Net carbs vs total carbs: what is the difference?
Quick answer: total carbohydrate is the number on a US nutrition label. “Net carbs” is not a label term. It usually means total carbohydrate minus dietary fiber, and sometimes minus sugar alcohols as well.
Total carbohydrate
Total carbohydrate on a label and in USDA data includes:
- Starch
- Sugars (natural and added)
- Dietary fiber
- Sugar alcohols, if the food contains any
Fiber counts toward the total, even though the body does not digest it in the same way as starch or sugar.
How to calculate net carbs
The most common formula is simple:
Net carbs = total carbohydrate − dietary fiber
For a food that contains sugar alcohols, some people also subtract all or part of them. There is no official rule, so different brands and apps do it differently. If you are following a plan that counts net carbs, check which method it uses.
Net carbs in real foods (per 100 g)
| Food | Total carbs | Fiber | Net carbs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Banana, raw | 22.8 g | 2.6 g | about 20.2 g |
| Apple, raw, with skin | 13.8 g | 2.4 g | about 11.4 g |
| Black beans, cooked | 23.7 g | 8.7 g | about 15.0 g |
Beans show why people like the concept. They have about as much total carbohydrate as a banana, but more than a third of it is fiber.
Why “net carbs” is not an official term
The US Food and Drug Administration defines the nutrition label, and the label reports total carbohydrate, dietary fiber and total sugars. It does not define “net carbs”, so the term on a package is a marketing claim, not a regulated number. Fibers and sugar alcohols also differ in how much they affect blood sugar, so a single subtraction is only an estimate.
Who should be careful
If you manage diabetes or another condition, do not rely on a net carb figure to decide insulin doses or medication. Ask your clinician or dietitian how to count carbohydrate for you. This site provides general information, not medical advice.
What about calories?
Net carbs do not tell you the calories. Fiber contributes little energy, but the rest of the carbohydrate, the protein and the fat all do. To see how calories relate to nutrients, read how calories are calculated. You can look up carbohydrate, fiber and sugars for thousands of foods in our nutrition facts.