Red meat and poultry dominate this ranking because their iron binds easily to the proteins that carry oxygen through your blood. Animal tissues contain haem iron, the form your body absorbs with the fewest obstacles. Plant foods hold non-haem iron, which your gut takes up less readily and only when other compounds in the meal do not block it.
Iron concentrates in organ meats, then muscle meats, then leafy greens and legumes. A single ranking cannot show you absorption rates. Two foods with the same iron count per 100 g deliver different amounts to your bloodstream depending on what else you eat alongside them.
Without animal foods, you lose access to haem iron. Plant sources and fortified foods supply non-haem iron instead, which your body absorbs at a lower rate and loses to interference from phytates, tannins and polyphenols in the same meal. Eating vitamin C alongside iron-rich plants improves uptake substantially. Many fortified cereals and plant milks contain added iron in amounts comparable to meat, but absorption remains the limiting factor on a vegetarian or vegan diet.
FDA daily value: 18 mg
Selling a product with iron? Generate a print-ready nutrition label from your recipe.
Showing 201–250 of 3,584 foods
| # | Food | Category | Per 100 g | % DV |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 201 | Gravy, au jus, dry | Soups, Sauces, and Gravies | 9.30 mg | 52% |
| 202 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, Infant, with iron, powder, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 9.30 mg | 52% |
| 203 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, with iron, powder | Baby Foods | 9.30 mg | 52% |
| 204 | Infant formula, ABBOTT NUTRITION, SIMILAC, For Spit Up, powder, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 9.30 mg | 52% |
| 205 | Infant formula, ABBOTT NUTRITION, SIMILAC, ISOMIL, ADVANCE with iron, powder, not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.26 mg | 51% |
| 206 | Infant formula, ABBOTT NUTRITION, SIMILAC, NEOSURE, powder, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 9.26 mg | 51% |
| 207 | Infant formula, ABBOTT NUTRITION, SIMILAC, ISOMIL, with iron, powder, not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.26 mg | 51% |
| 208 | Soy flour, defatted | Legumes and Legume Products | 9.24 mg | 51% |
| 209 | Spices, mustard seed, ground | Spices and Herbs | 9.21 mg | 51% |
| 210 | Infant Formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, Premium, Infant, powder | Baby Foods | 9.20 mg | 51% |
| 211 | Infant Formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, GENTLEASE, with ARA and DHA powder not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.20 mg | 51% |
| 212 | Infant Formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, Newborn, with ARA and DHA, powder | Baby Foods | 9.20 mg | 51% |
| 213 | Infant Formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, Premium LIPIL, Infant, powder | Baby Foods | 9.20 mg | 51% |
| 214 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, Enfamil for Supplementing, powder, with ARA and DHA, not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.20 mg | 51% |
| 215 | Infant formula, ABBOTT NUTRITION, ALIMENTUM ADVANCE, with iron, powder, not reconstituted, with DHA and ARA | Baby Foods | 9.16 mg | 51% |
| 216 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, AR, powder, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 9.16 mg | 51% |
| 217 | Cereals, QUAKER, Instant Oatmeal, Raisin and Spice, dry | Breakfast Cereals | 9.10 mg | 51% |
| 218 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, NUTRAMIGEN WITH LGG, with iron, powder, not reconstituted, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 9.10 mg | 51% |
| 219 | Infant formula, PBM PRODUCTS, store brand, soy, powder | Baby Foods | 9.10 mg | 51% |
| 220 | Cereals ready-to-eat, wheat germ, toasted, plain | Breakfast Cereals | 9.09 mg | 50% |
| 221 | Tomatoes, sun-dried | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 9.09 mg | 50% |
| 222 | Elk, free range, ground, cooked patties (Shoshone Bannock) | American Indian/Alaska Native Foods | 9.06 mg | 50% |
| 223 | Infant formula, NESTLE, GOOD START SOY, with ARA and DHA, powder | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 224 | Infant formula, GERBER, GOOD START 2 SOY, with iron, powder | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 225 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, NUTRAMIGEN, PurAmino, powder, not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 226 | Toddler drink, MEAD JOHNSON, PurAmino Toddler Powder, with ARA and DHA, not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 227 | Babyfood, cereal, rice with pears and apple, dry, instant fortified | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 228 | Sea lion, Steller, liver (Alaska Native) | American Indian/Alaska Native Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 229 | Cereals ready-to-eat, Post, Waffle Crisp | Breakfast Cereals | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 230 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, Enfamil Enspire Powder, with ARA and DHA, not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 231 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, PREGESTIMIL, with iron, powder, with ARA and DHA, not reconstituted | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 232 | Infant formula, NESTLE, GOOD START ESSENTIALS SOY, with iron, powder | Baby Foods | 9.00 mg | 50% |
| 233 | Seeds, sesame butter, tahini, from roasted and toasted kernels (most common type) | Nut and Seed Products | 8.95 mg | 50% |
| 234 | Infant formula, MEAD JOHNSON, ENFAMIL, ENFACARE, with iron, powder, with ARA and DHA | Baby Foods | 8.90 mg | 49% |
| 235 | Seaweed, irishmoss, raw | Vegetables and Vegetable Products | 8.90 mg | 49% |
| 236 | Beverages, tea, instant, decaffeinated, lemon, diet | Beverages | 8.87 mg | 49% |
| 237 | Beverages, tea, instant, sweetened with sodium saccharin, lemon-flavored, powder | Beverages | 8.87 mg | 49% |
| 238 | Cereals, QUAKER, Instant Oatmeal, weight control, cinnamon | Breakfast Cereals | 8.84 mg | 49% |
| 239 | Seeds, pumpkin and squash seed kernels, dried | Nut and Seed Products | 8.82 mg | 49% |
| 240 | Cereals, QUAKER, Instant Oatmeal, apples and cinnamon, dry | Breakfast Cereals | 8.78 mg | 49% |
| 241 | Cereals, QUAKER, Weight Control Instant Oatmeal, banana bread | Breakfast Cereals | 8.78 mg | 49% |
| 242 | Snacks, granola bar, GENERAL MILLS, NATURE VALLEY, CHEWY TRAIL MIX | Snacks | 8.71 mg | 48% |
| 243 | Beans, kidney, royal red, mature seeds, raw | Legumes and Legume Products | 8.70 mg | 48% |
| 244 | Beans, black turtle, mature seeds, raw | Legumes and Legume Products | 8.70 mg | 48% |
| 245 | Yardlong beans, mature seeds, raw | Legumes and Legume Products | 8.61 mg | 48% |
| 246 | Natto | Legumes and Legume Products | 8.60 mg | 48% |
| 247 | Snacks, KELLOGG, KELLOGG'S Low Fat Granola Bar, Crunchy Almond/Brown Sugar | Snacks | 8.60 mg | 48% |
| 248 | Corn flour, masa, enriched, white | Cereal Grains and Pasta | 8.50 mg | 47% |
| 249 | Corn flour, yellow, masa, enriched | Cereal Grains and Pasta | 8.50 mg | 47% |
| 250 | Cereals, oats, instant, fortified, with cinnamon and spice, dry | Breakfast Cereals | 8.46 mg | 47% |
Need this on a label? Turn these foods into a print-ready Nutrition Facts label.
Make a labelBuild a recipe from any of these ingredients and export a print-ready FDA or Canada Nutrition Facts label. Free.