Purine content of Pork
across 20 measured preparations · median 116.4 mg · spans fairly low to extremely high
Pork is not one number. Across the pork measurements here the spread runs from 40 mg per 100 g for pork blood to 333.5 mg for cooked boneless loin — an eight-fold range inside a single animal. The Chinese guideline's general figure for pork is 138 mg, which is a reasonable middle and a poor guide to any specific cut.
Avoid or strictly limit — significant gout flare risk.
On this page (6)
The cut matters more than the animal
Sorted by the USDA measurements, the leanest cuts are the highest: boneless skinless loin at 237.2 mg raw and 333.5 mg cooked, tenderloin at 244 mg. The fattier and more collagenous cuts sit far lower: neck at 70.6 mg, ribs at 75.8 mg, sirloin at 90.9 mg, shoulder at 93.7 mg.
This is the same inversion that shows up in chicken, and for the same reason: purines come from dense cellular material, so leaner cuts carry more per 100 g. Loin and tenderloin are the cuts recommended for general heart health, and they are the pork cuts highest in purines.
Purine charts that publish one number for pork are averaging across an eight-fold range. It is a defensible average and a weak basis for choosing between two dishes on the same menu.
More practical swaps
Lower-purine options you can realistically buy or order instead — not only the lowest numbers in the category.
- Pork neck or ribs70.6–75.8 mg
The same animal at a third of boneless loin. On this page the cut matters more than the meat.
- Eggsunder 1 mg
Raw or boiled egg is close to zero, and it is complete protein.
- Tofu21.9–35.8 mg
Boiled three to five minutes, which leaches purines into discarded water.
- Cod71 mg
Fresh cod, per 100 g — comparable to the leanest pork cuts and well under loin.
Why the numbers vary
Where the numbers online tend to sit
Charts circulating online frequently place lean pork loin and tenderloin at around 90–100 mg per 100 g. The USDA table puts those specific cuts at 237.2 mg and 244 mg raw. The 90–100 mg range does correspond to real pork measurements — sirloin at 90.9 mg and shoulder at 93.7 mg — just not to loin.
This is what happens when a number travels without the cut and the preparation attached to it: it stays plausible while attaching to the wrong food. It is the reason every row on this site names what was measured, and the reason two similar-sounding pork entries here can carry very different figures without either being an error.
Chinese pork dishes measured as dishes
The NHC guideline measured several composite dishes rather than only raw ingredients, which is unusual and useful. Pork-and-celery dumplings measure 56 mg per 100 g and pork-and-shiitake dumplings 42 mg — both in the second-lowest band, because the filling is a minority of the dumpling by weight and the wrapper contributes almost nothing.
Pork blood measures 40 mg, near the bottom of the meat category and a long way below any muscle cut. Pork floss, a dried product, measures 76 mg — lower than expected for something dried, because it is heavily diluted with sugar and seasoning.
These entries exist in the Chinese guideline and in no English-language purine database. If you eat this way, most charts written in English simply have nothing to say about the majority of your meals.
The meats measured here run from 49.9 mg to 252 mg per 100 g, so the category is a poor guide on its own — which specific food, and prepared how, decides almost everything.
Preparation matters more than the food's name. Pork loin, boneless, skinless, cooked measures 333.5 mg, while Pork blood measures 40 mg — a difference of 8.3 times. Drying and grilling remove water and concentrate what is left; boiling can move purines into water that is then poured away.
Every form of pork measured (20)
Highest first, each with the preparation that was measured.
| Food as measured | Per 100 g | Level | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pork loin, boneless, skinless, cooked | 333.5 mg | Extremely high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork lung | 272 mg | Very high | NHC 2024 |
| Pork loin, tenderloin, boneless, raw | 244 mg | Very high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork loin, boneless, skinless, raw | 237.2 mg | Very high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork pancreas | 234 mg | Very high | NHC 2024 |
| Pork tongue (cooked) | 186 mg | High | NHC 2024 |
| Pork, ground, raw | 183.1 mg | High | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork | 138 mg | Fairly high | NHC 2024 |
| Pork roast and chops, cooked | 119.8 mg | Fairly high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork tenderloin, raw | 119.8 mg | Fairly high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork rump, raw | 113 mg | Fairly high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork tongue, raw | 104 mg | Fairly high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork shoulder, raw | 93.7 mg | Fairly high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork sirloin, raw | 90.9 mg | Fairly high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork floss | 76 mg | Fairly high | NHC 2024 |
| Pork ribs, raw | 75.8 mg | Fairly high | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Pork neck, raw | 70.6 mg | Fairly low | ODS-NIH 2.0 |
| Dumpling (pork & celery) | 56 mg | Fairly low | NHC 2024 |
| Dumpling (pork & shiitake) | 42 mg | Fairly low | NHC 2024 |
| Pork blood | 40 mg | Fairly low | NHC 2024 |
Questions about pork and purines
Which pork cut is lowest in purines?
Among the cuts measured here, pork neck is lowest at 70.6 mg per 100 g, followed by ribs at 75.8 mg, sirloin at 90.9 mg and shoulder at 93.7 mg — all USDA figures for raw cuts. Pork blood, at 40 mg, is lower than any muscle cut. The leanest cuts, loin and tenderloin, are the highest at 237–244 mg raw.
Is lean pork better for gout than fatty pork?
Not in terms of purine content, which runs the other way: boneless loin measures 237.2 mg per 100 g raw against 70.6 mg for neck and 75.8 mg for ribs. Purines come from dense muscle tissue, so leanness raises purine density per 100 g. Fat content matters for other health reasons, which is a separate question from the one this number answers.
Are pork dumplings high in purines?
Lower than the pork inside them, because the filling is a minority of the weight. The Chinese 2024 guideline measures pork-and-celery dumplings at 56 mg per 100 g and pork-and-shiitake dumplings at 42 mg, both fairly low, against 138 mg for pork itself.
Source
- USDA and ODS-NIH Database for the Purine Content of Foods, Release 2.0 (2025) — Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture.
- Dietary Guideline for Adults with Hyperuricaemia and Gout (2024 Edition) — National Health Commission of China, appendix 1. Issued February 2024.
Reference information only. Purine values describe foods, not people: they cannot tell you what is safe for you to eat, and nothing here diagnoses or treats gout. Talk to your doctor or dietitian about your own diet and medication.