Sugar Substitutes
Artificial Sweeteners
Saccharin
Saccharin (E954) is 200–700× sweeter than sugar and the oldest artificial sweetener.
- ✅ Heat-stable, cheap
- ❌ Bitter aftertaste - usually combined with other sweeteners
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder (sachets), tablets, liquid
Aspartame
Aspartame (E951) is 200× sweeter than sugar and a classic in diet drinks.
- ✅ Tastes closest to sugar, almost no aftertaste
- ❌ Not suitable for baking (not heat-stable). Not suitable for people with phenylketonuria (PKU).
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder (sachets), tablets - almost exclusively as an ingredient in finished products
Acesulfame-K (Ace-K)
Acesulfame-K (E950) is 200× sweeter than sugar and almost always used in combination with other sweeteners.
- ✅ Heat-stable, long shelf life
- ❌ Bitter aftertaste at higher amounts
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: white powder - almost exclusively as an ingredient in finished products, rarely as a household sweetener
Sucralose
Sucralose (E955) is 600× sweeter than sugar and made from real sugar.
- ✅ Versatile (including for baking), barely any aftertaste, very sugar-like
- ❌ Can affect gut flora at very high consumption
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder, liquid, tablets - widely available (e.g. as Splenda)
Cyclamate
Cyclamate (E952) is 30× sweeter than sugar and is often combined with saccharin.
- ✅ Milder taste than saccharin alone; well tolerated in blends; heat-stable
- ❌ Not approved in the USA; in the EU/UK only allowed up to defined maximum levels; almost always combined with other sweeteners
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder, tablets - mainly as an ingredient in finished products (drinks, table sweeteners)
Neotame
Neotame (E961) is 7,000–13,000× sweeter than sugar and is structurally related to aspartame but more heat-resistant.
- ✅ Extremely small amounts needed; more heat-stable than aspartame; no PKU labelling required
- ❌ Barely available as a household sweetener; like all high-intensity sweeteners, needs bulking agents for solid foods
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: exclusively as an industrial ingredient in drinks and desserts
Sugar Alcohols (Polyols)
Erythritol
Erythritol (E968) provides only 0.2 kcal/g and is especially popular in low-carb cooking.
- ✅ Very well tolerated, barely any bloating
- ❌ Slight cooling effect in the mouth (noticeable e.g. in chocolate)
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: crystal powder (1:1 substitute for sugar) - widely available
Xylitol
Xylitol (E967) is as sweet as sugar and best known from chewing gum and toothpaste.
- ✅ Actively inhibits cavity-causing bacteria
- ❌ Can cause digestive issues at higher intake. Warning: life-threatening for dogs.
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 13 - very small effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: crystal powder (1:1 substitute for sugar) - widely available
Maltitol
Maltitol (E965) is 75–90% as sweet as sugar and often found in sugar-free chocolate.
- ✅ Gives chocolate a creamy, sugar-like consistency
- ❌ Can cause digestive issues at higher intake
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 35 - noticeably raises blood sugar, caution for diabetics
- 📦 Form: powder or syrup - mainly as an ingredient in finished products
Sorbitol & Mannitol
Sorbitol (E420) and mannitol (E421) are inexpensive, versatile sugar alcohols used widely in the food industry.
- ✅ Cheap, heat-stable, keep foods moist
- ❌ More laxative than other polyols - enjoy with care if you have a sensitive stomach
- 🩸 Glycemic index: sorbitol 9, mannitol 0 - very small effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder or syrup - mainly as an ingredient in finished products
Isomalt
Isomalt (E953) is about 50% as sweet as sugar and the classic for hard candies and sugar decorations.
- ✅ Very heat-stable and easy to work with; barely absorbs moisture (ideal for candies and decorations); not cariogenic
- ❌ Significantly less sweet than sugar - larger amounts needed; can cause digestive issues at higher intake; mainly an industrial ingredient
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 9 - very small effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: granules or tablets - mainly as an ingredient in sugar-free candies and lozenges
Lactitol
Lactitol (E966) is about 40% as sweet as sugar and is derived from milk sugar.
- ✅ Good texture and bulk properties; not cariogenic; inexpensive in food processing
- ❌ Significantly less sweet than sugar; can cause diarrhea at higher intake; mainly an industrial ingredient
- 🩸 Glycemic index: ~6 - very small effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder or syrup - mainly as an ingredient in sugar-free chocolate and baked goods
Plant-Based High-Intensity Sweeteners
Stevia
Stevia (E960) is 200–400× sweeter than sugar and is extracted from the stevia plant.
- ✅ Natural, zero calories, heat-stable
- ❌ Often a slightly bitter or licorice-like aftertaste. Newer extracts (e.g. Reb M) taste considerably more pleasant.
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder, liquid, tablets - widely available. Caution: many products contain bulking agents like erythritol.
Monk Fruit
Monk fruit is 100–250× sweeter than sugar and comes from a Southeast Asian fruit.
- ✅ No bitter aftertaste, zero calories, heat-stable - often better tasting than stevia
- ❌ More expensive and harder to find than stevia
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: powder, liquid - available in well-stocked supermarkets or online
Sweet Proteins
Thaumatin
Thaumatin (E957) is 2,000–3,000× sweeter than sugar and is extracted from the West African katemfe fruit (Thaumatococcus daniellii).
- ✅ Natural, masks bitterness in other ingredients very well
- ❌ Long, licorice-like aftertaste - therefore used more as a flavor enhancer than as a primary sweetener
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar (pure protein)
- 📦 Form: powder - mainly as an ingredient in finished products, rarely available on its own
Brazzein & Monellin
Brazzein and monellin are new sweet proteins that have been available via fermentation since 2025/26.
- ✅ Clean, sugar-like taste, heat-stable
- ❌ Still barely available in everyday products
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 0 - no effect on blood sugar (pure proteins)
- 📦 Form: no consumer-standard form yet - exclusively as an industrial ingredient
Rare Sugars
Allulose
Allulose is a rare sugar that occurs naturally in small amounts in figs and raisins and is 70% as sweet as sugar.
- ✅ Browns during baking like real sugar, very similar texture
- ❌ Noticeably more expensive than other alternatives
- 🩸 Glycemic index: no reliably measured value; according to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA), blood sugar and insulin rise only negligibly. Allulose is not yet approved in the EU.
- 📦 Form: crystal powder - mainly available online (especially imported from the US)
Tagatose
Tagatose is a rare natural sugar derived from lactose and is about 90% as sweet as sugar.
- ✅ Almost as sweet as sugar with a sugar-like texture; small effect on blood sugar and insulin; not cariogenic; approved in the EU as a Novel Food
- ❌ Can cause polyol-like digestive issues at higher amounts; more expensive than common alternatives; in the EU only permitted in certain food categories
- 🩸 Glycemic index: 3 - very small effect on blood sugar
- 📦 Form: crystal powder - mainly available online or in health food stores
Caloric Natural Sweeteners
Yacon Syrup
Yacon syrup is a prebiotic-rich sweetener from the yacon root with a very low glycemic index.
- ✅ Very low glycemic index, supports gut health
- ❌ Not suitable for baking (heat destroys the valuable fibers), limited use
- 🩸 Glycemic index: no reliably measured value - besides fructooligosaccharides, yacon syrup also contains sugars
- 📦 Form: syrup - mainly available in health food stores or online
Recommendations for Beginners
| Purpose | Recommendation |
|---|---|
| Everyday / coffee | Stevia or erythritol |
| Baking | Erythritol or sucralose |
| Chocolate & sweets | Erythritol (check the label: maltitol raises blood sugar!) |
| Chewing gum / dental health | Xylitol |
| Gut health | Yacon syrup |
Sweeteners Compared
The table summarises sweetness, energy value, glycemic index (GI), E number and EU approval status of the main sweeteners (as of October 2026). Sweetness is relative to table sugar (sucrose = 1). The kcal values for sugar alcohols are the EU's legal conversion factors.
| Sweetener | E number | Sweetness (sugar = 1) | kcal/g | GI (glucose = 100) | EU status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Saccharin | E 954 | approx. 300–500 | negligible¹ | –² | approved; ADI 9 mg/kg (EFSA 2024) |
| Aspartame | E 951 | approx. 200 | negligible¹ | –² | approved; ADI 40 mg/kg; label must state "contains a source of phenylalanine" |
| Acesulfame K | E 950 | approx. 200 | negligible¹ | –² | approved; ADI 15 mg/kg (EFSA 2025) |
| Sucralose | E 955 | approx. 600 | negligible¹ | –² | approved; ADI 15 mg/kg (EFSA 2026) |
| Cyclamate | E 952 | approx. 30–50 | negligible¹ | –² | approved; ADI 7 mg/kg; re-evaluation ongoing |
| Erythritol | E 968 | 0.6–0.8 | 0 | 0 | approved; ADI 0.5 g/kg (EFSA 2023) |
| Xylitol | E 967 | 1.0 | 2.4 | 13 | approved; re-evaluation ongoing |
| Maltitol | E 965 | 0.9 | 2.4 | 35 (syrups 36–53) | approved; re-evaluation ongoing |
| Sorbitol | E 420 | 0.5–0.7 | 2.4 | 9 | approved; re-evaluation ongoing |
| Isomalt | E 953 | approx. 0.45–0.65 | 2.4 | 9 | approved; re-evaluation ongoing |
| Steviol glycosides (stevia) | E 960a–d | approx. 300 | negligible¹ | –² | approved; ADI 4 mg/kg steviol equivalents (confirmed by EFSA 2024) |
| Monk fruit (mogrosides) | – | mogroside V approx. 250 | – | –² | not approved as a sweetener; application under review |
| Thaumatin | E 957 | approx. 2,000–3,000 | negligible¹ | –² | approved |
| Allulose | – | approx. 0.7 | ≤ 0.4 (FDA) | –³ | not approved (novel food; EFSA 2025: safety not established) |
| Tagatose | – | approx. 0.9 | approx. 3 (EFSA estimate) | 3 | approved as a novel food (since 2005) |
| Yacon syrup | – | – | – | –³ | food; yacon root is no longer considered a novel food |
¹ High-intensity sweeteners are used in such small amounts that their energy contribution is negligible. ² A GI can only be measured for foods with a meaningful carbohydrate content; high-intensity sweeteners provide practically no available carbohydrate. ³ No GI value from a reliable measurement is available. "–" means no established value. Neotame, lactitol, mannitol, brazzein and monellin are not listed because not all of their values are reliably documented.
Sources: Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Annex XIV (energy conversion factors); Livesey, Nutrition Research Reviews 2003 (GI of sugar alcohols); Atkinson et al., Diabetes Care 2008 (GI of tagatose); EFSA opinions on erythritol (2023), saccharin (2024), steviol glycosides (2024), acesulfame K (2025), sucralose (2026), aspartame (2013) and tagatose (2016); FDA guidance on allulose (2020).