Are Peanuts Keto-Friendly? (& Better Alternatives)

Nuts and similar foods are often good for ketogenic diets but not always. Find out whether peanuts are keto-friendly and what other options you have.

100 grams of raw peanuts contain around 7.6 grams of net carbohydrates which means total carbs minus fiber.

From the perspective of amounts like this, peanuts are generally not that keto-friendly.

On the flip side, most people will already consume peanuts in smaller amounts. In these quantities, it could be possible to stay in ketosis while eating regular raw peanuts.

Something to note is that variations like honey-roasted peanuts and peanut butter with sugar are typically not keto-friendly at all.

Besides that, there are also alternatives to peanuts that are low in carbs and in turn, more keto-friendly.

Carbs in peanuts

To figure out whether peanuts are keto for you and in what amounts, you want to know how many carbs they contain.

100 grams of peanuts contain the following amounts of carbs (1):

Total carbs: 16.1 grams
Of which fiber: 8.5 grams
Net carbs: 7.6 grams

There are definitely foods that contain more carbohydrates but it is fair to say that the 7.6 grams of net carbs in 100 grams of peanuts are somewhat higher.

In combination with the other foods in your diet, this amount would likely kick you out of ketosis.

One ounce of peanuts is about 28 grams and contains the following amounts of carbs:

Total carbs: 4.5 grams
Of which fiber: 2.4 grams
Net carbs: 2.1 grams

As you can see, portion sizes matter a lot. By consuming peanuts in more reasonable amounts, they become more keto-friendly.

Other nutrition information peanuts

There are situations where it can be worth implementing foods like peanuts that are somewhat higher in carbs on a ketogenic diet if they are very nutritious.

Nutrients like fat, protein, vitamins, and minerals still influence whether you stay in ketosis and more importantly, how good peanuts will be for your health.

100 grams of peanuts contain the following nutrients (1):

Calories: 567
Protein: 25.8 grams
Carbs: 16.1 grams
Part of the carbs that is fiber: 8.5 grams
Fat: 49.2 grams
Manganese: 97% of the DV (Daily Value)
Niacin: 60% of the DV
Folate: 60% of the DV
Copper: 57% of the DV
Thiamin: 43% of the DV

And some other vitamins and minerals in smaller amounts.

It is true that peanuts are somewhat higher in net carbs but they also contain many valuable nutrients in great amounts.

If you don’t like the lower-carb nut alternatives below, it can be worth implementing small amounts of peanuts on keto because of their nutrition content.

Why some people can have no peanuts on keto

Even tiny amounts of peanuts are sometimes not an option on ketogenic diets. To understand why this is and to make sure you can still eat some amounts a quick recap of the keto fundamentals can be helpful.

You can describe any way of eating where you get and stay in ketosis as a ketogenic diet. Ketosis is a state where your body mainly uses fat as fuel (2).

A typical guideline is that you want to get about 55%-60% of your calories from fat, 30%-35% from protein, and 5%-10% from carbohydrates to stay in ketosis.

If you do the calculations, this will likely mean eating around 20 to 50 grams of carbs a day.

That being said, you want to know that the actual ratios and amounts of carbs can vary from person to person due to differences in details like muscle mass, genes, and exercise habits.

The general guideline can help you figure out roughly how many peanuts would fit into your ketogenic diet but it is not perfect either.

Something else to note is that you don’t include fiber in the amounts of carbohydrates above. Fiber is a category of carbs but your body deals with it in different ways.

How many peanuts can you eat on keto?

With the fundamentals above and how many carbs there are in your diet, you can start to estimate how many peanuts you can eat on keto.

For example, let’s say you concluded that you can eat about 25 grams of net carbohydrates a day before getting kicked out of ketosis and you already ate 23.4 grams.

In that case, you would theoretically be able to eat 20 grams of peanuts or about 20 peanuts.

Keep in mind that these guidelines are not perfect. Ideally, you would be able to measure your ketone levels.

Alternatives for peanuts on keto

Peanuts are actually legumes but since they are typically used as nuts, it is fair to look in this category for more keto-friendly alternatives.

You may prefer these low-carb nut alternatives in terms of taste or nutrients anyway. Another way to use these alternatives is to switch up your ketogenic diet.

These things aside, the numbers next to these peanut alternatives are the amounts of net carbohydrates per 100 grams (3, 4, 5, 6, 7):

Pecans: 4.4 grams of net carbs
Brazil nuts: 4.8 grams of net carbs
Macadamia nuts: 5.6 grams of net carbs
Walnuts: 7 grams of net carbs
Hazelnuts: 7 grams of net carbs

As you can see, these alternatives still contain carbohydrates. Often in somewhat higher amounts too.

Similar to peanuts, you may have to keep your portions of the nuts above under control.

How to avoid eating too many peanuts on keto

By now it should be clear that big amounts of peanuts will likely kick you out of ketosis. To avoid this you want to keep your portions small.

Putting a big bowl of peanuts on your lap while watching a movie is typically not a successful strategy for making this happen.

Instead, try using some of the following tips while eating peanuts on ketogenic diets:

Figure out in advance how many grams of peanuts would align with your keto goals
Weigh out this amount of peanuts and put the rest of the bag somewhere else
Don’t eat unlimited amounts of peanuts while doing other things like watching a movie
If you crave peanuts too much, you may need to buy smaller portions or none at all

If you notice you get kicked out of ketosis while following these tips anyway, your estimations about how many peanuts you can eat could be too optimistic.

Why do you follow a ketogenic diet?

Even relatively small amounts of peanuts often have the ability to kick you out of ketosis. Whether this is an issue and to what extent depends on your reasons for following a keto diet.

You may need/want to stay in ketosis every minute of the day. In a situation like that, you want to be very careful about the amounts of peanuts you eat.

On the other hand, peanuts can still be decent for weight loss and good for health. Even if their carbohydrates are enough to kick you out of ketosis.

A ketogenic diet can be helpful for losing weight and getting healthier but there are typically other ways to achieve these goals too.

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FAQ

Do peanuts kick you out of ketosis?

Whether peanuts kick you out of ketosis depends on your portion size, your body, and the rest of your diet. That being said, large amounts of peanuts tend to kick people out of ketosis.

Are peanuts low-carb?

Peanuts contain around 16.1 grams of carbohydrates per 100 grams (including 8.5 grams of fiber). There are worse options too but it is fair to say that peanuts are not that low-carb.