Sugar Free, No Added Sugar, Calorie Free: What Labels Must Meet

This article is informational only and is not medical advice. It explains how to read US food labels, not what you personally should eat.

On a US label, "calorie free" means less than 5 calories per serving, "sugar free" means less than 0.5 gram of sugars per serving, and "no added sugar" means no sugars or sugar-containing ingredients were added during processing. These are FDA's definitions in 21 CFR 101.60, as published in the eCFR in October 2026. None of them means "zero" in the mathematical sense.

1. Calorie claims

The "calorie free" ceiling is a limit, not a measured zero. A serving with 4 calories qualifies. If a drink is labeled with 4 calories per serving and a bottle holds 5 servings, the bottle holds about 20 calories, which is simple multiplication but easy to miss.

The "low calorie" tier has two forms. A food with a reference amount over 30 grams or over 2 tablespoons can have up to 40 calories per reference amount. A smaller-portion food must meet 40 calories both per reference amount and per 50 grams. The second test stops a tiny serving of a dense food from slipping under the line.

2. "Reduced calorie" is a comparison

A "reduced calorie" claim must carry the identity of the comparison food and the percentage difference near the most prominent claim. The rule's example is "33 1/3 percent fewer calories than regular cupcakes." It must also give the amounts, such as "Calorie content has been reduced from 150 to 100 calories per serving." A reduced-calorie claim cannot be made if the comparison food is already "low calorie."

The math in that example is checkable: 150 down to 100 is a drop of 50, and 50 divided by 150 is one third, or 33 1/3 percent. If the numbers on a package do not support the stated percentage, the claim does not meet the rule.

3. Sugar claims

"Sugar free," "no sugar," "zero sugar," "sugarless," and similar terms require two things. First, the food has less than 0.5 gram of sugars per reference amount and per labeled serving. Second, it contains no ingredient that is a sugar or that is generally understood to contain sugars, unless the ingredient is followed by an asterisk pointing to a statement below the ingredient list that says "adds a trivial amount of sugar," "adds a negligible amount of sugar," or "adds a dietarily insignificant amount of sugar."

FDA's reasoning, stated in the rule, is that shoppers read "sugar free" as implying a low or much reduced calorie product. So the term must also come with one of two things: the food is labeled "low calorie" or "reduced calorie," or the term is accompanied each time it is used by "not a reduced calorie food," "not a low calorie food," or "not for weight control." That is why you often see small print beside "sugar free" on candy and baked goods.

4. "No added sugar" is about what was added

"No added sugar," "without added sugar," and "no sugar added" can be used only when all of the following hold:

• No sugars, and no ingredient containing sugars that does the same job as added sugar, were added during processing or packaging.
• The product contains no ingredient made of added sugars, such as jam, jelly, or concentrated fruit juice.
• The sugars content has not been increased above what the ingredients supply, for example by using enzymes (a functionally insignificant increase is allowed).
• The food it resembles normally contains added sugars.
• The product states it is not "low calorie" or "calorie reduced" (unless it meets those definitions) and points shoppers to the nutrition panel for sugar and calorie content.

So an unsweetened applesauce can still show total sugars from the apples, because "no added sugar" speaks only to additions. Paragraph (c)(3) of the rule adds that a factual statement that a food with substantial natural sugar content, such as juice, is "unsweetened" or contains no added sweeteners is not subject to the "sugar free" restrictions.

5. "Reduced sugar" needs 25 percent less

"Reduced sugar," "less sugar," and "lower in sugar" require at least 25 percent less sugar per reference amount than a reference food. The label must name that food and give the amounts. The rule's example is "Sugar content has been lowered from 8 g to 6 g per serving," and 2 divided by 8 is exactly 25 percent.

6. What to check on the Nutrition Facts panel

• Read grams of Total Sugars and Added Sugars for the stated serving.
• Multiply by the number of servings you realistically eat.
• Compare calories, since "sugar free" does not mean calorie free.
• Look at the ingredient list for sugar alcohols or other sweeteners if you are comparing products. FDA's Food Labeling Guide notes that the "sugar free" claim does not address sugar alcohols, which may be present.

7. Key takeaways

• "Calorie free" means under 5 calories per serving; "sugar free" means under 0.5 g of sugars per serving.
• "Sugar free" must be paired with a low-calorie status or a "not a reduced calorie food" style statement.
• "No added sugar" restricts what was put in during processing, not the natural sugars already present.
• "Reduced" claims need 25 percent less than a named reference food, with both amounts shown.
• Definitions current as of October 2026; the eCFR holds the exact text.