Wheat Flour vs. Wheat Germ

Nutrition comparison of Wheat Flour and Wheat Germ

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

We compared the nutritional contents of wheat flour versus wheat germ (100g each) below using 2020 USDA and NIH data[1].

For a quick recap of significant nutrients and differences in wheat flour and wheat germ:

  • Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in calories, carbohydrates, dietary fiber, iron and protein.
  • Wheat flour has 5.8 times less saturated fat than wheat germ.
  • Wheat germ has more thiamin, pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6.
  • Wheat germ is an excellent source of potassium.
Detailed nutritional comparison of wheat flour and wheat germ 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: Wheat Flour (Wheat flour, white, bread, enriched) and Wheat Germ (Wheat germ, crude) . Have a correction or suggestions? Shoot us an email.

Image of Wheat Flour src
Image of Wheat Germ src

Calories and Carbs

calories

Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in calories. Wheat germ is very similar to wheat germ for calories - wheat germ has 360 calories per 100 grams and wheat flour has 361 calories.

For macronutrient ratios, wheat flour is lighter in protein, much heavier in carbs and lighter in fat compared to wheat germ per calorie. Wheat flour has a macronutrient ratio of 14:82:4 and for wheat germ, 24:54:23 for protein, carbohydrates and fat from calories.

Macro Ratios from Calories:

Wheat Flour Wheat Germ
Protein 14% 24%
Carbohydrates 82% 54%
Fat 4% 23%
Alcohol ~ ~

carbohydrates

Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in carbohydrates. Wheat flour has 40% more carbohydrates than wheat germ - wheat germ has 51.8g of total carbs per 100 grams and wheat flour has 72.5g of carbohydrates.

dietary fiber

Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in dietary fiber. Wheat germ has 450% more dietary fiber than wheat flour - wheat germ has 13.2g of dietary fiber per 100 grams and wheat flour has 2.4g of dietary fiber.

sugar

Wheat flour and wheat germ contain similar amounts of sugar - wheat flour has 0.31g of sugar per 100 grams and wheat germ does not contain significant amounts.

Protein

protein

Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in protein. Wheat germ has 93% more protein than wheat flour - wheat germ has 23.2g of protein per 100 grams and wheat flour has 12g of protein.

Fat

saturated fat

Wheat flour has 5.8 times less saturated fat than wheat germ - wheat germ has 1.7g of saturated fat per 100 grams and wheat flour has 0.24g of saturated fat.

Vitamins

Vitamin A

Wheat flour and wheat germ contain similar amounts of Vitamin A - wheat flour has 0.6ug of Vitamin A per 100 grams and wheat germ does not contain significant amounts.

Vitamin E

Wheat flour has more Vitamin E than wheat germ - wheat flour has 0.4mg of Vitamin E per 100 grams and wheat germ does not contain significant amounts.

Vitamin K

Wheat flour and wheat germ contain similar amounts of Vitamin K - wheat flour has 0.3ug of Vitamin K per 100 grams and wheat germ does not contain significant amounts.

The B Vitamins

Wheat germ has more thiamin, pantothenic acid and Vitamin B6. Both wheat flour and wheat germ contain significant amounts of riboflavin, niacin and folate.

Wheat Flour Wheat Germ
Thiamin 0.812 MG 1.882 MG
Riboflavin 0.512 MG 0.499 MG
Niacin 7.554 MG 6.813 MG
Pantothenic acid 0.438 MG 2.257 MG
Vitamin B6 0.037 MG 1.3 MG
Folate 183 UG 281 UG

Minerals

calcium

Wheat germ has 160% more calcium than wheat flour - wheat germ has 39mg of calcium per 100 grams and wheat flour has 15mg of calcium.

iron

Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in iron. Wheat germ has 42% more iron than wheat flour - wheat germ has 6.3mg of iron per 100 grams and wheat flour has 4.4mg of iron.

potassium

Wheat germ is an excellent source of potassium and it has 792% more potassium than wheat flour - wheat germ has 892mg of potassium per 100 grams and wheat flour has 100mg of potassium.

Omega-3 and Omega-6

omega 3s

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

Wheat Flour Wheat Germ
alpha linoleic acid 0.043 G 0.723 G
Total 0.043 G 0.723 G

omega 6s

Comparing omega-6 fatty acids, wheat germ has more linoleic acid than wheat flour per 100 grams.

Wheat Flour Wheat Germ
linoleic acid 0.685 G 5.287 G
Total 0.685 G 5.287 G


Customize your serving size


The comparison below is by common portions, e.g. cups, packages. You can also see a more concrete comparison by weight at equal weight (by grams) comparison.

Note: The specific food items compared are: Wheat Flour (Wheat flour, white, bread, enriched) and Wheat Germ (Wheat germ, crude) .

Wheat Flour 137g

( cup )
Daily Values (%)

Wheat Germ 115g

( cup )
495KCAL 25%
20% calories
414KCAL 21%
99G 40%
65% carbohydrates
60G 24%
3.3G 13%
dietary fiber 355%
15G 61%
0.42G >999% sugar
2.3G 4%
total fat 378%
11G 18%
0.33G 2%
saturated fat 476%
1.9G 11%
0.19G monounsaturated fat 742% 1.6G
1G polyunsaturated fat 590% 6.9G
2.7MG 0.2%
sodium 419%
14MG 1%
Vitamins and Minerals
0.82UG 0.1%
>999% Vitamin A
21MG 2%
calcium 114%
45MG 5%
6MG 34%
iron 20%
7.2MG 40%
34MG 11%
magnesium 709%
275MG 89%
137MG 6%
potassium 649%
1026MG 45%
1.1MG 101%
thiamin (Vit B1) 100%
2.2MG 197%
0.7MG 64%
23% riboflavin (Vit B2)
0.57MG 52%
10MG 74%
28% niacin (Vit B3)
7.8MG 56%
0.05MG 4%
Vitamin B6 >999%
1.5MG 115%
0.6MG 12%
pantothenic acid (Vit B5) 333%
2.6MG 52%
251UG 63%
folate (Vit B9) 29%
323UG 81%
0.55MG 4%
>999% Vitamin E
0.41UG 1%
>999% Vitamin K
16G 33%
protein 69%
27G 53%
14MG 3%
>999% choline
0.25MG 21%
copper 268%
0.92MG 76%
1.1MG 60%
manganese >999%
15MG 850%
133MG 19%
phosphorus 628%
968MG 138%
54UG 99%
selenium 69%
91UG 166%
1.2MG 15%
zinc >999%
14MG 177%
18G 38% Water 13G


NO SIGNIFICANT AMOUNTS (either food): Starch, Alcohol, chlorine, chromium, fluoride, iodine, molybdenum, Vitamin D, Vitamin C, biotin (Vit B7), Vitamin B12, cholesterol, trans fat.

FAQ

Does wheat germ or wheat flour contain more calories in 100 grams?
Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in calories. Wheat germ is quite similar to wheat germ for calories - wheat germ has 360 calories in 100g and wheat flour has 361 calories.

Does wheat germ or wheat flour have more carbohydrates?
By weight, both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in carbohydrates. wheat flour has 40% more carbohydrates than wheat germ - wheat germ has 51.8g of carbs for 100g and wheat flour has 72.5g of carbohydrates.

Does wheat germ or wheat flour contain more iron?
Both wheat germ and wheat flour are high in iron. Wheat germ has 40% more iron than wheat flour - wheat germ has 6.3mg of iron in 100 grams and wheat flour has 4.4mg of iron.

Does wheat germ or wheat flour contain more potassium?
Wheat germ is a rich source of potassium and it has 790% more potassium than wheat flour - wheat germ has 892mg of potassium in 100 grams and wheat flour has 100mg of potassium.