Almonds vs Edamame – Which is Healthier?

Our Verdict

When comparing almonds to edamame, we picked the almonds.

Why?

It’s not just our pro-almond bias! When it comes to these two superfood snacks, there is a clear winner:

In terms of macros, almonds have nearly 3x the fiber, more than 2x the carbs, and 2x the protein, winning easily in this category.

In the category of vitamins, things look closer to even; almonds have more of vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, and E, while edamame has more of vitamins B5, B9, C, and K. Superficially that’s a 5:4 marginal win for almonds, but it’s worth bearing in mind that one of these vitamins is an outlier in its abundance: almonds have 35x the vitamin E, meaning that just 2oz of almonds already covers the recommended daily amount of vitamin E. In any case, a clear win for almonds here.

Looking at minerals next, it’s more one-sided again; almonds are richer in calcium, copper, iron, magnesium, manganese, phosphorus, potassium, selenium, and zinc, while edamame is not higher in any mineral, unless we count sodium, in which case we can mention: edamame is 6x higher in sodium (and then obviously even more if you cook it in salted water, but we’re not counting that, just what’s in the unprepared beans already). All in all, one more overwhelming win for almonds.

In other considerations, both are good sources of polyphenols, but almonds have more (especially notably higher in heavy-hitters quercetin and kaempferol).

Adding up the sections and there can be only one winner today; it’s almonds by a country mile. Do enjoy either or both though, as diversity is good!

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Enjoy!