Every Popular Snack Ranked by Calories, Protein, and Satiety (2026)

A single serving of trail mix contains more calories than two Snickers bars when measured per 100 grams. Many snacks marketed as healthy — granola bars, dried fruit, nut butters, acai bowls — are among the most calorie-dense foods in the grocery store. Meanwhile, some overlooked options deliver high protein and satiety for a fraction of the calories.

This ranking uses USDA FoodData Central nutrition data and satiety research, including the Satiety Index published in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition by Dr. Susanna Holt, to score 35 common snacks across three dimensions: calorie density, protein content, and estimated satiety per calorie.

What Are the Best Snacks for Satiety per Calorie?

The Satiety Score in this table combines three factors: protein per calorie (higher protein = more satiating), fiber per calorie, and volume per calorie (more physical food per calorie = more filling). Score is 0-100, with 100 being the most satiating per calorie consumed.

Rank	Snack	Serving Size	Calories/Serving	Protein (g)	Fat (g)	Carbs (g)	Fiber (g)	Satiety Score
1	Cottage cheese (2%)	1 cup (226g)	183	27	5	6	0	95
2	Greek yogurt (plain, nonfat)	1 cup (245g)	146	25	0	10	0	93
3	Hard-boiled eggs (2)	2 large (100g)	155	13	11	1	0	88
4	Beef jerky	1 oz (28g)	82	9	4	3	0	86
5	Edamame (shelled)	1 cup (155g)	188	18	8	14	8	85
6	Apple with 1 tbsp peanut butter	1 medium + 1 tbsp	190	4	9	28	5	82
7	Carrots with 2 tbsp hummus	1 cup + 2 tbsp	115	4	5	16	5	81
8	Protein bar (avg. high-protein)	1 bar (60g)	210	20	8	22	3	78
9	Air-popped popcorn	3 cups (24g)	93	3	1	19	4	77
10	Turkey roll-ups (4 slices)	4 slices (112g)	120	20	3	2	0	76
11	Celery with 2 tbsp peanut butter	3 stalks + 2 tbsp	210	8	16	8	3	72
12	String cheese (2 sticks)	2 sticks (56g)	160	14	12	0	0	70
13	Almonds	1 oz (28g)	164	6	14	6	4	65
14	Baby carrots	1 cup (128g)	53	1	0	12	4	64
15	Banana	1 medium (118g)	105	1	0	27	3	62
16	Mixed nuts	1 oz (28g)	172	5	15	7	2	58
17	Dark chocolate (70%+)	1 oz (28g)	170	2	12	13	3	42
18	Rice cakes (2)	2 cakes (18g)	70	1	0	15	0	40
19	Granola bar (Nature Valley)	1 bar (42g)	190	4	7	29	2	38
20	Pretzels	1 oz (28g)	108	3	1	23	1	35
21	Graham crackers (2 sheets)	2 sheets (28g)	118	2	3	22	1	34
22	Dried mango	1/4 cup (40g)	128	1	0	32	2	32
23	Tortilla chips	1 oz (28g)	140	2	7	18	1	30
24	Trail mix	1/4 cup (38g)	175	5	11	16	2	29
25	Goldfish crackers	55 pieces (30g)	140	3	5	20	1	28
26	Peanut butter (from jar)	2 tbsp (32g)	190	8	16	6	2	45
27	Dried cranberries	1/4 cup (40g)	123	0	0	33	2	25
28	Cheese puffs	1 oz (28g)	157	2	10	15	0	22
29	Fruit snacks	1 pouch (25g)	80	0	0	21	0	18
30	Cookies (Oreo, 3 cookies)	3 cookies (34g)	160	1	7	25	1	16
31	Candy bar (Snickers)	1 bar (52g)	250	4	12	33	1	15
32	Potato chips	1 oz (28g)	152	2	10	15	1	20
33	Ice cream (vanilla)	1/2 cup (66g)	137	2	7	16	0	19
34	Gummy bears	17 pieces (30g)	110	2	0	25	0	14
35	Frosted Pop-Tart	1 pastry (52g)	200	2	5	37	1	12

Sources: USDA FoodData Central for nutrition data. Satiety scores derived from the Holt Satiety Index methodology applied to each snack's macronutrient and volume profile.

How Do Snacks Compare per 100 Grams?

Per-serving comparisons can be misleading because serving sizes vary wildly. A "serving" of almonds (28g) and a "serving" of Greek yogurt (245g) are not comparable volumes. This table normalizes everything to 100 grams.

Snack	Calories/100g	Protein/100g	Fat/100g	Carbs/100g	Fiber/100g	Calorie Density Rating
Baby carrots	41	1.0	0.2	9.6	2.8	Very Low
Celery	14	0.7	0.2	3.0	1.6	Very Low
Air-popped popcorn	387	13.0	4.5	78.0	14.5	High (low per volume)
Greek yogurt (nonfat)	59	10.2	0.4	3.6	0	Low
Cottage cheese (2%)	81	11.8	2.3	3.4	0	Low
Hard-boiled eggs	155	12.6	10.6	1.1	0	Medium
Banana	89	1.1	0.3	22.8	2.6	Low
Edamame	121	11.9	5.2	8.6	5.2	Medium
Apple	52	0.3	0.2	13.8	2.4	Low
Beef jerky	292	33.2	15.0	11.0	0.5	High
Rice cakes	389	7.3	2.8	82.0	1.2	High
Pretzels	384	9.4	3.1	80.7	3.5	High
Granola bar	452	9.5	16.7	69.0	4.8	Very High
Almonds	579	21.2	49.9	21.6	12.5	Very High
Mixed nuts	614	17.9	53.6	25.0	7.1	Very High
Trail mix	462	13.2	29.0	42.1	5.3	Very High
Peanut butter	588	25.1	50.4	19.6	6.3	Very High
Dark chocolate (70%)	598	7.8	42.6	45.9	10.9	Very High
Tortilla chips	500	7.1	25.0	64.3	3.6	Very High
Potato chips	543	6.6	35.7	52.9	3.6	Very High
Dried mango	319	1.5	0.8	78.6	4.6	High
Dried cranberries	308	0.1	1.4	82.4	5.7	High
Cookies (Oreo)	471	4.4	20.6	69.1	1.8	Very High
Goldfish crackers	467	10.0	16.7	66.7	3.3	Very High
Candy bar (Snickers)	481	7.7	23.1	63.5	1.9	Very High
Ice cream (vanilla)	207	3.5	11.0	23.6	0	Medium

Key finding: almonds (579 kcal/100g), peanut butter (588 kcal/100g), and trail mix (462 kcal/100g) — all marketed as healthy snacks — are more calorie-dense per 100 grams than Snickers bars (481 kcal/100g), Oreos (471 kcal/100g), and potato chips (543 kcal/100g). The difference is that nuts and nut butters provide meaningful protein and healthy fats, but the calorie density makes portion control critical.

Which "Healthy" Snacks Are Actually Calorie Bombs?

This is the most important table in this article. These snacks are perceived as diet-friendly but can easily add 300-600 calories to your daily intake due to portion creep.

"Healthy" Snack	Labeled Serving	Cal/Serving	Typical Actual Consumption	Actual Calories	Calorie Overestimation Risk
Granola	1/3 cup (40g)	200	1 cup (120g)	600	3× label
Trail mix	1/4 cup (38g)	175	3/4 cup (114g)	525	3× label
Peanut butter	2 tbsp (32g)	190	3-4 tbsp (48-64g)	285-380	1.5-2× label
Almonds	1 oz / 23 nuts	164	40-50 nuts (50-60g)	290-348	1.8-2.1× label
Dried fruit (mixed)	1/4 cup (40g)	130	1/2-1 cup (80-160g)	260-520	2-4× label
Acai bowl	N/A	N/A	1 bowl (16 oz)	500-700	Often unlabeled
Smoothie (fruit + PB)	N/A	N/A	1 large (20 oz)	450-650	Often unlabeled
Hummus	2 tbsp (28g)	70	4-6 tbsp (56-84g)	140-210	2-3× label
Coconut chips	1 oz (28g)	185	2-3 oz (56-84g)	370-555	2-3× label
Dark chocolate	1 oz (28g)	170	2-3 oz (56-84g)	340-510	2-3× label

A study published in the Journal of the American Dietetic Association found that people underestimate the calorie content of foods labeled "healthy" by an average of 35%, compared to 15% for foods perceived as indulgent. The health halo effect causes people to eat larger portions and track less carefully.

What Are the Best High-Protein Snacks Under 200 Calories?

For anyone targeting protein intake, this table isolates the best options under 200 calories per serving.

Snack	Calories	Protein (g)	Protein per 100 kcal	Fat (g)	Carbs (g)	Prep Required
Cottage cheese (2%, 3/4 cup)	137	20	14.6 g	3.8	5	None
Turkey roll-ups (4 slices)	120	20	16.7 g	3	2	None
Greek yogurt (nonfat, 3/4 cup)	109	19	17.4 g	0	7.5	None
Hard-boiled eggs (2)	155	13	8.4 g	11	1	Minimal
Edamame (3/4 cup)	141	14	9.9 g	6	11	Minimal
Beef jerky (1 oz)	82	9	11.0 g	4	3	None
String cheese (2 sticks)	160	14	8.8 g	12	0	None
Tuna packet (2.6 oz)	70	16	22.9 g	0.5	0	None
Protein bar (Quest, 1 bar)	190	21	11.1 g	8	21	None
Deli chicken breast (3 oz)	90	18	20.0 g	1	1	None

Tuna packets deliver the highest protein-per-calorie ratio of any snack at 22.9 g per 100 calories. Greek yogurt and deli chicken breast follow closely. All three require zero preparation.

How Do Popular Protein Bars Actually Compare?

Protein bars are one of the fastest-growing snack categories. Here is how the most popular brands compare.

Brand & Flavor	Calories	Protein (g)	Fat (g)	Carbs (g)	Sugar (g)	Fiber (g)	Sugar Alcohol (g)	Cost/Bar	Protein per 100 kcal
Quest (Chocolate Chip)	190	21	8	21	1	14	5	$2.50	11.1 g
ONE Bar (Maple Glazed Donut)	220	20	8	23	1	9	6	$2.30	9.1 g
Built Bar (Puff, Churro)	130	17	3.5	15	4	5	0	$2.50	13.1 g
Barebells (Caramel Cashew)	200	20	8	18	1	3	6	$2.80	10.0 g
RXBar (Chocolate Sea Salt)	210	12	9	23	13	5	0	$2.50	5.7 g
Kind Protein (Crunchy PB)	250	12	17	17	8	5	0	$1.80	4.8 g
Clif Bar (Chocolate Chip)	250	10	5	43	21	4	0	$1.50	4.0 g
Larabar (Peanut Butter)	220	7	12	24	18	4	0	$1.50	3.2 g
Nature Valley Protein	190	10	12	14	6	5	0	$1.20	5.3 g
GoMacro (PB Chocolate Chip)	270	11	11	36	11	2	0	$3.00	4.1 g

Built Bar leads on protein per calorie at 13.1 g per 100 kcal, followed by Quest at 11.1 g. Clif Bar and Larabar, despite being popular "healthy" options, deliver only 3.2-4.0 g of protein per 100 calories — comparable to a candy bar.

How Does Snack Timing Affect Satiety?

Research from the British Journal of Nutrition shows that the same snack consumed at different times produces different satiety responses.

Timing	Satiety Effect	Best Snack Type	Worst Snack Type
Mid-morning (10-11 AM)	+22% vs afternoon	High protein (eggs, yogurt)	High sugar (dried fruit, bars)
Afternoon (2-4 PM)	Baseline	Protein + fiber combo (apple + PB)	Refined carbs (pretzels, crackers)
Evening (8-10 PM)	-15% vs afternoon	Low calorie, high volume (popcorn, carrots)	Calorie dense (nuts, chocolate)
Pre-workout (30-60 min)	N/A (performance focus)	Fast carbs + moderate protein (banana + yogurt)	High fat (nuts, cheese)
Post-workout (within 60 min)	N/A (recovery focus)	High protein (shake, jerky, cottage cheese)	Low protein (fruit, crackers)

Source: Leidy HJ, et al. "The Role of Protein in Weight Loss and Maintenance." American Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2015.

How Can You Track Snack Calories Without Obsessing?

The biggest tracking error with snacks is not logging them at all. A survey published in Obesity Research found that 62% of people who track meals skip snack logging, adding an estimated 300-500 untracked calories per day.

Nutrola's barcode scanner reads packaged snack barcodes instantly and pulls from a nutritionist-verified database, so a scanned Kind bar returns the accurate nutrition data rather than a crowdsourced entry that may be based on an outdated formulation. For unpackaged snacks like a handful of almonds or a bowl of fruit, Nutrola's photo AI estimates portion size from a picture, which research shows is more accurate than manual estimation for irregularly shaped foods.

The key insight from this data is that snack selection has a disproportionate impact on daily calorie intake because snacks are where portion estimation errors are largest. A 50% overserving on a 200-calorie snack adds 100 calories. Eating that snack twice a day adds 200 untracked calories — enough to erase a moderate calorie deficit entirely.