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Lentils vs beans is a comparison of close relatives: the Dietary Guidelines for Americans place both in the beans, peas and lentils subgroup, and USDA files both in the same food group. This page sets boiled lentils beside eight boiled beans from USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy data, per cup and per 100 grams, with the FDA percent Daily Value. It describes the differences in the numbers and takes no side. For the wider group, see our legumes list.
Peptide Labs does not sell foods. This article is general nutrition information, not medical advice.
Key Takeaways
- In USDA data, a cup of boiled lentils weighs 198 grams and lists 230 calories, 17.9 grams of protein and 6.6 milligrams of iron, 37% of the FDA Daily Value.
- The eight boiled beans in this comparison list 3.6 to 5.2 milligrams of iron per cup and 13.2 to 15.4 grams of protein in USDA data.
- Per 100 grams in USDA data, lentils list 116 calories and the beans 115 to 164 calories, with chickpeas at the top.
- The Dietary Guidelines describe beans, peas and lentils, also known as pulses, as the dried seeds of legumes that people eat.
Lentils vs beans per cup in USDA data
The table lists USDA SR Legacy entries for mature seeds boiled without salt, at the first 1-cup portion USDA gives for each, ranked by iron. The percent Daily Value (%DV) uses the FDA Daily Values of 28 grams for fiber, 18 milligrams for iron, 400 micrograms DFE for folate and 4,700 milligrams for potassium; protein has no %DV here because the FDA labeling rule bases a protein %DV on an amount corrected for protein quality. A cup of each food weighs a different amount in USDA data, so the gram weight is shown.
| Food (USDA FDC ID) | Serving | Calories | Protein | Carbohydrate | Fiber (% DV) | Iron (% DV) | Folate DFE (% DV) | Potassium (% DV) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lentils (172421) | 1 cup (198 g) | 230 | 17.9 g | 39.9 g | 15.6 g (56%) | 6.6 mg (37%) | 358 mcg (90%) | 731 mg (16%) |
| Kidney beans, red (175194) | 1 cup (177 g) | 225 | 15.3 g | 40.4 g | 13.1 g (47%) | 5.2 mg (29%) | 230 mcg (58%) | 713 mg (15%) |
| Chickpeas (garbanzo) (173757) | 1 cup (164 g) | 269 | 14.5 g | 45.0 g | 12.5 g (45%) | 4.7 mg (26%) | 282 mcg (71%) | 477 mg (10%) |
| Lima beans, large (174253) | 1 cup (188 g) | 216 | 14.7 g | 39.3 g | 13.2 g (47%) | 4.5 mg (25%) | 156 mcg (39%) | 955 mg (20%) |
| Navy beans (173746) | 1 cup (182 g) | 255 | 15.0 g | 47.4 g | 19.1 g (68%) | 4.3 mg (24%) | 255 mcg (64%) | 708 mg (15%) |
| Black-eyed peas (cowpeas) (173759) | 1 cup (171 g) | 198 | 13.2 g | 35.5 g | 11.1 g (40%) | 4.3 mg (24%) | 356 mcg (89%) | 475 mg (10%) |
| Great northern beans (175191) | 1 cup (177 g) | 209 | 14.7 g | 37.3 g | 12.4 g (44%) | 3.8 mg (21%) | 181 mcg (45%) | 692 mg (15%) |
| Black beans (173735) | 1 cup (172 g) | 227 | 15.2 g | 40.8 g | 15.0 g (53%) | 3.6 mg (20%) | 256 mcg (64%) | 611 mg (13%) |
| Pinto beans (175200) | 1 cup (171 g) | 245 | 15.4 g | 44.8 g | 15.4 g (55%) | 3.6 mg (20%) | 294 mcg (74%) | 746 mg (16%) |
Per cup in USDA data, lentils list 6.6 milligrams of iron and 358 micrograms of folate, and black-eyed peas list a similar 356 micrograms of folate. Among the beans in USDA data, red kidney beans list the most iron, 5.2 milligrams, and navy beans the most fiber, 19.1 grams, against 15.6 grams for lentils. Large lima beans list 955 milligrams of potassium per cup in USDA data and lentils 731 milligrams. Protein sits in a narrow band, from 13.2 grams for the cowpea entry to 17.9 grams for lentils, in USDA data.
Beans vs lentils per 100 grams in USDA data
Because a cup of lentils weighs more than a cup of most beans in USDA data, the same foods are shown per 100 grams, in the same row sequence, with water and total fat added.
| Food (USDA FDC ID) | Amount | Water | Calories | Protein | Total fat | Carbohydrate | Fiber | Iron | Folate DFE |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lentils (172421) | 100 g | 69.6 g | 116 | 9.0 g | 0.38 g | 20.1 g | 7.9 g | 3.33 mg | 181 mcg |
| Kidney beans, red (175194) | 100 g | 66.9 g | 127 | 8.7 g | 0.50 g | 22.8 g | 7.4 g | 2.94 mg | 130 mcg |
| Chickpeas (garbanzo) (173757) | 100 g | 60.2 g | 164 | 8.9 g | 2.59 g | 27.4 g | 7.6 g | 2.89 mg | 172 mcg |
| Lima beans, large (174253) | 100 g | 69.8 g | 115 | 7.8 g | 0.38 g | 20.9 g | 7.0 g | 2.39 mg | 83 mcg |
| Navy beans (173746) | 100 g | 63.8 g | 140 | 8.2 g | 0.62 g | 26.1 g | 10.5 g | 2.36 mg | 140 mcg |
| Black-eyed peas (cowpeas) (173759) | 100 g | 70.0 g | 116 | 7.7 g | 0.53 g | 20.8 g | 6.5 g | 2.51 mg | 208 mcg |
| Great northern beans (175191) | 100 g | 69.0 g | 118 | 8.3 g | 0.45 g | 21.1 g | 7.0 g | 2.13 mg | 102 mcg |
| Black beans (173735) | 100 g | 65.7 g | 132 | 8.9 g | 0.54 g | 23.7 g | 8.7 g | 2.10 mg | 149 mcg |
| Pinto beans (175200) | 100 g | 63.0 g | 143 | 9.0 g | 0.65 g | 26.2 g | 9.0 g | 2.09 mg | 172 mcg |
Per 100 grams in USDA data, lentils list 116 calories, 9.0 grams of protein and 3.33 milligrams of iron; black beans list 132 calories, 8.9 grams and 2.10 milligrams, and pinto beans 143 calories, 9.0 grams and 2.09 milligrams. Chickpeas list 164 calories and 2.59 grams of total fat per 100 grams in USDA data, the highest of these rows, and the navy bean entry 10.5 grams of fiber. On this basis the protein figures cluster between 7.7 and 9.0 grams in USDA data.
How USDA and the Dietary Guidelines group them
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans, from USDA and HHS, call “Beans, peas, and lentils, which also are known as pulses,” the dried seeds of legumes that people eat. The Dietary Guidelines name kidney, pinto, white, black, lima and fava types as beans, and say “Also included are dried peas,” naming chickpeas among them, together with lentils. The USDA SR Legacy entries below carry their own names and food group.
| Food (USDA FDC ID) | USDA SR Legacy description | USDA SR Legacy food group |
|---|---|---|
| Lentils (172421) | Lentils, mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt | Legumes and Legume Products |
| Black beans (173735) | Beans, black, mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt | Legumes and Legume Products |
| Kidney beans, red (175194) | Beans, kidney, red, mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt | Legumes and Legume Products |
| Chickpeas (garbanzo) (173757) | Chickpeas (garbanzo beans, bengal gram), mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt | Legumes and Legume Products |
| Black-eyed peas (cowpeas) (173759) | Cowpeas, common (blackeyes, crowder, southern), mature seeds, cooked, boiled, without salt | Legumes and Legume Products |
All of these entries sit in the same USDA food group. Our guides to types of beans and split peas cover those foods one by one, and the lentils guide covers lentils on their own.
Iron and folate in lentils and beans
The NIH Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS) says plants contain nonheme iron only and names beans among dietary sources of nonheme iron, so the iron in both lentils and beans is nonheme iron in ODS’s terms. The ODS iron table lists boiled lentils at 3 milligrams per half cup, 17% of the FDA Daily Value, and boiled chickpeas and canned beans of the kidney type at 2 milligrams per half cup, 11% each. ODS says vitamin C enhances the bioavailability of nonheme iron. For more, see our guides to foods high in iron and foods high in folate.
For folate, the FDA Daily Value of 400 micrograms DFE is the reference in the first table; USDA lists folic acid at zero for these cooked entries, so their folate DFE figure equals their food folate figure.
Cooking, gas and label notes
- Raw beans: FDA’s Bad Bug Book says “as few as four or five raw beans can trigger symptoms” for the red kidney type, that cooking the beans properly destroys the toxin, and that slow cookers do not get hot enough to destroy it.
- Gas: NIDDK lists legumes, a group that includes beans, peas and lentils, among foods that may lead to excess gas in some people; see our guide to gas.
- Canned forms: the Dietary Guidelines count these foods “cooked from dry or canned,” and the Nutrition Facts label on a can is the figure for that product; see low sodium foods.
- Values vary: USDA SR Legacy figures are averages.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are lentils a kind of bean?
The Dietary Guidelines place beans, peas and lentils in one subgroup and call them pulses, the dried seeds of legumes; they list lentils by name next to beans and dried peas, and USDA files both in the same food group.
How do lentils vs beans compare for protein per cup?
In USDA data, a cup of boiled lentils lists 17.9 grams of protein and the eight beans in this guide 13.2 to 15.4 grams; per 100 grams the figures sit between 7.7 and 9.0 grams.
How do beans vs lentils compare for iron?
Per cup in USDA data, lentils list 6.6 milligrams of iron and the beans here 3.6 to 5.2 milligrams. The NIH Office of Dietary Supplements says plants contain nonheme iron only.
How do lentils and beans compare for calories?
In USDA data, boiled lentils list 116 calories per 100 grams and the eight beans here 115 to 164 calories, with chickpeas at the top of that range.
Why do dried beans need thorough cooking?
FDA’s Bad Bug Book says raw or under-cooked beans of the red kidney type contain a lectin that can cause extreme nausea, severe vomiting and diarrhea, and that cooking the beans properly destroys the toxin.
Questions about a label? Contact us or read our Buyer’s Guide. Food comes first; follow the label and ask a healthcare provider before starting a supplement, especially if you take medicines, are pregnant or have a health condition. These statements have not been evaluated by the Food and Drug Administration. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease.
Last reviewed October 2026.