5 A DAY portion sizes

The guide below will give you an indication of typical portion sizes for adults.

Children should also eat at least five portions of a variety of fruit and vegetables a day. The amount of food a child needs varies with age, body size and physical activity. As a rough guide, one portion is the amount they can fit in the palm of their hand.

Use this quick 5 A DAY poster guide (PDF) to find out about portion sizes.

Learn more about what counts towards your 5 A DAY with the 5 A DAY What's it all about? booklet (PDF). 

Finally, find the portion sizes for a wide range of fruits and vegetables, including tinned and dried, in this 5 A DAY portion size guide (PDF).

Fresh fruit
Small-sized fruit
One portion is two or more small fruit, for example two plums, two satsumas, two kiwi fruit, three apricots, six lychees, seven strawberries or 14 cherries.

Medium-sized fruit
One portion is one piece of fruit, such as one apple, banana, pear, orange, nectarine or sharon fruit.

Large fruit
One portion is half a grapefruit, one slice of papaya, one slice of melon (5cm slice), one large slice of pineapple or two slices of mango (5cm slices).

Dried fruit
A portion of dried fruit is around 30g. This is about one heaped tablespoon of raisins, currants or sultanas, one tablespoon of mixed fruit, two figs, three prunes or one handful of dried banana chips.

Tinned fruit in natural juice
One portion is roughly the same quantity of fruit that you would eat for a fresh portion, such as two pear or peach halves, six apricot halves or eight segments of tinned grapefruit.

Green vegetables
Two broccoli spears or four heaped tablespoons of kale, spinach, spring greens or green beans.

Cooked vegetables
Three heaped tablespoons of cooked vegetables, such as carrots, peas or sweetcorn, or eight cauliflower florets.

Salad vegetables
Three sticks of celery, a 5cm piece of cucumber, one medium tomato or seven cherry tomatoes.

Tinned and frozen vegetables
Roughly the same quantity as you would eat for a fresh portion. For example, three heaped tablespoons of tinned or frozen carrots, peas or sweetcorn.

Pulses and beans
Three heaped tablespoons of baked beans, haricot beans, kidney beans, cannellini beans, butter beans or chickpeas. However much you eat, beans and pulses count as a maximum of one portion a day.

Potatoes
Because they are considered a starchy food, potatoes don't count towards your 5 A DAY. Potatoes should form the starchy carbohydrate part of your meal. Starchy foods are foods like potatoes, rice, pasta and bread.

One 150ml glass of unsweetened 100% fruit or vegetable juice can count as a portion. But only one glass counts, further glasses of juice don’t count toward your total 5 A DAY portions.

One smoothie containing all the edible pulped fruit or vegetable may count as more than one 5 A DAY portion, but this depends on the quantity of fruits or vegetables and/or juice used, as well as how the smoothie has been made.

For a single smoothie to qualify as being two portions, it must contain either:

• at least 80g of one variety of whole fruit and/or vegetable and at least 150ml of a different variety of 100% fruit and/or vegetable juice, or
• at least 80g of one variety of whole fruit and/or vegetable and at least 80g of another variety of whole fruit and/or vegetable.

Smoothies count as a maximum of two of your 5 A DAY, however much you drink.

Sugars are released from fruit when it's juiced or blended, and these sugars can cause damage to teeth. Whole fruits are less likely to cause tooth decay because the sugars are contained within the structure of the fruit.

Fruit and vegetables contained in shop-bought ready-made foods can also count toward your 5 A DAY.

Always read the label. Some ready-made foods contain high levels of fat, salt and sugar, so only have them occasionally or in small amounts as part of a healthy balanced diet. You can find out more in Understanding food labels.

If you have an enquiry about 5 A DAY, please email: fiveaday@dh.gsi.gov.uk