apple 183. Serving sizes on those packages are all over the map, though — Jones counts three links as 59 g, Johnsonville counts 2 oz — so the per-100-g column is the only fair way to line them up.
Reduced-sodium and Italian-style versions
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical piece | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Reduced-sodium chicken sausage | 230 kcal | 1 bun-size link (75 g) | 173 kcal |
| Italian-style chicken sausage, lower sodium | 183 kcal | 100 g | 183 kcal |
Here is the trade nobody prints on the front of the package. Reduced-sodium chicken sausage drops sodium from 705 mg to 417 mg per 100 g, but calories climb from 193 to 230, and carbohydrate goes from 1.09 g to 13.32 g. Starches and binders are doing the work salt used to do. Per link that is 313 mg of sodium instead of 529, at a cost of 28 extra calories.
The Italian-style lower-sodium recipe is the leanest poultry sausage in the whole set: 183 calories per 100 g, 21.43 g of protein, and only 4.46 g of fat. USDA lists it per 100 g rather than per link, so weigh it rather than counting pieces.
Sodium is the row to watch, not calories
At 145 calories, one link is a small line in a day's budget. Salt is the row that moves fast. Three numbers clear a fifth of the FDA Daily Value in one link: protein at 29%, sodium at 23% and cholesterol at 23%. Saturated fat, the row people expect to be the villain in sausage, is only 11%.
Scale that up and the picture changes. Two links carry 1,058 mg of sodium, 46% of the day. A cup of sliced sausage (138 g) reaches 973 mg, 42%, for 266 calories — you hit over 40% of the sodium target on roughly an eighth of the calorie target. The link itself works out to just under a quarter teaspoon of table salt.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans cap sodium at 2,300 mg a day, and processed meat is one of the biggest single contributors in the American diet. Chicken sausage still earns its spot on a plate as a protein food — MyPlate counts an ounce of it as an ounce-equivalent — but if you are watching sodium, the reduced-sodium or Italian-style versions are the better pick, and the difference is bigger than anything you gain on calories.
How does chicken sausage compare?
| Sausage | Per 100 g | Sodium per 100 g | US serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicken sausage | 193 kcal | 705 mg | one bun-size link, 75 g | 145 kcal |
| Smoked chicken, beef and pork | 216 kcal | 1034 mg | one link, 84 g | 181 kcal |
| Vienna sausage, canned | 230 kcal | 879 mg | one sausage, 16 g | 37 kcal |
| Polish sausage, beef with chicken | 259 kcal | 1540 mg | five pieces, 55 g | 142 kcal |
Our take: all-poultry chicken sausage is the lightest of these four per gram and the lowest in sodium per gram, and it is the only one over 19 g of protein per 100 g. Vienna sausages look harmless at 37 calories, but that is a 16 g sausage — five of them, our own scaling of the USDA 100 g figure rather than a listed serving, come to 185 calories, and protein is 10.5 g per 100 g, the weakest of the group. Hot Polish sausage is the one to watch: 1,540 mg of sodium per 100 g means a 55 g portion carries 847 mg, 60% more salt than a chicken link that costs about the same calories. For a breakfast plate or a bun, chicken sausage wins on the columns that matter here: calories per gram, sodium per gram and protein.
Most popular chicken sausage link 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) |
|---|---|
| Bilinski's Chicken Sausage | 147 cal |
| Jones Dairy Farm Chicken Sausage Links | 153 cal |
| Johnsonville Smoked Chicken Sausage | 161 cal |
| Aidells Smoked Chicken and Apple Sausage Links | 183 cal |
| Cher-Make 100 Calories Maple Chicken Sausage Links | 149 cal |
| Jimmy Dean Applewood Smoke Chicken Sausage Links | 188 cal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels / USDA FoodData Central.
Chicken sausage link FAQs
How many calories are in one chicken sausage link?
A bun-size or griller link weighing 75 g has 145 calories, since USDA lists chicken sausage at 193 calories per 100 g. That same link carries 14.7 g of protein and 529 mg of sodium. A thin breakfast link is a different product entirely at 20 g and 39 calories.
How many calories in a breakfast chicken sausage link?
39 calories for a 20 g breakfast-size link, the thin kind sold twelve to a pack. Three of them land at 117 calories, 11.8 g of protein and 423 mg of sodium. That three-link figure is our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g number, scaled up from one 20 g link.
How many calories in 2 chicken sausage links?
Two bun-size links weigh about 150 g and come to 290 calories, our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure rather than a listed serving. They also stack up 1,058 mg of sodium, which is 46% of the Daily Value, alongside 29.4 g of protein and 18.4 g of fat.
How much protein is in a chicken sausage link?
14.7 g in a 75 g bun-size link, or 29% of the 50 g Daily Value. Per 100 g chicken sausage runs 19.65 g of protein against 12.24 g of fat, so it is a genuine protein food rather than a token one. A 20 g breakfast link gives 3.9 g.
How much sodium is in chicken sausage?
705 mg per 100 g, which works out to 529 mg in one 75 g link, or 23% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value. That is just under a quarter teaspoon of table salt. A cup of sliced sausage (138 g) reaches 973 mg, 42% of the day, before anything else on the plate.
Is chicken sausage healthier than pork sausage?
On calories, yes: 193 per 100 g for all-poultry chicken sausage against 307 for the chicken-and-pork blend, which is 59% more energy for almost identical protein. Fat is 12.24 g versus 23 g per 100 g. Sodium tells a different story at 705 mg against 878 mg, so neither is a low-salt food.
Are chicken sausage links good for weight loss?
A 145-calorie link with 14.7 g of protein is a reasonable trade when you are watching calories, since protein is the part of the plate that keeps you full. The catch is sodium at 529 mg per link, 23% of the day. If sausage is a regular habit, the reduced-sodium version drops that to 313 mg.
How many calories in a chicken sausage patty?
68 calories for a 35 g patty, which is a USDA household portion for the same record. That is roughly half a bun-size link, with 6.9 g of protein, 4.3 g of fat and 247 mg of sodium. Patties spread thinner in the pan, so they brown faster than links do.
Similar foods
- Shrimp Fajita — 227 cal per cup
- Shrimp Shumai — 180 cal for 6 pieces
- T-Bone Steak — 537 cal per steak
- Beef Cube Steak — 299 cal per steak
- Meatloaf — 215 cal per slice
- Turkey Sandwich — 215 cal plain, 433 loaded
Count it without the math
Point the camera at the plate and BodyPal counts the links for you, breakfast size or griller.
