Honey does contain vitamin C, but in very small amounts. The USDA lists commercial honey at 0.5 mg of vitamin C per 100 grams, which works out to roughly 0.1 mg in a tablespoon. For context, a single medium orange contains about 70 mg. You would need to eat several pounds of honey to match the vitamin C in one piece of fruit.
How Much Vitamin C Is Actually in Honey
A tablespoon of honey, about 21 grams, delivers around 0.1 mg of vitamin C. The daily recommended intake for adults is 75 to 90 mg, so even a generous drizzle of honey covers a fraction of a percent of your daily needs.
That 0.5 mg per 100 grams is an average across commercial varieties. The actual amount varies depending on the flowers the bees visited, how the honey was processed, and how long it has been stored. In practice, most people consume honey a tablespoon at a time, making its vitamin C contribution nutritionally negligible.
Some Honey Varieties Have More Than Others
Not all honey is created equal when it comes to vitamin C. Research on honeys from different floral sources found vitamin C levels ranging from 0.25 to 2.59 mg per 100 grams, a tenfold difference depending on the plant origin. Sidr honey, made from the nectar of jujube trees, topped the list at 2.59 mg per 100 grams. Acacia-type honeys landed in a moderate range around 1.4 mg per 100 grams. Generic spring flower honey sat at the bottom with just 0.25 mg per 100 grams.
Even the highest-scoring variety, Sidr honey, still provides only about 3% of your daily vitamin C needs per 100 grams. Since 100 grams of honey is roughly five tablespoons, and most people use one or two at a time, the real-world intake from even premium honey is minimal. If you are choosing honey for health benefits, vitamin C content is not a meaningful differentiator between varieties.
Does Heating or Processing Destroy It
Most commercial honey is pasteurized (heated) to prevent crystallization and extend shelf life. You might expect this to wipe out whatever small amount of vitamin C exists, but the loss is surprisingly modest. Research on tropical honey samples showed that heating to 90°C (194°F) for 30 minutes reduced vitamin C by only 11 to 14 percent. Since the starting amount is already tiny, this reduction barely registers in practical terms.
Raw honey retains slightly more vitamin C than pasteurized honey, but the difference is so small it should not drive your buying decision. If you prefer raw honey, there are other reasons to choose it, like flavor and the preservation of certain enzymes, but vitamin C retention is not one that matters at these levels.
Why Honey Gets Credit as a Health Food Anyway
Honey’s reputation as a health-promoting food has little to do with vitamin C. Its antioxidant activity comes primarily from polyphenols and flavonoids, plant-based compounds that bees carry over from nectar. These compounds are present in much more meaningful concentrations than vitamin C and vary significantly by floral source. Darker honeys, like buckwheat, tend to have higher antioxidant activity overall.
Honey also has well-documented antimicrobial properties and has been shown to soothe sore throats and suppress coughs in some studies. These benefits come from its high sugar concentration, low pH, and the presence of hydrogen peroxide, not from its vitamin content. Thinking of honey as a vitamin C source misses where its actual strengths lie.
Better Sources of Vitamin C
If you are looking to boost your vitamin C intake, nearly any fruit or vegetable will outperform honey by a wide margin. A few comparisons per 100 grams:
- Red bell pepper: about 128 mg
- Orange: about 53 mg
- Strawberries: about 59 mg
- Broccoli: about 89 mg
- Honey: 0.5 mg
Honey belongs in your diet as a natural sweetener and flavor enhancer. It brings real antioxidant compounds and antimicrobial properties to the table. Vitamin C just isn’t one of its strengths.