How many calories are in onion soup?
A 1-cup serving of French onion soup, 245 g in the bowl, comes to 265 calories, and per 100 g the soup runs 108 calories. That is the finished restaurant-style bowl, cheese and bread built into the recipe. Thin the canned or packet versions and the count drops fast.
You'd need to walk about 53 minutes to burn the 265 calories in a 1-cup (245 g) serving.
How long does it take to burn off onion soup?
A 1-cup (245 g) serving is 265 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 265 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 53 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 33 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 38 min |
| Jogging | 31 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 59 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 (245 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Onion soup quick facts
- US servings from one ounce to the whole can
- Canned cream and packet versions
- Sodium is the row to watch
- How does onion soup compare?
- Most popular onion soup brands
- Onion soup FAQs
Onion soup quick facts
The number above comes from the USDA record FNDDS 2710108, "Soup, French onion". It describes the dish as it reaches the table: broth, softened onion, and the melted cheese and bread that are part of the recipe rather than a garnish measured separately. Someone typing "calories in onion soup" is almost always holding that finished bowl, not a can of concentrate and not a foil packet of powder, so it is the row this page leads with.
The other six USDA rows for onion soup are all one step back in the process, and they are covered further down. Nothing here is averaged between records. The difference between them is preparation, not disagreement between sources.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 cup (245 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 108 | 265 | — |
| Total fat | 4.47 g | 11.0 g | 14% |
| Saturated fat | 2.37 g | 5.8 g | 29% |
| Carbohydrate | 11.84 g | 29.0 g | 11% |
| Dietary fiber | 1.1 g | 2.7 g | 10% |
| Total sugars | 2.49 g | 6.1 g | — |
| Protein | 5.45 g | 13.4 g | 27% |
| Sodium | 378 mg | 926 mg | 40% |
% 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 label are missing here: added sugars and trans fat. USDA does not publish values for either in this record, so they are left out rather than guessed. Cholesterol works out to 32 mg a cup (11% DV) and potassium to 228 mg (5% DV), both modest.
The protein line is the pleasant surprise. At 13.4 g a cup, more than a quarter of a day's Daily Value, this soup carries as much protein as two eggs, and none of it comes from the onions. It comes from the cheese and the beef-style broth.
US servings from one ounce to the whole can
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 oz | 28.3 g | 31 kcal |
| Half a cup | 122.5 g | 132 kcal |
| 1 cup, standard bowl | 245 g | 265 kcal |
| 1 individual container | 440 g | 475 kcal |
| 1 can | 525 g | 567 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 108 kcal |
The cup, the single-serve container and the can are USDA household measures for this record. The ounce and the half cup are our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, not USDA servings, scaled straight down from 108 calories per 100 g.
Watch the gap between a cup and a container. A restaurant crock or a deli single-serve tub holds 440 g, nearly two cups, and lands at 475 calories. Log it as "a bowl of onion soup" while picturing a measuring cup and you are 210 calories light. The whole can, if you eat it in one sitting, is 567 calories, which is a full meal rather than a starter.
Canned cream and packet versions
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| French onion soup, prepared | 108 kcal | 1 cup (245 g) | 265 kcal |
| Canned onion soup, condensed | 46 kcal | half a cup of concentrate (123 g) | 57 kcal |
| Cream of onion soup, condensed | 88 kcal | half a cup of concentrate (126 g) | 111 kcal |
| Cream of onion, made with milk | 75 kcal | 1 cup (248 g) | 186 kcal |
| Cream of onion, made with water | 44 kcal | 1 cup (248 g, our arithmetic) | 109 kcal |
| Onion soup mix, prepared with water | 12 kcal | 1 cup (230 g) | 28 kcal |
| Dry onion soup mix, powder | 293 kcal | 1 packet (39 g) | 114 kcal |
Here is the trap that catches more calorie counts than any other on this food. The dry mix and the soup you make from that dry mix differ by a factor of 24 per 100 g, 293 against 12. A gram of powder is not a gram of soup, and a search result that quotes "293 calories" for onion soup is quoting a spoonful of seasoning. The whole 39 g packet, if you use it as a roast rub or a dip base instead of a soup, is 114 calories that never get thinned out.
The two condensed rows behave the same way. Canned onion soup at 46 calories per 100 g and cream of onion at 88 are both measured before the water goes in, which is why their servings above are half a cup of concentrate rather than a bowl. Cream of onion diluted with milk lands at 186 calories a cup; the same can made with water is 109, our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure.
Store versions sit low too. Progresso Vegetable Classics French Onion Soup lists 19 calories per 100 g, so a 524 g can is only 100 calories, because it is a clear broth with no cheese on top. Marketside runs 53 per 100 g, 130 a cup, and the refrigerated Cuisine Adventures bowl is 200 calories for 285 g. None of them are the crock with the browned cheese lid.
Sodium is the row to watch
Calories are not the interesting number on this soup. A single cup delivers 926 mg of sodium, 40% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value the FDA uses on the Nutrition Facts label. That is a bit under half a teaspoon of table salt in one bowl. The 440 g container works out to 1,663 mg, our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, which is roughly 72% of a day before anything else is eaten.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans put 2,300 mg a day as the ceiling for adults. If you are tracking sodium, this is the dish where a second bowl matters more than a second helping of almost anything else on a lunch menu.
Saturated fat tells a similar story. The cup is 265 calories, about 13% of a 2,000-calorie day, but its 5.8 g of saturated fat is 29% of the Daily Value. The ratio is lopsided because the fat comes from cheese and butter, not from the vegetable. The onions themselves contribute the 2.7 g of fiber and count toward the vegetables group on MyPlate; the lid on top is what moves the label.
If you want the soup without that lid, the clear canned version is the practical swap. It is 46 calories per 100 g against 108, with no cheese in the record at all.
How does onion soup compare?
| Soup | Per 100 g | US serving | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Onion soup, French style | 108 kcal | 1 cup (245 g) | 265 kcal |
| New England clam chowder | 93 kcal | 1 cup (245 g) | 228 kcal |
| Cream of chicken | 91 kcal | 1 cup (245 g) | 223 kcal |
| Potato soup | 90 kcal | 1 cup (245 g) | 221 kcal |
Our take: French onion is the heaviest of these four, both per gram and per cup, which surprises people who file it as the light, brothy option on the menu. It earns some of that back on protein, 5.45 g per 100 g against 1.51 g for potato soup, so it is the most filling of the group per calorie. For weight loss, potato or cream of chicken saves you about 40 calories a bowl; for staying full until dinner, the onion soup is the better pick, as long as you can spend the sodium.
Most popular onion soup 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) |
|---|---|
| Progresso Vegetable Classics French Onion Soup | 19 cal |
| Cuisine Adventures French Onion Soup | 70 cal |
| Taste of Inspirations French Onion Soup | 74 cal |
| Signature Select French Onion Soup | 70 cal |
| Marketside French Onion Soup | 53 cal |
| Wolfgang Puck Organic French Onion Soup | 37 cal |
Brand popularity: BodyPal food database. Nutrition: manufacturer labels / USDA FoodData Central.
Onion soup FAQs
How many calories are in a cup of onion soup?
A 1-cup serving weighs 245 g and carries 265 calories, based on the USDA figure of 108 calories per 100 g for prepared French onion soup. That bowl also brings 13.4 g of protein and 11.0 g of fat, because the cheese and bread are part of the recipe USDA measured.
How much sodium is in French onion soup?
One cup holds 926 mg of sodium, 40% of the 2,300 mg Daily Value, or a bit under half a teaspoon of table salt. A 440 g single-serve container works out to 1,663 mg, our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure, which is close to three quarters of a day.
How many calories in onion soup without cheese and bread?
Far fewer — plain canned onion soup, the clear kind, is 46 calories per 100 g as sold condensed, so half a cup of the concentrate is 57 calories. A cup made from a dry packet and water is only 28 calories, since that version is 12 calories per 100 g and mostly water.
How many calories in a packet of onion soup mix?
A 39 g packet of dry onion soup mix is 114 calories, at 293 calories per 100 g. Stirred into water it spreads out to roughly 28 calories a cup. The powder also carries 8,031 mg of sodium per 100 g, so the seasoning, not the calorie count, is the number to watch.
How many carbs are in onion soup?
A 1-cup serving has 29.0 g of carbohydrate, 11% of the Daily Value, of which 2.7 g is fiber and 6.1 g is total sugars from the onions. Per 100 g the soup is 11.84 g of carbohydrate. The bread and cheese in the recipe supply most of it.
Is onion soup keto friendly?
Not really, at 29.0 g of carbohydrate a cup with 2.7 g of that as fiber. The clear canned version is lighter, 6.68 g of carbohydrate per 100 g as condensed, and a cup made from packet mix is about 6.4 g, our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure.
Is onion soup good for weight loss?
At 108 calories per 100 g it is one of the lighter hot dishes, and a 265-calorie cup fits inside most lunch budgets while supplying 13.4 g of protein. The catch is 926 mg of sodium in one bowl. For more volume per calorie, the packet version is 12 calories per 100 g.
How many calories in Progresso French onion soup?
Progresso Vegetable Classics French Onion Soup lists 19 calories per 100 g, so the whole 524 g can is 100 calories, because it is a clear broth rather than a cheese-topped crock. Marketside runs 53 per 100 g, 130 a cup, and a Cuisine Adventures bowl is 200 calories for 285 g.
Similar foods
- Ear of Corn — 99 cal per medium ear
- Sweet Potato — 103 cal per medium, baked
- Papaya salad — 190 cal per plate
- Potato wedges — 138 cal for 3 oz
- Carrot — 53 cal per cup chopped
- Onion — 46 cal per cup sliced
Count it without the math
Point the camera at the bowl and BodyPal counts the soup for you, cheese lid and all.
