What's the difference in types of mayonnaise?

Most light mayo is made with oil, eggs and vinegar (like regular mayo) as well as corn starch or modified food starch. Most “olive oil” mayo has soybean/canola oil, which is often listed before olive oil on the label. Vegan mayo uses binders like xanthan gum and soy protein isolate in place of eggs.

What's the Healthiest Mayonnaise to Eat in 2025?

If you love mayonnaise but try to avoid it, thinking it’s on the list of forbidden foods, you’ll be happy to know that it’s actually not nearly as bad as its reputation may seem.

With plant-based oil, eggs and vinegar as the primary ingredients of most types of regular mayo, it’s actually low in saturated fat and sodium. Regular mayo has just 1 to 2 grams per tablespoon — about the same of what you get in a tablespoon of olive oil. And with just 5 to 10 milligrams of cholesterol per serving, it’s far below the recommended upper limit of 200 to 300 milligrams of cholesterol.

But remember not to lay on your love for mayonnaise too thick! It packs 100 calories into every tablespoon, so if you’re watching your waistline, just use a thin spread of the real thing, or try one of our “Love it” options suggested below in a recent "Love It, Like It, Hate It" article.

What's the difference in types of mayo?

Most light mayo is made with oil, eggs and vinegar (like regular mayo) as well as corn starch or modified food starch
Most “olive oil” mayo has soybean/canola oil, which is often listed before olive oil on the label
Vegan mayo uses binders like xanthan gum and soy protein isolate in place of eggs

Love it!

Primal Kitchen Avocado Oil Mayo

100 calories, 12 grams fat, 125 milligrams sodium, 0 carbohydrate
Avocado oil, eggs, egg yolks, vinegar

Spectrum Canola Mayo

100 calories – 11 grams fat – 95 mg sodium – 0 carbohydrate
Canola oil, eggs, vinegar

Chosen Foods Vegan Mayo

90 calories – 10 grams fat – 1 gram carbohydrate
Avocado oil, chickpea broth, vinegar, sugar, fava bean protein powder

Like it

Most light mayonnaise: Light mayo has half the calories of regular mayo, but most contain modified food starch, sugar, gums and other additives not found in regular mayo.
Options include Hellmann’s Light, Blue Plate Light, Kraft Reduced Fat Mayo with Olive Oil, Spectrum Light Canola Mayo, Kraft Flavored Mayo (e.g. Chipotle), and The Ojai Cook Lemonaise Light

Hate it

Walden Farm’s Amazin’ Mayo

Zero calories, sugar or fat, but made with the artificial sweetener sucralose (Splenda)

Kraft Fat Free Mayo

Only 10 calories per tablespoon, but has more sugar and high fructose corn syrup than soybean oil. Furthermore, it contains the artificial colors Yellow 6 and Blue 1.