Nata de Coco Calories: Macros, Sugar, and Fiber per 100 g

Nata de coco is a chewy, translucent coconut gel produced by fermenting coconut water into bacterial cellulose, and its calorie count depends far more on the syrup it is packed in than on the gel itself. This guide answers how many calories nata de coco has, breaks the figure down by serving size, explains why no single USDA value exists, sets out the macros and fiber per 100 grams, shows why sugar differs between brands, covers whether draining lowers the count, compares it to other toppings, and outlines what importers should check on the label.

How Many Calories Are in Nata de Coco?

Nata de coco is a low-calorie food in its plain, drained form, and its calories climb substantially once the gel is packed in sugar syrup. The coconut gel carries little energy on its own, while a syrup-packed cup or can carries noticeably more.

The reason is structural. Plain nata de coco is bacterial cellulose, which the body cannot digest for energy, so the gel itself contributes very little. The higher numbers on retail packs come from the added syrup, not the coconut. Treat any single calorie figure as product-specific, and read the label on the pack in front of you.

Calories by Serving Size: 100 g, One Cup, and Single-Serve Cups

Calories per serving scale with the size of the cup and the amount of syrup it holds, so a small drained portion carries little while a large syrup-packed cup carries the most. A “per cup” figure is unreliable on its own, because cup weights differ between brands and are often left off the label.

The table below lists each figure exactly as its source reports it, with an approximate per-100-gram value only where the serving weight is stated:

Source	Form	Serving	Calories	≈ per 100 g
kinome.app	Database entry	100 g	8 kcal	8 kcal
anhhongfood.com	Bagged gel	100 g	50 kcal	50 kcal
eatthismuch.com	Nata de coco	180 g	130 kcal	≈ 72 kcal
sayweee.com (INACO)	In syrup, cup	118 g	109 kcal	≈ 92 kcal
boboteashop.com	Nata de coco	“1 cup” (weight not stated)	≈ 100–110 kcal	Not calculable

These figures come from individual product labels and user databases, so they describe specific products rather than nata de coco as a category. To track your intake, weigh the portion in grams and read the panel on that product.

Is There a USDA Value for Nata de Coco?

No, USDA’s FoodData Central has no standard entry for nata de coco, because it is a fermented, brand-specific product rather than a base commodity that USDA analyzes in a lab. Its Foundation and SR Legacy datasets return no match for the coconut gel; nata de coco appears only inside branded finished products, such as coconut-milk drinks, jelly cups, and dessert mixes.

Those branded entries do not represent the gel. They describe whole sweetened products — water, added sugar, and flavorings included — so their per-100-gram numbers reflect the drink or dessert, not the drained coconut jelly. A search for a single “USDA nata de coco” figure therefore returns products that share the name but not the composition.

Once the two forms are separated, the sources above give a clearer picture. Plain, drained gel is essentially water and bacterial cellulose, an insoluble dietary fiber, which keeps it very low in calories with no meaningful fat or protein. Syrup-packed retail products read higher, reported at roughly 72 to 92 kcal per 100 grams on specific labels, with the added sugar coming from the packing syrup rather than the coconut. Nata de coco itself forms when Komagataeibacter xylinus, formerly named Acetobacter xylinum, ferments coconut water into that cellulose gel.

Nata de Coco Macros and Fiber per 100 g

Plain, drained nata de coco provides mainly dietary fiber and water, with about 2 grams of fiber, roughly 2 grams of carbohydrate, and no meaningful fat or protein per 100 grams, according to the Kinome nutrition database. Because the carbohydrate is almost entirely indigestible fiber, the plain gel yields very few usable calories.

Syrup-packed retail products read differently, because the packing liquid adds sugar on top of that base. Two profiles are worth separating:

• Plain or drained gel: low calories, about 2 g fiber, about 2 g carbohydrate, 0 g fat, and 0 g protein per 100 g.
• Syrup-packed retail cups: higher calories from added sugar, with the sugar figure set by the syrup rather than the coconut.

For sugar tracking, the drained solids and the packing syrup must be counted separately, since the label often reports one basis and not the other.

Does Nata de Coco Have Fiber?

Yes, nata de coco is a source of insoluble dietary fiber, reported at about 2 grams per 100 grams for the plain gel (Kinome database). This fiber is bacterial cellulose, the structural material that the coconut-water fermentation produces.

Because the cellulose passes through the digestive tract largely intact, it adds bulk and chew without adding much energy. This is the trait that makes the drained gel a light topping. For its wider dietary role, see Is Nata De Coco Healthy? The Benefits Of Nata de Coco.

Why Do Nata de Coco Calories and Sugar Vary So Much by Brand?

Added sugar syrup is the primary driver of nata de coco calories and sugar content, because the gel itself has almost no digestible carbohydrate. Nearly all the usable energy and sugar in a sweetened product come from the syrup, not the coconut gel.

Three factors move the numbers: syrup type, brand formulation, and serving size. Syrups range from heavy sugar syrup to light syrup to fruit juice, each adding a different sugar load. Brands such as INACO, Jubes, and various Asian importers set their own syrup concentration and drain ratio. Larger cups and cans hold more syrup, and therefore more sugar, per pack. To learn how the ingredient is produced in the first place, see What Is Nata De Coco?.

Does Draining or Rinsing Nata de Coco Lower Its Calories?

Yes, draining and rinsing packaged nata de coco lowers its calories, because most of the sugar sits in the surrounding syrup rather than inside the gel. Removing the syrup removes the sugar it carries, so the drained gel retains fewer calories than the packed product.

The size of the reduction is not fixed. It depends on the syrup’s sugar concentration, how thoroughly you drain the liquid, and how much you rinse the surface. No controlled measurement of an exact percentage is available in the sources reviewed here, so treat any specific “rinsing removes X percent” claim with caution. The direction, however, holds reliably: the less syrup you retain, the fewer calories you consume.

How Does Nata de Coco Compare to Other Toppings?

Nata de coco tends to be lower in digestible carbohydrate than starch-based toppings, because its fiber-and-water structure differs fundamentally from tapioca. Tapioca pearls, the standard boba topping, are starch-based and often coated in sugar, so they generally contribute more digestible carbohydrate per serving than plain coconut gel.

Against fruit jellies and aloe vera cubes, the difference is driven by the packing syrup rather than the base: a topping in heavy syrup can rival or exceed nata de coco in sugar, while a lightly sweetened one can fall below it. Compare the drained-solids nutrition rather than the marketing name. For ways the gel is used across drinks and desserts, see Nata De Coco In Cuisine: A Wonderful Ingredient.

These differences matter even more at commercial volume, where the packing medium decides both the calorie declaration and the label a buyer must print.

What Buyers and Importers Should Check on the Label

Commercial buyers should read two label details before trusting a calorie figure: the Brix level of the syrup and whether the nutrition panel refers to drained weight or net weight. These two variables explain most of the gap between one supplier’s number and another’s.

Brix measures the dissolved solids in the syrup, which are mainly sugars, so a higher Brix indicates more sugar in the packing liquid and more calories from the syrup. Drain weight and net weight describe different things: net weight includes the syrup, while drain weight counts only the solid gel. A panel calculated on net weight and one calculated on drained solids can describe the same product yet report very different calories per serving.

For importers and F&B brands formulating low-sugar or zero-sugar lines, specifying the syrup Brix and stating the basis of the nutrition panel up front removes this ambiguity for the end customer. When sourcing in bulk, ask your supplier to confirm both figures per order — a request Nico handles for its ready-to-drink nata de coco range

Frequently Asked Questions About Nata de Coco Calories