Paleo Diet Food List: Eat, Avoid & Food Pyramid Chart

By Paleo Life Coach Editorial Team · Last updated September 26, 2026 · Nutrition values from USDA FoodData Central

You’re in the grocery aisle holding almond butter, rice and oat milk, and you can’t remember which ones fit. A paleo diet food list settles it in one glance. Below: the eat-and-avoid chart, what you can’t eat and why, a paleo food pyramid, USDA nutrition for 31 staples, and the gray-area foods paleo camps disagree on.

The quick version: On the paleo diet you eat meat, fish, seafood, eggs, vegetables, fruit, nuts, seeds and unrefined fats such as olive oil, avocado and coconut oil. You avoid grains, legumes (beans, lentils, peanuts, soy), dairy, refined sugar, seed oils and most processed foods. Honey, white potatoes and butter are gray areas that depend on how strict you are.

What is on the paleo diet food list?

The paleo food list is short because it’s built on one idea: eat foods a hunter-gatherer could have hunted, fished or gathered. The Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health summarizes the allowed foods as “fresh lean meats, fish, shellfish, eggs, nuts, seeds, fruits, vegetables, olive oil, coconut oil, and small amounts of honey,” with root vegetables like sweet potatoes and cassava allowed in moderation (Harvard T.H. Chan, Diet Review: Paleo Diet).

Print this page or screenshot the chart below and keep it on your phone. It’s organized so you can scan one row per aisle.

What is on the paleo diet food list?
Food group	Eat	Avoid
Meat and poultry	Beef, pork, lamb, chicken, turkey, game, organ meats	Breaded or battered meats, meats cured with sugar, most deli meats with fillers
Fish and seafood	Salmon, sardines, tuna, cod, shrimp, mussels, any fresh or plain canned fish	Fish sticks, imitation crab (made with starch)
Eggs	Chicken, duck and quail eggs	Liquid egg products with additives
Vegetables	Leafy greens, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, zucchini, onions, carrots, mushrooms	Corn (a grain), fried vegetable chips
Starchy vegetables	Sweet potatoes, butternut and other winter squash, plantains, cassava	White potatoes for strict followers (see gray areas)
Fruit	Berries, apples, bananas, citrus, melons, stone fruit	Juice, dried fruit with added sugar, canned fruit in syrup
Nuts and seeds	Almonds, walnuts, pecans, macadamias, cashews, pumpkin, sunflower and chia seeds	Peanuts (a legume), candied or sugar-coated nuts
Fats and oils	Olive oil, avocado and avocado oil, coconut oil, animal fats	Canola, soybean, corn and other refined seed oils; margarine
Grains	None	Wheat, rice, oats, corn, barley, rye, quinoa, bread, pasta, cereal
Legumes	Green beans and snap peas are commonly accepted	Beans, lentils, chickpeas, peanuts, soy, tofu
Dairy	None on strict paleo (ghee/butter are gray areas)	Milk, cheese, yogurt, cream, ice cream
Sweeteners	Small amounts of raw honey or pure maple syrup	White and brown sugar, corn syrup, artificial sweeteners

Sources: allowed and excluded foods per Harvard T.H. Chan; legume and sweetener details cross-checked with the Whole30 program rules, which grew out of paleo.

Harvard also points out that there is no single “true” paleo diet: followers disagree on what existed in the Stone Age and what to include, which is why the gray-area section below matters.

What can you not eat on the paleo diet?

On strict paleo you can’t eat grains, legumes, dairy, refined sugar, refined vegetable oils or most processed foods. Harvard’s diet review lists the “not allowed” foods as whole grains, cereals, refined grains and sugars, dairy products, white potatoes, legumes (peanuts, beans, lentils), alcohol, coffee, salt, refined vegetable oils such as canola, and most processed foods (Harvard T.H. Chan, Diet Review: Paleo Diet). In practice, many paleo followers keep coffee and salt, which is why both appear in the gray-area table further down.

The harder part is spotting these foods once they’re inside a package. The table pairs each excluded group with the label wording that gives it away.

What can you not eat on the paleo diet?
Food to avoid on paleo	Common examples	Why paleo leaves it out	Label words that reveal it
Grains (whole and refined)	Wheat, rice, oats, corn, barley, rye; bread, pasta, cereal, crackers	Arrived with farming, after the Paleolithic	“flour (wheat)”, “Contains wheat”, corn starch, rice flour, oat fiber
Legumes	Beans, lentils, chickpeas, peanuts, soy, tofu, hummus	Excluded by name in the paleo template	“lecithin (soy)”, soybean oil, “Contains soy”, peanut
Dairy	Milk, cheese, yogurt, cream, ice cream	Not part of a pre-farming diet	“whey (milk)”, casein, milk solids, “Contains milk”
Refined sugar and syrups	Table sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, candy, soda	Refined sugars are on the not-allowed list	The “Added Sugars” line on the Nutrition Facts label; cane sugar, dextrose, syrups
Refined vegetable oils	Canola, soybean, corn and cottonseed oils; margarine	Refined vegetable oils are excluded	The oil named in the ingredient list
Most processed foods	Chips, packaged snacks, frozen dinners, sweetened sauces	The diet emphasizes fresh foods	Long ingredient lists with any of the items above
White potatoes (strict versions)	Fries, chips, mashed potatoes	Avoided for their high glycemic index	Potato, potato starch

Sources: excluded foods and reasons from Harvard T.H. Chan, Diet Review: Paleo Diet. Label formats from the FDA: milk, wheat, soybeans and peanuts are among the nine major allergens that must be declared, either in parentheses such as “lecithin (soy)” and “whey (milk)” or in a “Contains” statement (FDA: Food Allergies). The Added Sugars line and its 50 g Daily Value are explained on FDA: Added Sugars on the Nutrition Facts Label.

The allergen rule is a shortcut for paleo shoppers. Because U.S. labels must name wheat, milk, soy and peanuts, a quick look at the “Contains” statement catches three of the biggest excluded groups in seconds. It won’t catch corn, rice, oats or refined oils, which aren’t major allergens, so read the full ingredient list for those.

How much nutrition is in a serving of each paleo food?

Most paleo food lists stop at names. The table below adds what you actually get from a normal portion, computed from the USDA’s FoodData Central SR Legacy dataset. Use it to build plates: pick a protein from the top rows, fill half the plate from the vegetable rows, and add a starch or fruit and a fat to match your appetite.

How much nutrition is in a serving of each paleo food?
Group	Food	Serving	Calories	Protein (g)	Carbs (g)	Fat (g)	Fiber (g)
Protein	Chicken breast, roasted	3 oz (85 g)	140	26.4	0.0	3.0	0.0
Protein	Ground beef 85% lean, cooked	3 oz (85 g)	218	23.6	0.0	13.0	0.0
Protein	Salmon, farmed, cooked	3 oz (85 g)	175	18.8	0.0	10.5	0.0
Protein	Shrimp, cooked	3 oz (85 g)	84	20.4	0.2	0.2	0.0
Protein	Pork chop, boneless, pan-broiled	3 oz (85 g)	195	22.7	0.0	11.6	0.0
Protein	Egg, large	1 egg (50 g)	72	6.3	0.4	4.8	0.0
Protein	Tuna, light, canned in water	3 oz (85 g)	99	21.7	0.0	0.7	0.0
Protein	Sardines, canned in oil, with bone	1 can (92 g)	191	22.7	0.0	10.5	0.0
Vegetables	Broccoli, raw	1 cup chopped (91 g)	31	2.6	6.0	0.3	2.4
Vegetables	Spinach, raw	1 cup (30 g)	7	0.9	1.1	0.1	0.7
Vegetables	Red bell pepper, raw	1 cup chopped (149 g)	39	1.5	9.0	0.4	3.1
Vegetables	Cauliflower, raw	1 cup (107 g)	27	2.1	5.3	0.3	2.1
Vegetables	Zucchini, raw	1 cup chopped (124 g)	21	1.5	3.9	0.4	1.2
Vegetables	Carrot, raw	1 medium (61 g)	25	0.6	5.8	0.1	1.7
Starchy veg	Sweet potato, baked	1 medium (114 g)	103	2.3	23.6	0.2	3.8
Starchy veg	Butternut squash, raw	1 cup cubes (140 g)	63	1.4	16.4	0.1	2.8
Starchy veg	Plantain, yellow, raw	1 cup sliced (148 g)	181	1.9	47.2	0.5	2.5
Fruit	Banana	1 medium (118 g)	105	1.3	27.0	0.4	3.1
Fruit	Apple, with skin	1 medium (182 g)	95	0.5	25.1	0.3	4.4
Fruit	Blueberries	1 cup (148 g)	84	1.1	21.4	0.5	3.6
Fruit	Strawberries	1 cup halves (152 g)	49	1.0	11.7	0.5	3.0
Fruit	Orange, navel	1 fruit (140 g)	69	1.3	17.6	0.2	3.1
Fats	Avocado	1/2 avocado (100 g)	160	2.0	8.5	14.7	6.7
Fats	Olive oil	1 tbsp (13.5 g)	119	0.0	0.0	13.5	0.0
Fats	Coconut oil	1 tbsp (13.6 g)	121	0.0	0.0	13.5	0.0
Nuts and seeds	Almonds	1 oz (28 g)	164	6.0	6.1	14.2	3.5
Nuts and seeds	Walnuts	1 oz (28 g)	185	4.3	3.9	18.5	1.9
Nuts and seeds	Pumpkin seeds	1 oz (28 g)	158	8.6	3.0	13.9	1.7
Nuts and seeds	Macadamia nuts	1 oz (28 g)	204	2.2	3.9	21.5	2.4
Nuts and seeds	Chia seeds	1 oz (28 g)	138	4.7	11.9	8.7	9.8
Sweeteners	Honey	1 tbsp (21 g)	64	0.1	17.3	0.0	0.0

Calculation: USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy values per 100 g, scaled to the serving weights FoodData Central lists for each food. Raw values are shown for produce unless noted; cooking changes weight but not the nutrients in the portion.

Three patterns stand out. First, protein comes almost entirely from the animal rows: a 3-ounce portion of any meat or fish gives roughly 19-27 g, while a handful of nuts gives 2-9 g. Second, fiber comes from produce, nuts and seeds, since paleo drops the whole grains and beans that supply much of it in other diets. Third, nuts and oils are calorie-dense; three handfuls of macadamias are about 600 calories.

Which foods are gray areas on paleo?

Some foods are “paleo” in one book and banned in another. Harvard’s review notes white potatoes are usually avoided because of their high glycemic index, and it also lists coffee, salt and alcohol among foods the stricter versions exclude. The Whole30, a stricter 30-day plan, allows ghee and green beans but bans all added sweeteners, honey included.

Which foods are gray areas on paleo?
Food	Strict paleo	Primal	Whole30 (30 days)	Our take
White potatoes	Usually avoided	Allowed	Allowed (no chips or fries)	Fine for active people who tolerate them
Butter	No	Yes	No (ghee only)	Ghee is the common compromise
Ghee	Often allowed	Yes	Yes	Low in milk protein, widely accepted
Cheese, yogurt	No	Yes, full-fat	No	Choose based on tolerance
Honey, maple syrup	Small amounts	Small amounts	No	Treat as sugar, not a health food
Green beans, snap peas	Usually yes	Yes	Yes	Eat them
Coffee	Varies	Yes	Yes (no sweeteners or dairy)	Black or with coconut milk
Alcohol	No	Occasional	No	Occasional, if at all
Dark chocolate	Small amounts, 70%+	Yes	No	Occasional treat
Salt	Some plans limit	Yes	Yes (iodized salt allowed)	Use iodized salt to cover iodine

Sources: Harvard T.H. Chan paleo review; Whole30 program rules, which list ghee, green beans, most peas and iodized salt as exceptions and ban honey and maple syrup. Primal column summarizes our paleo vs Primal comparison.

If you’re unsure about a single food, the is it paleo? food checker covers dozens of common items, and our sweet potato guide explains why sweet potatoes made the list when white potatoes often didn’t.

How do you decide on a food that isn’t listed?

Ask three questions in order. The answer to the first “yes” decides it.

Is it a grain or made from one? Wheat, rice, oats, corn and anything made from their flours (bread, tortillas, pasta, crackers) are out.
Is it a legume or made from one? Beans, lentils, chickpeas, peanuts and soy (tofu, soy sauce, soy lecithin) are out. Green beans and snap peas are the usual exceptions.
Is it dairy or heavily processed? Milk, cheese, yogurt and cream are out on strict paleo, and so are products whose ingredient lists read like a chemistry set, refined seed oils or added sugar.

If the answer to all three is no, it’s almost always fine. Coconut aminos (a soy-sauce swap) and almond flour both pass.

What does a day from this food list look like?

A plate-building rule works better than memorizing the chart: one palm-size protein, half the plate non-starchy vegetables, a fist of starchy vegetables or fruit, and a thumb of fat. Using the table above, a day might look like this:

Breakfast: 3 eggs scrambled with spinach and peppers in 1 tsp olive oil, plus a banana
Lunch: tuna and half an avocado over romaine with cucumber and lemon
Dinner: salmon with a cup of roasted broccoli and a baked sweet potato
Snack: an apple and a small handful of almonds

That day lands around 1,700-1,800 calories and more than 100 g of protein. For a full week of meals with quantities and computed macros, see the 7-day paleo meal plan.

Is there a paleo food pyramid?

There is no official paleo food pyramid. No government agency publishes one, and the “paleo pyramid” images online are drawn by individual authors. What a pyramid does well is show proportions, so here is the plate rule from the section above turned into tiers, from the foods you eat most (bottom) to least (top).

Is there a paleo food pyramid?
Tier	Food group	How much, per meal	Examples from this list
1 (base)	Non-starchy vegetables	About half the plate	Leafy greens, broccoli, cauliflower, peppers, zucchini
2	Protein: meat, fish, seafood, eggs	One palm-size portion (about 3-4 oz cooked)	Chicken, beef, salmon, sardines, shrimp, eggs
3	Starchy vegetables and fruit	About a fist	Sweet potato, squash, plantain, berries, apple, banana
4	Fats, nuts and seeds	About a thumb of oil, or a small handful of nuts	Olive oil, avocado, coconut oil, almonds, walnuts
5 (top)	Sweeteners and treats	Occasionally	Honey, maple syrup, 70%+ dark chocolate

This pyramid is our visual summary of the plate rule on this page, not an official standard. The sweetener tier follows Harvard’s “small amounts of honey” wording.

The biggest difference from the pyramid many people grew up with is the base. Harvard’s nutrition department notes that the USDA’s original Food Guide Pyramid, released in 1992, had “an overstuffed breadbasket as its base,” and that MyPyramid replaced it in 2005 (Harvard T.H. Chan: Healthy Eating Pyramid). The USDA’s current model is MyPlate, and Harvard publishes its own Healthy Eating Plate as an alternative to it (Harvard T.H. Chan: Healthy Eating Plate). A paleo pyramid removes the grain base entirely and puts vegetables in its place, with protein taking a larger share than in either government model.

Which nutrients can a paleo food list miss?

Cutting dairy, grains and legumes removes some of the easiest sources of certain nutrients. Harvard’s review warns that excluding whole grains and dairy “may also increase the risk of deficiencies such as calcium, vitamin D, and B vitamins” if those nutrients aren’t replaced.

Calcium: without dairy, lean on canned sardines or salmon with the bones, leafy greens and almonds. Our paleo calcium and nutrient gaps guide runs the numbers.
Fiber: eat vegetables at every meal and fruit, nuts or seeds daily. The Institute of Medicine’s reference intake for fiber is 14 g per 1,000 calories (National Academies, DRI for energy and macronutrients).
Iodine: paleo sea salt is often not iodized; iodized salt and seafood fill the gap.

If you’re pregnant, managing a health condition or taking medication, talk to your doctor or a registered dietitian before removing whole food groups.

Common mistakes with a paleo food list

Treating “paleo” packaged snacks as health food. Grain-free cookies and bars still pack sugar and refined oils.
Forgetting that peanuts and soy are legumes. Peanut butter and soy sauce are the two most common slip-ups.
Going heavy on nuts. At 160-200 calories per ounce, nuts add up fast.
Skipping starchy vegetables entirely. Paleo isn’t keto; sweet potatoes and squash are on the list.
Reading “sugar” only. Check labels for honey, cane juice, syrups and dextrose on bacon, sausage and dressings.

Frequently asked questions about the paleo diet food list

What foods are not allowed on the paleo diet?

Grains (wheat, rice, oats, corn and anything made from them), legumes (beans, lentils, chickpeas, peanuts and soy), dairy, refined sugar, refined vegetable oils such as canola, and most processed foods. Strict versions also drop white potatoes and alcohol, and Harvard’s summary lists coffee and salt too, though many followers keep coffee and use iodized salt.

What does a paleo food pyramid look like?

There’s no official one, but the proportions work out like this: non-starchy vegetables at the base (half the plate), a palm-size protein above them, then a fist of starchy vegetables or fruit, a thumb of fat or a small handful of nuts, and honey or dark chocolate at the narrow top as occasional foods.

Are potatoes on the paleo food chart?

White potatoes are a gray area. Strict paleo avoids them, and Harvard’s review notes they’re usually excluded because of their high glycemic index. Many people include them anyway as a whole-food carb, and the Whole30 allows them. Sweet potatoes are widely accepted on every version of paleo.

Is the paleo food chart the same as Whole30?

They overlap heavily, but Whole30 is stricter and temporary. For 30 days it bans all added sweeteners, including honey and maple syrup, plus alcohol and “paleo-fied” treats like grain-free pancakes and chips. It also allows ghee, green beans, most peas and iodized salt. After 30 days you reintroduce foods one group at a time.

Can I print this paleo food chart?

Yes. Use your browser’s print option (Ctrl+P on Windows, Cmd+P on Mac, or Share then Print on a phone) and print the eat-and-avoid table at the top of this page. Many people save a screenshot to their phone’s favorites instead so it’s always available in the store.

What can you eat on the paleo diet for breakfast?

Eggs in any form, leftover meat and vegetables, sweet potato hash, chia pudding made with coconut milk, fruit with nuts, and grain-free pancakes made from banana and eggs. See our paleo breakfast ideas for recipes with quantities and protein per serving.

Is rice paleo?

No. Rice is a grain, so strict paleo excludes it, and the Whole30 does too. Some people who follow a looser “ancestral” or Primal style eat white rice occasionally, especially around training. Cauliflower rice is the standard paleo swap: a cup has about 27 calories and 5 g of carbs.

Are eggs and meat unlimited on paleo?

Paleo doesn’t set formal limits, and Harvard notes calorie counting isn’t emphasized. Portions still matter if you have a weight or health goal. A palm-size portion of protein per meal (about 3-4 ounces cooked) is a sensible starting point; the TDEE calculator can help you size portions to your needs.

Your next step: shop one week from the chart

Take the eat column shopping this week and buy one protein, three vegetables, one starch and one fruit you actually like. Cook from those before adding more rules. When you’re ready for structure, the 7-day paleo meal plan turns this list into a week of meals, and the what is the paleo diet hub explains the reasoning behind each rule.

Consider this general nutrition reading, not a replacement for advice from your doctor or a registered dietitian.

Paleo Diet Food List: What You Can and Can’t Eat, With a Printable Chart and Food Pyramid