What Americans call "fries" or "French fries" (even though they really come from Belgium!) are referred to as "chips" in British English. What Americans call "chips" or "potato chips" are called "crisps" in Britain.

This is a VAST generalisation, but here goes. When a British person says "fries" they usually refer to the slim cut, American style fried potato that one finds at Macdonalds or Burger King. When they say "chips" they usually refer to the fat, glistening, vastly unhealthy offerings that one gets from British fish and chip shops. So, for example, in a British Macdonalds you will hear the immortal words "do you want fries with that?". In a fish and chip shop, though, only the word chips will be used, as in "do you want salt on your chips, love?". Only a generalisation though, not an absolute. Otherwise both words refer to the same thing. Edit for bobthebuilder: Don't take this answer too seriously, I was only attempting to be funny. If truth be told I don't like chips, American style or otherwise. Lighten up a little.

There is no difference at all. English chips and American fries often referred to, as "French fries" are exactly the same thing. There's also no difference between American chips and English crisps. Only the size of the potato strips vary and the type of fat used for frying them. The Americans are credited with the marketing but the origins remain with the Belgians, Jewish and British. The origins of French Fries: In modern times, American soldiers were fed deep-fried potatoes by French-speaking Belgians during World War I. They took the recipe home and dubbed the delight ‘French fries.’ French fries didn’t become wildly popular around the globe, however, until after the recipe was mass-produced by American fast food restaurants in the 1950s. English Chips: "Transformations between 1850 and 1945 included the emergence of fish and chips, influenced by both French and Jewish culinary traditions. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3380151.stm The perfect french fry means different things to different people. Circle the globe, and you’ll find as many opinions as there are countries. In France, chefs fry them twice. In Belgium, street vendors serve them with mayonnaise. French fry cravings fuel more than 25,000 McDonald’s restaurants in 118 countries. And the food’s popularity continues to soar. http://scicom.ucsc.edu/SciNotes/0001/fries.htm Enjoy the fries/chips....:)

In my experience there is a difference in taste. What the Americans term "Fries" seems to refer more to either what we also call fries in Britain, ie. the thin cut, more processed potato fries from Mcdonald's and other fast food outlets, home-fried, or shop bought "oven" fries/ chips. "Chips" as we know them in Britain, from the traditional fish & chip shop, deep fried in vats of oil with salt & vinegar, don't appear to exist in the US.

The French Fry: made of already partially cooked potato and processed to form a chip like shape, most often very thin but not always! Can be made into almost any chip shape... The chip: Cut straight from the potato, not pre cooked and not processed, most often these are deep fried and have a reputation for being terribly unhealthy. This, whislt often true doesn't have to be the case. If the oil is hot enough when you put your chips in to cook the chips seal them selves very quickly preventing too much oil from being absorbed. Also long as proper draining is provided much of the remaining oil runs off and a healthy dose of vinegar will break down the oil it comes into contact with stopping your body from absorbing it. *Edit, the french fry is a processed food. *Edit 2, *sigh* tried to remove comments i placed before deciding to write this but it seems you arent given that choice. whoever wrote the prvious statements feel free to delete them if you can.

english cut chips are healthier as less surface area to weight ratio, therefore less area for fat to be absorbed into the chip, also as english chips are made from cuts of potato as opposed to processed potato they are denser further allowing less fat to be absorbed.

english cut chips are healthier as less surface area to weight ratio, therefore less area for fat to be absorbed into the chip, also as english chips are made from cuts of potato as opposed to processed potato they are denser further allowing less fat to be absorbed.

You can find "chips" in the U.S., but don't expect to visit a fast-food joint to find them. More so, if you visit the local sub shop, especially in the mid-Atlantic region, is where you'd find something more akin to "chips." A lot of mom-n-pop type joints cut and fry up their own fries as well.

English chips= large potatoes cut into thich chunky chips best deep fried in beef dripping until golden brown sprinkle with salt and vinegar and wrapped in newspaper at your local chippie. Fries= skinny dried up strips of potato fried till rock hard with little taste or at least thats what you get from mcdonalds.

Have you seen the British folks' teeth?That is what comes of eating their(cow)chips.Good ole American fries,on the other hand,are nuthin' but good for us.We rule;the British drool.

Being British, I can safely tell you that there is no difference other than the name.

fries are more crispy and thin... chips are fat and soggy... fries are better...

Nothing really, English chips maybe a bit chunkier but they are basically the same thing.

Tom's Oyster Bar in Detroit added Fish'n'Chips to their menu, only the "chips" were actually their own style of french fries, and some people like them a lot. I don't, and I wanted legitimate Chips - big chunky strips of potato with a fleshy texture and a proper bite. The fish was wonderful, however, and is two or three strips of fresh cod in a homemade beer batter - always good. I went over the border into Ontario and stopped at the first place that advertised how great their fish and chips are. The disgusting fish had the flavor and texture of lard, in contrast to the wonderful fish from Tom's. The genuine Canadian "chips", however, were no different from Tom's fries. Neither style of potatoes resembled what I am used to from England or Ireland, so I have to resort to doing it myself. I favor the chunkier style with less of a deep fried surface, so Chips is more to my liking. I also understand that it was the malt vinegar, not the fish nor the chips, that was putting weight on GIs stationed in England, so I have tried to cut back but that is a very difficult thing to do, especially with good vinegar. If McDs never sold another french fry, it wouldn't bother me in the least.

You're welcome

"American" fries comes in all sorts of shapes and sizes. But generally, there's no difference between fries and chips. They both fried potatoes.

American fries use ketchup; English chips use gravy or vinegar.

English chips are thicker than french fries.

Slim to zip!

None, they are the same. People in the US and the UK have several minor modifications to how they are prepared but they are basically the same. I'm not sure if Brits put catchup on their's like Americans but most Americans do not put malt vinegar on their frys like the Brits.