Calcium Daily Value: 1,300 mg
The FDA Daily Value for calcium is 1,300 mg for adults and children 4+.
Key facts
- Adults & children 4+
- 1,300 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 700 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 1,300 mg
- Infants
- 260 mg
- On labels until 2020/2021
- 1,000 mg · increased Source (opens in a new tab)
- Label rounding
- Regulation: in mg, to the precision of the Daily Value; more decimals allowed for small amounts; under 2% DV may show 0% FDA guidance (nonbinding): nearest 10 mg
- 20% DV (high)
- 260 mg
Common amounts of calcium
Per serving, adults and children 4+.
- 50 mg is 4%
- 100 mg is 8%
- 200 mg is 15%
- 500 mg is 40%
- 1,000 mg is 80%
Calcium Daily Value: 700 mg
The FDA Daily Value for calcium is 700 mg for children 1–3 years.
- Adults & children 4+
- 1,300 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 700 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 1,300 mg
- Infants
- 260 mg
- Label rounding
- Regulation: in mg, to the precision of the Daily Value; more decimals allowed for small amounts; under 2% DV may show 0%
- 20% DV (high)
- 140 mg
Per serving, children 1–3 years.
- 50 mg is 8%
- 100 mg is 15%
- 200 mg is 30%
- 500 mg is 70%
- 1,000 mg is 140%
Calcium Daily Value: 1,300 mg
The FDA Daily Value for calcium is 1,300 mg for pregnant and lactating women.
- Adults & children 4+
- 1,300 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 700 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 1,300 mg
- Infants
- 260 mg
- Label rounding
- Regulation: in mg, to the precision of the Daily Value; more decimals allowed for small amounts; under 2% DV may show 0%
- 20% DV (high)
- 260 mg
Per serving, pregnant and lactating women.
- 50 mg is 4%
- 100 mg is 8%
- 200 mg is 15%
- 500 mg is 40%
- 1,000 mg is 80%
Calcium Daily Value: 260 mg
The FDA Daily Value for calcium is 260 mg for infants through 12 months.
- Adults & children 4+
- 1,300 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 700 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 1,300 mg
- Infants
- 260 mg
- Label rounding
- Regulation: in mg, to the precision of the Daily Value; more decimals allowed for small amounts; under 2% DV may show 0%
- 20% DV (high)
- 52 mg
Per serving, infants through 12 months.
- 10 mg is 4%
- 20 mg is 8%
- 100 mg is 40%
- 200 mg is 80%
About calcium
When a serving has less than 2 percent of the RDI, the label does not have to state the amount: it may show zero, or an asterisk that points to “Contains less than 2 percent of the Daily Value of this (these) nutrient (nutrients)”. Or, except on the simplified format, it may leave calcium off and print “Not a significant source of calcium” at the bottom of the nutrient table.
Questions about calcium
What is the FDA Daily Value for calcium?
The FDA Daily Value for calcium is 1,300 mg for adults and children 4 years and older. On a Nutrition Facts label, a serving's %DV for calcium is its amount divided by 1,300 mg, times 100.
How do I work out the %DV for calcium?
Divide the amount in one serving by 1,300 mg and multiply by 100. Then round to the nearest 2% up to 10%, to the nearest 5% above 10% and up to 50%, and to the nearest 10% above 50%. For example, 260 mg ÷ 1,300 mg × 100 = 20%.
How are vitamin and mineral %DV values rounded?
The percentages for vitamins and minerals shall be expressed to the nearest 2-percent increment up to and including the 10-percent level, the nearest 5-percent increment above 10 percent and up to and including the 50-percent level, and the nearest 10-percent increment above the 50-percent level.
Calcium rounding rules
Amount
Calcium is declared to the nearest 10mg. Measuring finer than that changes nothing on the label, except below 5mg, where it is declared to the nearest 5mg so a real amount is not printed as 0.
| Amount range | Rounding rule |
|---|---|
| 0 to <5 | nearest 5 mg |
| ≥5 | nearest 10 mg |
These mg increments come from FDA guidance, banded by this group's Daily Value.
% Daily Value
| %DV range | Rounding rule |
|---|---|
| 0 to 10% DV | Nearest 2% |
| >10 to 50% DV | Nearest 5% |
| >50% DV | Nearest 10% |
Every %DV a label can show
What a serving has to contain for a label to print each figure. The %DV is worked out from the actual amount, before that amount is rounded.
| If the label shows | The serving must contain |
|---|---|
| Nearest 2%0 to 10% DV | |
| 0% DV | 0 mg≤ amount <13 mg |
| 2% DV | 13 mg≤ amount <39 mg |
| 4% DV | 39 mg≤ amount <65 mg |
| 6% DV | 65 mg≤ amount <91 mg |
| 8% DV | 91 mg≤ amount <117 mg |
| 10% DV | 117 mg≤ amount <162.5 mg |
| Nearest 5%>10 to 50% DV | |
| 15% DV | 162.5 mg≤ amount <227.5 mg |
| 20% DV | 227.5 mg≤ amount <292.5 mg |
| 25% DV | 292.5 mg≤ amount <357.5 mg |
| 30% DV | 357.5 mg≤ amount <422.5 mg |
| 35% DV | 422.5 mg≤ amount <487.5 mg |
| 40% DV | 487.5 mg≤ amount <552.5 mg |
| 45% DV | 552.5 mg≤ amount <617.5 mg |
| 50% DV | 617.5 mg≤ amount <715 mg |
| Nearest 10%>50% DV | |
| 60% DV | 715 mg≤ amount <845 mg |
| 70% DV | 845 mg≤ amount <975 mg |
| 80% DV | 975 mg≤ amount <1,105 mg |
| 90% DV | 1,105 mg≤ amount <1,235 mg |
| 100% DV | 1,235 mg≤ amount <1,365 mg |
The rules are FDA's; the inversion is ours. Ranges are inclusive at the low end and exclusive at the high end, because an exact half rounds up.
Does the calcium Daily Value change for children or pregnancy?
Yes. It is 700 mg for children 1 to 3 years, stays 1,300 mg during pregnancy and lactation and is 260 mg for infants through 12 months.
How do I find out how much calcium is in a food?
A Daily Value is a reference target, not a measurement of any particular food. To find the calcium content of a specific ingredient or product, look it up in USDA FoodData Central, then use that amount here to see what a label would declare and what %DV it carries.
Where do these numbers come from?
- Daily Values and label rounding: FDA, 21 CFR 101.9, as of 2026-02-12.
- Calcium Daily Value: 21 CFR 101.9(c)(8)(iv).
- Calcium label rounding: 21 CFR 101.9(c)(8)(iii).
- %DV rounding: 21 CFR 101.9(c)(8)(iii).
- Old Daily Values: 21 CFR 101.9, April 1, 2016 edition.
- 5% low and 20% high: FDA's consumer page on the lows and highs of %DV.
- Dataset: bm-regulatory US Nutrition Label Rules v17.0.0.
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