Free UK delivery on all orders · At-home saliva test · Secure checkout
Free UK delivery on all orders
Skittles nutrition: sugar, calories and salt per sweet
How much sugar is in Skittles? Each sweet weighs approximately 1.5g and contains 1.0g of free sugar. A standard 55g bag contains approximately 36 Skittles and 36g of free sugar, which is 50 percent over the daily limit for a child aged 7 to 10.
Try it: Our interactive nutrition calculator
Use the calculator below to see how any quantity of these sweets compares to NHS daily limits for your child's age and gender. The calculator defaults to this sweet but you can switch to any brand or type.
Sweets calculator
How much sugar is in those sweets?
Choose brand, sweet type and how many, then see the total against NHS daily limits.
5
Your selection--
Free sugar
--
--
0--
--
Calories
--
--
0--
--
Salt
--
--
0--
--
How much sugar in different portion sizes
The figures below show total free sugar, calories and salt for four realistic portion sizes, from a small amount to a full bag or tube.
Small portion
10 Skittles
10 Skittles (15g)
10g
sugar
60
kcal
0g
salt
10g free sugar. 42% of the daily limit for a 7-year-old and 53% for a 4-year-old.
Standard portion
20 Skittles
20 Skittles (30g)
20g
sugar
120
kcal
0g
salt
20g free sugar. 83% of the daily limit for a 7-year-old. Exceeds the limit for children aged 4 to 6.
Larger portion
30 Skittles
30 Skittles (45g)
30g
sugar
180
kcal
0g
salt
30g free sugar. Exceeds the daily limit for all children and equals the adult daily limit.
Full bag
Full 55g bag (approx 36)
Entire bag
36g
sugar
216
kcal
0g
salt
36g free sugar. 50% over the daily limit for a child aged 7 to 10 in a single bag.
Sugar
Skittles are sugar-shelled fruit-flavoured sweets. Each sweet weighs approximately 1.5g and contains 1.0g of free sugar. The sugar shell makes up a significant proportion of the total weight of each sweet. At 67 percent sugar by weight, Skittles are among the most sugar-dense sweets per gram available in the UK.
All sugar in Skittles counts as free sugar under NHS guidelines. The product contains sugar, glucose syrup and fruit juice concentrates. The fruit juice concentrate is in very small quantities and does not constitute meaningful fruit content. All sugar counts as free sugar.
Skittles are designed to be eaten in handfuls, and the small size makes portion tracking very difficult. A standard 55g bag contains approximately 36 sweets and 36g of free sugar. That is 50% over the daily limit for a child aged 7 to 10 in a bag that can be consumed in minutes.
67 percent of each Skittle by weight is sugar
Each Skittle weighs 1.5g and contains 1.0g of free sugar. That means 67 percent of the weight of every single Skittle is sugar. The sugar shell is the primary ingredient. A handful of 20 Skittles delivers 20g of free sugar. For a child aged 4 to 6, that is their entire daily limit from a snack that takes about 30 seconds to eat.
NHS recommended daily free sugar limits
Age 4 to 6No more than 19g per day
Age 7 to 10No more than 24g per day
Age 11 and overNo more than 30g per day
Source: NHS. Free sugars include all added sugars and do not include sugars naturally present in whole fruit, vegetables, or milk.
The table below shows 12 Skittles as a percentage of the daily free sugar limit for each age group.
Free sugar as % of daily NHS limit: 12 Skittles nutrition (12g sugar)
Age
Daily limit
12 Skittles
Age 4 to 6
19g
63%
Age 7 to 10
24g
50%
Age 11 and over
30g
40%
Adult
30g
40%
Source: NHS/SACN free sugar guidelines (2015). Red = High (over 75% of daily limit). Amber = Moderate (20 to 74%).
Calories
Each Skittle contains 6 calories. Twenty Skittles deliver 120 calories. A full 55g bag contains approximately 216 calories.
The calorie count is modest per sweet, but Skittles are designed to be eaten quickly and in large numbers. The small individual size gives no natural stopping point. A child eating from an open bag will often eat the full bag without noticing the accumulated total.
Calories: Skittles nutrition by quantity
1 Skittles
6 kcal
5 Skittles
30 kcal
10 Skittles
60 kcal
20 Skittles
120 kcal
Nutrition from UK product labels. 6 kcal per Skittle.
Salt
Salt content in Skittles is negligible, less than 0.01g per sweet. Salt is not a nutritional concern with this product.
NHS recommended daily maximum salt intake
Age 4 to 6No more than 3g per day
Age 7 to 10No more than 5g per day
Age 11 and overNo more than 6g per day
Frequently asked questions
Each Skittle weighs approximately 1.5g and contains 1.0g of free sugar. A standard 55g bag contains around 36 Skittles and 36g of free sugar, which is 50 percent over the daily limit for a child aged 7 to 10.
Per sweet: 1.0g sugar, 6 kcal, 0g salt, 1.5g weight. Per 20 Skittles: 20g sugar, 120 kcal. Per full 55g bag: 36g sugar, 216 kcal. All sugar counts as free sugar.
Yes. At 67 percent sugar by weight, Skittles are among the most sugar-dense sweets available. All sugar counts as free sugar under NHS guidelines. A full 55g bag exceeds the daily limit for children aged 4 to 10.
A child aged 4 to 6 (19g daily limit) would reach their limit at 19 Skittles. A child aged 7 to 10 (24g limit) would reach their limit at 24 Skittles. A full bag of 36 exceeds the limit for all age groups under 11.
Skittles contain fruit juice concentrates in small quantities. Under NHS guidelines, juice and juice concentrates do not provide the same nutritional benefit as whole fruit and the sugars they contain count as free sugar.
Track your family's nutrition in real time
See exactly what your family is eating, in real time.
The Boone app tracks sugar, calories, salt and 30 plus micronutrients in real time. Log meals by scanning food and see instantly how a snack compares to your child's daily limits, adjusted for their exact age and gender.
Download the Boone app and start tracking your family's nutrition today.
Nutrition data from UK product labels. Daily limits: NHS/SACN free sugar guidelines (2015); SACN Dietary Reference Values for calories; NHS salt targets by age. For guidance only, not medical advice.
