Whilst reaching for a chocolate bar might not be as healthy as opting for a piece of fruit, when we fancy a treat there are still some healthy chocolate bar choices we could be making. But which is the healthiest chocolate bar?
What are the healthiest chocolate bars for your diet and what are the worst? Chocoholics, we've got good news as low calorie chocolate DOES exist, you just need to know where to look within our little list of chocolate bars...
We Brits reportedly enjoy on average 187 of our favourite chocolate bars (opens in new tab) every year, so there's no denying that chocolate is a massive part of our lives. Whether it's a nutty Snickers, an indulgent Mars or a deliciously minty Aero, we all have our favourite chocolate bars - but do you ever stop to check the fat and calories in your usual chocolate bar choice?
Not many people do, especially as more of us are likely to weigh up the best and worst takeaways (opens in new tab) and whole meals for instance, rather than just a small snack.
Picking the healthiest (or just a low calorie) chocolate bar may seem impossible, which is why we've rounded up the best and worst chocolate bars for your diet, and included all of your chocolate favourites. So next time you're looking for a low-calorie chocolate bar, you know which to reach for!
Healthiest chocolate bars:
- Milky Way
- 100 Grand
- Curley Wurly
- Kinder Bueno
- Milky Bar
Whilst picking up a standard size chocolate bar at lunch or as an evening snack might not be as healthy as opting for a piece of fruit, when we fancy a treat there are still some healthy choices we could be making. Especially when you consider that the difference in calories between our worst chocolate bar and our best chocolate bar is a staggering 151 calories - that's the same as a slimline ham sandwich!
You could almost have a bag of Maltesers and the healthiest chocolate bar combined before hitting that calorie total, and let's be honest with ourselves here - who on earth would say no to more chocolate?
Unhealthiest chocolate bars:
- Whispa Gold
- Toberlone
- Twix
- Lion Bar
- Yorkie
We've rated some of the nation's favourite chocolatey treats from low calorie chocolate to high, plus counted them down in terms of fat and other factors that contribute to the nutritional information, ordering them from the worst to the best. Which one will come out on top?
And if the results shock you, be sure to check out the best and the worst biscuits (opens in new tab) for your next 3pm tea break and the best and worst cereals (opens in new tab) before your next food shop.
1. Wispa Gold
Calories: 265
Fat: 15g
Diet rating: 1/10
Wow! While a standard Whispa might be relatively low on the calorie spectrum, the alternative Whispa Gold tops our list of the worst chocolate bars. With 15g in fat, it's 1g higher than the Toblerone in second place.
2. Toblerone 100g bar
Calories: 260
Fat: 14g
Diet rating: 1/10
With only one less gram of fat than our worst chocolate bar, the iconic Toblerone comes in a close second place with the Whispa Gold. It's got seven less calories and 1g less gram of fat so just about misses last place.
3. Twix
Calories: 250
Fat: 12g
Diet rating: 2/10
Who'd have thought that a Twix was so calorific? The biscuit base and caramel contribute to its 250 calories and 12g fat. At least it's already in two pieces, meaning it's easy to give away half...
4. Lion
Calories: 257
Fat: 11g
Diet rating: 1/10
Coming in as one of the worst chocolate bars to have as a snack, the Lion bar is only 7 more calories than the Twix but it's also 1g less than the Twix. So while the two are quite comparable, we've decided that with 1g less of fat, it's every so slightly better for you than the Twix.
5. Yorkie
Calories: 249Fat: 14g
Diet rating: 1/10
Yorkie is the second to worst chocolate bar you can have as an after-lunch treat, with a surprisingly high percentage of its 68g weight as fat.
6. Snickers
Calories: 250
Fat: 12g
Diet rating: 1/10
The peanuts and caramel make up a large proportion of the calories and fat content in a Snickers bars. It may taste nice but it won't be doing anything for your waistline.
7. Peanut M&Ms
Calories: 250
Fat: 13g
Diet rating: 2/10
With almost 15g of fat, this is one of the unhealthiest chocolate bars that snackers can have when they're feeling peckish. But it depends, as they come in a sharing bag of 250g as long as you have only the recommended 1/3 of the bag, it should be totally fine for a little treat.
8. Milka
Calorie: 240
Fat: 13g
Diet rating: 3/10
With its high amount of fat, the Milka bar is one of the unhealthiest chocolate bars you can have - which is surprising! Many think that Milka is healthier than its Cadbury rivals because it's a thinner bar but apparently not.
9. Mars
Calories: 230
Fat: 8.6g
Diet rating: 3/10
At a whopping 260 calories and nearly 10g of fat, a Mars a day won't be too kind to your thighs. Go for snack size Mars bars rather than a big bar to keep your calories under control.
10. Galaxy Caramel
Calories: 232 (for a 48g twin bar)
Fat: 11.4g
Diet rating: 4/10
Did you know that just one chunk of Galaxy Caramel is 42 calories - for the same amount you could eat 2 satsumas, half a grapefruit or 5 olives. The sugary caramel is responsible for most of the fat content - one to be avoided.
11. Picnic
Calories: 235
Fat: 11g
Diet rating: 4/10
Picnics are one of the most flavoursome chocolate bars containing nuts, raisins, chewy nougat, biscuit, puffed rice and covered in milk chocolate - but the calorie level is relatively high, and the fat content isn't that virtuous either.
12. Mint Aero
Calories: 221
Fat: 12.3g
Diet rating: 4/10
Despite being full of air bubbles giving a light texture to the chocolate, Mint Aeros have a high fat content compared to some of the healthiest chocolate bars. If you love the minty flavour just eat a couple of chunks and leave the rest for another day.
13. Toffee Crisp
Calories: 227
Fat: 12g
Diet rating: 5/10
Toffee Crisps combine puffed rice with soft toffee and are wrapped in milk chocolate. Despite having less calories than a Mars they contain more grams of fat so still get a low rating.
14. Wispa
Calories: 215
Fat: 13.3g
Diet rating: 5/10
Brought back after a public campaign, delicious Wispas are made from milk chocolate with tiny aerated bubbles in the middle - but the fat content is surprisingly high considering the amount of air pockets inside!
15. KitKat
Calories: 232
Fat: 11.3g
Diet rating: 5/10
Thanks to a clever marketing slogan the classic Kit Kat is associated with tea breaks with a whopping 47 Kit Kats being eaten every second in the UK. The wafter layers are covered in chocolate and set together in either two or four finger packs.
16. Minstrels
Calories: 212
Fat: 9.3g
Diet rating: 6/10
Galaxy Minstrels are made up of chocolate buttons with a hard glazed shell. A whole packet is relatively low in calories, and actually contains the same amount of fat as a bag of Maltesers, which are often presumed to be healthier.
17. Cadbury Dairy Milk
Calories: 240
Fat: 13.5g
Diet rating: 6/10
Single bars of Dairy Milk don't look that bad for you, but they're deceptive! The milk chocolate slabs are now made with a Fairtrade certification - but don't eat too often though as they still contain a lot of fat for one bar.
18. Maltesers
Calories: 187
Fat: 9.2g
Diet rating: 7/10
We've all seen the Maltesers adverts where they float up into the air with the slogan 'the lighter way to enjoy chocolate'. The small chocolate balls with a malt honeycomb centre are lower in calories than many of their chocolate counterparts, however, they still don't make our top spot.
19. Cadbury Crunchie
Calories: 187
Fat: 6.9g
Diet rating: 7/10
The unique yellow honeycomb centre of a Crunchie is what makes them so popular - and it's not as bad for you as you might think, either. There's a white chocolate Crunchie available to buy in South Africa and a caramel version being sold in some shops in the UK - yum!