How to Eat Keto at Subway

Medically Reviewed by Christine Mikstas, RD, LD on February 23, 2024
Written by Shishira Sreenivas
3 min read

Subway is best known for its foot-long subs, made with plenty of carbohydrate-rich bread. If you’re on the keto diet, you might think you’re out of luck. But there are plenty of things on Subway’s menu that can help you stay in ketosis.

Ketogenic, or keto, diets are low-carb, high-fat eating plans. There are different types of keto diets. But typically, fat might make up 70% to 80% of your daily calories, while proteins account for 10% to 20%. Carbs are restricted to 5% to 10%. On a 2,000-calorie diet, this might look like 165 grams of fat, 75 grams of protein, and 40 grams of carbs.

Here's the idea behind keto diets: When you eat fewer carbs, your body makes less glucose, its usual energy source. That causes it to burn ketones, a fuel produced from its own stored fat, for energy.

Ketosis is the metabolic state your body enters when you have ketones in your blood. If you eat too many carbs or even too much protein, you risk coming out of ketosis.

Keto-friendly foods include:

  • Full-fat dairy products
  • Non-starchy vegetables like greens
  • Oils
  • Meat
  • Fish
  • Eggs
  • Nuts and seeds

At Subway, you can customize your food to your liking. That means you're free to add fixings with more fat and cut those with lots of carbs. That includes the bread.

Subway has long offered salads that can be topped with any of the meats and cheeses found on its sandwiches. Newer on the menu are protein bowls, which contain same fillings as their foot-long subs, minus the roll.

Meatier than a salad, these bowls offer a hefty serving of protein. Not all of them are low-carb. The Veggie Patty bowl, for example, has 41 carbs. Some of the lower-carb choices on the menu include:

  • Tuna, with 550 calories, 47 grams of fat, 26 grams of protein, and 8 grams of carbs
  • Cold Cut Combo, 260 calories, 16g fat, 20g protein, 9g carbs
  • Rotisserie-Style Chicken, 220 calories, 8g fat, 31g protein, 8g carbs
  • Oven Roasted Turkey, 150 calories, 4g fat, 23g protein, 8g carbs
  • Steak (with American cheese), 380 calories, 19g fat, 42g protein, 12g carbs
  • BLT, 360 calories, 26g fat, 22g protein, 10g carbs

If you’re trying to amp up your fat intake, add toppings like cheese, bacon, or guacamole. To keep carbs low, avoid condiments with added sugar like honey mustard and sweet onion sauce.

When you're in the mood to "veg out," check out Subway's salads. Many of the lower-carb salads feature ingredients similar to those of to the keto-friendly protein bowls:

  • Veggie Delight, with 50 calories, 1 gram of fat, 3 grams of protein, and 9 grams of carbs
  • Tuna, 310 calories, 24g fat, 15g protein, 10g carbs
  • Cold Cut Combo, 160 calories, 9g fat, 12g protein, 10g carbs
  • Rotisserie-Style Chicken, 150 calories, 5g fat, 18g protein, 10g carbs
  • Oven Roasted Turkey, 110 calories, 3g fat, 14g protein, 10g carbs

For a totally carb-free salad dressing, add as much oil and vinegar as you like. A 14-gram serving of Subway Caesar dressing also has zero carbs. Subway ranch and vinaigrette each have 1 gram of carbs per serving.

As you might expect from a sub restaurant, Subway offers sandwiches for breakfast. Their morning menu features egg-and-cheese wraps with a choice of added bacon, steak, or ham.

With between 55 and 57 grams of carbs apiece, none are a good fit for a keto diet as-is. But since this is Subway, it's easy to tailor your meal to your preferences. Just order your wrap without the bread. Eggs, cheese, and meat are all keto-friendly.

Skip the "combo" deal at Subway, which adds chips and a soda to your order. If you want a beverage, choose a diet or sugar-free soda, or unsweetened tea. You could also grab a cup of coffee or order a bottle of water to wash down your meal.