Recipe Carb Calculator
Enter a recipe and its servings to get total carbohydrate, fiber, net carbs and carb choices per serving. The calculator also shows which ingredient brings the most carbs and how many grams of the finished dish fit a carb budget.
Ingredients
Add every ingredient with its amount. Whole fruit and eggs can use the unit "each".
Paste an ingredient list instead
Quick answer: carbs per cup of common ingredients
Per one cup, from the USDA records the calculator uses. Net carbs = total carbs − fiber. One carb choice = 15 g of total carbohydrate.
| Ingredient (1 cup) | Grams | Carbs g | Fiber g | Net carbs g | Carb choices |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flour All Purpose | 125 | 95.4 | 3.4 | 92.0 | 6.4 |
| Whole Wheat Flour | 120 | 86.4 | 12.8 | 73.6 | 5.8 |
| Almond Flour | 96 | 20.7 | 10.5 | 10.3 | 1.4 |
| Coconut Flour | 112 | 67.2 | 35.8 | 31.4 | 4.5 |
| Oat Flour | 120 | 81.8 | 7.8 | 74.0 | 5.5 |
| Rolled Oats | 80 | 54.4 | 8.0 | 46.4 | 3.6 |
| White Rice Cooked | 158 | 44.6 | 0.6 | 43.9 | 3.0 |
| Pasta Cooked | 140 | 35.1 | 2.5 | 32.6 | 2.3 |
| Potato Baked | 173 | 36.7 | 3.8 | 32.9 | 2.4 |
| Black Beans Canned | 255 | 42.3 | 17.6 | 24.7 | 2.8 |
| Lentils Cooked | 198 | 39.8 | 15.6 | 24.2 | 2.7 |
| Banana Raw | 150 | 34.5 | 3.9 | 30.6 | 2.3 |
| Blueberries Raw | 148 | 21.5 | 3.6 | 17.9 | 1.4 |
| White Granulated Sugar | 200 | 199.0 | 0.0 | 199.0 | 13.3 |
| Honey | 339 | 278.0 | 0.7 | 277.3 | 18.5 |
| Whole Milk | 244 | 11.0 | 0.0 | 11.0 | 0.7 |
How to calculate the carbs in a recipe
Carbohydrate in a recipe comes from flour, grains, sugar, fruit, starchy vegetables, beans and milk. Meat, eggs and oils have little or none. To count it per serving, add up the carbs of each ingredient and divide by the servings:
- Convert each amount to grams with the USDA weight of that food (cups, spoons or whole items).
- Find total carbohydrate and fiber: grams × value per 100 g ÷ 100 for each row, then add.
- Divide by servings. Then work out net carbs and carb choices from the per-serving total.
- Optional: size a portion. Carbs per gram of dish = total carbs ÷ dish weight. Portion for a budget = budget ÷ carbs per gram.
Formulas
Total carbs or net carbs?
The Nutrition Facts label lists total carbohydrate, which includes fiber and sugars. "Net carbs" (total minus fiber) is a term from low-carb diets; the FDA does not define it. Carb counting for diabetes uses a different unit: MedlinePlus explains that one carb serving, or "carb choice", is an amount of food with 15 g of carbohydrate, and that you count the total carbohydrate number. The calculator shows all three so you can use the one your plan asks for. If you take insulin, follow the counting method your care team gave you.
Worked example: banana oat muffins, 12 muffins
| Ingredient | Carbs g | Fiber g | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 cups rolled oats (160 g) | 108.8 | 16.0 | 48% |
| 2 medium bananas (236 g) | 54.3 | 6.1 | 24% |
| 2 large eggs (100 g) | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0% |
| 1/4 cup maple syrup (78.75 g) | 52.8 | 0.0 | 23% |
| 1/2 cup blueberries (74 g) | 10.7 | 1.8 | 5% |
| Whole batch | 227.4 | 23.9 | 100% |
Per muffin: 227.4 ÷ 12 = 19 g total carbs, 2 g fiber, so 17 g net carbs (19.0 − 2.0 = 17.0). That is 1.3 carb choices, and 7 g of the carbs are sugars. The oats bring 48% of the carbs. The batter weighs 649 g, so it has 0.35 g carbs per gram; a 30 g carb budget allows about 30 ÷ 0.35 = 86 g of batter, which is about one and a half muffins. After baking, weigh the muffins and enter the finished weight for a more exact portion. This recipe loads in the calculator above.
Lower-carb swaps
The quick-answer table shows why flour swaps change carbs so much: a cup of all-purpose flour has about 95 g carbs, a cup of almond flour about 21 g with 10 g of fiber. Almond flour has far more fat and calories, and it does not bake the same way, so swaps usually need other recipe changes. Test a swap here before you bake it, and check the calories with the recipe macro calculator.
Frequently asked questions
How do I calculate net carbs in a recipe?
Calculate total carbohydrate and fiber per serving, then subtract: net carbs = total carbs − fiber. Some diets also subtract sugar alcohols; this calculator does not, because its ingredients do not contain them.
What is a carb choice?
One carb choice is an amount of food with 15 g of carbohydrate. Divide the total carbs per serving by 15. For example, 45 g of carbs is 3 carb choices.
Why are there carbs in a recipe with no sugar?
Starch is carbohydrate too. Flour, oats, rice, pasta, potatoes and beans are mostly starch. Fruit and milk add natural sugars.
Should I use the raw or the baked weight for a portion?
For the portion feature, the baked or cooked weight is better, because water leaves the food during cooking and the carbs per gram go up. Weigh the whole finished dish and enter it in the optional field.
Is fiber included in total carbs?
Yes. On US labels and in USDA data, total carbohydrate includes dietary fiber and sugars.
Sources
- USDA FoodData Central: nutrient values per 100 g and household cup and spoon weights. Each ingredient row links to its record in the ingredient reference table.
- MedlinePlus, Counting carbohydrates (U.S. National Library of Medicine): one carb serving equals 15 g of carbohydrate.
- 21 CFR 101.9, Nutrition labeling of food: total carbohydrate includes dietary fiber and sugars.
- USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) portion weights for whole items: large egg 50 g, large egg white 33 g, medium banana 118 g, medium apple 182 g, garlic clove 3 g, medium onion 110 g, medium carrot 61 g, medium tomato 123 g, medium bell pepper 119 g.
Estimates for home cooking, not medical or dietary advice. Brands, cuts and cooking methods change the real values.
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