The 9 Best Non-Sugar Sweeteners

Lakanto Classic is the product most people mean when they say monk fruit sweetener, and the reason is the format rather than the fruit. It is granulated, it pours like sugar, and the maker states it measures cup for cup, which means an existing recipe can be used unchanged.

The sweetness itself comes from monk fruit extract, which is many times sweeter than sugar and could never be measured by the spoon on its own. The erythritol is the carrier that gives the product volume, and it is doing most of the physical work in a mixing bowl.

That carrier is also the source of the one complaint that comes up repeatedly. Erythritol absorbs heat as it dissolves and produces a cooling sensation on the tongue, close to mint without the flavor. In chilled desserts it reads as refreshing. In a hot mug it can read as odd, and it is often blamed on the monk fruit rather than on the erythritol.

In baking it behaves well for structure and poorly for color. Cakes and cookies hold together, but nothing browns the way it does with sugar, so expect pale results and judge by time rather than by looking for a golden top.

Bottom line: the one product here that walks straight into an existing recipe, and the best first purchase in the category.

• Base: monk fruit extract with erythritol
• Format: granulated, white sugar style
• Conversion: maker states cup for cup with sugar
• Uses: coffee, tea, baking, cooking
• Label claims: zero calorie per serving, keto friendly
• Texture: fine granules, pours and scoops

Swap it into a recipe at the same volume the recipe calls for, then judge doneness by time and texture rather than by browning, since this will not color the way sugar does. In hot drinks, stir until fully dissolved before tasting, because undissolved granules exaggerate the cooling sensation. For chilled desserts it is at its best, since the cooling effect works with the dish rather than against it.

Choose this if you bake or cook and want one product that covers the whole kitchen. Choose a dextrose based packet instead if the cooling sensation of erythritol has put you off monk fruit blends before, and choose a liquid syrup if your main use is iced drinks where granules dissolve slowly. Anything about how a sweetener fits your own diet belongs with a doctor or dietitian rather than a label.

Truvia is the stevia packet most people meet first, and the packet format is the whole point. Each sachet is portioned to a standard coffee serving, so there is no measuring, no conversion, and no risk of over sweetening a mug.

The sweetness comes from stevia leaf extract, which is heat stable and therefore fine in hot drinks and in cooking. The carrier is erythritol, which is what gives the packet enough volume to pour and stir.

The carrier is also what divides opinion. Erythritol cools as it dissolves, and in a hot drink that sensation is at its most obvious. People who have tried a stevia packet built on dextrose instead often report a noticeably different experience from the same base sweetener.

The other well documented characteristic is stevia's own aftertaste, sometimes described as bitter and sometimes as faintly like licorice. Sensitivity varies enormously between individuals, and there is no way to know which camp you fall into without trying it.

Bottom line: the default stevia packet for the table, provided the erythritol cooling does not bother you.

• Base: stevia leaf extract with erythritol
• Format: single serve packets in a carton
• Conversion: about two teaspoons of sugar per packet
• Uses: coffee, tea, cereal, table sweetening
• Label claims: calorie free per serving
• Heat: stevia is stable at cooking temperatures

Buy this if you sweeten drinks rather than bake, want portion control without measuring, and have no strong reaction to stevia. Skip it if the cooling sensation of erythritol has bothered you in the past, in which case a dextrose carried stevia packet is the direct alternative, and skip it if what you actually need is a granulated product for recipes measured in cups.

Store the carton somewhere dry, since packets are paper and humidity clumps the contents. Keep the conversion in mind when sweetening by eye, because packets are far more concentrated than a spoon of sugar and doubling up is easy. Anything beyond what the label states about diet or health belongs with a doctor or a dietitian rather than a product description.

Splenda is the sucralose entry, and sucralose is the manufactured sweetener that tastes closest to neutral. There is no licorice tail and no metallic edge, which is why it converts people who have bounced off the plant extracts.

It is also heat stable, so unlike aspartame based products it survives cooking and hot drinks without losing sweetness. That makes it a genuinely general purpose table sweetener rather than a cold drink specialist.

The packets carry the sucralose on dextrose and maltodextrin. Both are carbohydrates, and both are declared on the nutrition panel even though the serving rounds to zero calories under labeling rules. If the carbohydrate figure matters to you, read the panel and the serving size together.

The large carton is the reason this earns the value slot. A household that sweetens several drinks a day gets through packets quickly, and the big box means the cupboard is restocked far less often.

Bottom line: the neutral tasting workhorse, and the sensible choice for a household that uses a lot.

• Base: sucralose with dextrose and maltodextrin carriers
• Format: single serve packets, large carton
• Conversion: about two teaspoons of sugar per packet
• Uses: coffee, tea, cereal, cooking
• Label claims: zero calorie per serving
• Heat: stable at cooking temperatures

Pick this if taste neutrality is your priority and you have found plant extracts distracting. Pick a granulated cup for cup product instead if most of your use is baking, since packets contribute no bulk. Pick an erythritol free formulation if sugar alcohols are what you are avoiding, and check the ingredient panel rather than the front of the box to confirm which carrier you are getting.

Use one packet where you would use two teaspoons of sugar, then adjust rather than starting from a spoon count. In cooking, add it late where possible so you can taste as you go, since concentrated sweeteners are difficult to walk back. Keep the carton closed and dry, because paper packets clump in a humid cupboard.

This is the stevia packet for people whose objection was never stevia. A large share of complaints about plant extract sweeteners are actually complaints about erythritol, and this formulation removes it, carrying the stevia on dextrose instead.

The practical difference shows up in a hot drink. Without erythritol there is no cooling sensation, so what you taste is the stevia and nothing else, which is a fairer test of whether the base sweetener suits you.

The trade off is on the nutrition panel. Dextrose is a carbohydrate, and although the serving size rounds to zero calories under labeling rules, it is declared. Anyone counting carbohydrates closely should read the panel and the serving size together rather than the front of the box.

Stevia's own character remains. The tail that some describe as bitter and others as faintly like licorice is a property of the extract, not of the carrier, so this product does not remove it.

Bottom line: the right stevia packet if erythritol is what put you off, and the wrong one if stevia itself was the problem.

• Base: stevia extract with dextrose carrier
• Erythritol: none in the formulation
• Format: single serve packets in a box
• Conversion: about two teaspoons of sugar per packet
• Label claims: zero calorie per serving, no artificial flavors
• Heat: stable in hot drinks and cooking

Buy this if you like the idea of stevia but found a previous blend strangely cool in coffee, since that effect comes from the erythritol this product leaves out. Skip it if you are avoiding all carbohydrate carriers, since dextrose is exactly that, and skip it if your objection to a previous stevia product was a bitter finish rather than a cool one.

Start with one packet in a mug and taste before adding a second, because concentrated sweeteners are hard to correct once they are in. In cooking, dissolve the packet into a liquid component rather than sprinkling it over a dry mix, which gives a much more even result. Keep the box dry so the paper packets do not clump.

Monk fruit is usually sold as a granulated baking product, so a packet version fills a real gap. This is the monk fruit profile in the format most people actually use at a table, which is a single serve sachet next to a mug.

Like the stevia packet from the same family, the carrier here is dextrose rather than erythritol. That removes the cooling sensation entirely, which suits hot drinks and makes the monk fruit character itself easier to judge.

Monk fruit is generally described as the cleanest of the plant extracts, with less of the tail that stevia is known for. That is a large part of why it has taken so much shelf space in recent years despite being the more expensive base to produce.

The carbohydrate note applies here as it does to every dextrose carried packet. The serving rounds to zero under labeling rules and the ingredient is still declared, so read the panel if that figure matters to you.

Bottom line: the easiest way to try monk fruit in a mug before committing to a baking sized bag.

• Base: monk fruit extract with dextrose carrier
• Format: single serve packets
• Conversion: about two teaspoons of sugar per packet
• Certifications: Non-GMO Project Verified, keto certified
• Label claims: zero calories, zero net carbs per serving
• Erythritol: none in the formulation

Choose this to sample the monk fruit profile without buying a granulated bag, or as a table companion to a baking product you already own. Choose a granulated cup for cup blend instead if you mostly bake, and choose sucralose if what you want is the most neutral taste rather than a specific plant extract.

Store the box somewhere dry, since paper packets take on moisture and clump. Certification marks such as Non-GMO Project Verified and keto certified describe published program criteria rather than nutrition outcomes, so read them as sourcing information. Questions about how any sweetener fits a particular diet belong with a doctor or a dietitian.

Xylitol is the odd one out in this list, and the difference is useful. It is a sugar alcohol of roughly the same sweetness as sugar rather than a concentrate hundreds of times stronger, so it measures close to one for one and needs no carrier at all.

That matters most in the oven. Bulk, moisture and texture are jobs sugar does beyond sweetness, and xylitol is the substitute here that comes closest to doing all of them, which is why bakers reach for it when the crumb is the priority.

The taste is clean, without the tail that stevia can leave or the metallic edge some people find in saccharin. It is also less cooling on the tongue than erythritol, though it is a sugar alcohol and shares some of that family character.

Two things belong on the label rather than in the marketing. It is described as low calorie rather than zero calorie, and the packaging carries a clear warning that xylitol is dangerous to dogs. In a house with a pet that warning decides where the bag lives.

Bottom line: the closest thing here to a straight swap for sugar in a recipe, with a warning that has to be respected.

• Base: pure xylitol, single ingredient
• Format: granulated, bulk bag
• Sweetness: close to one for one with sugar by volume
• Uses: baking, cooking, drinks
• Label claims: low calorie, low glycemic impact, keto friendly
• Warning: label states xylitol is dangerous to dogs

Keep this bag well out of reach of dogs and store it closed, because the label warning about xylitol and dogs is the most important line on the package. Sugar alcohols do not suit every digestive system, so introduce it gradually rather than swapping a full recipe on the first attempt. Store somewhere dry, since granulated xylitol clumps when it takes on moisture.

Swap it into a recipe at roughly the same volume as the sugar it replaces and expect a texture much closer to the original than any concentrate will give you. It dissolves readily in warm liquid and more slowly in cold, so stir well in iced drinks. For a first bake, replace part of the sugar rather than all of it and judge the result before going further.

Equal is one of the two packets everyone recognises from a diner table, and its formulation explains where it fits. Aspartame is paired with acesulfame potassium, and the pairing exists because two sweeteners together mask each other's rough edges better than either does alone.

It is also an erythritol free product, which is worth noting in a list where several entries carry that sugar alcohol. There is no cooling sensation here, so a hot drink tastes of the drink.

The heat limitation is the real constraint. Aspartame loses sweetness under sustained heat, which is why products built on it are aimed at the table and at cold drinks rather than at the oven. A cake sweetened with it can come out of the oven noticeably less sweet than the batter tasted.

The label carries the phenylketonurics statement about phenylalanine, which is a mandatory notice on aspartame products rather than a general caution. It is worth recognising on sight if it applies to your household.

Bottom line: a familiar table packet with a specific weakness in the oven.

• Base: aspartame with acesulfame potassium
• Erythritol: none in the formulation
• Format: single serve packets, large carton
• Conversion: about two teaspoons of sugar per packet
• Label claims: zero calorie per serving
• Required statement: phenylketonurics notice on the pack

Buy this if you already know you like the taste of the classic blue packet and want a large carton of it, or if you want a sweetener with no sugar alcohol in the ingredient list. Skip it if you bake, since aspartame is the wrong base for sustained heat, and skip it if the phenylketonurics statement on the label applies in your household.

Read the phenylketonurics statement on the carton, which is a required label notice on aspartame products and is there for a reason. Keep the box dry so the packets do not clump. Use it in drinks and at the table rather than in the oven, since sustained heat reduces the sweetness rather than harming anything.

Sweet'N Low is the oldest formulation on this list and the pink packet is instantly recognisable. Saccharin is extremely concentrated, several hundred times the sweetness of sugar, which is why a single small sachet does the work of a spoonful.

It is heat stable, so unlike aspartame it holds its sweetness in a hot drink or a saucepan. For anyone who sweetens tea all day, that stability is the practical advantage.

The characteristic that keeps it divisive is the metallic edge some people taste at the finish. Sensitivity varies, and it tends to show most in plain water or a weak tea where nothing else covers it. In coffee with milk it is far less noticeable.

As with every packet, the carrier provides the volume and the sweetener provides the sweetness, so there is nothing here to help a cake hold together. This is a table and drinks product.

Bottom line: buy it if you already like the pink packet, since taste is the entire decision with saccharin.

• Base: saccharin in single serve packets
• Format: paper sachets in a box
• Conversion: about two teaspoons of sugar per packet
• Label claims: zero calorie, low glycemic index, kosher, gluten free
• Heat: stable in hot drinks and cooking
• Uses: coffee, tea, table sweetening

Choose this if the pink packet is what you grew up with and the taste suits you, since that familiarity is the main reason to pick saccharin today. Choose sucralose instead if you want the most neutral profile among the manufactured sweeteners, and choose a granulated blend if any part of your use involves recipes measured in cups.

Add half a packet first in plain water or weak tea, where the finish is most exposed, and go from there. In coffee with milk the profile is far more forgiving, so a whole packet is a reasonable starting point. Keep the box in a dry cupboard, since paper packets clump with humidity.

Granulated sweeteners have one clear weakness, which is cold liquid. Erythritol blends in particular dissolve slowly and can recrystallise at the bottom of a glass of iced tea, leaving a gritty layer and an under sweetened drink.

A syrup solves that by arriving already in solution. It disperses on contact with a cold drink, which is why cafe counters and home bars use liquid sweeteners rather than sachets when iced drinks are the main output.

Speed is the second advantage. Pouring or pumping is faster than opening several packets, and for anyone making more than one drink at a time that difference adds up quickly.

What a syrup cannot do is contribute any bulk, so it has no place in a mixing bowl. It is also less precise than a portioned packet, since dosing by pour is a matter of judgment rather than measurement.

Bottom line: the right tool for iced drinks and the wrong tool for everything that goes in an oven.

• Format: liquid syrup in a bottle
• Base: sugar free sweetener syrup per the label
• Best use: iced coffee, cold drinks, bar mixing
• Dispersion: dissolves instantly in cold liquid
• Baking: provides no bulk, not a recipe substitute
• Dosing: by pour or with a pump fitting

Add the syrup to the drink before the ice rather than after, so it mixes through the liquid instead of chasing the cubes. Start with a small pour and taste, since it is easier to add than to correct. Fit a pump if you make several drinks at a time, which makes the dose repeatable instead of a guess.

Follow the storage instruction on the bottle once it is opened, since a large bottle of liquid keeps differently from a box of dry packets. Wipe the neck and the pump after use so the thread does not become sticky and seize. Keep it out of direct sun on a counter, which is hard on any bottled product.