What Are Net Carbs?

Net carbs are the carbs your body actually digests and turns into glucose, which can raise your blood sugar. They’re different from total carbs because fiber (and sometimes sugar alcohols) aren’t fully absorbed by the body and don’t have much impact on blood sugar levels.

How Do You Calculate Net Carbs?

Here’s the basic formula:

Net Carbs = Total Carbohydrates – Fiber – Sugar Alcohols (if applicable)

For example, if a food has 20g of total carbs, 10g of fiber, and 2g of sugar alcohols, its net carbs would be 8g.

Why Do Net Carbs Matter?

Net carbs are especially important for low-carb diets like keto. These diets focus on limiting the carbs that actually affect your blood sugar, so they count net carbs instead of total carbs. Since fiber and many sugar alcohols aren’t fully digested, they don’t contribute much to blood glucose, making net carbs a more accurate way to track your intake on these diets.