Medjool vs Deglet Noor Date Labels: Serving by Count vs Grams, Sugars, Fiber and Potassium

Medjool and Deglet Noor are the two date varieties most US shoppers see, and their labels look alike until you read the serving line. A Medjool serving is two dates. A Deglet Noor serving is about six. The gram weights sit close together, so the per-serving numbers look close too, while the number of dates in your hand is very different. This guide reads both from one brand’s own records: Natural Delights Medjool Dates, Pitted and Natural Delights Organic Deglet Noor Dates.

Where the numbers come from

Natural Delights does not print a Nutrition Facts panel on its product pages, so we read the brand’s label data in USDA FoodData Central, which publishes branded food records with the serving text, nutrients and ingredient line. We used the Natural Delights Medjool Pitted Fresh Dates record (12 oz tub, published November 2023), the Natural Delights Medjool Dates record (12 oz, whole) and the Natural Delights Organic Deglet Noor Dates record (40 oz bag, published December 2022). Package text can change, so the tub in your hand wins over any record.

Side by side, per serving

Label line	Medjool, pitted (Natural Delights)	Deglet Noor, organic (Natural Delights)
Serving size	46 g (the whole-date record reads “2 DATES”; the pitted record gives grams only)	40 g, “6 pieces” (the record’s text reads “6 pleces”)
Calories	140	110
Total carbohydrate	33 g	30 g
Dietary fiber	4 g	3 g
Total sugars	30 g	27 g
Added sugars	0 g	no value in the record
Protein	1 g	1 g
Sodium	0 mg	0 mg
Potassium	281 mg	262 mg
Ingredients	Medjool dates	Organic Deglet Noor dates

Serving by count vs by grams

FDA’s reference amount for dried fruit is 40 g, and the table in 21 CFR 101.12 says the household measure for large pieces, naming dates, figs and prunes, is given as pieces with the grams in parentheses. That is why one label says 2 dates and the other says 6 pieces.

By our arithmetic, a Medjool in the whole-date record weighs about 23 g (46 g over 2 dates), and a Deglet Noor in the organic record weighs about 6.7 g (40 g over 6 pieces). One Medjool is roughly the weight of three to four Deglet Noor dates. If you count dates rather than weigh them, the per-date figures by our arithmetic come out to about 15 g of total sugars and 2 g of fiber per Medjool, and about 4.5 g of total sugars and 0.5 g of fiber per Deglet Noor. Pitted Medjools weigh less than whole ones because the pit is gone, and the pitted record does not give a count, so check your tub’s serving line before you count.

Per 100 g, by our arithmetic

To compare the fruit itself, divide by the serving weight. By our arithmetic from the records: Medjool, pitted, about 65 g total sugars, 8.7 g fiber and 611 mg potassium per 100 g; Deglet Noor, about 68 g total sugars, 7.5 g fiber and 655 mg potassium per 100 g. FoodData Central shows the same 611 mg and 655 mg potassium per 100 g in its own columns. Gram for gram the two varieties sit close; the gap you see per serving comes mostly from the 46 g vs 40 g serving weight.

The sugars line on a single-ingredient fruit

Both labels list close to 30 g of total sugars per serving. The added sugars line is a separate question. 21 CFR 101.9(c)(6)(iii) defines added sugars as sugars added during the processing of foods or packaged as such, including sugars from syrups and honey. The Medjool records list 0 g added sugars, and the ingredient line is only Medjool dates. The Deglet Noor record has no added sugars value at all, so we do not state one for it.

You may read about an FDA “single-ingredient” rule. In 2019, FDA issued final guidance on single-ingredient packages of pure honey, maple syrup and other single-ingredient sugars and syrups: those products do not have to declare grams of added sugars but must still show the percent Daily Value for added sugars. The guidance names pure sugars and syrups plus certain cranberry products. It does not name dates or other whole fruit, so it is not the reason a date label reads 0 g added sugars. Our snacks with 0 g added sugars list explains why a fruit snack can show 0 g added sugars and still carry a large Total Sugars number.

Pitted vs whole wording

Natural Delights sells both. The pitted Medjool page says the pit is the “one thing missing” and that “We remove them by hand”. The whole Medjool page sells the dates with pits in. We could not read a pit statement on any tub image online, so read the tub itself for any pit wording before you serve pitted dates whole or blend them.

Organic, origin and storage

The Deglet Noor product is sold as Organic Deglet Noor Dates, and its record’s ingredient line reads “Organic Deglet Noor Dates”. The pitted Medjool tub we cover is not sold as organic; Natural Delights sells a separate organic pitted tub. The Medjool page names Bard Valley, CA as the origin. We could not read storage directions on either package online, so store them the way your bag or tub says.

Dates as an ingredient in bars

Dates already show up on our site inside bars. Larabar Peanut Butter Chocolate Chip lists dates first, and RXBAR Chocolate Sea Salt uses dates to bind. Our RXBAR vs Larabar vs KIND label comparison covers those bars, so we do not repeat their numbers here.

Quick checklist

• Read the serving line in both units: pieces and grams.
• Count by our arithmetic: one Medjool is about three to four Deglet Noor dates by weight.
• Read Total Sugars and the Includes Added Sugars line separately.
• Check pitted vs whole on the front, and any pit wording on the tub.
• Follow the storage text on your package.

FAQ

Do Medjool dates have more sugar than Deglet Noor?

Per serving the Medjool record lists 30 g and the Deglet Noor record 27 g. Per 100 g, by our arithmetic, the two are close (about 65 g and 68 g). Per date, a Medjool carries much more because it is much heavier.

Why is a Medjool serving only 2 dates?

FDA’s reference amount for dried fruit is 40 g, given in pieces for large fruit such as dates. Two Medjools come to 46 g in the Natural Delights record; six Deglet Noor come to 40 g.

Do dates have added sugars?

The Natural Delights Medjool records list 0 g added sugars and an ingredient line of only Medjool dates. Chopped or coated dates can list more: the Natural Delights chopped Medjool record reads “Medjool dates, coconut flour”.

Are pitted dates always pit-free?

We can only tell you what the brand prints: Natural Delights says it removes the pits by hand. Read your tub for any pit statement.

Which has more potassium per serving?

The pitted Medjool record lists 281 mg per 46 g and the organic Deglet Noor record 262 mg per 40 g. Those are the figures the records show; we make no claim beyond them.

More: our Nutrition Facts label guide and the healthy snacks category.