SHEET /vs/glucose-vs-fructose · COMPARISON
Glucose vs Fructose: what is the difference?
How they differ
from source
They have the identical formula, C6H12O6, and the identical weight, and they are still different molecules: glucose closes into a six-membered ring and fructose into a five-membered one, with a ketone where glucose has an aldehyde. That difference decides where each goes. Nearly every cell in the body can burn glucose directly, and blood sugar means glucose specifically, while fructose is handled almost entirely by the liver. Fructose is the sweeter of the two by a wide margin, which is why fruit tastes sweeter than its sugar content alone suggests. Table sugar is one of each joined together, and high-fructose corn syrup is the same two sugars unjoined and slightly rebalanced.
Side by side
| Glucose | Fructose | |
|---|---|---|
| Formula | C6H12O6 | C6H12O6 |
| Molecular weight | 180.16 g/mol | 180.16 g/mol |
| Family | Sugars | Sugars |
| Everyday group | Sweetener | Sweetener |
| Functional groups | Alcohols, Ethers | Alcohols, Ketones |
| Oral LD50A single acute animal measure. It ranks nothing about human safety. | 25,800 mg/kg (oral, rat) | not recorded |
| Sweetness | 0.75x sugar | not recorded |
| Found in | Fruit, Honey, Table sugar | Table sugar, Honey, Fruit |
| CAS number | not recorded | 30237-26-4 |
| PubChem CID | 5793 | 5984 |
Common questions
- What is the difference between Glucose and Fructose?
- They have the identical formula, C6H12O6, and the identical weight, and they are still different molecules: glucose closes into a six-membered ring and fructose into a five-membered one, with a ketone where glucose has an aldehyde. That difference decides where each goes. Nearly every cell in the body can burn glucose directly, and blood sugar means glucose specifically, while fructose is handled almost entirely by the liver.
- Do Glucose and Fructose have the same formula?
- Yes. Both are C6H12O6 at 180.16 g/mol. They are isomers: the same atoms arranged differently, which is why they behave differently despite weighing the same.