How many calories are in cherries?
A cup, without pits (154 g) has 97 calories. Per 100 grams, cherries has 63 calories. A cup of cherries has about 25 g of carbohydrate, most of it natural sugar (roughly 20 g), with 3.2 g of fiber. Cherries sit between strawberries and grapes on the sugar scale.
Cherries nutrition facts
| Nutrient | Per cup, without pits (154 g) | Per 100 g |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 97 | 63 |
| Protein | 1.6 g | 1.1 g |
| Carbohydrate | 24.7 g | 16 g |
| Fiber | 3.2 g | 2.1 g |
| Sugar | 19.7 g | 12.8 g |
| Fat | 0.3 g | 0.2 g |
| Potassium | 342 mg | 222 mg |
| Vitamin C | 11 mg | 7 mg |
Values from Cherries, sweet, raw (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 171719). Figures vary with variety, ripeness, and preparation.
The calories you might not be counting
Fresh cherries are a reasonable 97 calories per cup. The dried version is a different food. Drying removes water and concentrates sugar, pushing a quarter-cup of dried cherries to about 130 calories, close to the same weight as a full cup of fresh. Most trail mixes and granola use dried sweetened cherries, which have added sugar on top of the concentrated natural sugar. Maraschino cherries are soaked in sugar syrup and corn syrup, so a single jar cherry is about 8 calories of pure added sugar despite being smaller than a fresh one. Cherry pie filling cooks the fruit down with sugar and cornstarch until a half-cup serving reaches 150 to 170 calories. Chocolate-covered cherries double the count again. Forkd distinguishes fresh from dried, maraschino, and pie-filling cherries so the 97-calorie cup does not inherit the candy version.
Calories by size
A single sweet cherry weighs about 8 g and has roughly 5 calories, so ten cherries come to about 52. A cup without pits (154 g) is about 97 calories, while a cup measured with pits (138 g edible) is about 87. Because cherries are small and easy to pop one at a time, a sitting can cover two cups without registering as a large serving.
| Size | Weight | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| Cup, without pits | 154 g | 97 |
| Cup, with pits | 138 g | 87 |
| 10 cherries | 82 g | 52 |
| 1 cherry | 8.2 g | 5 |
Scanning cherries with Forkd catches the exact portion and the hidden extras this page just described, the oil, the dressing, the topping a photo alone would miss.
Cherries calories: common questions
How many calories are in 10 cherries?
Ten sweet cherries (about 82 g) have roughly 52 calories, with 13 g of carbohydrate and about 1 g of protein.
Are cherries good for weight loss?
Fresh cherries are a moderate-calorie fruit at 63 per 100 g, with enough fiber and water to be filling. The risk is portion creep: cherries are small and easy to eat mindlessly, so two cups (about 194 calories) can disappear in a sitting without feeling like a large amount.
Are cherries high in sugar?
A cup of sweet cherries has about 20 g of natural sugar, which is moderate to high for fruit. The fiber (3.2 g per cup) slows absorption, and the sugar is natural rather than added, so the glycemic impact is more moderate than the number suggests.
How do dried cherries compare to fresh?
Dried cherries are far more calorie-dense. A quarter-cup of dried sweetened cherries has about 130 calories, roughly the same as a full cup of fresh. Most dried cherries also have added sugar, pushing the total higher.
Keep going
Sources: Cherries, sweet, raw (USDA FoodData Central, FDC ID 171719). Reviewed against USDA FoodData Central reference portions.
This page is for general educational purposes only and is not medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Nutrition values are estimates sourced from USDA FoodData Central and may vary by variety, preparation, and portion. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making significant changes to your diet.