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How many calories are in this glass of wine?
Somewhere between “don't ask” and “worth every sip”. And the real number: about 120 to 160 kcal a glass, depending on the pour, the alcohol and the sugar.
Updated October 2026
Rewritten by Alper Billik, Advanced Sommelier
3 min read
She asked with the same look you give your phone after a third unanswered text. Worried. Curious. A little bit sorry. “How many calories are in this glass of wine?”
And the sommelier smiled, like someone who has heard that question more times than they can count and still believes in mystery: “Somewhere between ‘don't ask’ and ‘worth every sip.’”
But you came here for the number. So here it is.
The short answer: a 5 oz (147 ml) glass of dry table wine has about 120 to 125 kcal: about 125 for red and 121 for white, by the figures in USDA FoodData Central. A standard UK 175 ml glass of 12% wine has up to 158 kcal (NHS). Most of it comes from the alcohol itself.
Where the calories come from
Alcohol has 7 kcal per gram, almost as much as fat (NHS). A US standard drink, 5 oz of 12% wine, holds 14 g of alcohol (NIAAA). That's 98 kcal from the alcohol alone, before a single gram of sugar. The rest comes mostly from sugar left in the wine, plus a little from glycerol and acids.
So two things push the number up: more alcohol and more sugar. The colour hardly matters.
Glass by glass
| Pour | Calories | Source |
|---|---|---|
| 5 oz (147 ml) dry red | About 125 kcal | USDA FoodData Central |
| 5 oz (147 ml) dry white | About 121 kcal | USDA FoodData Central |
| 175 ml glass, 12% wine | Up to 158 kcal | NHS |
| 750 ml bottle, dry table wine | About five 5 oz glasses: roughly 600 to 650 kcal | USDA and NIAAA figures |
- 5 oz (147 ml) dry red
- CaloriesAbout 125 kcal
- SourceUSDA FoodData Central
- 5 oz (147 ml) dry white
- CaloriesAbout 121 kcal
- SourceUSDA FoodData Central
- 175 ml glass, 12% wine
- CaloriesUp to 158 kcal
- SourceNHS
- 750 ml bottle, dry table wine
- CaloriesAbout five 5 oz glasses: roughly 600 to 650 kcal
- SourceUSDA and NIAAA figures
Which wines have more, which have fewer
- More: riper, stronger wines (check the % on the label: many are 14% and up), and anything sweet: dessert wines, Port and other fortified wines.
- Fewer: dry wines with less alcohol. Among sparkling wines, Brut Nature and Extra Brut are the driest.
- The real variable is the pour. A large 250 ml glass is a third of a bottle.
Not sure how strong your wine is? See alcohol content in wine, style by style.
Why the bottle may not tell you
In the EU, wine made since 8 December 2023 has to declare its energy value per 100 ml on the label, sometimes as a simple “E”, while the full nutrition list can sit behind a QR code. In the US, a calorie statement on wine is optional, so many labels don't have one.
Wine isn't a number
And still. Why reduce romance to a stat line? Wine is a moment. A slow pour of something that doesn't belong in the maths of your day. A little rebellion. A soft reward. You came for a glass of “I made it through the day”, for one perfect sip that doesn't ask anything of you.
So here's to asking the real questions: Is it dry? Is it bold? Is it me? (If you'd like help answering, here's how to describe wine without sounding weird.)
You're not drinking numbers. You're drinking the reason you opened the bottle in the first place.
Questions people ask
Does red or white wine have more calories?
About the same. USDA figures give a 5 oz glass of dry red about 125 kcal and dry white about 121 kcal. Alcohol and sugar matter far more than colour.
How many calories are in a bottle of wine?
A 750 ml bottle holds about five 5 oz glasses, so roughly 600 to 650 kcal for a dry table wine. A stronger or sweeter wine has more.
Does wine have sugar?
Dry wines have very little, because the yeast turned almost all the grape sugar into alcohol. Off-dry and sweet wines keep more sugar, and so have more calories.
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