Plain language
What it means
What each ranking axis is measuring, and what higher vs lower usually means here. Hover any column label in a table for the short version. Ranking rules live on How we rank; citations on Sources.
Cooking oil axes
Saturated
Fatty acids with no double bonds. Reported as total saturated fat per 100 g oil. Higher: More saturated fat — often firmer at cool temps; many guidelines prefer less of this axis. Lower: Less saturated fat on this axis (greener in our color scale). Green = lower saturated fat.
Monounsaturated
Total MUFA from USDA. In cooking oils that is mostly oleic acid (omega-9), so the column is marked ≈ omega-9 — not a pure omega-9 assay. Higher: More MUFA (usually oleic / omega-9) — typical of olive-, avocado-, and high-oleic seed oils. Lower: Less monounsaturated fat relative to other oils in the table. Green = higher monounsaturated fat.
Polyunsaturated
Fatty acids with two or more double bonds — the omega-6 and omega-3 pool combined. Higher: More total PUFA. Check Omega-6 and Omega-3 columns to see which family dominates. Lower: Less total polyunsaturated fat on this axis. Green = higher polyunsaturated fat.
Omega-6
Here: linoleic acid (18:2 n-6), the main omega-6 fatty acid in seed oils. Higher: More linoleic acid — common in grapeseed, corn, and linoleic safflower/sunflower. Lower: Less linoleic acid (greener in our scale). Does not mean “zero omega-6.” Green = lower linoleic acid (omega-6).
Omega-3
Here: ALA (alpha-linolenic acid, 18:3 n-3) — the plant omega-3 reported for oils. Not EPA/DHA from fish. Higher: More ALA — flaxseed and similar oils lead this axis. Lower: Little or no ALA on file for that oil. Green = higher ALA (omega-3).
Smoke point
Temperature where the oil starts continuous bluish smoke under a lab method (usually AOCS Cc 9a-48). Higher: More headroom for high-heat cooking before the oil breaks down and smokes. Lower: Better suited to gentle heat or finishing; smoking starts sooner. Green = higher smoke point.
Sweetener axes
Sweeteners · GI
Glycemic index: how quickly a carbohydrate raises blood glucose relative to glucose = 100, when a cited assay exists. Higher: Raises blood glucose more sharply on this assay scale — not a medical diagnosis. Lower: Raises blood glucose less sharply on this assay scale (greener here). Empty for many intense sweeteners. Green = lower glycemic index.
Sweeteners · Energy
Food energy per 100 g from a cited composition database (usually USDA). Higher: More calories per 100 g on this source. Lower: Fewer calories per 100 g (greener here). Green = lower kcal per 100 g.
Sweeteners · Carbs
Total carbohydrate per 100 g — usually carbohydrate by difference in USDA tables. Higher: More carbohydrate per 100 g. Lower: Less carbohydrate per 100 g (greener here). Green = lower carbohydrate per 100 g.
Sweeteners · Sugars
Total sugars (NLEA-style mono- and disaccharides) per 100 g. Sugar alcohols are not counted as sugars here. Higher: More mono- and disaccharide sugars per 100 g. Lower: Fewer sugars per 100 g (greener here). Green = lower total sugars per 100 g.
Plant Protein (Beans & Tofu) axes
Plant proteins · Protein
Total protein per 100 g from a cited composition source. Higher: More protein per 100 g on this source. Lower: Less protein per 100 g relative to other rows. Green = higher protein.
Plant proteins · Fiber
Total dietary fiber per 100 g when cited. Higher: More fiber per 100 g. Lower: Less fiber — common on some concentrates or when USDA leaves fiber empty. Green = higher fiber.
Plant proteins · Carb
Total carbohydrate per 100 g — usually carbohydrate by difference in USDA tables. Higher: More carbohydrate per 100 g. Lower: Less carbohydrate per 100 g (greener here). Green = lower carbohydrate.
Plant proteins · Sodium
Sodium per 100 g — canned rows often run high. Higher: More sodium per 100 g (often canned or seasoned). Lower: Less sodium — typical of unsalted cooked legumes. Green = lower sodium.
Plant proteins · Energy
Food energy per 100 g from a cited composition database. Higher: More calories per 100 g. Lower: Fewer calories per 100 g (greener here). Green = lower kcal per 100 g.
Plant proteins · Saturated
Total saturated fat per 100 g when cited. Higher: More saturated fat per 100 g. Lower: Less saturated fat (greener here). Green = lower saturated fat.
Also useful
Omega-9
In cooking oils this usually means oleic acid, which is already inside the Monounsaturated column (header note ≈ omega-9). MUFA also includes small amounts of other mono fats (e.g. omega-7), so we use ≈ — not a separate omega-9 score.
Rank 1
The numerical champion on the open axis for the current sort — highest or lowest depending on the arrow. It is not a health crown.
Refined vs unrefined
Separate rows when the process changes composition or smoke behavior. “Unspecified” means the USDA (or equal) record does not name the process.
Green / pale / red
Color is only on the open column. Green is the conventionally healthier end of that axis; shade is proportional across the table’s min–max, not by place.
Primary source
When readings disagree, the highest tier wins in the cell; others stay on hover and on the item page. See Sources for the ladder.
Sugars vs substitutes
On /sweeteners, Kind filters sugars (caloric sweeteners such as sucrose, honey, syrups) from substitutes (polyols and intense sweeteners). Same table; filter does not invent numbers.
Plant Protein (Beans & Tofu)
Everyday plant protein as most people mean it: beans (including peanut), lentils, chickpeas, tofu, tempeh, edamame, and labeled concentrates. Many tree nuts and seeds are high in protein too — they are not on this shelf; a future Nuts shelf covers them. Peanut is a legume / bean — it belongs here; that Nuts shelf may also list it with the same footnote (* peanut is a bean). Dual-list is fine when the note stays honest. No numeric protein floor decides membership.
Plant protein · Kind
Default view is All foods (whole beans plus tofu/tempeh and kin) — concentrates are opt-in so protein sort is not topped by isolates. Sub-filters: Whole foods (intact beans and seeds, including edamame and soybeans), Prepared (tofu, tempeh, and kitchen soy foods — kitchen-made, not a judgment), Concentrates. Most lifestyle ranks will hard-gate concentrates; only an I’m-not-cooking door ranks powders in.
Plant proteins · Fermented (why not “live cultures”)
Fermentation can be real while CFU claims are not. Tempeh (Rhizopus) is almost always cooked — we label Fermented, not live cultures; literature often frames cooked tempeh as paraprobiotic. Natto (Bacillus subtilis) is usually eaten without a second cook, so the live-microbe story is stronger — still not a yogurt-style CFU count. Natto may also carry a Vitamin K2 (MK-7) literature note; USDA SR vitamin K on that row is phylloquinone. Display-only until Methods publishes recipe weights.
Empty cell
We leave a cell blank when we lack a method-cited source we will put a number on. Empty is honest; invention is not.
Table butter and smoke point
Table butter is an emulsion (fat + water + milk solids), not a pure oil. AOCS smoke methods are for triglyceride fats; browning when butter cooks is usually milk solids burning, not a lab smoke point — so smoke stays empty. Anhydrous butter oil / ghee can be tested in principle; we still need a dated AOCS-grade reading before filling the cell.