Quick Answer: Cooked rice noodles contain about 109 calories per 100 g, with 25 g of carbohydrate, 1.8 g of protein and virtually no fat. Dry rice noodles contain about 364 calories per 100 g, with 80 g of carbohydrate.
That difference is not a contradiction – it is water. Noodles roughly triple in weight when cooked, and almost every confusing figure you will find about rice noodles comes from someone comparing a dry weight to a cooked one. Rice noodles are naturally gluten-free, very low in sodium before seasoning, and notably low in protein compared with wheat or buckwheat noodles.
Dry Weight vs Cooked Weight: Read This First
This is the single biggest source of error in noodle nutrition, and it is worth two minutes because it invalidates most of what is published on the subject.
Rice noodles come out of the packet dry and absorb a large amount of water when soaked or boiled. Per 100 g they therefore look completely different depending on when you weigh them:
| Per 100 g | Calories | Carbohydrate | Protein | Fat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dry, straight from the packet | 364 | 80 g | 6.0 g | 0.6 g |
| Cooked | 109 | 25 g | 1.8 g | 0.2 g |
The practical conversion: a typical 50 g dry portion yields around 165 g cooked and delivers roughly 180 calories. A 2 oz (56 g) dry serving, which is what most packet labels use, comes to about 200 calories. If a packet says 200 calories per serving, that serving is almost certainly a dry weight, not the whole packet.
Weigh your noodles dry if you want to track them. It is the only measurement that does not change with how long you cooked them or how well you drained them.
Rice Noodles Nutrition Facts
| Nutrient | 100 g cooked | 1 cup cooked (176 g) | %DV per cup |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 109 | 190 | – |
| Total carbohydrate | 24.9 g | 42 g | 15% |
| Dietary fibre | 1.0 g | 1.8 g | 6% |
| Sugars | 0.1 g | 0.1 g | – |
| Protein | 1.8 g | 3.2 g | 6% |
| Total fat | 0.2 g | 0.35 g | 0% |
| Saturated fat | 0 g | 0.1 g | 0% |
| Sodium | 19 mg | 33 mg | 1% |
| Cholesterol | 0 mg | 0 mg | 0% |
Rice noodles are essentially rice flour and water. They contain no meaningful amount of vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B6, vitamin D, B12, calcium or magnesium, and only trace iron unless the product is enriched. That is not a criticism – it is what a refined starch is. The nutrition in a noodle dish comes from what you put on it.
Types of Rice Noodles
1. Rice vermicelli (thin rice noodles)
The thinnest form, known as bún in Vietnam, sen mee in Thailand, bee hoon in Malaysia and Singapore and sevai in parts of India. Usually soaked rather than boiled. Dry vermicelli runs around 360 calories per 100 g; cooked it lands near the standard 109. Used in cold noodle salads, spring rolls and soups.
2. Flat rice noodles (ho fun, pad thai noodles)
Wide, ribbon-shaped noodles used in pad thai, char kway teow and beef ho fun. Nutritionally the same as vermicelli when plain. Be careful with published figures here: flat noodles are usually sold fresh and eaten stir-fried, so many “flat rice noodle” nutrition entries include the cooking oil. A figure showing 2 g or more of fat per 100 g is describing a cooked dish, not the noodle.
3. Brown rice noodles
Made from wholegrain rice flour, so they retain the bran. Calories are close to white rice noodles; the difference is a little more fibre and slightly more minerals. If you want the practical version: brown rice noodles are a modest upgrade, not a different food. Many products labelled brown rice noodles are a blend, so check the ingredient list.
4. Fresh rice noodle sheets (cheung fun, rice rolls)
Steamed sheets of rice batter, sold fresh and either rolled or cut into wide noodles. Because they are already hydrated, their per-100 g figures sit close to the cooked column above rather than the dry one. They spoil quickly and are usually refrigerated.
5. Instant or seasoned rice noodle packets
The category where the nutrition actually changes. Plain rice noodles carry about 19 mg of sodium per 100 g cooked. Instant packets with a seasoning sachet commonly run several hundred to over a thousand milligrams of sodium per serving – a large share of the 2,300 mg daily limit from one bowl. Some are also fried during manufacture, which adds fat. The noodle is not the issue; the sachet is.
A note on “Singapore noodles.” Singapore noodles are often listed as a type of rice noodle. They are not a noodle type – they are a curried stir-fried dish made with rice vermicelli, and their nutrition figures reflect the oil, egg, meat and curry powder rather than the noodle. The same applies to pho: pho is a soup, and the noodles in it are plain flat rice noodles.
Rice Noodles vs Other Noodles and Rice
Every comparison below is cooked, per 100 g, which is the only fair way to do it.
| Cooked, per 100 g | Calories | Carbs | Protein | Fat | Gluten-free |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rice noodles | 109 | 24.9 g | 1.8 g | 0.2 g | Yes |
| Soba (buckwheat) noodles | 99 | 21 g | 5.0 g | 0.1 g | Only if 100% buckwheat |
| White rice | 130 | 28.1 g | 2.7 g | 0.3 g | Yes |
| Egg noodles, enriched | 138 | 25 g | 4.5 g | 2.1 g | No |
| Wheat spaghetti | 158 | 31 g | 5.8 g | 0.9 g | No |
Two things fall out of that table, and neither is what most articles say.
Rice noodles are the lowest-protein option by a wide margin. At 1.8 g per 100 g cooked they carry roughly a third of what wheat spaghetti or soba deliver. Since noodles are usually the base of the meal, that is a real difference over a bowl-sized portion, and it is the strongest argument for making sure a rice noodle dish contains a proper protein source – tofu, egg, prawns, chicken, peanuts.
Rice noodles look lower in calories than wheat pasta, but mostly because they hold more water. Compare dry weights and the two are close. Choosing rice noodles does not automatically save you calories; it saves you calories only if you serve the same cooked weight, which most people do.
The same logic settles a common claim that noodles are higher in calories than rice. That comparison usually sets a dry noodle weight against a cooked rice weight. Cooked for cooked, plain white rice at about 130 calories per 100 g is slightly higher in calories than rice noodles.
Are Rice Noodles Gluten-Free?
This is the main reason people look up rice noodle nutrition.
Rice noodles made from rice flour and water are naturally gluten-free, containing no wheat, barley or rye. That makes them one of the most useful staples available for coeliac disease and non-coeliac gluten sensitivity. Three caveats worth knowing:
- Not every noodle labelled rice noodle is pure rice. Some products blend in wheat starch or tapioca. Read the ingredient list rather than trusting the front of the pack.
- Cross-contamination is a real risk in shared manufacturing facilities and in restaurant kitchens using one pot of water for all noodles. If you have coeliac disease, look for a certified gluten-free mark, which in the US requires under 20 parts per million.
- Soba is the trap. Buckwheat is not wheat and is gluten-free, but most commercial soba is cut with wheat flour. Only 100 percent buckwheat soba is safe.
Rice Noodles and Blood Sugar
A result that surprises people: rice noodles have a higher glycaemic index than wheat pasta. Rice noodles are commonly reported around 61, while white spaghetti sits near 49. Pasta is unusually low for a refined starch because its dense, extruded protein network physically slows digestion, and rice noodles have no equivalent structure.
So rice noodles are the better choice for gluten avoidance and the worse choice for glycaemic response, which is a genuine trade-off rather than a verdict. Three things reduce the impact:
- Do not overcook them. Softer noodles digest faster. Cook to just tender.
- Eat them with protein, fat and vegetables. Glycaemic index is measured on a food eaten alone, which is never how a noodle dish is served. A bowl with tofu, egg or prawns behaves very differently from plain noodles.
- Cool them, then reheat. Cooked starch that is chilled forms resistant starch, which is not digested in the small intestine and behaves more like fibre. A cold rice noodle salad or a reheated leftover stir-fry has a somewhat lower glycaemic impact than freshly boiled noodles. The effect is modest but free.
If you are managing diabetes, portion and context matter more than the choice of noodle, and your dietitian’s guidance beats any general article.
Arsenic in Rice Products: Proportionate Advice
Rice takes up more inorganic arsenic from soil and water than most grains, so it appears in rice products including rice pasta and noodles. Worth knowing, not worth alarm.
The FDA’s surveys found levels across rice and rice products that are not high enough to cause short-term health effects. The agency has set a formal action level of 100 parts per billion for inorganic arsenic in infant rice cereal specifically, where the concern is greatest because intake is high relative to body weight. For the general population, its advice is straightforward: eat a variety of grains rather than making rice the basis of every meal.
In practice that means rotating rice noodles with wheat, buckwheat, oats, quinoa and barley where you can, which is reasonable dietary advice regardless of arsenic. It matters more for infants and young children, and for anyone eating rice at most meals, than for occasional noodle dishes.
Frequently Asked Questions
About 109 calories per 100 g cooked, or roughly 190 calories per cooked cup (176 g). Dry rice noodles are about 364 calories per 100 g, because they have not yet absorbed water. A typical 50 g dry portion becomes around 165 g cooked and delivers roughly 180 calories. Always check whether a figure refers to dry or cooked weight before comparing it to anything.
Because some are dry weights and some are cooked. Rice noodles absorb a large amount of water, roughly tripling in weight, so the same noodles measure 364 calories per 100 g dry and 109 per 100 g cooked. Most confusing or contradictory figures online come from comparing one to the other. Packet labels almost always state a dry serving weight, typically 2 oz or 56 g, not the whole packet.
Rice noodles made from rice flour and water are naturally gluten-free, with no wheat, barley or rye. Three caveats: some products labelled rice noodles blend in wheat starch, so read the ingredient list; cross-contamination is possible in shared facilities and in restaurant kitchens that boil all noodles in one pot; and if you have coeliac disease, look for a certified gluten-free mark, which in the US requires under 20 parts per million.
It depends what you need. Rice noodles are gluten-free and wheat pasta is not, which is decisive for anyone with coeliac disease. On other measures wheat pasta comes out ahead: cooked per 100 g it carries 5.8 g of protein against 1.8 g for rice noodles, and it has a lower glycaemic index, around 49 versus about 61. Rice noodles look lower in calories per 100 g cooked, but largely because they hold more water. Neither is unhealthy.
Cooked per 100 g, egg noodles carry about 138 calories, 4.5 g protein and 2.1 g fat, against 109 calories, 1.8 g protein and 0.2 g fat for rice noodles. Enriched egg noodles also supply meaningful iron, which rice noodles do not. Egg noodles contain wheat and cholesterol; rice noodles contain neither. Rice noodles win on gluten-free and fat, egg noodles win on protein and iron.
Yes, and somewhat more than wheat pasta does. Rice noodles are commonly reported at a glycaemic index around 61, against roughly 49 for white spaghetti, because pasta’s dense extruded structure physically slows digestion and rice noodles have no equivalent. Cooking them to just tender rather than soft, eating them with protein and vegetables, and cooling then reheating them, which forms resistant starch, all reduce the impact. If you manage diabetes, follow your dietitian’s guidance on portions.
Very little: about 1.8 g per 100 g cooked, or 3.2 g in a cooked cup. That is roughly a third of what wheat spaghetti or soba noodles provide. Since noodles usually form the base of a meal, it is worth making sure a rice noodle dish includes a real protein source such as tofu, egg, prawns, chicken or peanuts rather than relying on the noodles.
Plain rice noodles are very low in sodium, around 19 mg per 100 g cooked. Instant and seasoned rice noodle packets are a different product: the seasoning sachet can carry several hundred to over a thousand milligrams per serving, a large share of the 2,300 mg daily limit from one bowl. The noodle is not the problem, the sachet is. Using half the sachet, or none, is the simplest fix.
Not for occasional eating. Rice takes up more inorganic arsenic than most grains, and it appears in rice products including noodles, but FDA surveys found levels across rice products that are not high enough to cause short-term health effects. The agency’s formal 100 parts per billion action level applies to infant rice cereal specifically. General advice is to eat a variety of grains rather than making rice the basis of every meal, which matters more for infants, young children and anyone eating rice at most meals.
Related Reading
- How to read nutrition labels to make smarter food choices
- Are shirataki noodles healthy?
- Wild rice nutritional benefits and types
- Balancing protein, carbs and fats
Sources
- USDA FoodData Central, for dry and cooked rice noodle, soba, egg noodle, pasta and rice values.
- US FDA, Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels.
- US FDA, Guidance for Industry: Action Level for Inorganic Arsenic in Rice Cereals for Infants.
- Atkinson, Foster-Powell and Brand-Miller, International Tables of Glycemic Index and Glycemic Load Values, for the pasta and rice noodle GI comparison.
Last reviewed and rewritten September 2026. Nutrition figures are from USDA FoodData Central and rounded; values vary with noodle thickness, brand and how thoroughly the noodles are drained, and the panel on your packet is the authority for that product. This article is general information, not medical or dietetic advice. If you have coeliac disease, diabetes or are feeding infants and young children, follow the guidance of your clinician or registered dietitian. How we research and check this content is described in our editorial process and sources cited policy.
