Folic Acid Info
Tool

Folate DFE Calculator

Convert mcg of folic acid to mcg DFE, add up food folate, and compare your daily total with the RDA and upper limit for your life stage.

Enter what you take and eat in a typical day. The calculator converts everything to mcg Dietary Folate Equivalents (DFE), compares the total with the recommended intake, and checks folic acid against the upper limit.

Supplements taken with a meal, plus fortified foods. Use the amount in parentheses on the label.
Supplements taken without food.
From leafy greens, beans, fruit, and other unfortified foods. See our food table.
Shows roughly how much folic acid a DFE number represents.
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Total folate, mcg DFE
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Of the recommended intake
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Folic acid vs. upper limit

How the conversion works

Folic acid is absorbed better than the folate found naturally in food, so labels and recommendations use Dietary Folate Equivalents to put both on the same scale.1

Source Conversion
Natural food folate 1 mcg DFE = 1 mcg food folate
Folic acid taken with food 1 mcg DFE = 0.6 mcg folic acid
Folic acid on an empty stomach 1 mcg DFE = 0.5 mcg folic acid

That is why a supplement with 400 mcg of folic acid is labeled about 667 mcg DFE.1

Life stage RDA (mcg DFE) Upper limit (mcg folic acid)
1-3 years 150 300
4-8 years 200 400
9-13 years 300 600
14-18 years 400 800
Adults 19+ 400 1,000
Pregnancy 600 1,000 (800 if under 19)
Lactation 500 1,000 (800 if under 19)

The upper limit applies only to folic acid from supplements and fortified foods, not to folate that occurs naturally in food. It is not a toxicity threshold, and it does not apply to higher doses prescribed by a clinician.1

Limits of this calculator

  • Formal DFE conversion factors have not been established for 5-MTHF (methylfolate), so this tool does not convert it.1
  • Food folate varies with variety, processing, and recipe. Check product labels or USDA FoodData Central for specific foods.14
  • This is an educational estimate, not medical advice. For a prescribed dose, follow your clinician.

Sources

  1. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements. Folate - Health Professional Fact Sheet.
  2. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). About Folic Acid.
  3. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Folic Acid: Sources and Recommended Intake.
  4. U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA). FoodData Central.