Del Taco Nutrition Calculator: Calories, Protein, Carbs & Sodium
We’ve all stood in the Del Taco line craving something “plant-based,” only to discover later that our healthy-sounding choice was secretly packed with more calories than a double cheeseburger. It’s a frustrating trap when you’re trying to make smarter food decisions, but the menu makes it feel like you’re blindly guessing between a lighter meal and a nutritional overload.
Use the Del Taco Nutrition Calculator below to build your exact order, from tacos to that Epic burrito, and finally see the true impact on your calories, protein, and sodium before you order. Let’s move past the marketing labels so you can enjoy your meal with total peace of mind, empowering you to own exactly what goes into your body every single time.
The short version
- Beyond Meat isn’t the light choice. Beyond Meat Taco: 300 cal. Chicken Al Carbon Taco: 150 cal.
- The Beyond Meat Taco isn’t vegan as served, it contains milk (cheddar cheese).
- The burgers are the trap at a taco chain. Bacon Double Del: 760 cal, 1,840 mg sodium.
- The beans contain no lard, one of Del Taco’s genuinely good vegetarian facts.
What this calculator actually does
It totals calories, protein, carbs, fat and sodium for your whole Del Taco order, the tacos, the burrito, the carne asada fries, the soda, the whole box.
Del Taco is an unusual chain. It sells tacos and cheeseburgers, plant-based and bacon-loaded, 150-calorie street tacos next to 1,250-calorie Epic burritos. The range is enormous, and the items sit side by side on the same menu board with no signal about which is which.
That’s what the calculator is for.
How to use it in ten seconds
- Pick your items, tacos, burritos, bowls, burgers, fries.
- Choose your protein. Grilled, crispy, or Beyond Meat. This matters more than you’d think.
- Add sides and drinks.
- Check the sodium line, not just the calories.
Then run the test: swap one Beyond Meat Taco for a Chicken Al Carbon Taco and watch 150 calories vanish. Nothing else about your order changes.
Plant-based doesn’t mean lighter here
This is the most useful thing on this page, because it reverses a very common assumption.
| Taco | Calories | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Chicken Al Carbon Taco | 150 | Grilled chicken |
| Beer Battered Fish Taco | 230 | |
| Beyond Meat Avocado Taco | 260 | |
| Beyond Meat Taco | 300 | ~56% of calories from fat |
The Beyond Meat Taco carries twice the calories of the grilled chicken taco, and roughly 19g of fat, the majority of its energy.
That’s not a knock on Beyond Meat. Plant-based patties are formulated for the taste and mouthfeel of beef, which means coconut oil and canola oil are in there doing exactly what beef fat would do. Nutritionally, Beyond Meat here is higher in calories and lower in cholesterol than the meat equivalent. Those are different benefits.
And it scales. The Epic Cali Bacon Burrito, Beyond Meat lands around 1,250 calories, among the biggest items Del Taco sells.
If you eat plant-based for ethical or environmental reasons, order it and enjoy it. If you’re choosing it because you assume it’s the low-calorie option, the grilled chicken taco is half the calories and leaner.
Is the Beyond Meat Taco vegan? No.
Worth stating plainly, because people get caught by this.
The standard Beyond Meat Taco contains milk, from the shredded cheddar cheese. The Beyond Meat itself is plant-based (pea protein, coconut and canola oil), but the taco as served is vegetarian, not vegan.
Ask for no cheese and you’re most of the way there. The same logic applies across the Beyond Meat range: check the cheese and the sauces, not just the protein.
The good news for vegetarians: Del Taco’s beans contain no lard, which is genuinely not a given at Mexican-style chains. That makes the Bean & Cheese Burrito and the 8 Layer Veggie Burrito honest vegetarian options.
At a taco chain, the burgers get you
Del Taco has sold cheeseburgers since the beginning, and they’re where the numbers spike.
| Item | Calories | Fat | Sodium |
|---|---|---|---|
| Del Cheeseburger | 470 | 28g | 1,000 mg |
| Double Del Cheeseburger | 690 | 47g | 1,230 mg |
| Bacon Double Del Cheeseburger | 760 | 51g | 1,840 mg |
| Carne Asada Fries | 760 | 56g | 1,180 mg |
1,840 mg of sodium in one burger, about 80% of the FDA’s 2,300 mg daily value, and well above the American Heart Association’s 1,500 mg ideal target.
Meanwhile a Chicken Al Carbon Taco is 150 calories. Three of them cost you 450 calories and far less sodium than a single Bacon Double Del.
The Del Taco rule: order the tacos. That’s what you came for anyway.
About the trans fat, the honest version
Del Taco’s published nutritional list shows 1 to 2g of trans fat on its cheeseburgers, and I want to explain that properly rather than alarm you, because the distinction genuinely matters.
There are two kinds of trans fat:
Artificial trans fat comes from partially hydrogenated oils (PHOs). The FDA effectively banned PHOs from the food supply, and the AHA recommends consuming zero artificial trans fat.
Naturally occurring trans fat is present in the meat and dairy of ruminant animals, cattle, sheep, goats. It’s chemically distinct, it’s exempt from the PHO ban, and it’s unavoidable in beef and cheese. A double cheeseburger with two beef patties, cheese and bacon will show trans fat on a nutrition label because it contains beef and dairy.
So: the trans fat on a Bacon Double Del is almost certainly ruminant trans fat from the beef and cheese, not an added industrial oil. It’s not a scandal. It’s what a cheeseburger is.
What’s still worth watching is the saturated fat, 20g in that same burger, which is the entire daily limit the Dietary Guidelines suggest for a 2,000-calorie adult.
The genuinely light end of the menu
Del Taco is one of the better value chains for eating small, because its small items are actually small.
- Chicken Al Carbon Taco, 150 calories. The best pick on the board.
- Street Tacos, small, grilled, straightforward.
- Snack Taco (crunchy), ~280 cal in kids’ meal listings; the à la carte version is lighter.
- Beer Battered Fish Taco, 230 calories
- Bean & Cheese Burrito, filling, fiber-rich, vegetarian
- Prima Java Hot Coffee, 10 calories. Black, and effectively free.
For protein, the Epic burritos and loaded bowls deliver 30 to 50g, just check the calories that come with them. A Taco Salad with Fresh Guac (Beyond Meat) carries around 460 calories, 24g protein and 1,110 mg sodium.
Two small tacos beat one large burrito, almost every time, on both calories and sodium. That’s the portion-control lever that costs you nothing.
Keto, low-carb and the combo trap
Low-carb: order a bowl or salad without the tortilla, rice or beans. Grilled chicken or steak, add guacamole, skip the shell. Del Taco’s fresh guac is a real asset here.
Skip: all burritos and quesadillas, fries in every form, and regular soda.
The combo trap: a burrito, taco, fries and a soda in one box comfortably clears 1,200 calories before you’ve noticed. Reported figures put the Epic Cali Bacon Burrito meal at around 1,450 calories. Swap the soda for water and you’ve cut a meaningful chunk of it without touching the food.
What Del Taco says about its own numbers
Del Taco states a specific tolerance, which is better than the vague version most chains offer:
Nutrition values are estimated based on standard serving portions. As food servings may have slight variance each visit, expect these values to be within 10% (+/-) of your actual meal.
A named number. That’s honest, and it’s exactly right for hand-assembled food.
One caveat about the figures in this article. Del Taco’s nutritional list is versioned and updated periodically, and several widely circulated numbers, including some quoted here, come from earlier editions. Menus change, recipes change, and Beyond Meat has reformulated its patties more than once. Treat every number here as directional, and pull the current list from deltaco.com before relying on any specific figure.
Frequently Asked Questions
How accurate is the Del Taco Nutrition Calculator?
It’s a close estimate with a stated tolerance. Del Taco says its values are based on standard serving portions and that actual meals fall within ±10%. Beyond that, its published nutritional list is versioned, recipes and formulations change between editions, so verify current figures at deltaco.com for anything you’re relying on.
Is Beyond Meat healthier than beef at Del Taco?
It depends what you mean. Beyond Meat is lower in cholesterol but higher in calories than the meat equivalents here. A Beyond Meat Taco is 300 calories versus 150 for a Chicken Al Carbon Taco, and roughly 56% of its calories come from fat. For plant-based eating it’s excellent. For calorie control, grilled chicken is the leaner pick.
Is the Beyond Meat Taco vegan?
Not as served. It contains milk, from the shredded cheddar cheese. The Beyond Meat patty itself is plant-based, but you’d need to order it without cheese for a vegan taco. Check sauces too.
What’s the lowest-calorie item at Del Taco?
The Chicken Al Carbon Taco at 150 calories is the standout. Street tacos, snack tacos and the Beer Battered Fish Taco (230 cal) are all reasonable. Black coffee is about 10 calories, and water is free.
What’s the highest-sodium item at Del Taco?
Among published figures, the Bacon Double Del Cheeseburger at roughly 1,840 mg, about 80% of the FDA’s daily value in one burger. The Double Del (1,230 mg) and Carne Asada Fries (1,180 mg) follow.
Why does Del Taco’s cheeseburger show trans fat?
Because it contains beef and cheese. Naturally occurring trans fat is present in the meat and dairy of ruminant animals, is chemically distinct from artificial trans fat, and is exempt from the FDA’s ban on partially hydrogenated oils. It appears on the label because it’s genuinely in the food, not because an industrial oil was added. The saturated fat, around 20g in a Bacon Double Del, is the more useful number to watch.
Are Del Taco’s beans vegetarian?
Yes. Del Taco’s beans do not contain lard, which makes the Bean & Cheese Burrito and the 8 Layer Veggie Burrito genuinely vegetarian. That’s not true at every Mexican-style chain, so it’s worth knowing.
Can I eat low-carb at Del Taco?
Yes. Order a bowl or salad with no tortilla, rice or beans, choose grilled chicken or steak, and add fresh guacamole for fat. Skip burritos, quesadillas, fries and regular soda. The grilled proteins aren’t breaded, which is what makes it work.
Go build your order
Del Taco is a good value menu that happens to hide two traps in plain sight: a cheeseburger that behaves like a cheeseburger, and a plant-based taco that costs twice the calories of the grilled chicken one.
Neither is dishonest. Both are just sitting on a menu board that gives you no clue.
Scroll back up, build the order you actually place. Then swap one item for a Chicken Al Carbon Taco and look again.
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Disclaimer: This page is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or officially connected to Del Taco LLC. Nutrition values are based on Del Taco’s publicly available published nutritional list and reported figures, some drawn from earlier editions; recipes, formulations and menus change, so verify current values at deltaco.com before relying on them. Del Taco states that values are estimated from standard serving portions and that actual meals may fall within ±10%. Fast-food restaurants share preparation areas and cross-contact with allergens is possible. This is not medical or dietary advice, for personalized guidance, consult a registered dietitian or physician, and confirm allergen and ingredient details with the restaurant.