Stevioside vs Rebaudioside A: what is the difference?

How they differ

These two come out of the same stevia leaf and differ by one sugar unit, which is why rebaudioside A is the heavier molecule at 967.0 against 804.9. Both are steviol glycosides: the same steviol core with different sugars hung off it. Stevioside is the more abundant compound in the raw leaf and around 200 times as sweet as sugar, but it carries a liquorice bitterness in the finish. Rebaudioside A is the cleaner tasting of the two and slightly sweeter, near 250 times sugar, which is why most commercial stevia products are purified toward it. Reading a stevia label as one ingredient hides this: the taste depends almost entirely on the ratio between these two.

Side by side

Structural similarity 0.93 of 1, computed as a Morgan fingerprint Tanimoto coefficient. It measures shape, not effect.

Common questions

What is the difference between Stevioside and Rebaudioside A?

These two come out of the same stevia leaf and differ by one sugar unit, which is why rebaudioside A is the heavier molecule at 967.0 against 804.9. Both are steviol glycosides: the same steviol core with different sugars hung off it. Stevioside is the more abundant compound in the raw leaf and around 200 times as sweet as sugar, but it carries a liquorice bitterness in the finish.

Is Stevioside bigger than Rebaudioside A?

Rebaudioside A is the heavier molecule, 967 g/mol against 804.9 g/mol for Stevioside. Stevioside is C38H60O18 and Rebaudioside A is C44H70O23.