One large egg weighs about 50 grams. It contains 72 calories, 6.3 grams of protein, 4.8 grams of fat and 186 milligrams of cholesterol, per USDA FoodData Central. The same egg supplies 147 milligrams of choline. The NIH links choline to brain and nerve function. Egg nutrition facts split cleanly in two. The white delivers lean protein. The yolk carries nearly everything else.
The divide matters for anyone tracking specific numbers. Whites add protein without fat or cholesterol. Yolks add vitamins, choline and flavor along with the fat. Neither half tells the whole story alone.
Egg nutrition facts for one large egg
These USDA values describe one large raw egg. That is the standard carton size in the United States, at about 50 grams. Daily Value percentages follow FDA label references. Readers following this should also see Sweet potato nutrition: what one medium baked serving provides.
- Calories: 72.
- Protein: 6.3 grams.
- Fat: 4.8 grams, of which 1.6 grams are saturated.
- Cholesterol: 186 milligrams.
- Choline: 147 milligrams (about 27 percent of the Daily Value).
- Selenium: 15.4 micrograms (28 percent of the Daily Value).
- Vitamin B12: 0.44 micrograms (18 percent of the Daily Value).
- Vitamin D: 1 microgram (5 percent of the Daily Value).
The calorie-to-protein ratio works out to about 11 calories per gram of protein. Cartons run from medium to jumbo, and every line scales with weight. A jumbo egg runs roughly a quarter larger than a large.
The white: lean protein, little else
One large egg white weighs about 33 grams. It holds 17 calories, 3.6 grams of protein and almost no fat, per USDA data. It also brings small amounts of potassium and sodium, about 55 milligrams of each, plus trace B vitamins. The white holds just over half the egg's protein by weight. As a protein source, it runs close to pure. Cooking changes the white's texture, not its protein line. The gram count stays put on the label. This connects to our earlier piece, Banana nutrition explained: potassium, carbs and the ripeness effect.
The yolk: fats, vitamins and choline
The yolk weighs about 17 grams. It brings 55 calories, 2.7 grams of protein and 4.5 grams of fat. It holds nearly all of the egg's 186 milligrams of cholesterol. It also carries most of the 147 milligrams of choline, plus the vitamin A, vitamin D and B12 listed above.
Yolk color tracks the hen's feed, not the nutrient list. Deep orange and pale yellow yolks often post nearly identical numbers. The minerals and vitamins follow weight, not hue.
Choline earns the yolk steady attention. The NIH calls eggs one of the best choline sources. Adult Adequate Intakes stand at 550 milligrams for men and 425 for women. One egg closes roughly a quarter of that gap by itself.
Cholesterol and the fat profile
The egg nutrition facts panel puts cholesterol in context. All 186 milligrams sit in the yolk. The white shows zero on that USDA line. The fat profile leans unsaturated, though. Of 4.8 total grams of fat, only 1.6 grams are saturated.
Harvard's Nutrition Source reads protein foods as packages. The package means protein plus the fats and other nutrients that travel with it. By that reading, an egg brings a moderate fat load, useful micronutrients and no carbohydrate at all.
Selenium and B12 deserve their own line in that package. One egg covers about a quarter of the selenium day and close to a fifth of the B12 day, per USDA data. Both nutrients concentrate in the yolk, like almost everything else beyond protein.
Yolk and white at a glance
A quick side-by-side settles most label questions.
- Calories: 72 in the whole egg, 17 in the white, 55 in the yolk.
- Protein: 6.3 grams total, split as 3.6 in the white and 2.7 in the yolk.
- Fat: 4.8 grams total, nearly all of it in the yolk.
- Cholesterol: 186 milligrams total, all of it in the yolk.
- Vitamins, selenium and choline: almost entirely in the yolk.
Harvard's Nutrition Source counts eggs among animal foods that tend to supply complete protein. A complete protein carries the full set of essential amino acids in useful amounts. That status belongs to the whole egg, since each half holds part of the protein.
Conclusion: egg nutrition facts, taken whole
One large egg delivers 6 grams of protein across its two halves. The yolk holds the 186 milligrams of cholesterol. It also brings choline, selenium and B12 to the table. Whites suit lean-protein goals. Whole eggs deliver the wider nutrient spread. Both readings of the label fit most eating patterns.
For label readers, the short version fits on one line. Whites carry the protein. Yolks carry the rest. Choline stays the quiet headline at 147 milligrams per egg, and the yolk holds nearly every bit of it.
