Onion vs. Zucchini

Q: Does zucchini or onion have more calories?

Zucchini has 58% less calories than onion - zucchini has 17 calories per 100 grams and onion has 40 calories. For macronutrient ratios, onion is lighter in protein, much heavier in carbs and lighter in fat compared to zucchini per calorie. Onion has a macronutrient ratio of 10:88:2 and for zucchini, 24:62:14 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories. Macro Ratios from Calories:

Q: Does zucchini or onion have more carbohydrates?

Zucchini has 67% less carbohydrates than onion - zucchini has 3.1g of total carbs per 100 grams and onion has 9.3g of carbohydrates.

Q: Does zucchini or onion contain more Vitamin C?

Zucchini is a great source of Vitamin C and it has 142% more Vitamin C than onion - zucchini has 17.9mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and onion has 7.4mg of Vitamin C.

Nutrition comparison of Onion and Zucchini

Ever wonder how your favorite foods stack up against each other in terms of nutrition?

We compared the nutritional contents of onion versus zucchini (100g each) below using 2020 USDA and NIH data^[1].

Jump to:
Calories and Carbs
Protein
Fat
Vitamins
Minerals
Micronutrients
Omegas
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For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in onion and zucchini:

Zucchini has 58% less calories than onion.
Zucchini has 67% less carbohydrates than onion.
Zucchini has more riboflavin and niacin.
Zucchini is a great source of Vitamin C and potassium.

Detailed nutritional comparison of onion and zucchini is analyzed below. You can also visualize the nutritional comparison for a custom portion or serving size and see how the nutrition compares.

USDA sources for nutritional information: Onion (Onions, raw) and Zucchini (Squash, summer, zucchini, includes skin, raw) . Have a correction or suggestions? Shoot us an email.

Onion src

Zucchini src

Calories and Carbs

calories

Zucchini has 58% less calories than onion - zucchini has 17 calories per 100 grams and onion has 40 calories.

For macronutrient ratios, onion is lighter in protein, much heavier in carbs and lighter in fat compared to zucchini per calorie. Onion has a macronutrient ratio of 10:88:2 and for zucchini, 24:62:14 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.

Macro Ratios from Calories:

	Onion	Zucchini
Protein	10%	24%
Carbohydrates	88%	62%
Fat	2%	14%
Alcohol	~	~

carbohydrates

Zucchini has 67% less carbohydrates than onion - zucchini has 3.1g of total carbs per 100 grams and onion has 9.3g of carbohydrates.

dietary fiber

Onion has 70% more dietary fiber than zucchini - zucchini has 1g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and onion has 1.7g of dietary fiber.

sugar

Zucchini and onion contain similar amounts of sugar - zucchini has 2.5g of sugar per 100 grams and onion has 4.2g of sugar.

Protein

protein

Zucchini and onion contain similar amounts of protein - zucchini has 1.2g of protein per 100 grams and onion has 1.1g of protein.

Fat

saturated fat

Both zucchini and onion are low in saturated fat - zucchini has 0.08g of saturated fat per 100 grams and onion has 0.04g of saturated fat.

Vitamins

Vitamin C

Zucchini is a great source of Vitamin C and it has 142% more Vitamin C than onion - zucchini has 17.9mg of Vitamin C per 100 grams and onion has 7.4mg of Vitamin C.

Vitamin A

Zucchini has more Vitamin A than onion - zucchini has 10ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and onion does not contain significant amounts.

Vitamin E

Zucchini and onion contain similar amounts of Vitamin E - zucchini has 0.12mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and onion has 0.02mg of Vitamin E.

Vitamin K

Zucchini and onion contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - zucchini has 4.3ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and onion has 0.4ug of Vitamin K.

The B Vitamins

Zucchini has more riboflavin and niacin. Both onion and zucchini contain significant amounts of thiamin, pantothenic acid, Vitamin B6 and folate.

	Onion	Zucchini
Thiamin	0.046 MG	0.045 MG
Riboflavin	0.027 MG	0.094 MG
Niacin	0.116 MG	0.451 MG
Pantothenic acid	0.123 MG	0.204 MG
Vitamin B6	0.12 MG	0.163 MG
Folate	19 UG	24 UG

Minerals

calcium

Zucchini and onion contain similar amounts of calcium - zucchini has 16mg of calcium per 100 grams and onion has 23mg of calcium.

iron

Zucchini and onion contain similar amounts of iron - zucchini has 0.37mg of iron per 100 grams and onion has 0.21mg of iron.

potassium

Zucchini is a great source of potassium and it has 79% more potassium than onion - zucchini has 261mg of potassium per 100 grams and onion has 146mg of potassium.

Antioxidants and Phytonutrients

flavonoids

Naturally occuring in fruits and vegetables, flavonoids are associated with many health benefits and used in a variety of medicinal and pharmaceutical applications. ^[2]^[3]

For specific flavonoid compounds,

	Onion	Zucchini
apigenin	0.01 mg	~
luteolin	0.02 mg	~
isorhamnetin	5.01 mg	~
kaempferol	0.65 mg	~
myricetin	0.03 mg	~
Quercetin	20.3 mg	0.66 mg

carotenoids

Carotenoids are micronutrients commonly found in plants and some animal products. An example is beta-carotene, the notable carotenoid which is a popular source of Vitamin A.^[4]^[5]

For specific types of carotenoids,

	Onion	Zucchini
beta-carotene	1 UG	120 UG
lutein + zeaxanthin	4 UG	2125 UG

Omega-3 and Omega-6

omega 3s

For omega-3 fatty acids, zucchini has more alpha linoleic acid (ALA) than onion per 100 grams.

	Onion	Zucchini
alpha linoleic acid	0.004 G	0.061 G
Total	0.004 G	0.061 G

omega 6s

Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, both onion and zucchini contain small amounts of linoleic acid.

	Onion	Zucchini
linoleic acid	0.013 G	0.03 G
other omega 6	~	0.001 G
Total	0.013 G	0.031 G

Onion 100g ( 100 g )		Daily Values (%)
40KCAL 2%	135%	calories		17KCAL 1%
9.3G 4%	200%	carbohydrates		3.1G 1%
1.7G 7%	70%	dietary fiber		1G 4%
4.2G	68%	sugar		2.5G
0.1G 0.2%		total fat	220%	0.32G 1%
0.04G 0.2%		saturated fat	100%	0.08G 1%
0.01G		monounsaturated fat		0.01G
0.02G		polyunsaturated fat	348%	0.09G
G		trans fat		G
MG		cholesterol		MG
4MG 0.3%		sodium	100%	8MG 1%
		Vitamins and Minerals
UG %		Vitamin A	>999%	10UG 1%
7.4MG 10%		Vitamin C	143%	18MG 24%
IU %		Vitamin D		IU %
23MG 2%	44%	calcium		16MG 2%
0.21MG 1%		iron	76%	0.37MG 2%
10MG 3%		magnesium	80%	18MG 6%
146MG 6%		potassium	79%	261MG 11%
0.05MG 4%		thiamin (Vit B1)		0.05MG 4%
0.03MG 3%		riboflavin (Vit B2)	199%	0.09MG 9%
0.12MG 1%		niacin (Vit B3)	275%	0.45MG 3%
0.12MG 9%		Vitamin B6	33%	0.16MG 13%
0.12MG 3%		pantothenic acid (Vit B5)	67%	0.2MG 4%
19UG 5%		folate (Vit B9)	26%	24UG 6%
UG %		Vitamin B12		UG %
0.02MG 0.1%		Vitamin E	498%	0.12MG 1%
0.4UG 0.4%		Vitamin K	975%	4.3UG 5%
1.1G 2%		protein	9%	1.2G 2%
UG %		biotin (Vit B7)		UG %
6.1MG 1%		choline	56%	9.5MG 2%
MG %		chlorine		MG %
UG %		chromium		UG %
0.04MG 3%		copper	25%	0.05MG 4%
1.1UG 0%	>999%	fluoride		UG %
UG %		iodine		UG %
0.13MG 7%		manganese	38%	0.18MG 10%
UG %		molybdenum		UG %
29MG 4%		phosphorus	31%	38MG 5%
0.5UG 1%	150%	selenium		0.2UG 0.4%
0.17MG 2%		zinc	88%	0.32MG 4%
89G		Water	7%	95G
G		Starch		G
G		Alcohol		G
NO SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS (either food): Starch, Alcohol, chlorine, chromium, iodine, molybdenum, Vitamin D, biotin (Vit B7), Vitamin B12, cholesterol, trans fat.