Maltodextrin
Also called Caloreen, Corn dextrin, Dextrid and Dextrina Bianca.
A short chain of glucose units cut from starch by acid or enzymes. It bulks up powders and thickens sauces, and it tastes barely sweet. Found in processed snacks.
Sources and notes
- The introductionfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curated
- Other namesfrom sourcePubChem / Wikidata
- Formula and weightcomputedPubChem
- 2D drawingcomputedPubChem structure, drawn by RDKit
- 3D modelfrom sourcePubChem 3D conformerLoaded after the page has painted, and on a phone only when you ask for it; the 2D drawing shows until it arrives.
Where you encounter it
Maltodextrin on our curated lists, and on the product labels we hold.
Every product and list we hold
Sources and notes
- Our curated lists and their amountsfrom sourceMoleculeFinder curatedEach amount is an editorial figure from our food and drink lists, not a measurement of any one product.
- The product labels and their strengthsfrom sourceDailyMed (FDA label)Each label lists the molecule as an ingredient, and an active ingredient at the strength shown.
- Ingredient listsfrom sourceWikidata
- How it gets therefrom sourceMoleculeFinder curatedEach mark is set by hand on our lists, never inferred; a label's ingredient is added by the maker. A row with no mark data says Not marked.
What it does
Maltodextrin is the same glucose chains cut down to a few units, which makes it dissolve instantly, taste faintly sweet where starch tastes of nothing, and raise blood glucose faster than table sugar does.
Sources and notes
- The sentencefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesWord for word from the Maltodextrin vs Starch notes.
Explore its structure
Choose a part to light it up.
An O-H on a carbon that is not part of an aromatic ring, the group that makes a molecule an alcohol. It both gives and accepts hydrogen bonds, which helps the molecule mix with water.
From: standard chemistry.
One carbon bonded to two oxygens, each joined in turn to another carbon. It is the kind of link that joins sugars together: it stands up to bases, and acid splits it.
From: standard chemistry.
One carbon bonded to a ring oxygen and to an O-H. In water this ring can open and close again, which is how sugars such as glucose switch between their forms.
From: standard chemistry.
Sources and notes
- The drawingcomputedPubChem structure, drawn by RDKitThe page's one shipped drawing, with the chosen part lit in amber under it.
- The partscomputedFound by ruleEach part is found by a chemical pattern, never picked by hand atom by atom; its words say where they come from.
Compare a related molecule
Maltodextrin is starch, usually corn starch, cut into short glucose chains, so it dissolves instantly and tastes faintly sweet where starch tastes of nothing.
Maltodextrin vs Starch, side by sideSources and notes
- The sentencefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesThe pair's answer line.
Properties and sources
Calculated by PubChem
- Molecular formula
- C18H32O16
- Molecular weight
- 504.4 g/mol
- XLogP3octanol/water, log units
- −6.9
- Polar surface areatopological
- 269 Ų
- H-bond donors
- 11
- H-bond acceptors
- 16
- Rotatable bonds
- 7
- Complexity
- 641
Groups it belongs to
- Category
- Food & flavor
- Family
- Polysaccharides
- Food and drink lists
- Processed snacks
C([C@@H]1[C@H]([C@@H]([C@H](C(O1)O[C@@H]2[C@H](O…121 charactersPubChem CID 62698 · Wikidata Q177570 · InChIKey FYGDTMLNYKFZSV-MRCIVHHJSA-N · Data refreshed
Questions
- What is Maltodextrin?
- A short chain of glucose units cut from starch by acid or enzymes. It bulks up powders and thickens sauces, and it tastes barely sweet. Found in processed snacks.
- Where is Maltodextrin found?
- Maltodextrin is found in processed snacks. from source
- What kind of molecule is Maltodextrin?
- Maltodextrin has the formula C18H32O16 and a molecular weight of 504.4 g/mol. MoleculeFinder files it under polysaccharides, in the food & flavor group. from sourcefrom sourcefrom sourcefrom source
Sources and notes
- Calculated valuescomputedPubChemComputed from the structure, so no laboratory conditions apply; complexity is PubChem's own structural score.
- Data refreshedfrom sourceMoleculeFinder2026-11-09
Keep exploring
More related molecules
- Amylopectin Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Trehalose Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Amylose Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Glucose Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Galactose Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Lactulose Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Maltitol Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Hyaluronic acid Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Chitosan Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Glucosamine Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Sucrose Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Isomalt Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Salicin Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Inulin Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- Chitin Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
- N-Acetylglucosamine Both carry an alcohol and an ether group.
Sources and notes
- Compared side by sidefrom sourceMoleculeFinder comparison notesA molecule we compare it with on its own page.
- Similar in shapecomputedRDKit Morgan/TanimotoNeighbours by structural fingerprint; the sentence names the chemical groups the two share.
- The drawingscomputedPubChem structures, drawn by RDKit