McDonald's fries calories come to 378 for a medium order (117 g) and 323 per 100 g, based on USDA fast-food values for McDonald's french fries. The thing to notice is size. A kids size is 100 calories and a large is 497, so the cup you pick matters more than anything else about the fries.
378kcal
1 medium serving · 117 g, fast food
4%protein
4 gProtein
50 gCarbs
18.1 gFat
How to burn off 378 kcal
—Walking, brisk
—Jogging
—Cycling, moderate
—Swimming
Skip the math. BodyPal counts these calories from your steps and workouts automatically.
Nutrition facts
Fast food · per 117 g
Calories
378 kcal
Protein
4 g
Carbohydrate
50 g
Fat
18.1 g
Saturated fat
2.7 g
Sodium
221 mg
Potassium
697 mg
Iron
0.9 mg
Source: USDA FoodData Central
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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 →
McDonald's fries: calories, protein and sodium by serving
Percent of daily value uses the FDA reference of 2,000 kcal a day.
Serving
kcal
Protein
Carbs
Fat
Sodium
% DV kcal
Medium (117 g)
378
4 g
49.8 g
18.1 g
221 mg
19%
Large (154 g)
497
5.3 g
65.6 g
23.8 g
291 mg
25%
Small (71 g)
229
2.4 g
30.2 g
11 g
134 mg
11%
Kids size (31 g)
100
1.1 g
13.2 g
4.8 g
59 mg
5%
3 × Medium (117 g)
1,134
12 g
663 mg
5 × Medium (117 g)
1,890
19.9 g
1,106 mg
A medium is 378 calories, a large is 497
McDonald's fries come in four sizes, and the gaps between them are wide. A kids size (31 g) is 100 calories, a small (71 g) is 229, a medium (117 g) is 378 and a large (154 g) is 497. Moving from medium to large adds only a few more bites of potato. It also adds well over a hundred calories.
Against the daily value, a medium covers 19% of the day's calories and a large covers 25%. The small sits at 11% and the kids size at 5%. If fries are meant to be a side and not the meal, the small or kids size keeps them in that role.
Totals climb fast when fries get doubled or shared. Two mediums come to 756 calories and three come to 1,134. Five mediums, the kind of pile a group splits, reach 1,890 calories and 1,106 mg of sodium. When the table orders by the bag, count what you actually eat, not what was bought.
Fat supplies 43% of the calories
Per 100 g, McDonald's fries carry 42.6 g of carbs, 15.5 g of fat and 3.4 g of protein. Measured by calories, carbs make up 53%, fat 43% and protein just 4%. The potato supplies the starch. The frying oil accounts for nearly all of the rest.
Fat is why the numbers add up so quickly. A medium holds 18.1 g of fat and a large holds 23.8 g. Saturated fat stays fairly low at 2.3 g per 100 g, so most of the fat is the unsaturated kind. Even so, fat is dense, and here it does much of the calorie work.
Sugar barely registers: 0.2 g in a medium. Fiber is a small bright spot at 3.9 g per 100 g, which works out to 4.6 g in a medium and 6 g in a large. That doesn't make fries a fiber food, but it is more than the salty, crisp reputation suggests.
Sodium is lower than the salty taste suggests
A medium carries 221 mg of sodium, which is 10% of the daily value. A large has 291 mg (13%), a small 134 mg (6%) and a kids size 59 mg (3%). For something that tastes this salty, those are moderate numbers. Per 100 g the figure is 189 mg.
Potassium is the row people overlook. McDonald's fries list 596 mg of potassium per 100 g, which comes from the potato itself. It doesn't cancel out the salt, but it is a real part of the nutrition panel and worth knowing about.
Sodium becomes a real number only at volume. Three mediums reach 663 mg and five reach 1,106 mg. If you watch sodium, the fries on their own are rarely the problem. Look harder at the rest of the order, and at how many cartons end up on the tray.
Fries bring energy, not protein
A medium order gives you 4 g of protein, 8% of the daily value, for 378 calories. A large only gets you to 5.3 g. On their own, fries are mostly starch and fat, so they work better as a side than as the center of a meal.
If fries are part of the order, let something else carry the protein and keep the fries the smaller item. A small at 229 calories or a kids size at 100 still gives you the taste without pushing the meal total up as hard as a large does. A water or unsweetened drink keeps the side from turning into the biggest number on the receipt.
Shared fries are the hardest to count, because nobody knows how many they ate. BodyPal can log fries from a photo, which helps when the carton is half finished or split three ways. Logging the size you actually ordered is the simplest habit that keeps the totals honest.
How does McDonald's fries compare?
Here McDonald's fries sit beside generic fries, the McDonald's small fry and waffle fries, compared per 100 g and per usual serving.
Verdict: If you want the smallest total, order the McDonald's small fry at 229 calories, since waffle fries are lighter per 100 g at 289 but a 170 g order still reaches 491. If you watch sodium, McDonald's fries win at 189 mg per 100 g, against 210 mg for generic fries and 357 mg for waffle fries.
McDonald's fries FAQs
How many calories are in a medium McDonald's fries?
A medium serving weighs 117 g and has 378 calories. A large (154 g) is 497 calories and a small (71 g) is 229.
Are McDonald's fries good for weight loss?
They are calorie dense at 323 calories per 100 g, so a medium serving takes 378 calories out of the day. A small serving keeps it to 229 calories and a kids size to 100.
Do McDonald's fries have more calories than regular french fries?
Slightly. McDonald's fries are 323 calories per 100 g against 312 for generic fries, a difference of 11 calories per 100 g.
How much fat is in McDonald's fries?
Per 100 g there are 15.5 g fat, of which 2.3 g saturated. A medium serving has 18.1 g fat, 49.8 g carbs and 4 g protein.
How many calories are in McDonald's fries per 100 g?
McDonald's fries have 323 calories per 100 g. That same 100 g holds 42.6 g of carbs, 15.5 g of fat, 3.4 g of protein and 189 mg of sodium, based on USDA fast-food values.
How many calories are in a large McDonald's fries?
A large McDonald's fries (154 g) has 497 calories, 25% of the daily value. It also carries 23.8 g of fat, 65.6 g of carbs and 291 mg of sodium, which makes it the heaviest of the four sizes.
How many calories are in McDonald's fries by size?
A kids size (31 g) has 100 calories, a small (71 g) 229, a medium (117 g) 378 and a large (154 g) 497. Going from the smallest cup to the largest adds close to five times the calories.
How many calories are in regular McDonald's fries?
The sizes in this data are kids, small, medium and large, and none of them is labeled regular. A small has 229 calories and a medium has 378, so whatever your menu calls regular most likely falls between those two.
