The carb count in any food depends entirely on what you’re eating and how much. A medium banana has 30 grams of carbohydrates, while a cup of raw broccoli has about 5 grams. That range is enormous, and knowing where common foods fall on it helps whether you’re managing blood sugar, following a low-carb diet, or just trying to eat more intentionally. Here’s a practical breakdown of the most-searched foods, organized so you can find what you need fast.
Fruits
Fruit is one of the most common foods people look up because the carb counts vary so widely. FDA nutrition data for raw fruits breaks down like this:
- Banana (1 medium, about 4.5 oz): 30 g total carbs, 3 g fiber
- Apple (1 large, about 8 oz): 34 g total carbs, 5 g fiber
- Orange (1 medium, about 5.5 oz): 19 g total carbs, 3 g fiber
- Strawberries (8 medium berries, about 5.3 oz): 11 g total carbs, 2 g fiber
Berries consistently land at the low end. A full cup of strawberries has roughly a third the carbs of a single banana, which makes them a go-to for people watching their intake. Tropical fruits like bananas, mangoes, and grapes tend to sit at the higher end.
Starchy Vegetables
Potatoes, corn, and sweet potatoes are the heavy hitters in the vegetable world. The CDC groups starchy vegetables by the serving size that delivers 15 grams of carbohydrate, which is a useful mental shortcut:
- Baked potato with skin: 15 g per quarter of a large potato (about 3 oz). A whole large baked potato comes out to roughly 60 g.
- Mashed potatoes (with milk and fat): 15 g per half cup
- Sweet potato or yam: 15 g per half cup (about 3.5 oz)
- Corn, green peas, or parsnips: 15 g per half cup
- Winter squash (butternut, acorn): 15 g per cup
- Oven-baked french fries: 15 g per cup (about 2 oz)
The takeaway: portion size matters enormously with starches. A modest scoop of mashed potatoes is 15 grams, but the portion you’d actually serve yourself at dinner could easily be double or triple that.
Non-Starchy Vegetables
Non-starchy vegetables are remarkably low in carbs. A half cup of cooked non-starchy vegetables contains about 5 grams of carbohydrate. A full cup of raw vegetables also lands around 5 grams. This category includes broccoli, spinach, peppers, cauliflower, mushrooms, zucchini, green beans, tomatoes, onions, asparagus, eggplant, and carrots.
For most people, non-starchy vegetables are effectively “free” from a carb-counting perspective. You’d need to eat several cups before they meaningfully added to your daily total, and the fiber content offsets much of that.
Grains, Bread, and Pasta
Grains are where carbs add up quickly. A single slice of bread contains about 15 grams, which is the standard “one carb choice” used by diabetes educators. A cup of cooked rice or pasta typically falls in the 40 to 45 gram range, though this varies by type and brand. Brown rice and whole wheat pasta have similar total carb counts to their white counterparts but come with more fiber, which slows digestion.
Flour type makes a big difference in baking. Standard white flour is the highest in carbs among common flours. Coconut flour contains roughly 35 grams of carbohydrate per 100 grams, significantly less than wheat flour, though it absorbs more liquid so you use it differently in recipes. Almond flour is even lower, typically around 10 to 20 grams per 100 grams depending on the brand, since most of its calories come from fat.
Dairy and Milk Alternatives
An 8-ounce glass of whole cow’s milk has 12 grams of carbohydrate, all from lactose (the natural sugar in milk). Skim, 1%, and 2% milk contain roughly the same amount of carbs since removing fat doesn’t change the sugar content.
Unsweetened almond milk is dramatically lower at just 1 gram of carbohydrate per 8-ounce serving. That 11-gram difference is why it’s popular with low-carb and keto dieters. Be careful with sweetened versions, though. Flavored or sweetened plant milks can climb right back up to 15 or 20 grams per serving from added sugar.
Plain Greek yogurt generally contains 6 to 8 grams of carbs per serving, while regular yogurt tends to be slightly higher. Flavored yogurts with added sugar can reach 20 to 30 grams or more per container.
Beverages
Drinks are a sneaky source of carbs because they don’t feel filling. Orange juice contains about 20 grams of carbohydrate in a small 200ml serving (roughly 7 ounces), which is comparable to eating an actual orange but without the fiber to slow absorption. A 12-ounce can of regular cola has around 39 grams, nearly all from added sugar.
Alcohol varies widely. A dry wine has as little as 1 to 2 grams of carbohydrate in a modest glass. Light beers range from under 5 grams to about 10 grams per pint, depending on the brand. Regular beer runs higher, often 12 to 15 grams per bottle. Straight spirits like vodka, whiskey, and gin contain zero carbs on their own, though mixers change that instantly.
Total Carbs vs. Net Carbs
You’ll see “net carbs” on many food packages and diet plans. The idea is simple: subtract fiber and sugar alcohols from total carbohydrates, since your body doesn’t fully digest them. An apple with 34 grams of total carbs and 5 grams of fiber would have 29 grams of net carbs by this formula.
There’s a catch. The American Diabetes Association notes that “net carbs” has no legal definition and isn’t recognized by the FDA. The calculation is a rough estimate because different types of fiber and sugar alcohols are absorbed differently. Some sugar alcohols, like maltitol, still raise blood sugar modestly, while erythritol has almost no effect. If a product’s low carb count depends heavily on subtracting sugar alcohols, the real impact on your blood sugar may be higher than the label suggests.
Reading a Nutrition Label
On a U.S. nutrition label, “Total Carbohydrate” is the number that matters most. Indented underneath it, you’ll find dietary fiber, total sugars, and added sugars. These are subcategories already included in the total, not additional carbs on top of it. So if a label says 34 grams of total carbohydrate with 4 grams of fiber and 6 grams of total sugars, you’re eating 34 grams of carbs, not 44.
Added sugars are now listed separately from total sugars, which helps you distinguish between the natural sugar in, say, raisins in a cereal versus sugar the manufacturer stirred in. Both count toward your carb total, but foods high in added sugars tend to spike blood sugar faster and offer less nutritional value per gram.
Pay attention to the serving size at the top of the label. Everything listed below it, including carbs, applies to that one serving. If the package contains three servings and you eat the whole thing, you’re getting three times the listed carbs.