Per-serve and per-100g carbohydrate counts for the foods Australians actually eat — bread, rice, sushi, milk, fruit, onions, honey, wine and more — with the low-carb swaps that make the numbers workable.
Carbs in Common Foods: The Complete Australian Guide
5 July 2026 | Category: Low Carb Meals
Quick answer: Per-serve and per-100g carbohydrate counts for the foods Australians actually eat — bread, rice, sushi, milk, fruit, onions, honey, wine and more — with the low-carb swaps that make the numbers workable.
This is a reference guide, not a lecture. Every section gives you the per-serve number first (because nobody eats "100 grams" of anything), the per-100g figure for comparison, and the swap that keeps the meal enjoyable. Bookmark it, then check the deep-dive articles linked throughout when one food matters more to your week than the rest.
How to read carb counts in Australia
Australian nutrition panels make carb counting easier than most keto and low-carb websites assume. Under Food Standards Australia New Zealand (FSANZ) rules, the "carbohydrate" line on an Australian label is available carbohydrate — dietary fibre is listed separately and is not included. In other words, the "net carbs" arithmetic that American sites teach (total carbs minus fibre) is already done for you on an Australian panel. If a US recipe blog says broccoli has 7g of carbs and your Australian label says about 4g, that is the fibre difference, not an error.
Two other habits make the numbers below useful rather than confusing. First, always separate per 100g from per serve: honey is 82g of carbs per 100g, but nobody eats 100g — the tablespoon you actually use is about 17g. Second, remember that carbs concentrate when water cooks off and dilute when water is absorbed: rice roughly triples in weight as it cooks, which is why raw rice shows ~78g per 100g but boiled rice shows ~28g.
All figures in this guide are typical values drawn from the Australian Food Composition Database (AFCD) and standard supermarket labels, rounded for planning. Brands and cooking methods vary, so treat the label on the product in your hand as the final word.
Bread, rice, pasta and other grains
Grains are where most Australian carb budgets are actually spent, usually by default rather than decision. A sandwich, a rice bowl and a pasta dinner can quietly add up to 130g of carbs before a single snack.
Rice deserves special attention because it anchors so many meals. Boiled white rice runs about 28g of carbs per 100g, which turns into roughly 45g per generous cup once it is on the plate. Basmati is nearly identical in carbs (~25–28g per 100g cooked) but sits lower on the glycaemic index than jasmine, so it digests more slowly — a meaningful difference for steadier energy, but not a licence to double the portion. Brown rice lands around 26g per 100g with more fibre attached.
Bread is the other automatic carb: a standard sandwich slice carries about 15g and a thick toast slice closer to 20g, so the average sandwich starts at 30–40g before fillings. Our slice-by-slice breakdown is in how many carbs are in a slice of bread, and pasta portions get the same treatment in carbs in pasta.
| Food | Typical serve | Carbs per serve | Carbs per 100g |
|---|
| White rice, boiled | 1 cup (~160g) | ~45g | ~28g |
| Basmati rice, boiled | 1 cup (~160g) | ~42–45g | ~26–28g |
| Brown rice, boiled | 1 cup (~160g) | ~40–42g | ~26g |
| White bread | 1 sandwich slice (~35g) | ~15g | ~45g |
| Wholegrain bread | 1 slice (~40g) | ~15–17g | ~40g |
| Pasta, boiled | 1 cup (~150g) | ~40g | ~26g |
| Rolled oats, raw | 1/2 cup (~45g) | ~28g | ~60g |
| Potato, boiled | 1 medium (~150g) | ~26g | ~17g |
Sushi: the takeaway that surprises people
Sushi reads as a light lunch, but it is one of the most carb-dense takeaways in the food court. Sushi rice is short-grain rice seasoned with sugar and rice vinegar, which pushes it to roughly 30–37g of carbs per 100g — noticeably above plain boiled rice.
The serve sizes do the rest. A standard Australian takeaway roll (180–250g) carries about 55–75g of carbs, which is more than three slices of bread hiding under the nori. Individual nigiri pieces run 7–9g each, so an eight-piece tray lands around 60g before the soy sauce.
The low-carb order at a sushi bar is sashimi: plain raw fish is effectively zero-carb protein. Swapping one roll for sashimi and a seaweed salad can take a 70g lunch down to under 10g without leaving the shop.
- Takeaway sushi roll (180–250g): about 55–75g carbs.
- Nigiri: about 7–9g per piece; an 8-piece tray is ~60g.
- Sashimi: close to 0g — the low-carb way to order sushi.
- Brown-rice rolls swap the fibre profile but barely move total carbs.
Milk, coffee and dairy
Milk contains lactose, a natural sugar, so it contributes carbs even with nothing added: about 4.8g per 100mL, or roughly 12g in a 250mL glass. Skim milk is not meaningfully lower — removing fat does not remove lactose. The full breakdown, including plant milks, is in carbs in milk.
Coffee is where milk carbs sneak into the day. A black coffee or espresso is effectively 0g. A regular flat white or latte carries about 9–12g from the milk alone, a large (400mL+) milk coffee 15–18g, and iced coffees or frappes with syrup and ice cream can run 40–70g — dessert territory. Unsweetened almond milk (~0.5g per 100mL) turns a 12g latte into a 1–2g one.
Cheese, on the other hand, is nearly carb-free: most hard cheeses run 0–3g per 100g because the lactose is consumed during fermentation. Plain Greek yoghurt sits around 4–6g per 100g, while flavoured yoghurts can triple that with added sugar. Coconut cream — a common curry base — runs about 3–5g per 100mL depending on the brand.
| Drink / dairy | Typical serve | Carbs per serve |
|---|
| Full-cream milk | 250mL glass | ~12g |
| Skim milk | 250mL glass | ~12–13g |
| Black coffee / espresso | Any | ~0g |
| Flat white / latte | Regular (~250mL) | ~9–12g |
| Iced coffee / frappe | Large | ~40–70g |
| Hard cheese (cheddar, parmesan) | 30g | ~0–1g |
| Greek yoghurt, plain | 170g tub | ~7–10g |
| Coconut cream | 100mL | ~3–5g |
Fruit: from berries to bananas
Fruit spans a five-fold carb range, so "is fruit low carb?" has no single answer. At the light end, strawberries run about 6–7g per 100g and watermelon about 8g — a cup of watermelon is only ~11g. At the heavy end, a medium banana carries about 24g (23g per 100g), a cup of grapes ~26g, and a single mango cheek ~15g.
The practical rule for lower-carb eating: berries and melon by the cup, bananas and grapes by deliberate decision, and juice almost never — a 250mL glass of orange juice holds ~24g with none of the fibre that slows whole fruit down.
Dried fruit concentrates everything: sultanas run ~70g per 100g, so a small 40g snack box is ~28g of carbs — more than a banana. If you are eating keto rather than generally low-carb, the stricter fruit rules are covered in what fruits are keto friendly.
| Fruit | Typical serve | Carbs per serve | Carbs per 100g |
|---|
| Strawberries | 1 cup (~150g) | ~9–10g | ~6–7g |
| Watermelon | 1 cup (~150g) | ~11–12g | ~8g |
| Apple | 1 medium | ~20g | ~14g |
| Orange | 1 medium | ~15g | ~9–12g |
| Banana | 1 medium | ~24g | ~23g |
| Grapes | 1 cup (~150g) | ~26g | ~17g |
| Mango | 1 cheek (~100g) | ~14–15g | ~14g |
| Sultanas (dried) | 40g box | ~28g | ~70g |
Vegetables: onions, broccoli and the low-carb majority
Most vegetables are low-carb by default — the exceptions are the starchy ones that eat like grains. Broccoli is the poster child: about 4g of total carbs per 100g on an Australian label, roughly half of which is natural sugars, with another ~3g of fibre listed separately. Leafy greens, zucchini, cucumber, mushrooms and capsicum all sit in the 1–4g band.
Onions get asked about constantly because they taste sweet. Raw brown onion runs about 7–8g per 100g — higher than leafy greens, but the portion does the deciding: the half-onion cooked through a family-size dish adds only 2–4g to your plate. Caramelising concentrates the sweetness by cooking off water, but it does not add sugar. Onions are a flavour ingredient, not a carb problem.
The vegetables that genuinely behave like carbs are the starchy ones: potato (~17g per 100g boiled — a medium potato is ~26g), sweet potato (~17g), corn (~16g) and, to a lesser degree, pumpkin (~5–7g). Hot chips combine starch with frying at ~35g per 100g, so a medium serve of chips can out-carb a burger bun. The keto-specific vegetable rules are in what vegetables are keto friendly.
- Leafy greens, cucumber, zucchini, mushrooms: ~1–3g per 100g.
- Broccoli, cauliflower, capsicum: ~3–5g per 100g.
- Onion: ~7–8g per 100g raw, but only ~2–4g in a typical cooked portion.
- Pumpkin: ~5–7g per 100g — moderate, portion-friendly.
- Potato, sweet potato, corn: ~16–17g per 100g — treat like grains.
- Hot chips: ~35g per 100g — a medium serve can exceed 60g.
Honey, sugar and sweeteners
Honey has a health halo, but on a carb count it is essentially liquid sugar: about 82g of carbs per 100g, or 17g in a level tablespoon. Table sugar is ~100g per 100g, so spoon-for-spoon honey saves you almost nothing — it is a flavour choice, not a low-carb swap. Maple syrup (~67g per 100g) and rice malt syrup sit in the same band.
"No added sugar" and "low carb" are different claims. Honey, dates, fruit juice concentrate and dried fruit are all no-added-sugar ingredients that are carb-dense anyway. This matters when scanning labels: a no-added-sugar muesli sweetened with dates can carry more carbs per bowl than the regular one.
Non-nutritive sweeteners (stevia, erythritol, monk fruit) contribute little to no available carbohydrate, and Australian labels list polyols separately from the carbohydrate line — another place where the local panel does the maths for you.
Bacon, eggs and other near-zero staples
A useful low-carb plate is built from foods where the carb count rounds to zero. Plain bacon runs 0–1g per 100g (sweet-cured and maple styles can reach ~2–3g — check the label); the full story is in carbs in bacon. Eggs carry about 0.4g each, covered in do eggs have carbs.
The same near-zero logic covers plain beef, lamb, chicken, pork and fish: unprocessed meat and seafood are effectively carb-free. The carbs arrive with the treatment — crumbing (a schnitzel coat adds ~15–20g), sweet marinades, honey glazes and sauce bases. A steak with vegetables is a ~5g dinner; the same steak crumbed with chips is 80g+.
Butter, olive oil and most oils are 0g. Cream is ~3g per 100mL. This is why "protein plus vegetables plus fat for flavour" is the default template for every low-carb food culture: three near-zero columns and one small one.
Wine, beer and what you drink with dinner
Dry wine is the lowest-carb way to drink: a 150mL glass of dry red carries about 2–4g, dry whites similar or slightly less, while sweet dessert wines jump to 10–20g per glass. The full breakdown — including why the snacks around the wine matter more than the pour — is in carbs in red wine.
Beer earns its "liquid bread" reputation: a full-strength 375mL can runs roughly 8–12g depending on the brew, while Australian low-carb beers engineer that down to 1–3g. Spirits (vodka, gin, whisky) are 0g — it is the mixer that decides the drink, with a 375mL can of soft drink adding ~40g and soda water adding nothing.
Alcohol also loosens food decisions, which usually costs more carbs than the drink itself. Planning dinner before the drinks — not after them — is the cheapest carb-control trick there is.
Pizza, chips and takeaway benchmarks
Takeaway is where carb estimates go to die, so benchmarks help. A standard slice of takeaway pizza runs about 25–35g — the base is bread — so a common three-slice dinner lands near 90g before the garlic bread. Pizza per 100g sits around 30g regardless of topping, because the topping is not where the carbs live.
A burger bun contributes ~25g, a large wrap ~35–40g, a medium serve of hot chips ~60–70g, and a battered fish adds ~15–20g on top of its chips. The sleeper is sauce: sweet chilli runs ~10g per squeeze, barbecue ~7g, while mayonnaise and mustard round to zero.
None of this makes takeaway forbidden — it makes it predictable. A bunless burger with salad is a ~10g meal at almost any counter in the country, and sashimi beats the sushi roll by 60g. Knowing the benchmark prices lets you spend the budget deliberately.
Fast carbs vs slow carbs
Two foods with identical carb counts can behave very differently. "Fast" (high-GI) carbs — white bread, jasmine rice, mashed potato, sugary drinks, honey — digest quickly and spike blood glucose sharply. "Slow" (low-GI) carbs — basmati rice, wholegrains, legumes, dairy, most whole fruit — release over hours. Fibre, fat and protein eaten alongside all slow the release further, which is why carbs inside a balanced meal hit differently to the same carbs eaten alone.
For most people managing weight or energy, slower is better: fewer spikes, fewer crashes, less grazing. The main case for deliberately fast carbs is around hard training, where quick glycogen refuelling is the goal — that trade-off is unpacked in do you need carbs to build muscle.
If you remember one swap from this section: same cup of rice, basmati instead of jasmine; same two slices of toast, dense wholegrain instead of white. Identical carb budget, noticeably steadier hours afterwards.
How many carbs per day is "normal", "low carb" and "keto"?
Context for all the numbers above: Australian dietary guidelines model roughly 45–65% of energy from carbohydrate, which is about 230–310g a day on an average 8,700kJ intake. "Low carb" as commonly practised means under ~130g a day. Ketogenic diets restrict much harder — under ~50g, often 20–25g for strict keto (that world has its own rulebook: see the keto food list).
Those bands explain why single foods matter so much at the strict end and so little at the loose end. A banana is 8% of a standard day but more than a full day's allowance on strict keto. A sushi roll is a rounding error at 300g a day and three days of budget at 25g.
If you are moving from "normal" toward "lower", the highest-leverage moves are structural, not heroic: swap the automatic bread-based lunch, halve the rice and double the vegetables at dinner, and move milk coffees toward smaller or unsweetened versions. Building that structure is the whole point of our low-carb foods list and weekly low-carb meal plan.
How Foober makes the numbers easy
Counting carbs from scratch for every meal is homework, and homework is what breaks eating plans by Thursday. Foober's menu is built for exactly this problem: chef-prepared meals with the full nutrition panel — carbs included — published on every meal, cooked fresh in Sydney with no added sugar anywhere on the menu, and ready in about 3 minutes.
Most of the menu is naturally lower-carb (protein plus vegetables is the house style), the low-carb range keeps dinners in the 10–30g band that suits sub-130g days, the keto range targets the strict end, and the high-protein range packs 35g+ of protein per meal for training weeks. Compare any of them on the full Foober menu — or start with low-carb meals that are easier to stick to.
- Use prepared low-carb meals for the meals that usually default to bread, rice or takeaway.
- Read carbs per serve on each meal panel rather than estimating from ingredients.
- Spend your carb budget deliberately — around training, social meals, or the foods you love most.
Ready-made meals that do the counting for you
If the carb maths is the part that keeps failing, hand it off. Browse low-carb meals, keto meals, or the full Foober menu — every meal shows its carbs, protein and calories before you order, so the plate matches the plan without a spreadsheet.
General nutrition information only. Figures are typical values from the Australian Food Composition Database and supermarket labels, rounded for planning — brands and cooking methods vary, so check the panel on your product. Low-carb eating is not the right fit for everyone, especially with some medical conditions, pregnancy, or a history of disordered eating. For personalised advice, speak with a qualified health professional.
A note on this article. Foober blog articles are researched with the assistance of AI tooling for source-gathering and structural drafting, then reviewed and edited by Tee — Foober's founder and certified fitness trainer — for accuracy, tone, and relevance. Nothing on this blog constitutes medical, nutritional, dietetic, or fitness advice tailored to your individual circumstances. Foober is a meal delivery service, not a healthcare provider. For personalised guidance — especially regarding medications, medical conditions, allergies, pregnancy, or significant dietary changes — please consult a qualified healthcare professional (your GP, an Accredited Practising Dietitian, or equivalent).
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