Dairy and eggs high in zinc (per serving)

17 dairy and eggs ranked by zinc per common serving, from USDA FoodData Central. Yogurt leads with 2.4 mg per 1 cup (8 fl oz) (22% of the Daily Value), followed by Cheese, swiss (1.2 mg) and Cheese, parmesan (1.2 mg).

Top 10 at a glance

Top 10 dairy and eggs highest in zinc

Yogurt, plain (skim milk)1 cup (8 fl oz) (245 g) · 137 kcal2.4 mg22% DV
Cheese, swiss1 oz (28 g) · 111 kcal1.2 mg11% DV
Cheese, parmesan (grated)1 oz (28 g) · 119 kcal1.2 mg11% DV
Cheese, gruyere1 oz (28 g) · 117 kcal1.1 mg10% DV
Cheese, gouda1 oz (28 g) · 101 kcal1.1 mg10% DV
Cheese, mexican (queso cotija)1 oz (28 g) · 104 kcal1.1 mg10% DV
Cheese, edam1 oz (28 g) · 101 kcal1.1 mg9.7% DV
Milk, fluid (1% fat, without added vitamin A and vitamin D)1 cup (244 g) · 102 kcal1 mg9.3% DV
Milk, buttermilk (fluid, whole)1 cup (245 g) · 152 kcal0.9 mg8.5% DV
Milk, low sodium (fluid)1 cup (244 g) · 149 kcal0.9 mg8.4% DV

All 17 dairy and eggs ranked

Sort any column. Serving sizes are USDA household measures (a cup, a medium fruit, 3 oz of cooked meat or fish, 1 oz of nuts or cheese). %DV is based on the FDA Daily Value of 11 mg.

#	Food	Serving	Zinc (mg)	% Daily Value	Per 100 g	kcal
1	Yogurt, plain (skim milk)	1 cup (8 fl oz) (245 g)	2.4	22%	1	137
2	Cheese, swiss	1 oz (28 g)	1.2	11%	4.4	111
3	Cheese, parmesan (grated)	1 oz (28 g)	1.2	11%	4.3	119
4	Cheese, gruyere	1 oz (28 g)	1.1	10%	3.9	117
5	Cheese, gouda	1 oz (28 g)	1.1	10%	3.9	101
6	Cheese, mexican (queso cotija)	1 oz (28 g)	1.1	10%	3.9	104
7	Cheese, edam	1 oz (28 g)	1.1	9.7%	3.8	101
8	Milk, fluid (1% fat, without added vitamin A and vitamin D)	1 cup (244 g)	1	9.3%	0.4	102
9	Milk, buttermilk (fluid, whole)	1 cup (245 g)	0.9	8.5%	0.4	152
10	Milk, low sodium (fluid)	1 cup (244 g)	0.9	8.4%	0.4	149
11	Yogurt, Greek (plain, nonfat)	1 container (170 g)	0.9	8.2%	0.5	100
12	Egg, whole (cooked, omelet)	1 large (61 g)	0.7	6%	1.1	94
13	Egg, yolk (raw, fresh)	1 large (17 g)	0.4	3.6%	2.3	55
14	Dulce de Leche	1 tbsp (19 g)	0.1	1.4%	0.8	60
15	Cream, sour (cultured)	1 tbsp (12 g)	0	0.4%	0.4	24
16	Butter, without salt	1 tbsp (14 g)	0	0.1%	0.1	102
17	Egg, white (raw, fresh)	1 large (33 g)	0	0.1%	0	17

Zinc in specific foods

Zinc in oysters

How this list is built. Values are from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy, with Foundation Foods analytical updates where available). The pool is 1,677 whole foods: fruits, vegetables, legumes, nuts and seeds, grains, fish, meat, poultry, dairy and eggs. Spices, herbs, baby foods, powders, flours, dried and freeze-dried items, juices, processed meats, organ meats other than liver and uncommon foods are excluded; meats, fish, grains and legumes are ranked cooked. Each food family appears once and no single animal or plant fills more than six places. Ranking is by amount per serving; the per-100 g column is shown for reference. A food that USDA has not analysed for zinc is left out rather than counted as zero. Full methodology.

Frequently asked questions

Which food is highest in zinc?

Among dairy and eggs in the USDA database, Yogurt, plain (skim milk) has the most zinc per serving: 2.4 mg per 1 cup (8 fl oz) (22% of the Daily Value). Per 100 g it contains 1 mg.

How much zinc do I need per day?

The FDA Daily Value used on Nutrition Facts labels is 11 mg of zinc for adults and children aged 4 and over. Individual needs vary with age, sex, pregnancy and health conditions.

What counts as a food high in zinc?

FDA labeling rules call a food a 'good source' when one serving provides 10 to 19% of the Daily Value and 'high' or 'excellent' at 20% or more. 1 of the 17 foods on this list reach 20% DV per serving.

Related rankings

Nutrient values are from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy, April 2018; Foundation Foods, April 2026) and shown per serving as described on each page. %DV uses the FDA Daily Values for adults and children aged 4 and over. This is nutrition data for general information, not medical or dietary advice; talk to a clinician or registered dietitian about your own needs. How the numbers are calculated.