Butter vs Ghee
Both sides computed from the same table, at the serving each is actually eaten in.
The short answer
Which one is heavier
Per 100 g, ghee is heavier — 900 kcal against 725 kcal for butter, about 24% more. Per real serving the picture changes: 1 teaspoon of butter is 36 kcal, while 1 teaspoon of ghee is 45 kcal, because the portions are not the same size. On protein, butter wins with 0.6 g per 100 g.
SOURCE·ICMR–NIN dietary guidance for Indians + weighed portions·1 teaspoon entered at 5 g·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Side by side
| Butter | Ghee | |
|---|---|---|
| Serving assumed | 1 teaspoon · 5 g | 1 teaspoon · 5 g |
| Calories per serving | 36 | 45 |
| Calories per 100 g | 725 | 900 |
| Protein per 100 g | 0.6 g | 0.0 g |
| Carbs per 100 g | 0.5 g | 0.0 g |
| Fat per 100 g | 80.0 g | 100.0 g |
| Fibre per 100 g | 0.0 g | 0.0 g |
| Walking to burn one serving | 8 min | 10 min |
SOURCE·IFCT 2017 + published recipe weights·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How two dishes are made comparable
- Both columns start from the same source — the per-100 g rows for butter and ghee in the Indian Food Composition Tables 2017. Neither side is taken from a different database to win an argument.
- Each dish keeps its own serving weight: 1 teaspoon at 5 g, 1 teaspoon at 5 g. Forcing both onto a shared 100 g is what makes most food comparisons useless.
- Both rows are then scaled the same way and printed side by side, so the per-gram ranking and the per-plate ranking can visibly disagree — which, on Indian food, they routinely do.
Butter 725 kcal/100 g × 5 g ÷ 100 = 36 kcal Ghee 900 kcal/100 g × 5 g ÷ 100 = 45 kcal
How to read this
Per-100 g comparisons flatter whatever is eaten in small portions. Ghee is denser per gram, but people do not eat by the gram — butter arrives as 1 teaspoon and ghee as 1 teaspoon, and that is where the real difference shows up.
Butter carries more protein, which matters more than the calorie gap if you are trying to stay full. Both figures assume home cooking with a measured amount of oil; a restaurant plate of either can run 30 to 60% higher.
Questions
Which has more calories, butter or ghee?
Per 100 g, ghee is heavier — 900 kcal against 725 kcal for butter, about 24% more. Per real serving the picture changes: 1 teaspoon of butter is 36 kcal, while 1 teaspoon of ghee is 45 kcal, because the portions are not the same size. On protein, butter wins with 0.6 g per 100 g.
Which has more protein, butter or ghee?
Butter — 0.6 g per 100 g against 0.0 g. Per real serving that becomes 0.0 g in 1 teaspoon against 0.0 g in 1 teaspoon.
Why do the two comparisons disagree?
Because a per-100 g comparison flatters whatever is eaten in small portions. 1 teaspoon of butter weighs 5 g and 1 teaspoon of ghee weighs 5 g, so the per-gram ranking and the per-plate ranking are answering different questions. The serving row is the one that decides what you ate.
Nutrient values are averages for the stated preparation, based on the Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 (ICMR–NIN) and standard recipe analysis. Energy is reconciled against the macronutrients with Atwater factors on every build. General information only — not medical or nutrition advice. Home-cooked Indian food varies enormously with oil, ghee and portion size; every value here is an average for a stated serving, with the assumption shown.
SOURCE·IFCT 2017 + published recipe weights·REVIEWED JUL 2026
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