How much Zinc do you need each day?

Daily needs depend on age, sex, pregnancy, lactation, health, and other factors. Use the requirement table on this page for general guidance.

Are high Zinc foods safe for everyone?

Food sources are suitable for many people, but medical conditions, medicines, allergies, supplements, and pregnancy can change what is safe.

Foodmanac nutrient guide

100 Foods High In Zinc With Benefits, Daily Needs and Warnings

Zinc supports immune function, wound healing, growth, taste, smell, and many enzymes.

Use this page to understand Zinc benefits, daily requirements, safety notes, and the top Foodmanac food sources.

See top Zinc foods Daily needs table Warnings

Zinc benefits in the body

Supports normal immune system function.
Helps wound healing and tissue repair.
Supports growth and development.
Helps normal taste and smell.
Plays a role in many enzyme reactions.

Who should pay attention?

Meat, seafood, dairy, beans, nuts, and seeds can add zinc.
Plant-based diets may need careful planning because phytates reduce absorption.
Pregnancy and lactation increase zinc needs.
Oysters are very high in zinc, so portion size matters.

How to use this list

Compare foods by measured database values.
Choose foods that fit your diet and culture.
Check serving size before judging a food.
Use medical advice for disease-specific diets.

Zinc daily body requirements

Daily needs change by age, sex, pregnancy, lactation, body size, health, medicines, and activity. The table gives general U.S. reference values for healthy people.

Zinc daily requirements by age, sex, and life stage
Group	Recommended intake
Children 1–3 years	3 mg/day
Children 4–8 years	5 mg/day
Ages 9–13 years	8 mg/day
Teen boys 14–18 years	11 mg/day
Teen girls 14–18 years	9 mg/day
Adult men	11 mg/day
Adult women	8 mg/day
Pregnancy	11–12 mg/day
Lactation	12–13 mg/day

These values are education guidance, not a personal prescription. Your clinician can adjust targets for medical conditions.

Zinc warnings and safe-use notes

Too much zinc can cause nausea and digestive upset.
Long-term high zinc intake can reduce copper status.
Zinc supplements can interact with some antibiotics.
Use high-dose zinc only with professional guidance.

Before you use the food ranking

A high value in the table does not automatically make a food best for everyone. Calories, allergies, sodium, added sugar, preparation, and portion size also matter.

Also, some foods are rich because they are dried, concentrated, fortified, or cooked. Compare similar serving sizes before making a meal decision.

Top 100 Foods High In Zinc

Foodmanac ranks these foods from the database nutrient values available for this nutrient. Amounts are shown exactly as stored in the food record.

Top foods ranked by Zinc amount
Rank	Food source	Zinc amount
1	Oysters, canned	98.90000000 mg
2	Mollusks, oyster, eastern, canned	91.00000000 mg
3	Mollusks, oyster, eastern, cooked, breaded and fried	87.10000000 mg
4	Mollusks, oyster, eastern, wild, cooked, moist heat	78.60000000 mg
5	Cereals ready-to-eat, RALSTON Enriched Wheat Bran flakes	64.30000000 mg
6	Mollusks, oyster, eastern, wild, cooked, dry heat	61.00000000 mg
7	Oysters, steamed	49.80000000 mg
8	Oysters, baked or broiled	48.80000000 mg
9	Mollusks, oyster, eastern, farmed, cooked, dry heat	45.20000000 mg
10	Oysters, raw	39.30000000 mg
11	Mollusks, oyster, eastern, wild, raw	39.30000000 mg
12	Mollusks, oyster, eastern, farmed, raw	37.90000000 mg
13	Mollusks, oyster, Pacific, cooked, moist heat	33.20000000 mg
14	Oysters, fried	30.00000000 mg
15	Incaparina, dry mix (corn and soy flours), unprepared	23.00000000 mg
16	Beverages, nutritional shake mix, high protein, powder	18.80000000 mg
17	Nutritional powder mix, high protein (Herbalife)	18.80000000 mg
18	Nutritional powder mix, high protein, NFS	18.80000000 mg
19	Oysters Rockefeller	18.80000000 mg
20	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, Cap'n Crunch's OOPS! All Berries Cereal	18.00000000 mg
21	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, OAT BLENDERS with honey & almonds	17.90000000 mg
22	Baby Toddler puffs, fruit	17.50000000 mg
23	Baby Toddler puffs, vegetable	17.50000000 mg
24	Babyfood, finger snacks, GERBER, GRADUATES, PUFFS, apple and cinnamon	17.50000000 mg
25	Beverages, UNILEVER, SLIMFAST Shake Mix, powder, 3-2-1 Plan	17.30000000 mg
26	Nutritional powder mix, sugar free (Slim Fast)	17.30000000 mg
27	Nutritional powder mix, high protein (Slim Fast)	17.30000000 mg
28	Nutritional powder mix (Slim Fast)	17.30000000 mg
29	Beverages, UNILEVER, SLIMFAST Shake Mix, high protein, whey powder, 3-2-1 Plan,	17.30000000 mg
30	Cereals ready-to-eat, RALSTON Corn Biscuits	17.10000000 mg
31	Wheat germ	16.70000000 mg
32	Cereals ready-to-eat, wheat germ, toasted, plain	16.70000000 mg
33	Mollusks, oyster, Pacific, raw	16.60000000 mg
34	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, Christmas Crunch	16.40000000 mg
35	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, CAP'N CRUNCH	16.20000000 mg
36	Cereals ready-to-eat, SUN COUNTRY, KRETSCHMER Wheat Germ, Regular	16.00000000 mg
37	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, CAP'N CRUNCH with CRUNCHBERRIES	15.60000000 mg
38	Nutritional powder mix, sugar free (Carnation Instant Breakfast)	15.40000000 mg
39	Beverage, instant breakfast powder, chocolate, sugar-free, not reconstituted	15.40000000 mg
40	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, CAP'N CRUNCH'S Halloween Crunch	15.40000000 mg
41	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, SWEET CRUNCH/QUISP	15.30000000 mg
42	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, CAP'N CRUNCH'S PEANUT BUTTER CRUNCH	15.30000000 mg
43	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, QUAKER CRUNCHY BRAN	15.30000000 mg
44	Peanut butter, chunky, vitamin and mineral fortified	15.10000000 mg
45	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, Blueberry MUFFIN TOPS Cereal	14.70000000 mg
46	Baby Toddler snack, NFS	14.50000000 mg
47	Peanut butter, smooth, vitamin and mineral fortified	14.40000000 mg
48	Peanut butter, vitamin and mineral fortified	14.40000000 mg
49	Babyfood, GERBER, GRADUATES Lil Biscuits Vanilla Wheat	14.20000000 mg
50	Cereals ready-to-eat, SUN COUNTRY, KRETSCHMER Honey Crunch Wheat Germ	13.90000000 mg
51	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, HONEY GRAHAM SQUARES	13.90000000 mg
52	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, QUAKER OAT CINNAMON LIFE	13.80000000 mg
53	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, QUAKER OAT LIFE, plain	13.80000000 mg
54	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, QUAKER Honey Graham LIFE Cereal	13.80000000 mg
55	Beverages, OVALTINE, Classic Malt powder	13.60000000 mg
56	Beverages, chocolate powder, no sugar added	13.60000000 mg
57	Chocolate beverage powder, light, dry mix, not reconstituted	13.60000000 mg
58	Formulated bar, MARS SNACKFOOD US, SNICKERS MARATHON Double Chocolate Nut Bar	13.60000000 mg
59	Milk, malted, dry mix, not reconstituted	13.60000000 mg
60	Beverages, OVALTINE, chocolate malt powder	13.60000000 mg
61	Beverages, rich chocolate, powder	13.60000000 mg
62	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, Maple Brown Sugar LIFE Cereal	13.50000000 mg
63	Cereals ready-to-eat, GENERAL MILLS, CHEERIOS	13.40000000 mg
64	Cereals ready-to-eat, RALSTON TASTEEOS	13.40000000 mg
65	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, Honey BUZZERS	12.90000000 mg
66	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER, KING VITAMAN	12.70000000 mg
67	Babyfood, cereal, oatmeal, dry fortified	12.70000000 mg
68	Baby Toddler cereal, oatmeal, dry	12.70000000 mg
69	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, COLOSSAL CRUNCH	12.50000000 mg
70	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, BERRY COLOSSAL CRUNCH	12.50000000 mg
71	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, MARSHMALLOW MATEYS	12.50000000 mg
72	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, COCO-ROOS	12.50000000 mg
73	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, Honey Nut SCOOTERS	12.50000000 mg
74	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, CINNAMON TOASTERS	12.50000000 mg
75	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, OAT BLENDERS with honey	12.50000000 mg
76	Wheat germ, crude	12.30000000 mg
77	Beef, chuck, short ribs, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, select, cooked, braised	12.30000000 mg
78	Seeds, cottonseed meal, partially defatted (glandless)	12.30000000 mg
79	Babyfood, cereal, Oatmeal, dry, GERBER, SINGLE GRAIN, fortified	12.30000000 mg
80	Agave, dried (Southwest)	12.10000000 mg
81	Baby Toddler cereal, oatmeal with fruit, dry	12.10000000 mg
82	Beef, chuck, short ribs, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, all grades, cooked, braised	12.00000000 mg
83	Beef, chuck, short ribs, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, choice, cooked, braised	12.00000000 mg
84	Veal, variety meats and by-products, liver, raw	12.00000000 mg
85	Formulated bar, MARS SNACKFOOD US, SNICKERS MARATHON Energy Bar, all flavors	11.90000000 mg
86	Cereals ready-to-eat, QUAKER WHOLE HEARTS oat cereal	11.90000000 mg
87	Formulated bar, MARS SNACKFOOD US, SNICKERS MARATHON Honey Nut Oat Bar	11.90000000 mg
88	Veal, variety meats and by-products, liver, cooked, pan-fried	11.90000000 mg
89	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, TOOTIE FRUITIES	11.70000000 mg
90	Seeds, cottonseed flour, partially defatted (glandless)	11.70000000 mg
91	Seeds, cottonseed flour, low fat (glandless)	11.60000000 mg
92	Beef, chuck, under blade pot roast, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, select, cooked, braised	11.50000000 mg
93	Beef, chuck, under blade steak, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, all grades, cooked, braised	11.40000000 mg
94	Beef, chuck, under blade steak, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, choice, cooked, braised	11.40000000 mg
95	Beef, chuck, under blade steak, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, select, cooked, braised	11.40000000 mg
96	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, Crispy Rice	11.40000000 mg
97	Beef, chuck, under blade pot roast, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, all grades, cooked, braised	11.30000000 mg
98	Beef, chuck, under blade pot roast, boneless, separable lean only, trimmed to 0" fat, choice, cooked, braised	11.20000000 mg
99	Veal, variety meats and by-products, liver, cooked, braised	11.20000000 mg
100	Cereals ready-to-eat, MALT-O-MEAL, Apple ZINGS	11.20000000 mg

Frequently Asked Questions

What does Zinc do in the body?

Zinc supports immune function, wound healing, growth, taste, smell, and many enzymes.

How much Zinc do I need each day?

Your need depends on age, sex, pregnancy, lactation, health, medicines, and other factors. Use the table above for general daily reference values.

Which foods contain the most Zinc?

The table ranks foods by Foodmanac database values. Always compare serving size and preparation before choosing a food.

Can too much Zinc be harmful?

Yes, excessive intake can be unsafe for some nutrients, supplements, and health conditions. Review the warnings above and seek medical advice when needed.

References

Foodmanac uses database values for rankings. Daily needs and warning notes are based on public nutrition references.