# Cholesterol: FDA Daily Value

The FDA Daily Value for Cholesterol is 300 mg for adults and children 4 or more years of age (§ 101.9(c)(9)). It changes by population group; see the table below.

**URL:** https://bettermenu.live/tools/rda/cholesterol/
**Provider:** BetterMenu (https://bettermenu.live)
**Dataset:** US Nutrition Label Rules v17.0.0 (CFR snapshot: 2026-02-12)
**Type:** DRV (Daily Reference Value), a fixed amount not tied to calories
**Unit:** mg
**Citation:** § 101.9(c)(9)

## Daily Value by population group

Source: FDA, § 101.9(c)(9). "Not applicable" means the nutrient is absent from that group's FDA table; "No DV" means it is listed with no established value.

| Population group | Daily Value | Low (5% of DV) | High (20% of DV) |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Adults & children 4+ | 300 mg | 15 mg | 60 mg |
| Children 1–3 years | 300 mg | 15 mg | 60 mg |
| Pregnant & lactating | 300 mg | 15 mg | 60 mg |
| Infants 0–12 months | Not applicable | n/a | n/a |

## Before 2016

For adults and children 4+, labels until 2020/2021 showed 300 mg. Now 300 mg. Unchanged.

Source: 21 CFR 101.9(c)(9), edition revised as of April 1, 2016. "Cholesterol | milligrams (mg) | 300" (columns: Food component | Unit of measurement | DRV)

The 2016 rule took effect on July 26, 2016 (81 FR 33742). Labels had to use the new values by January 1, 2020 for manufacturers with $10 million or more in annual food sales, and by January 1, 2021 for smaller ones (83 FR 19619). Values are for adults and children 4 or more years of age (21 CFR 101.9(c)(8)(i)).

- [View the 2016 edition (govinfo.gov)](https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CFR-2016-title21-vol2/pdf/CFR-2016-title21-vol2-sec101-9.pdf)
- [View the rule, 81 FR 33742 (Federal Register)](https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2016/05/27/2016-11867/food-labeling-revision-of-the-nutrition-and-supplement-facts-labels)

## How is cholesterol declared on a Nutrition Facts label?

Cholesterol is a required line on the Nutrition Facts label, stated in milligrams per serving. (21 CFR 101.9(c)(3)) A product with less than 2 milligrams per serving that makes no claim about fat, fatty acids or cholesterol may leave it off or state it as zero. (21 CFR 101.9(c)(3)) Except on the simplified format, a label that leaves it off says “Not a significant source of cholesterol” at the bottom of the nutrient table. (21 CFR 101.9(c)(3)) Its %DV is highlighted, for example in bold type. (21 CFR 101.9(d)(1)(iv))

## How %DV is calculated

1. Divide the amount of cholesterol in one serving by its Daily Value (300 mg), and multiply by 100.
2. Round the result with this nutrient's %DV rounding table (§ 101.9(d)(7)(ii)), shown below.
3. 21 CFR 101.9(d)(7)(ii) permits either the actual amount in the serving or the amount declared on the label (itself rounded) as the basis for step 1.
4. FDA reads 5% DV or less as a little and 20% DV or more as a lot.

## Label rounding rules

- Regulation: 0 below 2 mg · nearest 5 mg above; 2 to 5 mg may read “less than 5 mg”

### Amount

Source: FDA, § 101.9(c)(3)

| Amount range (mg) | Declared as |
| --- | --- |
| 0 to <2 | declare 0 |
| 2 to 5 | less than 5 milligrams |
| ≥2 | nearest 5 mg |

### % Daily Value

Source: FDA, § 101.9(d)(7)(ii)

| %DV range | Rounded to |
| --- | --- |
| ≥0% DV | Nearest 1% |

## Related

- HTML page: https://bettermenu.live/tools/rda/cholesterol/
- All FDA Daily Values: https://bettermenu.live/tools/rda.md
- Machine-readable dataset: https://bettermenu.live/tools/rda/data.json