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Taco Bell vs Qdoba Mexican Eats: which is better for your macros?
The top protein play at Taco Bell is the Double Steak Grilled Cheese Burrito (40g protein, 910 cal); Qdoba Mexican Eats answers with the Double Protein Bowl - Steak (52g, 1040 cal). Below, all 29 meals we track at both chains go head-to-head on protein, calories, low-carb and vegetarian options — from each brand's official nutrition data, not AI guesses — with a verdict for cutting, bulking and keto.
The tale of the tape
Taco Bell vs Qdoba Mexican Eats, by the numbers
| Head-to-head | Taco Bell | Qdoba Mexican Eats |
|---|---|---|
| Highest-protein meal | 40g Double Steak Grilled Cheese Burrito | 52g Double Protein Bowl - Steak |
| Leanest meal | 280 cal Cantina Chicken Bowl (No Rice/Beans) & Diet Pepsi | 370 cal Keto Bowl - Brisket Birria |
| Avg protein per meal | 22g | 33g |
| Avg calories per meal | 452 cal | 550 cal |
| Meals at 425 cal or less | 7 | 3 |
| Low-carb / keto meals | 3 | 4 |
| Vegetarian meals | 4 | 3 |
| Meals tracked | 15 | 14 |
✓ marks the stronger number for that row (more protein, fewer calories, or more options). Computed from the 29 meals we track — not the chains' full menus.
Top 5, ranked by protein
The highest-protein meals, side by side
🌮 Taco Bell
| # | Meal | Protein | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Double Steak Grilled Cheese Burrito As served | 40g | 910 |
| 2 | Cantina Chicken Rolled Quesadilla As served | 33g | 570 |
| 3 | Cantina Chicken Quesadilla As served (slow-roasted shredded chicken, avocado ranch, chipotle sauce, three-cheese blend, crispy flatbread quesadilla) | 29g | 570 |
| 4 | Cantina Chicken Bowl (No Rice/Beans) + Crunchy Taco Supreme & Diet Pepsi Cantina Chicken Bowl ordered without rice and beans (slow-roasted chicken, guac, pico, avocado ranch, sour cream, lettuce, cheddar) + one Crunchy Taco Supreme + Diet Pepsi (0 cal). Macros = food only (bowl ~280/20/5/18 + Crunchy Taco Supreme 190/8/15/11). | 28g | 470 |
| 5 | Power Menu Bowl - Chicken As served (grilled chicken, rice, beans, guac, cheese, sour cream, lettuce, pico) | 26g | 460 |
🌯 Qdoba Mexican Eats
| # | Meal | Protein | Calories |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Double Protein Bowl - Steak Double grilled marinated steak, cilantro lime rice, black beans, fajita vegetables, guacamole, pico de gallo, salsa verde, shredded lettuce | 52g | 1040 |
| 2 | Double Protein Bowl - Chicken Double grilled adobo chicken, cilantro lime rice, black beans, fajita vegetables, guacamole, pico de gallo, salsa verde, shredded lettuce | 51g | 700 |
| 3 | Chicken Protein Bowl Grilled adobo chicken, cilantro lime rice, black beans, fajita vegetables, guacamole, pico de gallo, salsa verde, shredded lettuce | 44g | 610 |
| 4 | Cholula Hot & Sweet Chicken Bowl Cholula-marinated grilled chicken, cilantro lime rice, black beans, fajita vegetables, shredded cheese, Cholula hot and sweet sauce, pico de gallo — standard menu build | 35g | 590 |
| 5 | Keto Bowl - Chicken Grilled adobo chicken, fajita vegetables, guacamole, pico de gallo, sour cream, shredded cheese, salsa verde, shredded lettuce — no rice or beans | 33g | 400 |
MacroBite scores these against your daily protein & calorie targets and logs them in one tap. Get the app →
The verdict
Which is better for your goal?
Cutting
Qdoba Mexican Eats takes it. Its leanest high-protein pick, the Keto Bowl - Chicken, packs 33g of protein into 400 calories — 8.3g per 100 cal, ahead of Taco Bell's best (Cantina Chicken Bowl (No Rice/Beans) + Crunchy Taco Supreme & Diet Pepsi, 28g for 470 cal, 6.0g per 100 cal). Qdoba Mexican Eats lists 3 meals at 425 calories or less; Taco Bell has 7.
Bulking
Qdoba Mexican Eats wins on raw protein. The Double Protein Bowl - Steak tops out at 52g (1040 cal), beating Taco Bell's biggest hitter, the Double Steak Grilled Cheese Burrito, at 40g. For repeat trips, Qdoba Mexican Eats has 8 meals with 30g+ protein vs 2 at Taco Bell.
Keto
Qdoba Mexican Eats is the keto-friendlier menu with 4 low-carb meals vs 3 at Taco Bell. Best keto pick: the Keto Bowl - Chicken — 33g protein, 11g carbs, 400 calories. At Taco Bell, the Cantina Chicken Bowl (No Rice/Beans) + Crunchy Taco Supreme & Diet Pepsi (28g protein, 20g carbs) is the standout.
How we score it: cutting = most protein per calorie (25g protein floor) · bulking = highest absolute protein · keto = low-carb meals (20g carbs or less, or flagged low-carb in the official data). General nutrition info, not medical advice.
Dig deeper: full Taco Bell menu → · full Qdoba Mexican Eats menu → · all chains ranked →
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Settle Taco Bell vs Qdoba Mexican Eats with your own macros.
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