Which Chain's Chicken Is Actually Healthier, Chick-Fil-A Or Raising Cane's?

There's no denying that chicken has taken over American fast food, and rising star Raising Cane's has come to challenge longtime champion Chick-fil-A. While the latter remains the top selling fast food chicken chain in the U.S., Raising Cane's continues to rise in popularity. But not everything is hype. If you're making your choice between these two powerhouse chicken chains based on nutrition alone, you should lean towards Raising Cane's.

This comparison was done based on single chicken strips at each chain, as Raising Cane's famously only sells chicken fingers. We should note that Raising Cane's fingers offer a larger serving size per piece at 55 grams. Chick-fil-A, on the other hand, discloses that a serving size of two of its Chick-n-Strips is 91 grams, meaning that a single strip would be 45.5 grams. So, that inflates Raising Cane's numbers a little, but not much.

If you are looking for protein, Raising Cane's chicken has a bit more, but if offered at the same serving size they would be almost identical. Raising Cane's chicken fingers contain 12 grams of protein, while a single Chick-fil-A strip comes out to 9.5 grams. Compared on a per gram basis, Chick-fil-A's offering would contain around 11.5 grams if they were the same size. Neither offers a meaningful amount of fiber, with Chick-fil-A listing 0 grams and Raising Cane's containing less than 1 gram per finger.

For nutritional elements you should limit, the U.S. Food & Drug Administration (FDA) recommends watching your intake of saturated fat, trans fat, sodium, and sugar. Regarding fat, there is no difference between the Chick-fil-A strips and Raising Cane's fingers. Both contain zero grams of trans fat, and only a single gram of saturated fat. Given that the FDA recommendation for saturated fat falls under 20 grams per day, both chains are in the clear.

Raising Cane's main advantage over Chick-fil-A's comes from sodium and sugar. One chicken finger at Cane's boasts 230 milligrams of sodium and zero grams of sugar, while a single Chick-fil-A strip contains 290 milligrams of sodium and half a gram of sugar. Remember, Cane's fingers are a bit bigger, so, if offered at the same serving size, Chick-fil-A's chicken would contain even more sodium. And while Chick-fil-A's sugar count isn't that high, it's nice that Raising Cane's doesn't have any at all.

Overall, both Raising Cane's and Chick-fil-A's chicken can both be part of a balanced diet. Neither is high in fat, the sugar content is minimal or nonexistent, and each provides a decent amount of protein while coming in at 130 calories or under per piece. They're close enough that your choice will likely depend on which establishment you think has the best fast food chicken tenders. That said, if you're watching your sodium intake especially, Raising Cane's has the edge.