The short answer
100 g of sunflower seeds (raw) has 23.5 g of protein and 586 kcal.1 That's about 47% of the 50 g of protein ICMR-NIN suggests a day for a 60 kg adult.2
Nutrition in 100 g of sunflower seeds
| Per 100 g | Amount |
|---|---|
| Energy | 586 kcal (2453 kJ) |
| Protein | 23.5 g ± 0.6 |
| Fat | 51.9 g |
| Carbohydrate | 6.9 g |
| Fibre | 10.8 g |
| Water | 3.5 g |
These figures are for raw, shelled sunflower seeds.
How much sunflower seeds for your protein?
The amounts below are worked out from IFCT's figure of 23.5 g per 100 g. To see how sunflower seeds fits into a whole day, add it in the day builder.
| To get | Eat about | Calories |
|---|---|---|
| 10 g of protein | 42 g (raw weight) | 246 kcal |
| 20 g of protein | 85 g (raw weight) | 498 kcal |
| 30 g of protein | 127 g (raw weight) | 744 kcal |
How sunflower seeds compares
Sunflower seeds has more protein per 100 g than 98% of the 542 foods in IFCT 2017. Here it is beside the other nuts and seeds we cover:
| Nuts and seeds | Protein / 100 g | kcal | From protein |
|---|---|---|---|
| Peanuts | 23.7 g | 520 | 18% |
| Sunflower seeds | 23.5 g | 586 | 16% |
| Halim seeds | 23.4 g | 445 | 21% |
| Pistachios | 23.4 g | 539 | 18% |
| Sesame seeds | 21.7 g | 520 | 17% |
| Cashews | 18.8 g | 583 | 13% |
| Flaxseeds | 18.6 g | 444 | 17% |
| Almonds | 18.4 g | 609 | 12% |
| Walnuts | 14.9 g | 671 | 9% |
| Dry coconut | 7.3 g | 624 | 5% |
Other vegetarian foods with similar protein: masoor dal (24.4 g), moong dal (23.9 g), urad dal (23.1 g), whole moong (22.5 g), whole masoor (22.5 g). For more protein per 100 g, try soybean (37.8 g), masoor dal (24.4 g), moong dal (23.9 g). See every food on one protein chart.
Protein quality
Nuts and seeds add useful protein, but most of their calories come from fat. Per calorie they give less protein than dal, paneer or eggs, so they work best as an addition rather than the main source.
Sunflower seeds in Indian languages
Names as listed in IFCT 2017, which records what the food is called in each region it was sampled from.1
- Assamese
- Beli phular guti
- Bengali
- Suraj mukhi
- Gujarati
- Suraj mukhi na bee
- Hindi
- Surya mukhi
- Kannada
- Sryakanti bijagalu
- Malayalam
- Suryakanthi
- Marathi
- Surya mukhi
- Odia
- Surjya Mukhi Manji
- Punjabi
- Suraj mukhi
- Tamil
- Suryakanthi vidhai
- Telugu
- Podduthirugidi puvvu ginzalu
Common questions
How much protein is in 100 g of sunflower seeds?
23.5 g, according to the Indian Food Composition Tables 2017 from ICMR-NIN. That's for raw sunflower seeds, per 100 g of the edible part. 100 g also gives 586 kcal.
How much sunflower seeds gives 20 g of protein?
About 85 g (raw weight). That's roughly 40% of the 50 g a day ICMR-NIN suggests for a 60 kg adult.
Is sunflower seeds a good source of protein?
16% of its calories come from protein, and it has more protein per 100 g than 98% of the 542 foods in IFCT 2017. Nuts and seeds add useful protein, but most of their calories come from fat.
References
- Longvah T, Ananthan R, Bhaskarachary K, Venkaiah K. Indian Food Composition Tables 2017. National Institute of Nutrition (ICMR), Hyderabad. nin.res.in. Read through the open-data copy by Subhajit Sahu (ifct2017, MIT licence).
- ICMR-National Institute of Nutrition. Nutrient Requirements for Indians: Recommended Dietary Allowances and Estimated Average Requirements. 2020. nin.res.in