McDonald's Big Mac Nutrition Facts & Ingredients

McDonald’s Big Mac is a highly popular double patty cheeseburger made with 100% beef and a slice of American cheese. The burger is topped with lettuce, onions, pickles, and a special sauce, and served on a sesame seed bun.

One Big Mac has 580 calories, 34 grams of fat, 45 grams of carbohydrates, and 25 grams of protein.

Read this guide for a detailed overview of the nutritional information, calories, ingredients, and allergens in McDonald’s famous cheeseburger.

Big Mac Nutritional Information

Nutritional information is presented in this guide based on a single serving measured as one cheeseburger.

Daily Value

Daily value indicates how much of a specific nutrient is in a Big Mac, relative to the recommended daily limit. Use the %DV to compare foods and check if a menu item is a good option for your diet.

As shown in the chart below, McDonald’s Big Mac is high in saturated fat and sodium.

Serving size: 1 Cheeseburger

% DAILY VALUE

Use %DV to determine if the level of nutrients in a food is low (5% or less) or high (20% or more).

	%DV	Level
Saturated Fat	56%	HIGH
Sodium	46%	HIGH
Added Sugars	10%	MED

%DV based on 2,000 calories

Calories

There are 580 calories in a single Big Mac cheeseburger.

Here is a summary of calories by macronutrient, per serving.

300 calories from fats
180 calories from total carbs
100 calories from protein

Dietary fats contribute over half of the total calories. Carbohydrates make up another 31% of the total calories and the remaining 17% is from protein.

McDonald’s Big Mac

% calories from fat, carbs and protein

Calories

CALORIES FROM fat

52%

CALORIES FROM CARBS

31%

CALORIES FROM Protein

17%

The summary of calories by macronutrient above is a rounded estimate based on the nutrition facts provided by McDonald’s. Calories may vary as a result of how the sandwich is prepared or due to topping choices.

ESTIMATED FITNESS TIME TO BURN 580 CALORIES

Run 50 minutes
Walk 3 hours 10 minutes
Cycle 50 minutes

Check menu with prices and nutrition

Remove the bun for a lower calorie option. A Big Mac without the bun has 390 calories (190 fewer than the standard cheeseburger).

Nutrition Facts

Amount per 1 Big Mac

Red indicates %DV is high.

Calories

580

		%DV
Total Fat	34g	43%
Saturated Fat	11g	56%
Trans Fat	1g
Cholesterol	85mg	28%
Sodium	1060mg	46%
Carbohydrates	45g	16%
Dietary Fiber	3g	10%
Total Sugars	7g
Added Sugars	5g	10%
Protein	25g

%DV based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Calorie needs vary and your %DV may be higher or lower. Provided for informational purposes only. Consult with your physician for dietary or healthcare advice.

High in dietary fats, which includes 1g trans fat
High in sodium
High in dietary cholesterol
Medium level of added sugars (14% of recommended daily limit)

Total Fat

Each serving of the Big Mac has 34 grams of total fat, including 11 grams of saturated fat. That is high.

There are approximately 100 calories from saturated fat, 17% of the total 580 calories per serving.

SUMMARY OF FAT PER SERVING

300 calories from dietary fats
34 grams total fat is 44% of daily limit
11 grams saturated fat is 25% of daily limit
1 grams trans fat

Compare the nutritional value of a Burger King Whopper and the Five Guys Cheeseburger. Check the amount of sodium and saturated fat to determine if one of the fast food burgers is a good fit for your diet plan.

Sodium

McDonald’s Big Mac contains 1,060 milligrams of sodium, which is nearly half the recommended limit of 2,300 milligrams for an entire day (based on 2,000 calories).

Dietary Cholesterol

Dietary cholesterol is also high. There are 85 milligrams of cholesterol per serving. That equates to 28% of the daily limit.

Big Mac Ingredients and Allergens

Burger bun contains gluten, wheat, sesame, and pea protein.
Pickles made with the artificial preservative potassium sorbate.
Big Mac Sauce contains added sugars, high fructose corn syrup, egg, and soy

What’s on McDonald’s Big Mac?

McDonald’s famous Big Mac is made with two beef patties seasoned with salt and pepper. The sandwich includes melting American cheese, shredded lettuce, chopped onions, pickles, and a special Big Mac sauce.

Big Macs are served on a sesame seed bun.

According to McDonald’s, the cheeseburger is made without artificial flavors or colors. However, the pickle contains an artificial preservative.

The section that follows include the list of ingredients in McDonald’s Big Mac, which (in addition to below) includes lettuce and onions.

Ingredients

Beef Patty

100% Pure USDA inspected Beef prepared with Salt and Black Pepper

Bun

Enriched Flour, Water, Sugar, Yeast, Soybean Oil, Sesame Seeds, Potato Starch, Salt, Dextrose, Corn Starch, Modified Food Starch, Vinegar, Vegetable Proteins (pea, potato, rice, and/or faba bean), Sunflower and/or Canola Oil, Maltodextrin, Wheat Gluten, Natural Flavors, Dough Conditioners

Enriched Flour includes wheat flour, malted barley flour, niacin, reduced iron, thiamine mononitrate, riboflavin, and folic acid.
Dough Conditioners include one or more of the following: enzymes and ascorbic acid

Big Mac Sauce

Soybean Oil, Sweet Relish, Water, Egg Yolks, Distilled Vinegar, Spices, Onion Powder, Salt, Propylene Glycol Alginate, Garlic Powder, Vegetable Protein, Sugar, Caramel Color, Turmeric, Extractives of Paprika, Soy Lecithin

Sweet Relish is made with diced pickles, sugar, high fructose corn syrup, distilled vinegar, salt, corn syrup, xanthan gum, calcium chloride, and spice extractives.
Vegetable Protein includes hydrolyzed corn syrup, soy, and wheat.

Pasteurized Process American Cheese

Milk, Cream, Water, Sodium Citrate, Salt, Cheese Cultures, Citric Acid, Enzymes, Soy Lecithin, Color Added

Pickles

Cucumbers, Water, Distilled Vinegar, Salt, Calcium Chloride, Alum, Potassium Sorbate, Natural Flavors, Polysorbate 80, Extractives of Turmeric (color)

Vegetables

Lettuce, Onions

DATEM is an acronym short for Diacetyl Tartaric Acid Ester of Mono- and Diglycerides. It’s a synthetic food additive derived from plants and vegetable oils.

This ingredient is often used as an emulsifier in the production of baked goods to strengthen gluten in dough and create a chewier texture in breads.

DATEM is also used as an emulsifier in the production of other foods such as salsa, ice cream, and salad dressing to help ingredients remain mixed

Allergens

The hamburger is made with ingredients that contain egg, sesame, soy, and wheat.

Check list of declared allergens in McDonald’s burgers

McDonald's cheeseburger with text listing ingredients. — Learn more about the ingredients in a single cheeseburger.

Nutrition facts, prices, and ingredients are based on available information as of the date of publication. Restaurants and food manufacturers may change recipes or formulations without notice. Check package labels and ask the product manufacturer or restaurant for the most up-to-date information. Unless otherwise stated, %DV is based on a 2,000 calorie diet. All reports and reviews published on this site are for informational purposes only. NutritionandIngredients.com does not provide healthcare advice or dietary recommendations. Always consult your licensed physician for any healthcare or dietary advice.

Nutrition facts and ingredients source: McDonald’s. Burger image courtesy of McDonald’s. Original designs by Nutrition & Ingredients for purposes of research and commentary related to fast food nutrition.