What Does the Number on Your Chocolate Bar Mean? How to Read Cacao Percentages

Choosing chocolate shouldn’t feel like decoding a math problem so let’s take a moment and chat about what that number means on the front of your chocolate bar - the cacao percentage.

The percentage you see printed on a chocolate bar always – and we mean always – refers to the amount of cacao by weight, or more commonly, the percentage. This includes any part of the cacao bean – cacao solids (which provide chocolate’s characteristic flavor), cocoa butter (fat, makes white chocolate), or magic (needs no explanation).

So, a bar with 70% on the label, means that 70% of the bar is cacao. The other 30% is sugar and then, anything else that goes in the bar, such as a sprinkling of sea salt, perhaps, some whole almonds, freeze dried raspberries, or anything else the chocolate maker’s heart desires.

But, you say, what about milk chocolate? Remember what we said above. The percentage always refers to the percentage of cacao, with the rest being milk (and other inclusions). Yes, sometimes a milk chocolate has milk or sugar listed first because there is more milk or sugar – by weight – than cacao. And yet, the percentage still and always indicates the amount of cacao in your chocolate bar.

The FDA sets the legal definition of chocolate and focuses on the minimums needed to be classified as such. However, most of the bars you see on shelves will clear them by a wide margin. Here’s a quick reference guide to help you navigate the most common types of chocolate based on cacao percentages:

Of course, there are many exceptions. Some dark chocolates contain less than 50% cacao, while some milk chocolates contain more. There is even an unofficial category of "darkmilk" chocolate, which is chocolate that has a higher cacao percentage (like dark chocolate) but with the characteristic smoothness and creaminess of milk chocolate.

The percentage indicates nothing about the quality of a bar. A 95% percentage bar doesn’t mean anything except that the bar has a high amount of cacao and a low amount of sugar (healthier, if sugar is the marker of interest). Similarly, a low percentage 33% milk chocolate bar doesn’t mean that it is low quality; it just means that there is very little cacao in the bar, and more milk and sugar.

Think of the cacao percentage as a guide to sweetness and flavor intensity. Understanding the number on the labels will help you pick chocolate that suits your own personal taste. Great chocolate comes in every percentage!