How Much Sugar Is in Marshmallows?
Four marshmallows have about 17 g of added sugar — more than half their weight is sugar, since that's basically the entire recipe.
in 4 pieces (28 g) · about 4 teaspoons
- Per serving
- 17 g
- Per 100 g
- 58 g
- Type
- Added sugar
- In teaspoons
- ≈ 4 tsp
A big chunk of a day's sugar in one serving.
Marshmallows are about as close to pure sugar as candy gets: 17 g in just four pieces, or 58 g per 100 g. There's no fibre, protein, or fat to slow it down — just sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin whipped with air, so it dissolves and hits your bloodstream almost instantly.
The real damage comes from how marshmallows get used. A cup of hot chocolate topped with a handful, or a s'more layering marshmallow with milk chocolate and a graham cracker, can easily stack 30–40 g of sugar into one snack. Treat the bag's serving size as the real portion, not a handful.
Lower-sugar swaps
- A square of dark chocolate when you want something sweet and chewy
- Toast fewer marshmallows and share a s'more instead of building your own
Frequently asked questions
- Are marshmallows all sugar?
- Essentially, yes — sugar, corn syrup, and gelatin make up almost the whole recipe, with no fibre or protein to slow the sugar down.
- Is a s'more worse than plain marshmallows?
- Much worse — adding chocolate and a graham cracker can double or triple the sugar of the marshmallow alone.
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Sugar values from Typical nutrition label; actual amounts vary by brand, ripeness, and recipe. Last updated 2026-08-09.