Pate calories come to 41 for one tablespoon (13 g) and 319 per 100 g of canned liver pate. The thing to notice is the fat: 80% of the calories come from it. A spread that looks small on a cracker adds up fast once you go back for a second or third tablespoon.
41kcal
1 tablespoon · 13 g, liver, canned
18%protein
1.8 gProtein
0 gCarbs
3.6 gFat
How to burn off 41 kcal
—Walking, brisk
—Jogging
—Cycling, moderate
—Swimming
Skip the math. BodyPal counts these calories from your steps and workouts automatically.
Nutrition facts
Liver, canned · per 13 g
Calories
41 kcal
Protein
1.8 g
Carbohydrate
0.2 g
Fat
3.6 g
Saturated fat
1.2 g
Cholesterol
33 mg
Sodium
91 mg
Potassium
18 mg
Iron
0.7 mg
Source: USDA FoodData Central
🛡️
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 October 2026. How we verify our data →
Pate: 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
1 tbsp (13 g)
41
1.8 g
0.2 g
3.6 g
91 mg
2%
Chicken liver, 1 tbsp (13 g)
26
1.7 g
0.9 g
1.7 g
50 mg
1%
1 oz (28 g)
89
4 g
0.4 g
7.8 g
195 mg
4%
100 g
319
14.2 g
1.5 g
28 g
697 mg
16%
3 × 1 tbsp (13 g)
124
5.5 g
272 mg
5 × 1 tbsp (13 g)
207
9.2 g
453 mg
One tablespoon is 41 calories, five are 207
The USDA row behind this page is canned liver pate, and its standard serving is a single tablespoon of 13 g. That spoonful carries 41 calories, 3.6 g of fat and 1.8 g of protein, about 2% of daily calories. On its own, that is a small number.
The catch is that pate rarely stops at one spoon. Two tablespoons bring 83 calories, three bring 124, and five, roughly what a generous spread across a plate of crackers looks like, reach 207 calories and 453 mg of sodium. A 1 oz (28 g) portion lands at 89 calories, and a full 100 g is 319.
If you are counting, measure your first spread once with a spoon so you know what your usual swipe weighs. BodyPal can log pate from a photo, but a tablespoon check keeps your estimate honest. The bread or crackers underneath are a separate entry to count.
Fat supplies 80% of the calories
Per 100 g, canned liver pate holds 28 g of fat, 14.2 g of protein and just 1.5 g of carbohydrate. Turn that into calories and fat accounts for 80%, protein for 18% and carbs for 2%. Fiber is 0.
That makes pate a fat food with some protein, not a protein food with some fat. A tablespoon gives 1.8 g of protein, which is 4% of the 50 g daily value, next to 3.6 g of fat. Even a 1 oz portion only reaches 4 g of protein for 89 calories.
The tiny carb count means pate sits comfortably in low-carb eating. The carbs on your plate will come from whatever carries it. If protein is your goal, treat pate as a flavor layer rather than the main source.
Sodium and cholesterol are the rows to watch
Canned pate has 697 mg of sodium per 100 g, which is 30% of the daily value. A single tablespoon is 91 mg, or 4%, and that looks harmless. Three tablespoons push it to 272 mg, and five reach 453 mg.
Cholesterol is the other standout. The card lists 255 mg per 100 g against a 300 mg daily value, so a large serving takes up most of that line in one go. Saturated fat is 9.6 g per 100 g against a 20 g daily value.
If you watch sodium or saturated fat, the lever is portion size, not avoidance. Keep it to a tablespoon or two and let the rest of the plate be low in salt: raw vegetables, fruit, or plain bread rather than salted crackers. Potassium is modest at 138 mg per 100 g.
Chicken liver pate runs lighter per spoon
Not all pate matches the canned USDA row. Chicken liver pate comes in at 26 calories per 1 tbsp (13 g), compared with 41 for the canned liver version. Fat drops to 1.7 g per tablespoon from 3.6 g, while protein stays close at 1.7 g against 1.8 g.
Sodium is lower too, 50 mg per tablespoon versus 91 mg, and the chicken liver row lists 0 g of sugar. Carbs tick up slightly to 0.9 g, still a trivial amount. Homemade and deli versions vary with how much butter or cream goes in, so read the label when there is one.
Packaged brands differ as well. Podravka Liver Pate, Schaller & Weber Gold Medal Pate and the Profi Village pates with garlic or tomato each follow their own recipe, which is why the brand table on this page is worth a look before you log.
How does pate compare?
Here is how canned liver pate stacks up against spam, italian sausage and hot dogs, per 100 g and per usual serving.
Verdict: Calories are a wash at 315 to 322 per 100 g, so pick on the other rows: pate has the least sodium at 697 mg, against 1,411 mg for spam. If staying full is the goal, italian sausage wins with 18.2 g of protein per 100 g against 14.2 g for pate.
Most popular pate brands in the United States
Ranked by popularity in the BodyPal database
# Productkcal / 100 g
1Podravka Liver Pate1/4 cup · 59 g288 kcal
2Schaller & Weber Gold Medal Pate2 oz · 56 g375 kcal
About 41 calories in one tablespoon (13 g) of canned liver pate, and 89 in 1 oz (28 g).
Is pate good for weight loss?
Liver pate is calorie dense at 319 calories and 28 g of fat per 100 g. A single tablespoon is 41 calories with 1.8 g of protein.
Pate vs Spam: which has more calories?
They are close: liver pate has 319 calories per 100 g and Spam has 315.
How much fat is in pate?
Canned liver pate has 28 g of fat per 100 g, about 3.6 g per tablespoon. Chicken liver pate is lower at 13.1 g per 100 g.
How much protein is in pate?
Canned liver pate has 14.2 g of protein per 100 g, which is 28% of the daily value. A tablespoon gives 1.8 g and a 1 oz (28 g) portion gives 4 g, with fat supplying most of the calories.
How many calories are in chicken liver pate?
Chicken liver pate has 26 calories per tablespoon (13 g), lighter than the 41 calories in a tablespoon of canned liver pate. It carries 1.7 g of protein and 1.7 g of fat per spoon.
What are the macros of chicken liver pate?
One tablespoon (13 g) of chicken liver pate has 1.7 g of protein, 0.9 g of carbs, 1.7 g of fat and 0 g of sugar, for 26 calories and 50 mg of sodium.
How much sodium and saturated fat are in canned liver pate?
USDA FoodData Central lists 697 mg of sodium and 9.6 g of saturated fat per 100 g of canned liver pate. The sodium alone is 30% of the daily value, while a tablespoon holds 91 mg.
Is liver pate fattening?
Liver pate is calorie-dense at 319 calories per 100 g, with 80% of those calories from fat. A tablespoon is only 41 calories, so whether it adds up depends on how many spoonfuls you spread.
