Get the best of POPSUGAR
Fitness — in your inbox!

Help us customize your newsletter by selecting your interests (optional):

Yoga Working Out Running Weight Loss

Calories in Different Types of Milk

Milk Wars: Cow, Soy, Rice, Almond, Hemp, Oat, Oh My!

July 29, 2010

Regular cow's milk was the only kind of milk you'd find in my fridge when I was a kid, but as I grew older (and discovered lactose wasn't my best friend), I switched over to nondairy alternatives like soy and rice milk. Now they have so many different milk variations (one of the reasons the Dairy Federation wants to restrict use of the word "milk"), so how do you know which is the most nutritious choice for you? Check out the chart below.

Serving Size: 1 cup	Calories	Tot. Fat (g)	Sat. Fat (g)	Chol. (mg)	Sod. (mg)	Carbs (g)	Fiber (g)	Sugars (g)	Protein (g)
Skim Milk	80	0	0	less than 5	125	13	0	12	8
1% Milk	110	2.5	0	15	125	13	0	12	8
2% Milk	130	5	0	20	125	13	0	12	8
Whole Milk	150	8	5	35	125	12	0	12	8
Plain Soymilk	100	4	.5	0	120	8	1	6	7
Vanilla Soymilk	100	3.5	.5	0	95	11	1	8	6

To see how these compare to rice, almond, hemp, and oat milk, read more.

Serving Size: 1 cup	Calories	Tot. Fat (g)	Sat. Fat (g)	Chol. (mg)	Sod. (mg)	Carbs (g)	Fiber (g)	Sugars (g)	Protein (g)
Plain Rice Milk	120	2.5	0	0	100	24	0	11	1
Vanilla Rice Milk	130	2.5	0	0	105	27	0	12	1
Plain Almond Milk	35	2.5	0	0	180	2	0	0	1
Vanilla Almond Milk	40	2.5	0	0	180	3	0	0	1
Plain Hempmilk	100	6	.5	0	25	10	0	6	2
Vanilla Hempmilk	130	3	.5	0	120	20	1	18	4
Plain Oat Milk	130	2.5	0	0	110	24	2	19	4
Vanilla Oat Milk	130	2.5	0	0	110	25	2	20	4

Wow, what a huge difference among all these varieties! Skim milk is low in calories and fat, and high in protein, but if you can't digest lactose or want a dairy-free option, plain soymilk is your best bet. If sodium is your concern, better skip the almond milk and pour on some plain hemp. But if you're watching your calories, almond milk has dramatically fewer per serving than all the other milks. Tell me, after seeing this chart, will you be picking up a different kind of milk this week?

Source: Thinkstock

17 Comments

danakscully64 1 year 39 weeks

Coconut milk is amazing! Very creamy and even though it has 5g of saturated fat per serving, it doesn't react in our bodies the way animal saturated fat does (raises LHL and increases heart disease). Studies show that it actually raises your HDL too!

Darlanspanky 1 year 39 weeks

I have been drinking 2% milk, just found out I am pre diabetic as well as hypertension. More confused after seeing the chart. Any suggestion?

Spectra 2 years 42 weeks

Hmm, I'm not much of a milk-drinker, but I used to drink soy milk sometimes. Now I pretty much only buy milk to bake with, so I usually buy good ol' cow's milk.

danakscully64 2 years 42 weeks

SanDiegoLove - Have you tried the light versions of different soy brands? They tend to be much thinner than the original. :) What's funny is for me, almond milk is a little too thin for my liking. I grew up on 2%, so almond milk is more like non-fat or 1% in terms of thickness. I still don't like Silk regular by itself because of how thick it is, but on cereal, in baked goods, and lattes, it works :) All of this milk talk makes me sad I didn't make my morning latte. :(

gingirl 2 years 42 weeks

I've tried others, but I always come back to my 1% milk. My boyfriend likes rice milk, so that's always in the fridge. I have another friend who will only drink whole milk, but that's a little too thick for me

SanDiegoLove 2 years 42 weeks

I tried soy milk and can't handle the texture. It's too thick and filmy. I've been drinking almond milk for about a year and love it.

genipher85 2 years 42 weeks

I like almond milk, but only with other stuff like cereal. I didn't really like it just as a drink...

GirlOverboard 2 years 42 weeks

Hmm... I have to admit that I'm really curious about the help milk! What does it smell/taste like? I've switched to almond milk recently because it's lower in calories and I don't digest real milk very well (I skimp on dairy products except on special occasions and then carry lactaid). I somehow missed the point on sodium, despite my attempts to be more nutrition-label-aware... but I've been trying to cut back on sodium everywhere else and really only use the almond milk for one meal a day, so I'm not too concerned about it.

amber512 2 years 42 weeks

I really hate milk, in all forms. But I do need one to add to recipes and for a light sprinkling to soften my cereal. Vanilla almond milk is the best for that and my stomach and digestion thank me for it!

Mariana48 2 years 42 weeks

almond milk!

2 years 42 weeks

Almond milk is the best!

2 years 42 weeks

i love plain almond milk. it's low in calories but the best part is that it tastes delicious too! the taste of plain soy milk never grew on me, so i turned to almond milk to fit my vegan diet.

le romantique 2 years 42 weeks

The only time I have milk is with cereal... I despise milk, but I will admit that I had tried almond milk and loved it. I'm not too sure if I could stomach it in my cereal though.

inlove23 2 years 42 weeks

I've never heard of hemp milk before! I like Silk, and I've been wanting to try almond but it has way to much sodium so I'll pass on that.

danakscully64 2 years 42 weeks

I like Silk Regular in my lattes (vanilla is too sweet) and cereal. I bake with it too. Almond milk is good, but I prefer vanilla on cereal. I will never go back to drinking cow's milk, it tastes extremely sour to me and I try to avoid supporting that industry.