The short answer
100 g of spinach (raw) has 2.1 g of protein and 24 kcal.1 That's about 4% of the 50 g of protein ICMR-NIN suggests a day for a 60 kg adult.2
Nutrition in 100 g of spinach
| Per 100 g | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 24 kcal (102 kJ) |
| Protein | 2.1 g ± 0.1 |
| Fat | 0.6 g |
| Carbohydrate | 2.1 g |
| Fibre | 2.4 g |
| Water | 90.3 g |
These figures are for the raw, edible part of spinach.
How much spinach for your protein?
The amounts below are worked out from IFCT's figure of 2.1 g per 100 g. To see how spinach fits into a whole day, add it in the day builder.
| To get | Eat about | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 10 g of protein | 467 g (raw weight) | 112 kcal |
| 20 g of protein | 935 g (raw weight) | 224 kcal |
| 30 g of protein | 1.4 kg (raw weight) | 336 kcal |
How spinach compares
Spinach has more protein per 100 g than 32% of the 542 foods in IFCT 2017. Here it is beside the other vegetables we cover:
| Vegetables | Protein / 100 g | kcal | From protein |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green peas | 7.3 g | 81 | 36% |
| Moringa leaves | 6.4 g | 67 | 39% |
| Jackfruit seeds | 5.8 g | 77 | 31% |
| Methi leaves | 3.7 g | 34 | 43% |
| Mushroom | 3.7 g | 27 | 54% |
| Spinach | 2.1 g | 24 | 36% |
| Potato | 1.5 g | 70 | 9% |
Other vegetarian foods with similar protein: poha (7.4 g), dry coconut (7.3 g), ragi (7.2 g), buffalo milk (3.7 g), cow milk (3.3 g). For more protein per 100 g, try soybean (37.8 g), masoor dal (24.4 g), moong dal (23.9 g). See every food on one protein chart.
Protein quality
Vegetables add small amounts of protein; their real value is fibre, vitamins and minerals. Fresh peas, some leaves and jackfruit seeds have more protein than most.
Spinach in Indian languages
Names as listed in IFCT 2017, which records what the food is called in each region it was sampled from.1
- Assamese
- Paleng
- Bengali
- Palong shak
- Gujarati
- Palak ni bhaji
- Hindi
- Palak
- Kannada
- Spinak soppu
- Malayalam
- Basala cheera
- Marathi
- Palak
- Odia
- Palang sag
- Punjabi
- Palak
- Tamil
- Pasalai keerai
- Telugu
- Palakoora
- Urdu
- Palak
Common questions
How much protein is in 100 g of spinach?
2.1 g, according to the Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 from ICMR-NIN. That's for raw spinach, per 100 g of the edible part. 100 g also gives 24 kcal.
How much spinach gives 20 g of protein?
About 935 g (raw weight). That's roughly 40% of the 50 g a day ICMR-NIN suggests for a 60 kg adult.
Is spinach a good source of protein?
36% of its calories come from protein, and it has more protein per 100 g than 32% of the 542 foods in IFCT 2017. Vegetables add small amounts of protein; their real value is fibre, vitamins and minerals.
References
- Longvah T, Ananthan R, Bhaskarachary K, Venkaiah K. Indian Food Composition Tables 2017. National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR), Hyderabad. nin.res.in. Read through the open-data copy by Subhajit Sahu (ifct2017, MIT licence).
- ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition. Nutrient Requirements for Indians: Recommended Dietary Allowances and Estimated Average Requirements. 2020. nin.res.in