Vitamin C Daily Value: 90 mg
The FDA Daily Value for vitamin C is 90 mg for adults and children 4+.
Key facts
- Adults & children 4+
- 90 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 15 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 120 mg
- Infants
- 50 mg
- On labels until 2020/2021
- 60 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 1 mg
- 20% DV (high)
- 18 mg
Common amounts of vitamin C
Per serving, adults and children 4+.
- 5 mg is 6%
- 10 mg is 10%
- 50 mg is 60%
- 100 mg is 110%
Vitamin C Daily Value: 15 mg
The FDA Daily Value for vitamin C is 15 mg for children 1–3 years.
- Adults & children 4+
- 90 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 15 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 120 mg
- Infants
- 50 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)
- 3 mg
Per serving, children 1–3 years.
- 0.5 mg is 4%
- 1 mg is 6%
- 2 mg is 15%
- 5 mg is 35%
- 10 mg is 70%
- 20 mg is 130%
Vitamin C Daily Value: 120 mg
The FDA Daily Value for vitamin C is 120 mg for pregnant and lactating women.
- Adults & children 4+
- 90 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 15 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 120 mg
- Infants
- 50 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)
- 24 mg
Per serving, pregnant and lactating women.
- 5 mg is 4%
- 10 mg is 8%
- 20 mg is 15%
- 50 mg is 40%
- 100 mg is 80%
Vitamin C Daily Value: 50 mg
The FDA Daily Value for vitamin C is 50 mg for infants through 12 months.
- Adults & children 4+
- 90 mg
- Ages 1–3
- 15 mg
- Pregnant/lactating
- 120 mg
- Infants
- 50 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)
- 10 mg
Per serving, infants through 12 months.
- 2 mg is 4%
- 5 mg is 10%
- 20 mg is 40%
- 50 mg is 100%
Questions about vitamin C
What is the FDA Daily Value for vitamin C?
The FDA Daily Value for vitamin C is 90 mg for adults and children 4 years and older. On a Nutrition Facts label, a serving's %DV for vitamin C is its amount divided by 90 mg, times 100.
How do I work out the %DV for vitamin C?
Divide the amount in one serving by 90 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, 18 mg ÷ 90 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.
Vitamin C rounding rules
Amount
Vitamin C is declared to the nearest 1mg. Measuring finer than that changes nothing on the label, except below 0.5mg, where it is declared to the nearest 0.1mg so a real amount is not printed as 0.
| Amount range | Rounding rule |
|---|---|
| 0 to <0.5 | nearest 0.1 mg |
| ≥0.5 | nearest 1 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 <0.9 mg |
| 2% DV | 0.9 mg≤ amount <2.7 mg |
| 4% DV | 2.7 mg≤ amount <4.5 mg |
| 6% DV | 4.5 mg≤ amount <6.3 mg |
| 8% DV | 6.3 mg≤ amount <8.1 mg |
| 10% DV | 8.1 mg≤ amount <11.25 mg |
| Nearest 5%>10 to 50% DV | |
| 15% DV | 11.25 mg≤ amount <15.75 mg |
| 20% DV | 15.75 mg≤ amount <20.25 mg |
| 25% DV | 20.25 mg≤ amount <24.75 mg |
| 30% DV | 24.75 mg≤ amount <29.25 mg |
| 35% DV | 29.25 mg≤ amount <33.75 mg |
| 40% DV | 33.75 mg≤ amount <38.25 mg |
| 45% DV | 38.25 mg≤ amount <42.75 mg |
| 50% DV | 42.75 mg≤ amount <49.5 mg |
| Nearest 10%>50% DV | |
| 60% DV | 49.5 mg≤ amount <58.5 mg |
| 70% DV | 58.5 mg≤ amount <67.5 mg |
| 80% DV | 67.5 mg≤ amount <76.5 mg |
| 90% DV | 76.5 mg≤ amount <85.5 mg |
| 100% DV | 85.5 mg≤ amount <94.5 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 vitamin C Daily Value change for children or pregnancy?
Yes. It is 15 mg for children 1 to 3 years, is 120 mg during pregnancy and lactation and is 50 mg for infants through 12 months.
How do I find out how much vitamin C is in a food?
A Daily Value is a reference target, not a measurement of any particular food. To find the vitamin C 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.
- Vitamin C Daily Value: 21 CFR 101.9(c)(8)(iv).
- Vitamin C 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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