People comparing calories
You choose your crisps by checking the energy per 100 g, then considering how much you plan to eat during your afternoon break.
Who are these criteria useful for?
People keeping an eye on fat
You’re interested in a baked recipe or one described as lower in fat. You also check the kcal per 100 g, as these two details don’t tell you the same thing.
People watching their added salt
You’re looking first for a recipe with no added salt, while keeping this criterion separate from the product’s energy content.
What should you look for before buying?
| Criterion | What to check | Who is it for? |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | Compare the kcal per 100 g for the exact variety, then consider how much you plan to eat. | For my afternoon break, I mainly want to choose based on the energy content of the crisps; around 50% of consumers put calories at the top of their list of concerns. |
| Portion | Check the pack weight and, if shown on the packaging, the nutritional value per portion. | If a pack might be more than I want to eat, planning how much to serve becomes my priority; around 33% of consumers care most about the portion they eat. |
| Salt and ingredients | Check the ingredients list and nutrition information, particularly the ‘salt’ line. | When no added salt matters more than calories in my choice, the exact recipe is more important; around 17% of consumers prioritise added salt and ingredients. |
Common mix-ups to avoid
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Assuming ‘lower in fat’ means ‘low in calories’
Auchan and Carrefour list 442 kcal per 100 g for Lay’s Oven Baked Original and 470 kcal per 100 g for Vico Light Original, respectively. So a claim about fat doesn’t replace the energy value.
Compare the kcal per 100 g for the specific products you’re interested in, then check their fat content separately.
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Looking at the per-portion value without checking the pack
Auchan lists 133 kcal per 30 g for Lay’s Oven Baked Original, while the pack contains 130 g. This per-portion value doesn’t describe the whole pack.
Decide how much to serve before relying on the ‘per portion’ information.
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Confusing ‘no added salt’ with ‘lower in calories’
Carrefour Classic’ No Added Salt is listed at 532 kcal and 34 g of fat per 100 g. Its ingredients meet a different criterion from reducing calories.
Check the ingredients list and energy value per 100 g separately.
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Treating two varieties from the same brand as the same product
The Lay’s Oven Baked Original 130 g mentioned in the comparison and the Lay’s Texas BBQ flavour crisps 70 g featured below have different names and pack sizes. The nutritional values for the first product don’t describe the second.
Before buying, check the flavour, pack size and nutritional information for the variety you’ve chosen.
Brands and ranges to compare
Lay's
The Lay’s Oven Baked Original 130 g product provides an energy-per-100-g figure for comparison; its nutritional information doesn’t apply to other Lay’s flavours.
- Auchan lists 442 kcal, 13 g of fat and 0.84 g of salt per 100 g for this product.
- To assess another flavour or pack size, check its own nutritional information.
Vico
The Light Original 120 g variety is a different product from classic Vico crisps.
- Carrefour lists 470 kcal and 24 g of fat per 100 g for Vico Light Original.
- This product is marked as unavailable; check its availability and exact name before choosing it.
Carrefour Classic'
Carrefour’s product information lets you distinguish between the classic Original recipe and the No Added Salt variety.
- Carrefour lists 540 kcal per 100 g for the Original recipe and 532 kcal per 100 g for the No Added Salt variety.
- The ‘no added salt’ claim relates to the recipe; it doesn’t mean this variety is the lowest in calories among the products compared.
A Joybuy option for your break
This selection features Lay’s Texas BBQ flavour crisps in a 70 g pack. If you’re choosing based on calories, check the nutritional information for this variety rather than that of the plain varieties compared above.
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Lay's Texas BBQ flavour potato crisps 70 g
Ideal for an afternoon break if you’re looking for Texas BBQ flavour crisps. 70 g pack; check the energy, salt and allergen information on the packaging for this variety before comparing it with other crisps.
Frequently asked questions
How do you compare the calories in two packs of crisps?
First compare the kcal per 100 g, then work out how that figure relates to the amount you plan to eat. The French Directorate-General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control explains that nutrition declarations on prepacked food are given per 100 g or 100 ml to make comparisons easier.
Are oven-baked crisps always lower in calories?
Being oven-baked doesn’t necessarily mean they’re lower in calories: compare the energy value of the exact varieties. Auchan lists 442 kcal per 100 g for Lay’s Oven Baked Original 130 g, while Carrefour lists 470 kcal for Vico Light Original and 540 kcal for Carrefour Classic’ Original, each per 100 g.
Does a Nutri-Score B mean a portion is low in calories?
No. Nutri-Score doesn’t tell you the energy value of the portion you’ll eat. Santé publique France describes it as a voluntary nutrition information logo; to compare calories, check the kcal per 100 g and take the amount you eat into account.
Are crisps with no added salt necessarily lower in calories?
No. Carrefour lists 532 kcal and 34 g of fat per 100 g for its Classic’ No Added Salt product. If both calories and added salt matter to you, check the energy value and ingredients list for your chosen product separately.