Herdez Salsa Verde: Labelgrade C+ (65/100)
C+ 65 / 100 — Very low saturated fat, effectively zero sugar, and high sodium per 100g.
🛒 Buy on Amazon →The short answer
Herdez Salsa delivers 0g of protein and 4.96 calories per 2 Tbsp (USDA FDC 2010874). Per 100g that’s 0g of protein; per oz, 0g. The Labelgrade is C+ (65 / 100): Very low saturated fat, effectively zero sugar, and high sodium per 100g.
Why this Labelgrade
| Dimension | Grade | Score | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protein density | D | 50 / 100 | 0g per 100g — below the high-protein bar; not the right product for protein hunting |
| Ingredient quality | B | 77 / 100 | Short 5-ingredient list, no additive flags |
| Saturated fat load | A+ | 100 / 100 | 0g saturated fat — perfect |
| Sodium load | F | 25 / 100 | 250mg per serving (229mg per oz) — high; structural for cured/preserved foods |
| Sugar load | A+ | 96 / 100 | 1g sugar, no added sugar listed |
| Fiber | F | 30 / 100 | 0g fiber, expected for animal-protein products |
| Overall | C+ | 65 / 100 | Weighted blend: protein 25% · ingredients 22% · saturated fat 18% · sodium 15% · sugar 12% · fiber 8% |
How it compares
| Product | Protein per serving | Per 100 g | Per oz | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Herdez Salsa (this product) | 0g | 0g | 0g | 4.96 |
| Pace Chunky Salsa, Medium | 0g | 0g | 0g | 9.9 |
| Wholly Classic Guacamole, Classic | 0.999g | 3.3g | 0.9g | 60 |
| Sabra Classic Hummus, Classic | 4g | 7g | 2g | 150 |
| Plain cooked chicken breast (benchmark) | — | 31g | 8.8g | ~165 |
A real Mexican salsa with the cleanest label of the group
Herdez isn’t a US grocery interpretation of salsa — it’s one of the best-selling salsa brands in Mexico, and this is a traditional salsa verde built on green tomato (tomatillo) rather than red tomato. That heritage shows up on the label in the best way: the ingredient list is just green tomato, onions, iodized salt, chile peppers, garlic powder and spices — five real things, no added oils, no thickeners, no preservatives padding it out. It’s the shortest, most recognizable list of any salsa on the site, which is exactly why it earns the best ingredient-quality grade (B, 77) in the group. This tastes like salsa someone made, because compositionally it nearly is.
That makes the 65 — the lowest overall score here — the most misleading grade on the page. Herdez doesn’t score lowest because it’s a worse food; it scores lowest because the USDA entry lists 0g of fiber, where the chunkier red salsas show about a gram, and that single line costs it a few points. For a fat-free, 5-calorie condiment with the cleanest label of the bunch, that’s a technicality, not a verdict. If anything, the short ingredient list and the near-zero calories make this one of the smartest salsas you can buy — the score just doesn’t have a way to reward “clean and basically free.”
The lowest-calorie salsa we’ve graded — and where the real calories hide
At about 5 calories per 2 Tbsp, Herdez is the lightest salsa on the site — roughly half the calories of the red chunky salsas, which already round to nothing. Practically, that means you can be genuinely generous with it: a quarter-cup over a plate of chicken and rice, or stirred into eggs, costs you maybe 10 calories while transforming how the food tastes. As a near-free flavor tool for healthy cooking, it’s hard to do better.
Which puts the focus where it belongs. The calories in a chips-and-salsa night almost never come from the salsa — they come from the chips. An ounce of tortilla chips is about 140 calories, nearly thirty times the salsa it carries, and nobody stops at an ounce. So the move with Herdez is the same as with any great salsa: lean on it as a topping for cooked food, dip raw vegetables when you want something to scoop, and treat the chips as the indulgence they are. Do that and the only number left to watch is sodium — 250mg per serving, the one real ding on an otherwise excellent little condiment.
Scope
This page covers Herdez Salsa (7 oz/198 g), UPC 072878275576, as represented in USDA Branded Foods FDC 2010874. Herdez sells multiple variants in this product line — other sizes, flavors, or fat levels may have different macros and Labelgrade scores. Manufacturers periodically reformulate; always cross-reference the actual package label, especially if you have allergies or dietary restrictions.
Ingredients (from the USDA Branded Foods entry)
GREEN TOMATO, ONIONS, IODIZED SALT, CHILE PEPPERS, GARLIC POWDER AND SPICES.
Where to buy
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Quick Facts
Per serving · 2 Tbsp
See how this fits your day — protein calculator · macro calculator
Full nutrition facts
| Nutrient | Per Serving (2 Tbsp) |
|---|---|
| Calories | 4.96 |
| Protein | 0g |
| Total Fat | 0g |
| Saturated Fat | 0g |
| Trans Fat | 0g |
| Total Carbohydrates | 1g |
| Dietary Fiber | 0g |
| Total Sugars | 1g |
| Sodium | 250mg |
| Cholesterol | 0mg |
| Calcium | 0mg |
| Iron | 0mg |
Scope: This page applies specifically to Herdez, Salsa (7 oz/198 g) · UPC 072878275576. Other sizes, flavors, or formulations may differ.
How this fits each diet
Each score is computed from the same USDA nutrition + ingredient data, against the published rules of each diet. They tell you "does this food fit this diet" — not whether the diet is right for you.
contains no listed animal products
contains no listed meat or fish
no wheat, barley, rye, or malt detected in USDA ingredient list
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Herdez salsa healthy?
Yes — it's one of the smartest low-calorie things you can put on your plate. This Herdez salsa verde is just green tomato (tomatillo), onions, chile peppers, garlic, and salt, which is why a 2 Tbsp serving is only 5 calories with no fat and 1g of sugar. Spoon it over eggs, chicken, fish, or tacos for authentic flavor at almost zero caloric cost. It's a flavor condiment, not a source of protein or fiber — but as a way to make healthy food taste genuinely good for nearly nothing, it's about as good as it gets.
Why does Herdez only grade C+?
Because the scorecard grades a food as nutrition, and salsa is a condiment, not a nutrient source. There's no protein and — in this strained verde — no fiber on the label, so those lines score low, and like all jarred salsa it carries real sodium (250mg per 2 Tbsp), which scores an F. That combination puts it at C+, a hair below the chunkier red salsas mainly because the USDA entry shows zero fiber where they show about a gram. Read the grade in context: a fat-free, 5-calorie salsa with a clean five-ingredient list is a great choice — it just isn't a source of the nutrients the formula rewards.
Is Herdez a real Mexican salsa, and is salsa verde different nutritionally?
Yes — Herdez is one of Mexico's most popular salsa brands, and this is a traditional salsa verde built on green tomato (tomatillo) rather than red tomato. Nutritionally the two styles are very similar: both are near-zero-calorie, fat-free, low-sugar blends of vegetables and chiles. The verde just swaps the tangy, slightly citrusy tomatillo for ripe tomato. The ingredient list here is notably short and recognizable, which is part of its appeal — it tastes like salsa someone made, not like a formula.
What's a serving, and do the calories stay low in real life?
A serving is 2 Tbsp — about 5 calories, the lowest of any salsa we've graded. And it stays low however generous you are: even a half-cup is roughly 20 calories. What doesn't stay low is whatever you dip in it. Tortilla chips run about 140 calories an ounce and the ounce never stays an ounce, so a chips-and-salsa session is overwhelmingly a chip-calorie session. The salsa is the free part; the chips are the real calories.
How can I keep the sodium down?
Sodium is the one real knock here: 250mg per 2 Tbsp, on the higher end for jarred salsa. To keep it in check, use Herdez as a topping on already-cooked food rather than as a dip (you'll use less), pair it with raw vegetables instead of salted chips to drop the chips' sodium, or stretch the flavor with fresh lime and cilantro so a little goes further. The salsa's sodium is the thing to watch; the salted chips usually add even more.
When was this data last verified?
2026-06-05, against USDA FoodData Central FDC 2010874. We re-verify top-traffic pages monthly and update within 7 days of a reformulation.