Reading Sugar on a Food Label: Total Sugars, Added Sugars, and % Daily Value

You are standing in the grocery aisle with two yogurt cups, two cereals, or two pasta sauces in your hands. One label says Total Sugars 12 g. Another says Total Sugars 8 g. Then, underneath, each label has an indented line for Added Sugars.

Which number should you use?

The answer depends on what you want to know. The U.S. Nutrition Facts label gives you two related—but different—pieces of information. Once you know how they fit together, comparison shopping becomes much simpler and does not require treating sugar as something to fear.

First, check the serving size

Before comparing any nutrient, look at Serving size and Servings per container.

Every sugar number on the label refers to the labeled serving. If one cereal lists a 1-cup serving and another lists a 2/3-cup serving, placing their grams side by side is not quite an apples-to-apples comparison. Compare equal amounts when practical, or compare the amount you realistically expect to eat.

FDA explains that serving size reflects the amount people typically eat or drink; it is not a recommendation for how much you should consume. If you eat two labeled servings, you get about twice the listed grams and %DVs.

Total Sugars: the whole sugar number

Total Sugars includes:

• sugars naturally present in the food, such as lactose in milk or sugars in fruit; plus
• sugars added during processing, if there are any.

That is why plain milk or unsweetened fruit can contain Total Sugars even though no sugar was added.

There is no % Daily Value for Total Sugars on the U.S. Nutrition Facts label. FDA states that no Daily Reference Value has been established because no recommendation has been made for a total amount of all sugars to eat in a day.

Total Sugars can still be useful. It tells you the total number of sugar grams in one serving. But by itself, it does not tell you how much came naturally with the food and how much was added.

Added Sugars: a part of Total Sugars

The indented line usually reads something like:

> Includes 7 g Added Sugars 14%

The word “Includes” matters. Those 7 grams are already part of Total Sugars; you do not add the two lines together.

For example, FDA gives a yogurt-style example with:

• Total Sugars: 15 g
• Includes Added Sugars: 7 g

That means the serving contains 15 g of sugar in total: 7 g of added sugars and 8 g from sugars naturally present in the food.

Under FDA’s framework, added sugars include sugars added during processing (such as sucrose or dextrose), foods packaged as sweeteners, sugars from syrups and honey, and sugars from concentrated fruit or vegetable juices. Naturally occurring sugars in milk, fruits, and vegetables are not counted as Added Sugars simply because they occur in those foods.

What does the Added Sugars %DV mean?

The Daily Value for Added Sugars is 50 grams per day, based on a 2,000-calorie diet. The % Daily Value (%DV) tells you how much one serving contributes to that reference amount.

So:

• 5 g Added Sugars is about 10% DV
• 10 g Added Sugars is 20% DV
• 25 g Added Sugars is 50% DV

You do not need to calculate this in the aisle—the manufacturer lists the %DV on the label.

FDA’s general guide is:

• 5% DV or less per serving is low
• 20% DV or more per serving is high

“High” and “low” are context tools, not grades for the whole food. A food with 20% DV Added Sugars may still fit into someone’s day, preferences, culture, budget, or nutrition goals. The label simply helps show how much that serving contributes.

Three relatable grocery comparisons

The following values are illustrative examples, not data for specific brands. Always use the labels on the products you are buying.

1. Plain yogurt versus flavored yogurt

Imagine two yogurts with the same serving size:

• Plain yogurt: Total Sugars 8 g; Includes 0 g Added Sugars (0% DV)
• Flavored yogurt: Total Sugars 15 g; Includes 7 g Added Sugars (14% DV)

The plain yogurt is not “sugar-free”—its Total Sugars can reflect naturally occurring lactose. The flavored yogurt’s label tells you that 7 of its 15 sugar grams are added.

If you want less added sugar, plain yogurt is one option. If you prefer flavored yogurt, the label gives you context rather than a reason for guilt. You might compare flavors, serving sizes, protein, calcium, price, and what you will actually enjoy eating.

2. Two breakfast cereals

Suppose both labels use a 1-cup serving:

• Cereal A: Total Sugars 6 g; Includes 5 g Added Sugars (10% DV)
• Cereal B: Total Sugars 10 g; Includes 9 g Added Sugars (18% DV)

Cereal A contributes less Added Sugars per cup. But that is not the end of the comparison. Depending on your priorities, you may also look at dietary fiber, whole-grain ingredients, sodium, price, allergens, and whether your usual bowl is larger than one serving.

If the serving sizes differ, compare the same amount before deciding.

3. Two pasta sauces

Imagine two sauces with the same 1/2-cup serving:

• Sauce A: Total Sugars 7 g; Includes 0 g Added Sugars (0% DV)
• Sauce B: Total Sugars 9 g; Includes 3 g Added Sugars (6% DV)

Tomatoes naturally contain sugars, so Sauce A can list Total Sugars even with 0 g Added Sugars. Sauce B contributes 6% DV Added Sugars per serving—slightly above FDA’s “low” benchmark of 5% DV.

You can use that information alongside sodium, taste, ingredients, and the amount of sauce you use.

A quick, calm label-reading routine

When comparing similar packaged foods:

1. Match the serving sizes. Are you comparing the same amount?
2. Read Total Sugars. This is all sugar in one serving.
3. Read the “Includes Added Sugars” line. This amount is part of Total Sugars.
4. Use %DV for Added Sugars. Remember: 5% DV or less is low; 20% DV or more is high.
5. Zoom back out. Consider nutrients you want more of, nutrients you may want less of, ingredients, enjoyment, convenience, allergies, culture, and cost.

What about honey, maple syrup, and table sugar?

Single-ingredient sugars and syrups use a special FDA-permitted label presentation. Their labels must communicate Added Sugars %DV, but may not display the gram line in exactly the same way as a multi-ingredient food. This is intended to avoid implying that extra sugar was added to a product that is itself a single sugar or syrup.

The practical takeaway is the same: use the Added Sugars %DV to understand how one serving contributes to the daily reference amount.

You do not need a perfect cart

A Nutrition Facts label is an information tool, not a morality score. Added sugars are one part of the full picture, and FDA’s own consumer guidance notes that a limited amount can fit within an overall healthy eating pattern.

Use the label to answer the question you care about. If you are comparing added sugar, line up the serving sizes and scan the Added Sugars %DV. Then choose the product that works best for your needs—without fear, shame, or the idea that one number defines the whole food.

Sources

• FDA, “Added Sugars on the Nutrition Facts Label”: https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-facts-label/added-sugars-nutrition-facts-label
• FDA, “How to Understand and Use the Nutrition Facts Label”: https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-facts-label/how-understand-and-use-nutrition-facts-label
• FDA, “Daily Value on the Nutrition and Supplement Facts Labels”: https://www.fda.gov/food/nutrition-facts-label/daily-value-nutrition-and-supplement-facts-labels
• 21 CFR § 101.9, “Nutrition labeling of food”: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-21/chapter-I/subchapter-B/part-101/subpart-A/section-101.9

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