How Much Sugar Is in Wine?
A glass of dry red wine has only about 1 g of sugar — fermentation converts nearly all the grape sugar into alcohol, leaving very little behind.
in 5 fl oz dry red (147 ml) · about 0.2 teaspoons
- Per serving
- 1 g
- Per 100 g
- 0.6 g
- Type
- Natural sugar
- In teaspoons
- ≈ 0.2 tsp
An easy fit for a low-sugar day.
A standard 5 fl oz glass of dry red wine has just 1 g of sugar. Grapes start out sweet, but fermentation converts almost all of that natural sugar into alcohol, so by the time it's bottled, dry wine has very little left. Dry whites land in a similar range.
That's specific to dry wines, though — sweet and dessert wines like port, Sauternes, and moscato stop fermentation early to preserve sugar, and can carry well over 8 g per glass, closer to a soft drink than a table wine. If sugar is the concern, 'dry' on the label is the word to look for.
Lower-sugar swaps
- Stick to labeled 'dry' wines if sugar is the concern, not sweet or dessert styles
- A wine spritzer — sparkling water with a splash of wine — to stretch a glass further
Frequently asked questions
- Is wine low in sugar?
- Dry wine, yes — about 1 g per glass, since fermentation converts almost all the grape sugar into alcohol. Sweet and dessert wines are a different story, with far more sugar left in.
- Which wines have the most sugar?
- Dessert and fortified wines like port, Sauternes, and moscato, which stop fermenting early — they can carry several times the sugar of a dry glass.
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Sugar values from USDA FoodData Central; actual amounts vary by brand, ripeness, and recipe. Last updated 2026-08-09.