Quantitative contributions of the direct and indirect pathways to liver glycogen formation from a glucose load have been estimated from1) the distribution of label in glycogen formed from specifically carbon‐labeled loads of glucose,2) the specific activity of the glycogen compared with that of the circulating glucose,3)the3H:14C ratios in glycogen formed from loads specifically labeled with3H and14C,4) the incorporation of3H from3H2O into the glycogen, and5) the balance of glucogenic substrates across the splanchnic bed. A number of assumptions are made in the use of each of these methods. Estimates have been made for animals and humans fasted overnight or longer. Results obtained with the different methods are compared. Under these conditions, the contribution of the pathways appears to be determined by the size of the load, with larger contributions of the indirect pathway occurring with smaller loads.— Landau, B. R.; Wahren, J. Quantification of the pathways followed in hepatic glycogen formation from glucose.FASEB J.2: 2368‐2375; 1988.