How many calories are in a shot of tequila?
A standard 1.5 fl oz shot of tequila weighs 42 g and carries 97 calories. Per 100 g the spirit runs 231 calories, a number that looks alarming until you notice how little liquid a shot glass actually holds. Every one of those calories comes from alcohol: zero carbohydrate, zero sugar, zero fat.
You'd need to walk about 19 minutes to burn the 97 calories in one 1.5 fl oz shot (42 g).
How long does it take to burn off tequila?
One 1.5 fl oz shot (42 g) is 97 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 97 kcal |
|---|---|
| Walking, brisk | 19 min |
| Cycling, moderate | 12 min |
| Swimming, moderate | 14 min |
| Jogging | 11 min |
| Weight training, moderate | 22 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 (42 g); change it to what you actually ate. BodyPal works this out from your steps automatically.
On this page
- Tequila quick facts
- US pours from one ounce to a double
- Tequila sunrise and the canned version
- Where the calories actually come from
- How does tequila compare?
- FAQ
Tequila quick facts
The row used here is USDA FNDDS 2710705, "Tequila", the entry for the plain 80-proof spirit as it comes out of the bottle. That is what most people are holding when they look this up: no juice, no syrup, no salt rim. USDA also keeps two tequila sunrise records, but those are cocktails built around orange juice and grenadine, and they belong further down the page rather than in the headline number.
One more thing worth saying before the table. USDA's Branded database has no rows for tequila the spirit at all. Alcohol labels are regulated by the TTB rather than the FDA, so the 246 branded matches for "tequila" are salsas, glazes, marinades and even ramen. If you go looking for your bottle by name, you will not find it, and you do not need to: at 80 proof the calorie figure is the same across brands.
| Nutrient | Per 100 g | Per 1 shot, 1.5 fl oz (42 g) | % Daily Value |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 231 | 97 | — |
| Total fat | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Saturated fat | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Carbohydrate | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Dietary fiber | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Total sugars | 0 g | 0 g | — |
| Protein | 0 g | 0 g | 0% |
| Sodium | 1 mg | 0 mg | 0% |
% 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 above because this FNDDS edition does not publish added sugars for the record, and no trans fat row for the same reason. Neither would change anything: a spirit with 0 g of total fat and 0 g of total sugars has nothing to declare. Cholesterol is 0 mg. Potassium comes to 2 mg per 100 g, which is 1 mg in a shot, and sodium is so low that the 1 mg per 100 g rounds down to nothing in the glass. That is a fraction of a thousandth of a teaspoon of table salt, which is another way of saying none.
US pours from one ounce to a double
| Serving | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 1 fl oz, no ice | 28 g | 65 kcal |
| 1 oz by weight | 28.4 g | 66 kcal |
| 1 shot or jigger, 1.5 fl oz | 42 g | 97 kcal |
| 1 drink, as USDA pours it | 63 g | 146 kcal |
| Double shot, 3 fl oz | 84 g | 194 kcal |
| Per 100 g | 100 g | 231 kcal |
The 1 fl oz pour, the 1.5 fl oz shot and the 63 g "1 drink" are USDA household measures. The 1 oz by weight and the 3 fl oz double are our own arithmetic scaled from the USDA 100 g figure, not USDA servings.
That second row is the one that trips people up. A fluid ounce is a volume and an ounce is a weight, and because 80-proof spirit is lighter than water, 1 fl oz of tequila weighs about 28 g while 1 oz on a kitchen scale is 28.4 g. The gap is one calorie. Search either phrase and you land within rounding of the same answer, so pour by the jigger and stop worrying about it.
The "1 drink" line at 63 g and 146 calories is USDA's own generic pour, and it sits between a single and a double. It is a useful sanity check for a home pour, which is almost never a level 1.5 oz. If you free-pour into a rocks glass, assume you are closer to 146 than 97.
Tequila sunrise and the canned version
| Version | Per 100 g | Typical glass | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tequila, plain 80-proof | 231 kcal | 1 shot, 42 g | 97 kcal |
| Tequila sunrise | 111 kcal | 1 drink, 225 g | 250 kcal |
| Tequila sunrise, canned | 110 kcal | 1 can, 6.8 fl oz (211 g) | 232 kcal |
Here is the trap, and it is the best reason to read past the first number. Per 100 g the sunrise looks like the light option: 111 calories against 231 for the plain spirit, less than half. Per glass it is the opposite. Orange juice and grenadine dilute the alcohol but they also fill a 225 g glass, and 225 g at 111 calories is 250 calories — about two and a half times a plain shot. Density is not the same as damage.
The juice brings the macros the spirit does not have. A 225 g sunrise carries 28.4 g of carbohydrate, 21.4 g of total sugars, 1.2 g of protein, 0.5 g of fat and 9 mg of sodium, all scaled from the USDA 100 g record. Two of those cocktails put more sugar in front of you than most people expect from anything served in a highball glass.
The canned version, a 6.8 fl oz serving at 211 g, lands at 232 calories with 23.8 g of carbohydrate. Its interesting row is sodium: 120 mg per can against 9 mg for the poured version, because the canned recipe is built to sit on a shelf. USDA does not publish total sugars for this SR Legacy record, so there is no sugar figure to quote for the can. If you are watching sodium, the difference between mixing your own and opening a can is real, even if the calorie difference is only 18.
Where the calories actually come from
Tequila is one of the few things you can log where every single calorie has one source. With 0 g of carbohydrate, 0 g of fat and 0 g of protein, the 97 calories in a shot are ethanol and nothing else. That is why the number does not move with brand, age statement or price: blanco, reposado and añejo at 80 proof all sit on the same USDA row. Higher-proof bottles carry more alcohol per ounce and therefore more calories, but USDA's record covers 80 proof, so treat anything stronger as a separate pour rather than assuming 97.
The %DV column is the shortest one you will ever see on this site. Fat, saturated fat, carbohydrate, fiber, protein and sodium all come to 0% of the FDA Daily Values for a shot. Calories have no %DV, and that is exactly the point: tequila contributes energy without contributing anything the Daily Values track.
For scale, the CDC defines one standard drink as 1.5 fl oz of 80-proof distilled spirits, which is the 42 g shot in the table above. The Dietary Guidelines for Americans say adults of legal drinking age can choose not to drink, or to drink in moderation, defined as 2 drinks or less a day for men and 1 or less for women. Two standard shots is 194 calories before a single mixer touches the glass, which is the arithmetic most calorie apps quietly miss.
How does tequila compare?
| Spirit or drink | Per 100 g | US pour | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tequila | 231 kcal | 1 fl oz, 28 g | 65 kcal |
| Vodka | 231 kcal | 1 fl oz, 28 g | 65 kcal |
| Whiskey | 231 kcal | 1 fl oz, 28 g | 65 kcal |
| Manhattan | 222 kcal | 1 fl oz, 28 g | 62 kcal |
Our take: stop shopping for a lighter spirit, because there isn't one. Tequila, vodka and whiskey are identical to the calorie at 231 per 100 g and 65 per fluid ounce, since all three are 80-proof water and ethanol. The Manhattan is the only row here that is lighter per 100 g, at 222, and only because vermouth waters the alcohol down slightly and adds 1.82 g of carbohydrate per 100 g in exchange. If you are counting, the decision worth making is what goes in the glass next: tequila with soda water and lime stays at 97 calories, while the same shot in a sunrise ends up at 250.
Tequila FAQs
How many calories are in a shot of tequila?
A 1.5 fl oz shot weighs 42 g and carries 97 calories, all of them from alcohol. That figure comes straight from the USDA FNDDS record for tequila, which lists 231 calories per 100 g. Nothing in the glass contributes carbohydrate, fat or protein, so the count does not move with brand.
Does tequila have carbs or sugar?
Neither: the USDA record lists 0 g of carbohydrate and 0 g of total sugars per 100 g, and a 42 g shot carries the same two zeros. Distillation leaves the agave sugars behind in the still, so what reaches the bottle is water and ethanol, and the 97 calories come from the ethanol alone.
Is tequila lower in calories than vodka?
No, all three sit at 231 calories per 100 g. USDA lists vodka, whiskey and tequila at exactly the same figure, because each is an 80-proof distillate of water and ethanol. A 1 fl oz pour of any of them is 65 calories, so the choice of spirit changes flavor, not the count. The mixer decides the rest.
How many calories in 1 oz of tequila?
66 calories for 1 oz by weight (28.4 g), which is our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure. A 1 fl oz pour, the measure USDA actually lists, weighs 28 g and comes to 65 calories. The two land within a calorie of each other, so pouring by the ounce is close enough either way.
Is tequila keto-friendly?
It carries 0 g of carbohydrate, so a shot fits any carb limit on paper: 97 calories, no sugar, no starch. Alcohol still carries calories even when the carbs are zero. What breaks a low-carb drink is almost always the mixer, and a tequila sunrise adds 28.4 g of carbohydrate per glass. Soda water, lime and ice add none.
How many calories in a tequila sunrise?
250 calories for a 225 g glass, using the USDA record at 111 calories per 100 g. The orange juice and grenadine bring 28.4 g of carbohydrate and 21.4 g of sugars with them. That is about two and a half times a plain shot in one glass, and the tequila is only part of it.
How many calories in a double shot of tequila?
194 calories for a 3 fl oz double (84 g), our own arithmetic from the USDA 100 g figure rather than a listed serving. It is exactly twice the 97 in a single, with the same zeros for carbohydrate, sugar, fat and protein. USDA's generic 1 drink pour of 63 g sits between them at 146 calories.
Does tequila have any protein or fat?
None: 0 g of protein, 0 g of total fat and 0 g of saturated fat per 100 g, plus 0 mg of cholesterol. Sodium is 1 mg per 100 g, which rounds to 0 mg in a shot, and potassium is 2 mg. Tequila is one of the few things you log where the whole panel is zeros.
Similar foods
- Martini — 241 cal per drink
- Cosmopolitan — 224 cal per cocktail
- Prosecco — 135 cal per glass
- Cider — 202 cal per can or bottle (12 fl oz)
- Beer — 155 cal for 12 fl oz can
- Steak — 368 cal per regular steak
Count it without the math
Point the camera at the glass and BodyPal counts the pour for you, mixer and all.
