Despite its reputation, fast food remains a practical resource for millions of Americans. For those looking to manage their weight while still enjoying the convenience of fast food, Taco Bell offers a surprising number of customizable options. Taco Bell, in particular, has introduced options that cater to a broader range of dietary preferences without compromising flavour or accessibility. With the right selections and modifications, it's entirely possible to align a Taco Bell meal with your nutritional goals.
Understanding the Nutritional Landscape
Research published in Advances in Nutrition directly associates frequent fast food consumption with increased caloric intake and diminished diet quality. Oversized portions, low fiber, and high sodium content dominate the critique, but that’s not the whole story.
Key Strategies for Healthier Choices
- Ordering Fresco Style: This simple swap replaces mayo-based sauces, shredded cheese, and sour cream with freshly prepared diced tomatoes, cutting 20-100 calories from most signature menu items without sacrificing flavor.
- Choosing Grilled Chicken Over Beef: Swapping out seasoned beef for grilled chicken reduces saturated fat intake while maintaining a high protein yield.
- Skipping Heavy Sauces and Cheese: Opting for lighter toppings and sauces significantly reduces calories, saturated fat, and sodium.
- Customization is Key: Utilize Taco Bell's Nutrition Calculator to strip away the guesswork. You see the impact of every ingredient in real time.
Low-Calorie Taco Bell Menu Options
Go Fresco Style: Easy Swap, Big Calorie Drop
Want a Crunchy Taco that skips the heaviness? Fresco style gets it down to just 140 calories per serving, keeping things crisp without the guilt.
Bean Burrito Fresco Style
The traditional Bean Burrito sits at 350 calories. Make it Fresco style and bring that down to 320. It contains 9g of fiber and 13g of protein, driven mostly by pinto beans and the soft flour tortilla. This item delivers satiety at a lower caloric cost than most fast-food burritos. Pro tip: Add jalapeños or onions for virtually zero extra calories and a bold flavor profile. Need a low-sodium trick? Ask for “easy sauce” or remove red sauce entirely to cut sodium without overhauling the item.
Healthiest Options at Taco Bell
Grilled Chicken Power Bowl
The healthiest Taco Bell option is the Grilled Chicken Power Bowl with 470 calories and 27g of protein. It combines grilled chicken breast, seasoned rice, black beans, romaine lettuce, guacamole, pico de gallo, avocado ranch sauce, shredded cheddar cheese, and reduced-fat sour cream. While it weighs in at around 470-500 calories depending on customizations, the protein-to-calorie ratio offers strong nutritional value for those focusing on fullness and muscle recovery.
Read also: Eating Keto at Taco Bell
Three Soft Tacos with Chicken or Steak
Each chicken taco contains around 12 grams of protein and 160 calories, bringing the trio to roughly 36 grams of protein and under 500 calories. Steak options offer similar figures, though slightly higher in fat, depending on the cut used at the time. Keep things balanced by skipping the extra sauces or swapping to fresco-style. Want more texture or fiber? Add black beans to one of the tacos; it boosts satiety with minimal calories.
Plant-Powered Picks
Taco Bell's menu easily supports vegan or vegetarian preferences using black beans, potatoes, and guacamole in place of meat or dairy.
Black Bean Crunchwrap Supreme (Fresco Style)
Choosing the Fresco Style strips out sour cream and cheese, replacing them with diced tomatoes and a focus on fiber-forward, plant-based ingredients. The result? A warm, crunchy shell packed with 12 grams of protein, 9 grams of fiber, and under 500 calories.
Veggie Power Bowl
Built around a foundation of rice, black beans, guacamole, lettuce, tomatoes, and reduced-fat sour cream, the veggie power bowl offers 12 grams of plant-based protein and over 10 grams of fiber. Want to cut back on calories or go fully dairy-free? Just remove the cheese and sour cream, the flavor stays intact thanks to guac and seasoned beans.
Vegan Adaptations
Skip meat, cheese, and sour cream; add black beans, lettuce, pico de gallo, potatoes, or guacamole. The Black Bean Chalupa becomes fully vegan once you remove the cheese and sour cream. Even breakfast can be modified. Order fresco style to remove dairy and replace with tomatoes. Ask for beans in place of beef in any item. Opt for guacamole, potatoes, lettuce, tomato, and onions to bulk up veggie content. Steer toward tortillas, chalupa shells, or rice bowls-many of these are already vegan-friendly.
Read also: Low-carb taco pizza: a must-try!
Plant-Based Options on the Taco Bell Menu
Black Beans, Pinto Beans, and Potatoes as Hearty Swaps
Black beans deliver 8g of protein and just 0.5g of saturated fat per half-cup serving, making them a filling and lower-fat alternative to meat. Pinto beans come close, offering 7g of protein per half-cup along with added fiber. Seasoned potatoes bring in 2g of protein per serving, but they create texture and satisfaction that mimic traditional meat fillings. Pair them with lettuce, tomatoes, guacamole, and jalapeños to build a rich flavor profile without animal protein.
Beyond Meat (If Available): How to Order and Add It to Your Meal
Some Taco Bell locations offer Beyond Meat’s plant-based protein, a meatless ground beef substitute made from pea protein and rice. When available, request it in place of any meat option, either through the app or at the counter. It works especially well in burritos, tacos, and Crunchwraps. Order a Black Bean Crunchwrap Supreme and sub out the beans for Beyond Meat for a soy-free protein boost. Customize the Power Bowl by choosing Beyond Meat in place of grilled chicken while keeping all the fresh veggies and rice. This option contains 13g of protein per 3-ounce serving with no cholesterol and zero animal-derived ingredients.
Additional Healthier Menu Options at Taco Bell
Here are 18 healthier menu options at Taco Bell, along with ways to make your order a little more nutritious. These menu items are all under 200 calories. However, they’re also fairly small and you may need a couple of them to make a complete meal that’ll keep you feeling full. Choose two or three of the highest-protein options and request extra lettuce or tomatoes to make this a larger, more complete meal.
Crunchy Taco
The Crunchy Taco comes with seasoned beef, lettuce, and cheese in a crunchy taco shell. One Crunchy Taco contains (1):
Read also: Customize Your Keto Taco Bowl
- Calories: 170
- Protein: 8 grams
- Fat: 9 grams
- Carbs: 13 grams
- Fiber: 3 grams
- Sodium: 310 mg
Soft Taco
Taco Bell’s Soft Taco is identical to the Crunchy Taco but made with a soft tortilla. It contains seasoned beef, lettuce, and cheese. One Soft Taco provides (1):
- Calories: 180
- Protein: 9 grams
- Fat: 9 grams
- Carbs: 17 grams
- Fiber: 3 grams
- Sodium: 500 mg
Doritos Locos Taco
The Doritos Locos Taco features a crunchy taco shell made from Nacho Cheese Doritos. It’s filled with seasoned beef, lettuce, and cheese. One Doritos Locos Taco contains (1):
- Calories: 170
- Protein: 8 grams
- Fat: 9 grams
- Carbs: 13 grams
- Fiber: 3 grams
- Sodium: 360 mg
Cheesy Roll Up
The Cheesy Roll Up is Taco Bell’s three-cheese blend rolled into a soft tortilla. In addition to being low in calories, it’s vegetarian-friendly. It contains (1):
- Calories: 180
- Protein: 9 grams
- Fat: 9 grams
- Carbs: 15 grams
- Fiber: 2 grams
- Sodium: 430 mg
Black Beans and Rice
This bowl consists of black beans and seasoned rice. It’s vegetarian-friendly and provides (1):
- Calories: 170
- Protein: 4 grams
- Fat: 4 grams
- Carbs: 31 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Sodium: 320 mg
Chicken Chipotle Melt
The Chicken Chipotle Melt consists of chicken, cheese, and creamy chipotle sauce on a soft tortilla. Protein-wise, it offers the best bang for your buck among the low calorie options and provides (1):
- Calories: 190
- Protein: 12 grams
- Fat: 9 grams
- Carbs: 15 grams
- Fiber: 1 gram
- Sodium: 530 grams
Taco Bell has a Veggie Cravings menu with 18 vegetarian menu items. To make them vegan, request the removal of any dairy products. For example, ask to receive the meals fresca-style to replace any cheese and sour cream with diced tomatoes.
Black Bean Quesalupa
The Quesalupa is a Taco Bell specialty made with a thick, chewy Chalupa shell filled with a blend of cheeses. This vegetarian take also contains black beans, sour cream, lettuce, and tomatoes. It provides (1):
- Calories: 590 calories
- Protein: 22 grams
- Fat: 33 grams
- Carbs: 51 grams
- Fiber: 9 grams
- Sodium: 870 mg
Black Bean Crunchwrap Supreme
The Black Bean Crunchwrap Supreme is another Taco Bell specialty. It consists of black beans and cheese sauce under a crunchy taco shell topped with lettuce, tomato, and sour cream. All of this is wrapped in an extra-large tortilla and grilled. This option contains (1):
- Calories: 510 calories
- Protein: 13 grams
- Fat: 17 grams
- Carbs: 77 grams
- Fiber: 8 grams
- Sodium: 1,080 mg
Veggie Power Menu Bowl
The Veggie Power Menu Bowl is made with black beans, guacamole, tomatoes, lettuce, sour cream, and shredded cheese on a bed of seasoned rice. It provides (1):
- Calories: 430
- Protein: 12 grams
- Fat: 17 grams
- Carbs: 57 grams
- Fiber: 10 grams
- Sodium: 810 mg
Because high carb beans, rice, and tortillas appear in most menu items, Taco Bell meals generally aren’t optimal if you follow a keto or low carb diet. However, with a few modifications, you can enjoy a Power Menu Bowl (2, 3, 4). Ask for a steak or chicken Power Menu Bowl with extra meat and no beans or rice. You’ll receive a Power Menu Bowl with meat, cheese, guacamole, lettuce, sour cream, tomatoes, and avocado ranch sauce. Here’s the nutrition info for a chicken Power Menu Bowl with extra chicken, no beans, and no rice (5):
- Calories: 290
- Protein: 29 grams
- Fat: 15 grams
- Carbs: 8 grams
- Fiber: 3 grams
- Sodium: 1,040 mg
If you’re not following a specific diet like vegetarian, keto, or low calorie, the best Taco Bell options are often those with the most protein. Because protein is filling, a high protein meal will satisfy you for longer than low protein menu items (6). Note that while these options are high in protein, they’re also high in calories, fat, refined carbs, and sodium. Ask to receive them fresca-style to reduce the calories and fat content without significantly reducing the protein content. Each of these menu options contains at least 20 grams of protein per serving with no modifications.
Quesalupa
The Quesalupa is a chewy, cheese-filled shell with seasoned beef, sour cream, shredded cheese, lettuce, and tomatoes. It provides (1):
- Calories: 610
- Protein: 25 grams
- Fat: 36 grams
- Carbs: 46 grams
- Fiber: 8 grams
- Sodium: 1,000 mg
Quesarito
The Quesarito is a Taco Bell specialty. This cross between a cheese quesadilla and a beef burrito consists of a cheese quesadilla rolled up like a burrito, filled with seasoned beef, shredded cheese, cheese sauce, sour cream, seasoned rice, and chipotle sauce. It contains (1):
- Calories: 650
- Protein: 22 grams
- Fat: 33 grams
- Carbs: 67 grams
- Fiber: 6 grams
- Sodium: 1,390 mg
Cheesy Gordita Crunch
The Cheesy Gordita Crunch is a signature Taco Bell menu item that consists of a crunchy taco wrapped in a cheese-covered flatbread. It contains seasoned beef, shredded cheese, lettuce, and spicy ranch sauce. One Cheesy Gordita Crunch provides (1):
- Calories: 500
- Protein: 20 grams
- Fat: 28 grams
- Carbs: 41 grams
- Fiber: 5 grams
- Sodium: 850 mg
Quesadilla
Taco Bell’s Quesadillas are made from chicken, beef, or steak, a shredded three-cheese blend, and creamy jalapeno sauce in an extra-large tortilla that’s folded in half and grilled. A Chicken Quesadilla contains (1):
- Calories: 510
- Protein: 27 grams
- Fat: 26 grams
- Carbs: 38 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Sodium: 1,250 mg
Power Menu Bowls
The Power Menu Bowl can be made with chicken or steak. It also comes with sour cream, shredded cheese, guacamole, seasoned rice, black beans, avocado ranch sauce, lettuce, and tomatoes. The chicken version contains (1):
- Calories: 470
- Protein: 26 grams
- Fat: 19 grams
- Carbs: 50 grams
- Fiber: 7 grams
- Sodium: 1,200 mg
Grande Toasted Breakfast Burrito
For a filling breakfast, you can get a Grande Toasted Breakfast Burrito with sausage or steak. In addition, this burrito contains shredded cheese, egg, potatoes, and tomatoes. The Grande Toasted Breakfast Burrito with sausage contains (1):
- Calories: 560
- Protein: 22 grams
- Fat: 31 grams
- Carbs: 49 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Sodium: 1,150 mg
Breakfast Crunchwrap
The Breakfast Crunchwrap contains hash browns, eggs, bacon, cheese, and creamy jalapeno sauce, all wrapped in a large tortilla and grilled. One Breakfast Crunchwrap contains (1):
- Calories: 670
- Protein: 21 grams
- Fat: 41 grams
- Carbs: 50 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Sodium: 1,270 mg
Hash Brown Toasted Breakfast Burrito
The Hash Brown Toasted Breakfast Burrito is made from bacon, hash browns, shredded cheese, and eggs in a tortilla. One provides (1):
- Calories: 570
- Protein: 21 grams
- Fat: 33 grams
- Carbs: 49 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
- Sodium: 1,270 mg
Customization Strategies for a Healthier Meal
- Ask for extra meat or beans. This increases the calorie content but also the amount of protein, which makes the meal more filling (6, 7).
- Ask for fresca-style. This replaces the cheese, sour cream, and mayo-based sauces with diced tomatoes, reducing menu items by a few hundred calories each.
- Ask for guacamole. The avocado used to make guacamole adds calories but is also an excellent source of healthy plant-based fats (8).
- Choose a zero-calorie drink. Most soft drinks are loaded with sugar and calories that can contribute to excess weight gain, so choose water, unsweetened tea, or soda instead (9).
- Pass on the sweets. Taco Bell offers frozen slushies and dessert items, but these get most of their calories from sugar, so it’s best to avoid them (10).
- Use the online calculator. This can be helpful when planning a fast food meal to suit your eating plan or preferences (5).
Considerations Regarding Sodium and Processing
Note that like most fast food, Taco Bell meals may not be suitable if you’re on a sodium-restricted diet. Nearly all the meats, beans, sauces, tortillas, and shells are pre-made or pre-seasoned with large quantities of salt (11).