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Portions and preparation · USDA nutrition

Lettuce calories per cup: 5–70 across 9 of 10 named USDA examples

Across 9 of 10 named USDA examples, a cup contains 5–70 calories. Their listed weights span 20–88 g, so each calorie value is calculated from that example's own gram weight and published calories per 100 g. The remaining 1 specifically named example does not list that exact household measure.

Portion calculator

Estimate your portion

Choose a source measure or enter the weight you ate.

Preparation and portion

Named measures come from this exact source record.

Estimated for 10 g

3calories

Lettuce, arugula, raw

Protein
0.3 g
Carbs
0.4 g
Fat
0.1 g

These values scale the selected reference food by weight. Ingredients, preparation, and portion size can change your meal’s estimate.

FoodData Central Survey Foods (FNDDS) · FDC 2709791 Full nutrition profile →

Compare all 10 food records, nutrition tables and USDA sources

The 10 exact records in this guide report 2–70 calories in the records' own listed source servings and 18–91 calories per 100 grams. Those are observations from named database records—not a universal range or an estimate of an unseen plate.

Match my meal

Start with the description closest to what you ate

For Lettuce, begin by separating “Lettuce, arugula, raw” from “Lettuce, salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing.” Choosing a card filters this source set; it does not infer the portion or fill in ingredients the chosen description does not name.

Showing the first 6 of 10 linked records.

Equal-weight view

How lettuce records compare at 100 grams

Five rank landmarks are shown from all 10 cited records: minimum, 25th-ranked, median-ranked, 75th-ranked, and maximum. Weight is held at 100 grams; source-serving weights are listed in the table.

  1. Minimum: Lettuce, Boston, raw 18 kcal
    18 kcal
  2. 25th-ranked landmark: Lettuce, raw 20 kcal
    20 kcal
  3. Median-ranked landmark: Lettuce, salad with assorted vegetables including tomatoes and/or carrots, no dressing 24 kcal
    24 kcal
  4. 75th-ranked landmark: Lettuce, salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing 50 kcal
    50 kcal
  5. Maximum: Lettuce, salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing 91 kcal
    91 kcal

Shared basis: 100 g · kilocalories

What this page compares

Named source records, not one universal meal

This guide keeps 10 named USDA records in view: 10 direct matches. They span 2 source categories, including Lettuce and lettuce salads and Vegetables on a sandwich. The exact descriptions remain the unit of comparison; the familiar heading is only the doorway into the evidence.

Why these records appear together: The deterministic grouping rule “normalized first description segment” placed these 10 records together under the exact grouping key “lettuce.” That rule determines membership before any nutrition result is read.

For Lettuce, this page can compare 10 named records from FDC 2709791 through FDC 2709826. It cannot observe which preparation was eaten, recover unnamed additions, or supply the eaten grams.

Read the shared calculation, provenance, and uncertainty method →

Editor’s decision brief

The three facts to carry into the table

Carry the denominator, exact identity, and strongest observed contrast into every number below.

Portion

8–88 g before composition

The largest source amount is 11.0× the smallest. Read per-serving calorie differences with that mass gap in view.

Composition

73 kcal separates the fixed-weight endpoints

The lower endpoint is “Boston”; the higher is “salad with cheese; tomato and/or carrots.” This isolates density, not ingredient causation.

Discriminator

1.8 g fiber gap per 100 g

Of protein, fiber, and sodium, the strongest normalized contrast is between “Boston” (0.9 g) and “salad with avocado” (2.7 g).

Observed source examples

Three landmarks inside this source set—not universal endpoints

The cards are ordered by calories in each record's listed serving. Serving weights differ, so use per-100-gram values to compare composition. These selected records do not define a calorie range for every lettuce.

Important: “Lower” begins with Lettuce, for use on a sandwich; “higher” ends with Lettuce, salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing, using each record’s own source amount. Those labels order this selected set only—they are not endpoints for every lettuce meal.

Full comparison

Compare every selected FNDDS record

For Lettuce, serving columns preserve each record’s own listed amount, while calories per 100 g hold weight constant. A dash means the cited record does not supply that field; it does not mean the nutrient is absent.

On smaller screens, focus the table and scroll horizontally to read every column.

USDA records selected for the Lettuce nutrition guide
Exact source record Match Source amount Calories kcal / 100 g Protein Fiber Sodium USDA
Lettuce, arugula, raw Direct name match 10 gUSDA reference amount 3 kcal 25 0.3 g 0.2 g 3 mg FDC 2709791 ↗
Lettuce, Boston, raw Direct name match 13 gUSDA reference amount 2 kcal 18 0.1 g 0.1 g 3 mg FDC 2709790 ↗
Lettuce, for use on a sandwich Direct name match 8 gUSDA reference amount 2 kcal 20 0.1 g 0.1 g 2 mg FDC 2710250 ↗
Lettuce, raw Direct name match 18 gUSDA reference amount 4 kcal 20 0.2 g 0.2 g 4 mg FDC 2709789 ↗
Lettuce, salad with assorted vegetables excluding tomatoes and carrots, no dressing Direct name match 74 gUSDA reference amount 17 kcal 23 0.9 g 1 g 25 mg FDC 2709823 ↗
Lettuce, salad with assorted vegetables including tomatoes and/or carrots, no dressing Direct name match 73 gUSDA reference amount 18 kcal 24 0.8 g 1.1 g 28 mg FDC 2709822 ↗
Lettuce, salad with avocado, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing Direct name match 87 gUSDA reference amount 47 kcal 54 1.1 g 2.3 g 29 mg FDC 2709824 ↗
Lettuce, salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing Direct name match 77 gUSDA reference amount 70 kcal 91 3.8 g 0.9 g 112 mg FDC 2709825 ↗
Lettuce, salad with egg, cheese, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing Direct name match 79 gUSDA reference amount 56 kcal 71 3.4 g 0.9 g 84 mg FDC 2709827 ↗
Lettuce, salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing Direct name match 88 gUSDA reference amount 44 kcal 50 3 g 1.1 g 49 mg FDC 2709826 ↗

Portion analysis

Serving total and calorie density answer different questions

The listed source amounts run from 8 to 88 grams—a 80-gram gap before composition enters the comparison. Their own source servings run from 2 calories for “for use on a sandwich” to 70 for “salad with cheese; tomato and/or carrots.” At a fixed 100 grams, “Boston” is 18 calories and “salad with cheese; tomato and/or carrots” is 91—a fixed-weight separation of 73 calories. For Lettuce, the serving view answers “how much is in the database portion?”; the 100-gram view answers “how concentrated is the matched record?” Neither reveals how many grams were actually eaten.

The scaling rule: multiply a per-100-gram value by eaten grams ÷ 100. The arithmetic is exact; the result is only as defensible as the record match and portion estimate.

Preparation analysis

The long description carries the evidence

The published descriptions distinguish forms such as “arugula, raw”, “for use on a sandwich”, “salad with assorted vegetables including tomatoes and/or carrots, no dressing”, “salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing”, and “salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing”. The source formulations contain 18 distinct ingredient codes; examples that appear in only part of the set include celery, raw, cucumber, with peel, raw, mixed salad greens, raw, and carrots, mature, raw. On this Lettuce page, those rows make the records inspectable, but they are not a controlled experiment: they cannot tell us that one named input, by itself, caused a nutrient difference.

Database precision is not meal certainty. Retain the exact description beside the number so later corrections remain possible.

What changes the comparison

Four drivers worth checking before choosing a record

The family label “Lettuce” cannot resolve the differences between Lettuce, arugula, raw and Lettuce, salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing. The four checks below identify the record wording, source weight, and formulation evidence that can.

  1. 01

    Source weight before serving calories

    The source amounts span 8–88 grams. Compare per 100 grams before reading a serving-calorie gap as a composition gap.

  2. 02

    The words that split the family

    Representative record-level distinctions include “arugula, raw”, “for use on a sandwich”, “salad with assorted vegetables including tomatoes and/or carrots, no dressing”, “salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing”, and “salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing”. Those phrases are evidence for choosing a record, not decorative subtitle text.

  3. 03

    Formulation evidence, with limits

    18 source-input codes appear across the selected records. Their presence and listed weights describe USDA formulations, not finished plated proportions.

  4. 04

    The unresolved plate

    Even “Lettuce, arugula, raw” leaves the eaten grams and unnamed oils, sauces, toppings, substitutions, or leftovers unresolved. Preserve those Lettuce unknowns for correction instead of converting them into false precision.

Record matching

Match identity first; scale quantity second

Read the source name as a sequence of decisions. First confirm that lettuce is the right meal family. Then resolve the phrases that actually separate this set—“arugula, raw”, “raw”, “salad with avocado, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing”, and “salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing”—before comparing gram weight. If a package, menu, or known recipe provides a closer first-party description, prefer it and keep this USDA record as a transparent fallback.

A practical matching checklist

  1. Read the complete Lettuce source description, including preparation and additions.
  2. Compare the listed source weight with the amount actually eaten.
  3. Prefer a current package or restaurant source when a specific branded item is known.
  4. Record toppings, sauces, cooking fat, sides, and substitutions that the selected description does not name.

Decision support from the exact records on this page

Turn source data into a better next decision

These conclusions and reading paths are computed from 10 exact records behind Lettuce source-record guide. Links are chosen by record identity, controlled contrast, formulation input, nutrient spread, or serving context—not by loose keyword similarity.

Equal-weight result

Lettuce, salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing is higher in total fat per 100 g

Lettuce, salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing reports 6.1 g versus 0.1 g for Lettuce, for use on a sandwich: a 6 g difference when both are normalized to 100 g.

Inspect the underlying evidence

The denominator changes the answer

Lettuce, arugula, raw is denser; Lettuce, salad with assorted vegetables including tomatoes and/or carrots, no dressing is higher in its source amount

Lettuce, arugula, raw reports 25 kcal per 100 g and 3 kcal in USDA source amount (10 g). Lettuce, salad with assorted vegetables including tomatoes and/or carrots, no dressing reports a lower 24 kcal per 100 g but a higher 18 kcal in USDA source amount (73 g).

Choose the record before reading the number

Lettuce, salad with egg, cheese, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing and Lettuce, salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing are not interchangeable

The page keeps both records at the same 100 g denominator and makes the exact source description the explicit record-description contrast. It does not show that the wording difference caused a nutrient difference. Pick the description that matches the food in front of you rather than averaging away the distinction.

Inspect the underlying evidence

Contextual knowledge graph

Follow the relationship that matches your question

For Lettuce source-record guide, each path states why the destination belongs here, so you can distinguish a true evidentiary connection from a merely similar label.

Compare two records on this page Lettuce, salad with egg, cheese, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing vs Lettuce, salad with egg, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing

Both records appear in this page’s evidence set. The explicit record-description contrast is Calories: 71 versus 50 kcal per 100 g; it is a selection cue, not evidence of cause.

Follow this evidence path Compare two records on this page Lettuce, salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing vs Lettuce, salad with egg, cheese, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing

Both records appear in this page’s evidence set. The explicit record-description contrast is Calories: 91 versus 71 kcal per 100 g; it is a selection cue, not evidence of cause.

Follow this evidence path 9 context records in this source topic Lettuce and lettuce salads

Lettuce, arugula, raw and Lettuce, Boston, raw belong to this USDA source-category collection. Its displayed ranges and complete exact-record catalog provide the peer set for a manual comparison; the destination does not preselect this page’s record.

Follow this evidence path A formulation detail that separates records Carrots, mature, raw

USDA input 11124 appears in 5 of 10 context records; its summed listed input weight spans 12.2–27.5 g across those source formulations. These are source-formulation input weights, not plated or serving weights. Follow the code to inspect every represented occurrence.

Follow this evidence path A formulation detail that separates records Celery, raw

USDA input 11143 appears in 6 of 10 context records; its summed listed input weight spans 12–30 g across those source formulations. These are source-formulation input weights, not plated or serving weights. Follow the code to inspect every represented occurrence.

Follow this evidence path Put the observed spread in corpus context Sodium: density and serving context

In this page’s records, sodium runs from 23 mg in Lettuce, for use on a sandwich to 146 mg in Lettuce, salad with cheese, tomato and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing, all per 100 g.

Follow this evidence path Put the observed spread in corpus context Calcium: density and serving context

In this page’s records, calcium runs from 28 mg in Lettuce, salad with avocado, tomato, and/or carrots, with or without other vegetables, no dressing to 160 mg in Lettuce, arugula, raw, all per 100 g.

Follow this evidence path