Tuna vs. Sardines — In-Depth Nutrition Comparison

Compare

How are tuna and sardines different?

Tuna is higher in vitamin B3, selenium, and vitamin B6; however, sardines are richer in vitamin B12, calcium, iron, phosphorus, copper, and vitamin D*.
Daily need coverage for vitamin B12 for sardines is 275% higher.
Tuna contains 6 times more vitamin B6 than sardines. While tuna contains 1.038mg of vitamin B6, sardines contain only 0.167mg.
Tuna has less cholesterol.

Fish, tuna, yellowfin, fresh, cooked, dry heat and Fish, sardine, Atlantic, canned in oil, drained solids with bone are the varieties used in this article.

Infographic

Infographic link

Mineral Comparison

Mineral comparison score is based on the number of minerals by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" charts below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food.

Tuna

Sardines

Contains more PotassiumPotassium	+32.7%
Contains less SodiumSodium	-82.4%
Contains more SeleniumSelenium	+105.3%

Contains more CalciumCalcium	+9450%
Contains more IronIron	+217.4%
Contains more CopperCopper	+332.6%
Contains more ZincZinc	+191.1%
Contains more PhosphorusPhosphorus	+47.1%
Contains more ManganeseManganese	+730.8%

~equal in Magnesium ~39mg

Vitamin Comparison

Vitamin comparison score is based on the number of vitamins by which one or the other food is richer. The "coverage" charts below show how much of the daily needs can be covered by 300 grams of the food.

Tuna

Sardines

Contains more Vitamin B1Vitamin B1	+67.5%
Contains more Vitamin B3Vitamin B3	+320.8%
Contains more Vitamin B6Vitamin B6	+521.6%

Contains more Vitamin DVitamin D	+140%
Contains more Vitamin AVitamin A	+45.5%
Contains more Vitamin EVitamin E	+603.4%
Contains more Vitamin B2Vitamin B2	+65.7%
Contains more Vitamin B5Vitamin B5	+92.2%
Contains more Vitamin B12Vitamin B12	+280.4%
Contains more Vitamin KVitamin K	+2500%
Contains more FolateFolate	+400%

~equal in Vitamin C ~0mg

All nutrients comparison - raw data values

Nutrient			DV% diff.
Vitamin B12	2.35µg	8.94µg	275%
Vitamin B3	22.07mg	5.245mg	105%
Selenium	108.2µg	52.7µg	101%
Vitamin B6	1.038mg	0.167mg	67%
Calcium	4mg	382mg	38%
Polyunsaturated fat	0.175g	5.148g	33%
Cholesterol	47mg	142mg	32%
Iron	0.92mg	2.92mg	25%
Phosphorus	333mg	490mg	22%
Fats	0.59g	11.45g	17%
Copper	0.043mg	0.186mg	16%
Vitamin D*	82 IU	193 IU	14%
Vitamin D	2µg	4.8µg	14%
Vitamin E	0.29mg	2.04mg	12%
Sodium	54mg	307mg	11%
Protein	29.15g	24.62g	9%
Monounsaturated fat	0.138g	3.869g	9%
Zinc	0.45mg	1.31mg	8%
Vitamin B2	0.137mg	0.227mg	7%
Vitamin B5	0.334mg	0.642mg	6%
Saturated fat	0.205g	1.528g	6%
Vitamin B1	0.134mg	0.08mg	5%
Calories	130kcal	208kcal	4%
Potassium	527mg	397mg	4%
Manganese	0.013mg	0.108mg	4%
Vitamin K	0.1µg	2.6µg	2%
Folate	2µg	10µg	2%
Magnesium	42mg	39mg	1%
Vitamin A	22µg	32µg	1%
Protein per 100 calories	22g	12g	N/A
Calories per 10 g protein	45kcal	84kcal	N/A
Weight per 100 calories	77g	48g	N/A
Unsaturated / Saturated Fat ratio	1.5	5.9	N/A
Trans fat	0.02g		N/A
Choline	77.6mg	75mg	0%
Tryptophan	0.313mg	0.276mg	0%
Threonine	1.224mg	1.079mg	0%
Isoleucine	1.287mg	1.134mg	0%
Leucine	2.27mg	2.001mg	0%
Lysine	2.565mg	2.26mg	0%
Methionine	0.827mg	0.729mg	0%
Phenylalanine	1.091mg	0.961mg	0%
Valine	1.438mg	1.268mg	0%
Histidine	0.822mg	0.725mg	0%
Omega-3 - EPA	0.015g	0.473g	N/A
Omega-3 - DHA	0.105g	0.509g	N/A
Omega-3 - DPA	0.005g	0g	N/A
Omega-6 - Eicosadienoic acid	0.002g		N/A