Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?
We compared the nutritional contents of
egg
versus
whey protein powder
(100g each)
below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].
For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in egg and whey protein powder:
Both egg and whey protein powder are high in calories. Whey protein powder has 146% more calories than egg - egg has 143 calories per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 352 calories.
For macronutrient ratios, egg is much lighter in protein, lighter in carbs and much heavier in fat compared to whey protein powder per calorie. Egg has a macronutrient ratio of 36:2:62 and for whey protein powder, 89:7:4 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.
Macro Ratios from Calories:
| Egg | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| Protein | 36% | 89% |
| Carbohydrates | 2% | 7% |
| Fat | 62% | 4% |
| Alcohol | ~ | ~ |
Egg and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of carbs - egg has 0.72g of total carbs per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 6.3g of carbohydrates.
Whey protein powder is an excellent source of dietary fiber and it has more dietary fiber than egg - whey protein powder has 3.1g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and egg does not contain significant amounts.
Egg and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of sugar - egg has 0.37g of sugar per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Both egg and whey protein powder are high in protein. Whey protein powder has 522% more protein than egg - egg has 12.6g of protein per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 78.1g of protein.
Whey protein powder has 75% less saturated fat than egg - egg has 3.1g of saturated fat per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 0.78g of saturated fat.
Both egg and whey protein powder are low in trans fat - egg has 0.04g of trans fat per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Egg is high in cholesterol and whey protein powder has 96% less cholesterol than egg - egg has 372mg of cholesterol per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 16mg of cholesterol.
Egg is an excellent source of Vitamin A and it has more Vitamin A than whey protein powder - egg has 160ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Egg is a great source of Vitamin D and it has more Vitamin D than whey protein powder - egg has 82iu of Vitamin D per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Egg has more Vitamin E than whey protein powder - egg has 1.1mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Egg and whey protein powder contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - egg has 0.3ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and whey protein powder does not contain significant amounts.
Whey protein powder has more thiamin, riboflavin, niacin, Vitamin B6 and Vitamin B12, however, egg contains more pantothenic acid. Both egg and whey protein powder contain significant amounts of folate.
| Egg | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| Thiamin | 0.04 MG | 0.609 MG |
| Riboflavin | 0.457 MG | 2.017 MG |
| Niacin | 0.075 MG | 1.136 MG |
| Pantothenic acid | 1.533 MG | ~ |
| Vitamin B6 | 0.17 MG | 0.607 MG |
| Folate | 47 UG | 33 UG |
| Vitamin B12 | 0.89 UG | 2.45 UG |
Both egg and whey protein powder are high in calcium. Whey protein powder has 738% more calcium than egg - egg has 56mg of calcium per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 469mg of calcium.
Egg has 55% more iron than whey protein powder - egg has 1.8mg of iron per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 1.1mg of iron.
Whey protein powder is an excellent source of potassium and it has 262% more potassium than egg - egg has 138mg of potassium per 100 grams and whey protein powder has 500mg of potassium.
For omega-3 fatty acids, egg has more DHA than whey protein powder per 100 grams. Both egg and whey protein powder contain significant amounts of alpha linoleic acid (ALA).
| Egg | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| alpha linoleic acid | 0.048 G | 0.034 G |
| DHA | 0.058 G | ~ |
| DPA | 0.007 G | ~ |
| Total | 0.113 G | 0.034 G |
Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, egg has more linoleic acid than whey protein powder per 100 grams.
| Egg | Whey Protein Powder | |
|---|---|---|
| other omega 6 | 0.022 G | ~ |
| linoleic acid | 1.555 G | 0.264 G |
| Total | 1.577 G | 0.264 G |
The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.
Note: The specific food items compared are: Egg (Egg, whole, raw, fresh) and Whey Protein Powder (Protein powder, whey based, NFS) .
Egg g
()
|
Daily Values (%) |
Whey Protein Powder g
()
|
|||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| KCAL % |
|
5% | calories | 5% |
|
KCAL % | |
| G % |
|
5% | carbohydrates | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | dietary fiber | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | sugar | 5% | G | |||
| G % |
|
5% | total fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G % |
|
5% | saturated fat | 5% |
|
G % | |
| G | 5% | monounsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | polyunsaturated fat | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | trans fat | 5% | G | |||
| MG | 5% | cholesterol | 5% | MG | |||
| MG % |
|
5% | sodium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| 5% | Vitamins and Minerals | 5% | |||||
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin A | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin C | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| IU % |
|
5% | Vitamin D | 5% |
|
IU % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | calcium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | iron | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | magnesium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | potassium | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | thiamin (Vit B1) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | riboflavin (Vit B2) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | niacin (Vit B3) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B6 | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | pantothenic acid (Vit B5) | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | folate (Vit B9) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin B12 | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | Vitamin E | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | Vitamin K | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| G % |
|
5% | protein | 5% |
|
G % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | biotin (Vit B7) | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | choline | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | chlorine | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | chromium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | copper | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | fluoride | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | iodine | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | manganese | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | molybdenum | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | phosphorus | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| UG % |
|
5% | selenium | 5% |
|
UG % | |
| MG % |
|
5% | zinc | 5% |
|
MG % | |
| G | 5% | Water | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Starch | 5% | G | |||
| G | 5% | Alcohol | 5% | G | |||