Collard greens are large, flat leaves from the cabbage family, a staple of Southern cooking. A cup of cooked collard greens has about 63 calories, 5 g of protein and 8 g of fiber, according to USDA data. The same cup gives about 6 times the Daily Value for vitamin K, 80% for vitamin A and 21% for calcium.
With Dietfit, one photo of your plate is enough: Deep Scan logs the greens and the ham, bacon or other sides next to them as separate parts, so a Southern plate is counted piece by piece.
Key takeaways
A cup of cooked collard greens has about 63 calories, 5 g of protein and 7.6 g of fiber.
One cup covers about 644% of the Daily Value for vitamin K, 80% for vitamin A and 38% for vitamin C.
Collards have more fiber and calcium per cooked cup than kale, spinach, turnip greens or mustard greens.
Southern-style collards cooked with ham or pork have about 89 calories and 700 mg of sodium per cup, about 25 times the sodium of greens boiled without salt.
People taking warfarin should keep their vitamin K intake steady, so collards should be eaten in similar amounts from week to week.
Collard greens nutrition facts
Cooked collard greens have about 63 calories per cup, and raw collards about 12. Raw leaves are light and airy, while cooking shrinks them, so a cup of cooked greens holds about five times as much leaf as a cup of raw. Here is the full picture from USDA data:
Nutrient | Raw, 1 cup chopped (1.3 oz, 36 g) | Cooked, 1 cup chopped (6.7 oz, 190 g) | % Daily Value, cooked cup |
|---|---|---|---|
Calories | 12 | 63 | 3% |
Protein | 1.1 g | 5.1 g | 10% |
Carbs | 2.0 g | 10.7 g | 4% |
Fiber | 1.4 g | 7.6 g | 27% |
Sugar | 0.2 g | 0.8 g | |
Fat | 0.2 g | 1.4 g | 2% |
Vitamin K | 157 mcg | 773 mcg | 644% |
Vitamin A | 90 mcg | 722 mcg | 80% |
Vitamin C | 12.7 mg | 34.6 mg | 38% |
Calcium | 84 mg | 268 mg | 21% |
Iron | 0.2 mg | 2.2 mg | 12% |
Magnesium | 10 mg | 40 mg | 10% |
Folate | 46 mcg | 30 mcg | 8% |
Sodium | 6 mg | 29 mg | 1% |
Source: USDA FoodData Central (collards raw, and boiled and drained without salt). Daily Values are the FDA's, based on a 2,000-calorie diet.
Most of the carbs in collards are fiber, so the net carbs in a cooked cup come to about 3 g. Folate and vitamin C drop when collards are boiled: per ounce, boiled leaves keep about half the vitamin C and an eighth of the folate of raw leaves, because both dissolve into the cooking water. That water, known in the South as pot liquor, is worth keeping for soups or for sopping with cornbread.
Are collard greens healthy? Vitamins and benefits
Yes. Collard greens are one of the most nutrient-dense vegetables per calorie, with large amounts of vitamin K, vitamin A and fiber for 63 calories a cup. Here is what the main nutrients do:
Vitamin K (644% DV). Your body needs vitamin K to make the proteins that clot blood, and some of the proteins in bone. Adults need 90 to 120 mcg a day, and a cooked cup has about 773 mcg.
Vitamin A (80% DV). Collards get their vitamin A from beta-carotene, which the body converts as needed. Vitamin A supports vision, the immune system and skin.
Fiber (27% DV). At 7.6 g a cup, collards have more fiber than any of the greens in the table below. Fiber slows digestion and helps you feel full on few calories.
Calcium (21% DV). A cup has 268 mg, about a fifth of the Daily Value. Absorption from plants can be lower than from dairy, so count collards as a helpful extra, not a full replacement.
Vitamin C (38% DV). Raw or lightly cooked collards keep the most, since long boiling pulls vitamin C into the water.
Collards vs kale, spinach and other greens
Collards have the most fiber and calcium per cooked cup of the common greens, and more calories only because a cup holds more leaf. Per cup, cooked and drained, without salt:
Greens, cooked (1 cup) | Calories | Protein | Fiber | Calcium | Vitamin K | Vitamin C |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Collard greens (6.7 oz, 190 g) | 63 | 5.1 g | 7.6 g | 268 mg | 773 mcg | 34.6 mg |
Spinach (6.3 oz, 180 g) | 41 | 5.3 g | 4.3 g | 245 mg | 889 mcg | 17.6 mg |
Turnip greens (5.1 oz, 144 g) | 29 | 1.6 g | 5.0 g | 197 mg | 530 mcg | 39.5 mg |
Kale (4.2 oz, 118 g) | 42 | 3.5 g | 4.7 g | 177 mg | 493 mcg | 21.0 mg |
Mustard greens (4.9 oz, 140 g) | 36 | 3.6 g | 2.8 g | 165 mg | 830 mcg | 35.4 mg |
Source: USDA FoodData Central.
All five are low-calorie and rich in vitamin K, so the best choice is the one you will eat often. Collards hold up to long cooking better than spinach, which makes them the usual pick for a Southern pot of greens.
Collard greens and warfarin
If you take warfarin (Coumadin) or another blood thinner that works against vitamin K, you do not need to avoid collards. The National Institutes of Health advises keeping vitamin K intake consistent, because a sudden change in how much you eat can change how the medicine works. Talk to your doctor before adding or dropping large servings of greens.
Southern-style collard greens: calories by cooking style
The greens themselves are light; what goes into the pot decides the calories and the sodium. Here is one cup of cooked collards made five common ways, built from USDA values per 100 g:
Collard greens, 1 cup cooked (6.7 oz, 190 g) | Calories | Protein | Fat | Sodium |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Boiled, no salt | 63 | 5.1 g | 1.4 g | 29 mg |
Canned greens | 78 | 2.5 g | 5.4 g | 637 mg |
With ham or pork (Southern style) | 89 | 9.3 g | 2.7 g | 703 mg |
Cooked with butter | 103 | 6.0 g | 5.7 g | 298 mg |
Cooked with oil | 116 | 6.0 g | 7.1 g | 264 mg |
Source: USDA FoodData Central. The cooked-with-fat, canned and ham versions include the salt USDA assumes in cooking.
Southern-style greens simmered with ham or pork stay under 100 calories a cup and gain protein, but sodium climbs to about 700 mg, close to a third of the 2,300 mg Daily Value. The meat itself matters too:
Smoked ham hock. One hock (3 oz, 85 g) has about 228 calories, 19 g of fat and 884 mg of sodium. Split over a pot that serves six, that is about 40 calories and 150 mg of sodium a serving, before any salt in the pot liquor.
Bacon. A crumbled slice (about 8 g) adds about 37 calories and 135 mg of sodium to a cup of greens.
Smoked turkey. A common swap for ham hock; check the label for fat and sodium, since smoked meats are salty either way.
To keep the flavor and lose some of the sodium, use half the usual meat, skip added salt until the end, and season with onion, garlic, red pepper flakes and a splash of vinegar.
Are collard greens good for weight loss?
Yes. At about 63 calories and 7.6 g of fiber per cooked cup, collards add volume to a meal for very few calories, which makes a calorie deficit easier to keep. Even Southern-style greens with ham stay under 100 calories a cup.
The greens are rarely the problem on a Southern plate; the sides around them are. Collards are the lightest pick next to mac and cheese, cornbread or a scoop of pulled pork, and swapping one heavy side for a second cup of greens can save a few hundred calories. For more on the rest of the plate, see our guide to Southern food and grits.
Ways to eat more collards:
Sauté them. Slice the leaves thin and cook them for 5 to 10 minutes in a teaspoon of oil with garlic. A teaspoon of oil adds about 40 calories to the pan.
Use them as wraps. Blanch a large leaf for 30 seconds and use it in place of a tortilla.
Add them to soups and beans. Stir chopped collards into bean soup, chili or stew in the last 15 minutes.
Eat them raw. Slice them very thin for a slaw or salad with lemon and olive oil.
Cook them with less meat. Use half a ham hock or a little smoked turkey for flavor, and keep the pot liquor.
Greens cooked with meat and fat are hard to log by hand. With an AI calorie tracker like Dietfit, you snap one photo of your plate and Deep Scan outlines the greens and each side separately, then Meal Score, a health score for each meal, shows whether the plate fits your goal.
In the example below, Deep Scan read a bowl of Southern collard greens as 173 calories: 95 for the braised collards and 78 for the smoked ham. Almost half the calories in the bowl came from the meat.
FAQ
How many calories are in a cup of collard greens?
A cup of cooked collard greens has about 63 calories, and a cup of raw chopped collards about 12, according to USDA. Southern-style collards cooked with ham or pork have about 89 calories per cup.
How much protein is in collard greens?
A cup of cooked collard greens has about 5 g of protein, and a cup of raw collards about 1 g. Greens cooked with ham or pork have about 9 g per cup.
Are collard greens healthier raw or cooked?
Both are healthy. Cooked collards pack more fiber, calcium and vitamin K into each cup because the leaves shrink, while raw collards keep more vitamin C and folate per ounce.
Are collard greens or kale healthier?
They are close. Per cooked cup, collards have more fiber (7.6 g vs 4.7 g), calcium (268 mg vs 177 mg) and vitamin K, while kale has fewer calories (42 vs 63). Either is a good choice.
Are collard greens high in carbs?
No. A cup of cooked collards has about 11 g of carbs, and 7.6 g of that is fiber, which leaves about 3 g of net carbs. That makes collards a good fit for low-carb and keto eating.
Can you eat collard greens if you take blood thinners?
Yes, in steady amounts. Collards are very high in vitamin K, which works against warfarin, so the National Institutes of Health advises people on these medicines to keep their vitamin K intake consistent. Ask your doctor before making a big change.
References
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/170406/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Collards, raw", FDC ID 170406
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/170407/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Collards, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt", FDC ID 170407
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2709582/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Collards, fresh, cooked with oil", FDC ID 2709582
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2709583/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Collards, fresh, cooked with butter or margarine", FDC ID 2709583
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2706759/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Greens with ham or pork", FDC ID 2706759
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2709598/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Greens, canned, cooked", FDC ID 2709598
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2705900/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Pork, ham hocks", FDC ID 2705900
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/2710239/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Bacon, for use with vegetables", FDC ID 2710239
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/168463/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Spinach, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt", FDC ID 168463
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/170466/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Turnip greens, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt", FDC ID 170466
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/169238/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Kale, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt", FDC ID 169238
https://fdc.nal.usda.gov/food-details/169257/nutrients, FoodData Central, "Mustard greens, cooked, boiled, drained, without salt", FDC ID 169257
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/VitaminK-HealthProfessional/, "Vitamin K: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals", updated October 22, 2026, NIH Office of Dietary Supplements
https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/Calcium-HealthProfessional/, "Calcium: Fact Sheet for Health Professionals", updated June 22, 2026, NIH Office of Dietary Supplements
https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-facts-label/daily-value-nutrition-and-supplement-facts-labels, "Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels", U.S. Food and Drug Administration
By Phu Le