How to Read a Nutrition Facts Label in 6 Simple Steps

The Nutrition Facts label is on almost every packaged food in the United States, but it can look like a wall of numbers. Once you know where to look, it becomes a quick and useful tool for comparing foods and making choices that fit your goals. This guide is based on the U.S. Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) own explanation of the label.

Why the label is worth a look

The label tells you what is in one serving of a food: its calories and key nutrients. It does not tell you whether a food is good or bad, and it is not meant to. Instead, it helps you compare similar products, such as two breakfast cereals or two cans of soup, and notice things like added sugars or sodium that are easy to miss.

You do not need to read every line every time. The steps below cover the parts that tend to be most helpful.

The 2,000-calorie reference

The FDA explains that the label uses 2,000 calories a day as a general guide for nutrition advice. Your own needs may be higher or lower depending on your age, sex, height, weight and physical activity level. That is why the %Daily Value is best used as a frame of reference rather than a personal target.

Daily Values for key nutrients

The %DV on the label is calculated from Daily Values set by the FDA. A few examples that are useful to know:

• Dietary fiber: 28 g per day
• Sodium: 2,300 mg per day
• Added sugars: 50 g per day

The FDA describes Daily Values as the recommended amounts of nutrients to consume or not to exceed each day.

Nutrients to get less of, and more of

The FDA groups the nutrients on the label into two broad categories:

• Get less of: saturated fat, sodium and added sugars.
• Get more of: dietary fiber, vitamin D, calcium, iron and potassium.

Keeping these two lists in mind makes it easier to scan a label quickly. When comparing products, you would usually look for a lower %DV in the first group and a higher %DV in the second.

Total sugars vs added sugars

The label lists both total sugars and added sugars. Total sugars include sugars that occur naturally in foods like milk and fruit. Added sugars are those added during processing, as well as sugars from syrups, honey and concentrated fruit or vegetable juices. The FDA notes that total sugars have no %DV, while added sugars do.

This is helpful for foods like plain yogurt, which naturally contains some sugar from milk. Checking the added sugars line tells you how much has been added on top.

A worked example

Imagine a snack whose label lists a serving size of 1 cup, with 2 servings per container. If the label shows 10% DV for sodium per serving and you eat the whole container, you would get 20% DV, which counts as high. The same idea applies to calories and every other line on the label, which is why the FDA suggests checking the serving size first.

Now imagine comparing two breakfast cereals with the same serving size. One has 4% DV for added sugars and 20% DV for fiber; the other has 20% DV for added sugars and 5% DV for fiber. Using the FDA's 5% and 20% guide, the first is low in added sugars and high in fiber, while the second is the reverse. You do not need to do any math beyond noticing which numbers are close to 5% and which are close to 20%.

Using the label in real life

A few practical ways to put the label to work:

• Compare two similar items. Hold two products side by side and compare the same serving size.
• Check the foods you eat most often. Your everyday bread, cereal or pasta sauce has a bigger influence on your diet than an occasional treat.
• Look at the whole food, too. The label works best alongside the ingredient list and the bigger picture of a balanced plate with vegetables, whole grains and protein.

If you are following a specific eating plan for a health condition, such as a low-sodium diet, your doctor or a registered dietitian can help you understand which parts of the label matter most for you.