Added Sugar Calculator
Convert added sugar in grams to teaspoons and see how it compares with the AHA daily limit.
One teaspoon of sugar weighs about 4.2 grams, so a single 12 oz can of soda (~39 g) is roughly nine teaspoons. The American Heart Association suggests capping added sugar at 25 g a day for women and 36 g for men. This counts added sugar, not the natural sugar in whole fruit or milk.
General guidance, not personalized medical or dietary advice.
How it works
Grams of sugar are hard to picture, so this tool turns them into teaspoons — the unit you actually scoop. One teaspoon of granulated sugar weighs about 4.2 grams, so we divide the grams you enter by 4.2 to get teaspoons.
It then compares your intake against the American Heart Association's daily added-sugar limits: 25 grams for women and 36 grams for men. Pick your limit and you'll see what share of the day's budget a food uses up.
A single 12 oz can of regular soda has around 39 grams of added sugar. That's about 9 teaspoons — already over a man's full daily allowance and well past a woman's. This counts added sugar only, not the natural sugar in fruit or plain milk.
Frequently asked questions
What's the difference between added and natural sugar?
Added sugar is put into food during processing or cooking — the sugar in soda, candy, or sweetened yogurt. Natural sugar occurs in whole fruit, vegetables, and milk, and comes bundled with fiber and nutrients. This tool is meant for added sugar.
Where do the 25 g and 36 g limits come from?
They're the American Heart Association's recommended daily caps on added sugar — about 6 teaspoons for women and 9 for men. They're general guidance, not a hard medical threshold.
How do I find added sugar on a label?
U.S. nutrition labels list 'Includes Xg Added Sugars' under Total Sugars. Type that gram figure in and the calculator does the rest.