How many calories are in a tablespoon of olive oil?

The numbers

USDA FoodData Central lists olive oil at 884 calories per 100 g and defines a tablespoon as 13.5 g, which works out to about 119 calories. That matches the basic rule that fat has 9 calories per gram, which Mayo Clinic states: 13.5 g of fat times 9 is about 121. Here is the whole table:

Amount	Weight	Calories (≈)
1 teaspoon	4.5 g	40
1 tablespoon	13.5 g	119
2 tablespoons (two quick glugs)	27 g	239
1 cup	216 g	1,909

Oils are close to the same

Harvard Health lists about 120 calories per tablespoon for olive and canola oil, and every pure oil is almost entirely fat, so the calories per tablespoon are close whichever oil you choose. The choice of oil matters for flavour and for the kind of fat it contains, but not much for the calorie count. The amount you use matters far more.

Where the calories hide

Oil is almost invisible once it is in the food, and a pour from the bottle is rarely a measured tablespoon. The places it hides most often are:

• Pan-frying and roasting at home, where the pour is judged by eye.
• Dressings and marinades, where a few spoonfuls are mixed into a bowl.
• Restaurant food, where cooking fat is not listed on the menu.

A worked example

Say you cook a stir-fry for four with 2 tablespoons of oil. That is about 240 calories in the pan, or about 60 per serving if it is shared evenly. If you cook a single portion in the same 2 tablespoons, all 240 land on one plate. Same oil, same pan, a very different meal. That is why oil is the most common missing line in a food log.

How to measure it exactly

A measuring spoon is the easy way, but a kitchen scale is exact. On a scale, 13.5 g of olive oil is one tablespoon and 27 g is two, so you can pour straight into the pan and stop at the weight you planned. Do it for a week and you will learn what a normal pour looks like, which is the point: the habit of measuring matters more than the grams.

What to do instead

• Measure oil with a spoon for a week to learn what a normal pour looks like.
• Use a spray or a brush for pans, and a non-stick pan to cut the amount.
• Count the oil in your log, since it is among the most common missing calories.
• Keep olive oil in your cooking for flavour, but choose the portion on purpose. The macro calculator shows how fat fits into a daily plan, and does eating fat make you fat explains the bigger picture.