60 g2.12 oz
A large chicken egg weighs about 60 g (2.1 oz) in its shell. In the US a dozen large eggs must weigh at least 24 oz, 56.7 g (2 oz) per egg on average; in the EU “large” means 63 to 73 g. About 11% is shell, so the edible part weighs about 50 g (1.8 oz).
| Heaviest hen’s egg on recordDouble yolk and double shell, New Jersey, 1956 | 454 g1 lb |
|---|---|
| EU very large (XL)73 g or more | 73 g2.57 oz |
| US jumboAt least 30 oz a dozen, about 71 g each | 70.9 g2.5 oz |
| Large eggUS large averages at least 56.7 g; EU large starts at 63 g | 60 g2.12 oz |
| Edible part of a US large eggUSDA figure, without the shell | 50 g1.76 oz |
| US peeweeAt least 15 oz a dozen, about 35 g each | 35.4 g1.25 oz |
In the US, egg sizes are set by the USDA and are defined by the weight of a dozen, not of single eggs. A dozen large eggs must weigh at least 24 oz (680 g), or 2 oz (56.7 g) per egg on average. The other classes step up or down by 3 oz a dozen: peewee 15 oz, small 18 oz, medium 21 oz, extra large 27 oz and jumbo 30 oz (about 71 g per egg). Eggs within a carton can differ, but none may weigh less than the rate of 23 oz a dozen, about 54 g, for a large egg.
The EU grades each egg individually, and its sizes run larger. Small is under 53 g, medium 53 to 63 g, large 63 to 73 g, and very large 73 g or more. A 60 g egg that counts as large in an American carton would be sold as a medium in Europe.
The USDA’s own Egg Grading Manual puts an average chicken egg at about 57 g (2 oz), right at the US large mark.
According to the USDA Egg Grading Manual, the white makes up about 58% of an egg’s weight, the yolk about 31% and the shell about 11%. For a 60 g egg that is roughly 35 g of white, 19 g of yolk and 6.6 g of shell. The shell is about 94% calcium carbonate, and a hen may draw as much as 47% of the calcium in her skeleton to make shells.
USDA nutrition data agrees. FoodData Central lists the edible part of a large egg as 50 g, a medium as 44 g, an extra large as 56 g and a jumbo as 63 g. About 76% of that edible part is water, and about 12.6% is protein.
Guinness World Records lists the heaviest hen’s egg as one of 454 g (16 oz, or exactly 1 lb), laid by a White Leghorn at Vineland, New Jersey, on 25 February 1956. It had two yolks and two shells, and weighed about as much as seven or eight large eggs.
Double-yolked eggs happen when a hen releases two yolks at about the same time, the USDA manual explains. Normally an egg takes slightly more than 24 hours from the release of the yolk to laying, about 21 of them in the part of the oviduct where the shell is added.
A large chicken egg weighs about 60 g in its shell, and about 50 g without it. US large eggs must average at least 56.7 g, and EU large eggs weigh 63 to 73 g.
About 2 oz. The USDA requires a dozen large eggs to weigh at least 24 oz, which is 2 oz per egg on average.
The edible part of a US large egg weighs about 50 g (1.8 oz), according to USDA FoodData Central. The shell is about 11% of the whole egg.
In the US, a dozen extra large eggs must weigh at least 27 oz, against 24 oz for large, so each egg is about 7 g (¼ oz) heavier on average. In the EU, very large means 73 g or more per egg.
A 454 g (1 lb) egg with a double yolk and double shell, laid by a White Leghorn in Vineland, New Jersey, in 1956. It is still the Guinness World Records holder.
Last checked October 4, 2026.
