Triscuit vs Wheat Thins: 0 g vs 4 g Added Sugar

Triscuit Original and Wheat Thins Original both list 3 g of dietary fiber per serving, but their labels differ on added sugar, sodium and ingredient count. Per serving, Triscuit Original (6 crackers, 28 g) lists 170 mg sodium and 0 g added sugars, while Wheat Thins Original (16 crackers, 31 g) lists 200 mg sodium and 4 g added sugars. This comparison puts the label facts side by side so you can weigh them against your own needs.

Key takeaways

• Per serving, Triscuit lists 170 mg sodium, 3 g fiber and 0 g added sugars. Wheat Thins lists 200 mg sodium, 3 g fiber and 4 g added sugars.
• Per 100 g (calculated from the panel values), Triscuit is about 607 mg sodium and 0 g added sugar. Wheat Thins is about 645 mg sodium and about 13 g added sugar.
• Triscuit's ingredient statement has 3 items. Wheat Thins lists 8 items, with leavening last, including three sweeteners: sugar, malt syrup and refiner's syrup.
• Both labels list a whole grain wheat ingredient first, and both contain wheat. The Wheat Thins product page FAQ states the cracker is not gluten free.
• The Wheat Thins product page says BHT is added to its packaging material, not to the crackers' ingredient list. The Triscuit page does not mention BHT.

Metric	Triscuit Original	Wheat Thins Original
Serving size	6 crackers (28 g)	16 pieces (31 g)
Sodium per serving	170 mg (7% DV)	200 mg (9% DV)
Added sugars per serving	0 g	4 g (8% DV)
Fiber per serving	3 g (11% DV)	3 g (11% DV)
Ingredient statement items	3	8
Sodium per 100 g (calculated)	about 607 mg	about 645 mg
Added sugar per 100 g (calculated)	0 g	about 13 g
BHT on packaging	Not disclosed on page	Stated on product page

Why do both crackers list 3 g of fiber but only one lists added sugar?

Both crackers list 3 g of dietary fiber per serving, but only Wheat Thins Original lists added sugars, at 4 g per serving. Fiber and sugar are separate lines on a Nutrition Facts panel, so an identical fiber number can sit next to very different sugar numbers.

The Triscuit Original panel lists no total sugars and no added sugars. The Wheat Thins Original panel shows 5 g total sugars, of which 4 g are added. The ingredient statements help explain the gap. Triscuit lists whole grain wheat, canola oil and sea salt. Wheat Thins lists sugar, malt syrup and refiner's syrup in addition to its wheat flour.

The panels present fiber and added sugars as separate lines and do not describe the quality of either one. Reading the two lines together shows that two crackers can carry the same fiber figure while differing on sweeteners.

How much sodium is in a serving of Triscuit Original vs Wheat Thins Original?

Triscuit Original lists 170 mg of sodium per 6-cracker serving (28 g), which is 7% DV. Wheat Thins Original lists 200 mg of sodium per 16-piece serving (31 g), which is 9% DV.

The Wheat Thins serving carries 30 mg more sodium, and it is also a larger serving by weight and by piece count. Because people may eat different numbers of crackers, the per-serving figure is only a starting point. The %DV printed on each panel is the most direct way to compare the two products against the same daily reference.

Which cracker has more added sugar per serving, and how does FDA define added sugars?

Wheat Thins Original lists 4 g of added sugars per serving (8% DV). Triscuit Original lists 0 g. Both values come from each product's Nutrition Facts panel, so the comparison is a direct reading of the labels.

FDA defines added sugars to include sugars added during processing and sugars that come from syrups. The Daily Value for added sugars is 50 g per day on a 2,000-calorie diet, according to FDA's added sugars guidance.

The Wheat Thins ingredient statement names three added sweeteners: sugar, malt syrup and refiner's syrup. The 4 g of added sugars is the total from all of them. The label does not break down how much of that 4 g comes from each sweetener, so that split is not disclosed.

How many ingredients are on the Triscuit Original vs Wheat Thins Original label?

Triscuit Original's ingredient statement has 3 items: whole grain wheat, canola oil and sea salt. The product page also states CONTAINS: WHEAT.

Wheat Thins Original's ingredient statement lists 8 items, with leavening as the last entry. The full list is:

• Whole grain wheat flour
• Canola oil
• Sugar
• Cornstarch
• Malt syrup
• Salt
• Refiner's syrup
• Leavening

The product page also says BHT is added to the packaging material to preserve freshness. That is a packaging note and not an ingredient.

Ingredient order matters because manufacturers list ingredients by weight, from most to least. Both labels list a whole grain wheat ingredient first. FDA's draft guidance on whole grain label statements says consumers should be able to use the ingredient statement to see whether the predominant or first ingredient is a whole grain, and that whole wheat flour should be considered a whole grain flour. That guidance is a draft from February 2006 and is non-binding. Grams of whole grain per serving are not disclosed for either cracker.

Are the fiber numbers really the same once serving size is factored in?

Yes on the panel, both crackers list 3 g of dietary fiber, which is 11% DV for each. The serving weights differ, however. Triscuit's serving is 28 g and Wheat Thins' serving is 31 g.

That means the same 3 g comes from a slightly larger amount of food in Wheat Thins. Calculated per 100 g, that is about 10.7 g of fiber for Triscuit and about 9.7 g for Wheat Thins; these figures are not printed on either package.

The serving sizes also differ in count, with 6 crackers in one and 16 pieces in the other. A reader who eats a different number of pieces will get a different fiber intake from the same box, so the panel's serving line is the right place to start.

What do the per-100 g numbers reveal that per-serving numbers hide?

Per-serving figures are convenient, but they depend on how many pieces make up a serving. Calculating per 100 g puts both products on a common base, using the panel values.

Calculated per 100 g, Triscuit Original has about 607 mg of sodium and 0 g of added sugar. Wheat Thins Original has about 645 mg of sodium and about 13 g of added sugar.

These per-100 g numbers are calculated from the Nutrition Facts values and are not printed on either package. They are useful for comparison, but they do not describe how much a person would eat. For more label examples from other snacks, see 6 Snacks People Scan Most, and What Their Labels Say.

What does the BHT packaging note on Wheat Thins mean?

The Wheat Thins Original product page states that BHT is added to the packaging material to preserve freshness. BHT is not listed in the ingredient statement, and the amount used is not disclosed. The Triscuit Original product page does not disclose this, so check the packaging you have in hand.

Are either of these crackers suitable for people who avoid gluten, sugar or sodium?

The Wheat Thins product page states in its FAQ that Wheat Thins are not gluten free, and both crackers contain wheat. The Triscuit product page says it contains wheat, but its gluten status is not disclosed on that page.

People with celiac disease or gluten sensitivity should not treat Wheat Thins as suitable based on these labels, and should not assume Triscuit is suitable because the page does not address gluten. People tracking added sugar will see 4 g per serving for Wheat Thins and 0 g for Triscuit. People tracking sodium will see 200 mg and 170 mg per serving.

How can you check added sugars and ingredient order on any cracker label?

The same checklist works for both crackers and for other packaged snacks. Start with the serving line, then move through the panel and the ingredient statement.

• Confirm the serving size in grams and in pieces before comparing numbers.
• Find the Added Sugars line and its %DV. Zero grams means no added sugars were listed for that serving.
• Compare sodium in milligrams and as %DV, using the same serving size for both products.
• Check fiber on the panel, and remember that a fiber number does not show how much of the product is whole grain.
• Read the ingredient statement from left to right, since ingredients are listed by weight.
• Look for sweeteners by name, including sugar, syrups and malt syrup, because they all count toward added sugars.
• Look for allergen or contains statements, such as CONTAINS: WHEAT.
• Note any packaging additives, such as BHT, which may be listed separately from the ingredients.

How do these two crackers compare with other snacks people scan?

The same label structure applies across the snack aisle. Savory crackers, cookies and chips can each have different sugar and sodium patterns per serving, so a single label is best read in context. For a savory pair, see Cheez-It vs Goldfish: Ingredients, Sodium and Calories.

When comparing across categories, use the same method: serving size first, then added sugars, sodium, fiber and ingredient order. The comparison is only as useful as the labels it is built from, so check the package you are reading.

Scan either box yourself with the Aurascan app to read each ingredient explained with its evidence.