How Many Calories are In a Vape?

In a world where even your morning coffee seems to come with a side of guilt and nutritional info, it’s only natural to wonder: If my vape tastes like a blueberry muffin, am I quietly inhaling calories?

It might sound odd at first, but it’s a very real question, one that’s become surprisingly common as more people switch to vaping, especially sweet or dessert-flavoured e-liquids. Whether you’re watching your weight, counting macros, or simply curious, we’re here to break it down in the most honest and straightforward way possible.

Let’s lift the lid on the calorie content of vape juice and see if your e-liquid is contributing more than just flavour.

What’s Actually Inside Vape Juice?

To understand where calories might come from in vape juice, we first need to look at what’s inside it.

Most vape juices sold in the UK are made up of a few basic ingredients:

• Vegetable Glycerin (VG) – a plant-based sweet, syrupy substance
• Propylene Glycol (PG) – thinner, odourless and used to carry flavour
• Flavourings – food-grade, often similar to those used in drinks or sweets
• Nicotine – optional, but commonly found in strengths up to 20mg

When it comes to calories, VG and PG are the main suspects. Both have a known calorie content:

• VG: about 4 calories per gram
• PG: roughly 4.1 calories per gram

In essence, yes, your e-liquid contains some calories. But the bigger question is: does inhaling vapour mean you’re actually absorbing them?

Can the Lungs Absorb Calories?

This is where things become more theoretical than proven.

We know the digestive system is responsible for absorbing calories from food and drink. Your lungs, however, are not built for digestion, they absorb gases, not energy from fats, sugars or glycerin.

So while vape juice contains calorie-bearing ingredients, the process of vaporising and inhaling them is very different from eating.

As of now, there’s no scientific consensus confirming that vaping leads to caloric intake. Some researchers believe it’s possible that a minuscule amount of energy could be absorbed through the lungs, but if it happens, it’s on such a small scale that it’s unlikely to impact your diet or health in any meaningful way.

How Many Calories Are in a Bottle of Vape Juice?

Let’s do the maths using standard assumptions:

• 1ml of e-liquid = approx. 5 calories
• 1 puff = about 0.05 calories
• A 600-puff pod (like an Elf Bar pod) = roughly 30 calories
• A 10ml bottle = around 50 calories
• A 30ml bottle = about 150 calories

So even if your 30ml bottle equals a small can of fizzy drink in calories, you’re not inhaling it in one go. A moderate vaper might take a week or more to finish that 30ml bottle.

Compare that to one biscuit, one sugar cube, or a single sip of a milkshake, and suddenly vape juice looks pretty harmless on the calorie front.

How Vape Calories Compare to Real-World Snacks

To help put things into perspective, here’s a quick comparison:

So yes, technically, you could find similar calorie counts in vape juice and soft drinks. But the difference lies in how it’s consumed. You drink a fizzy beverage in minutes. Vape juice is used slowly, over several days or weeks.

Even heavy vapers aren’t likely to come close to matching the calorie content of regular food or drink.

Do Dessert-Flavoured E-Liquids Contain More Calories?

You’d think that a vape juice that tastes like custard tart or raspberry cheesecake would carry more calories than a plain tobacco-flavoured one. But in reality, flavourings contribute next to nothing in terms of calorie content.

The number of calories in vape juice is still almost entirely dependent on VG and PG ratios, not the taste profile. That applies whether you’re vaping cola, mint, candy or coffee.

So yes, your vape can taste like pudding, but it doesn’t mean your waistline will notice.

Does Vaping Make You Gain Weight?

The short answer: No, not really.

Because the caloric intake from vaping is negligible, and likely not absorbed at all, it doesn’t contribute to weight gain. If anything, many former smokers and dieters have found that vaping sweet flavours can help reduce:

• Sugar cravings
• Snacking between meals
• Late-night indulgences

Vaping is not a diet plan, of course. But if a few puffs of vanilla ice cream flavour keep you away from a chocolate bar, that’s a trade-off some people find helpful.

Just remember, don’t skip meals or use vaping as a substitute for proper nutrition.

Should Calorie Counters Be Concerned?

If you’re someone who tracks every crumb of food that goes into your body, you can rest easy: vape juice doesn’t require a spot on your meal tracker.

With a daily vape consumption of 1ml to 2ml, you might be looking at 5 to 10 calories per day at most. That’s about the same as chewing a piece of sugar-free gum, or walking up a flight of stairs.

Unless you’re chain-vaping through an entire 30ml bottle each day (which most people don’t), the calorie count is insignificant in practical terms.

Tips for Calorie-Conscious Vapers

If you still want to be mindful, here are some simple guidelines:

• Use higher PG blends – These tend to be thinner and lower in calories than high-VG e-liquids.
• Stick with MTL (mouth-to-lung) vaping – These devices use less liquid overall, meaning fewer potential calories.
• Avoid sub-ohm or cloud-chasing devices – They burn through more juice quickly, which isn’t ideal if you’re trying to use less.
• Choose reputable brands – Especially those with proper UK/EU labelling and ingredient transparency.

Pod systems like the Elf Bar ELFA PRO, IVG Air 4-in-1, and SKE Crystal Plus fall into the lower-calorie category by default, simply due to how they’re used.

Final Thoughts

Here’s the honest truth: yes, vape liquid contains calories, but they are low in number, poorly absorbed, and practically irrelevant for most people.

Unless future research proves otherwise, the chances that vaping adds noticeable energy to your daily diet are close to zero. So if your concern is weight gain, look to your meals and snacks, not your vape.

So, go ahead, enjoy your fruity, creamy or dessert-flavoured vape. It might satisfy your sweet tooth without wrecking your calorie goals.