Best Low Sodium Foods

The food you bring into your home shapes your daily sodium intake. The foundation for any low sodium meal should be fresh meats and vegetables. But you’ll need other ingredients like no salt added spices or low sodium sauces. Plus who doesn’t want the occasional low salt snack!

Below you’ll find some tips and tricks I learned for tracking down the best low sodium food products. Then you will discover a list of over 100 low salt items that I have discovered on my journey to low salt eating. I hope this helps get you started!

Where can you find low sodium groceries?

Finding low sodium products at the grocery store can seem like an impossible task. Inventory varies wildly from store to store. Here are a few tips for trying to find a product in a physical store:

• Visit the manufacturer’s website. Most national food manufacturers and grocery chains participate in the Destini Product Locator database. So you’ll have a decent shot at finding the product at a retailer near you. Just google the product, visit their website, and look for “where to buy” or “find in store”.
• Talk to the Manager at the Customer Service Desk at your local grocery store. Be sure to ask for the manager so they can pass along the message to the store buyer. I know it is easier to talk to a regular employee but this well-intentioned individual may get busy and forget to pass along the message. So ask for the manager.
• Look for store-owned brands. These products, often called generic or private-label brands, are usually the last type of product a store would discontinue because they own the product! Don’t worry about the quality. Typically a generic product is made by a national brand, it just has a different label. So it will be of good quality. And the bonus is, it is cheaper!
• Shop around. I know this takes time and in many smaller communities, there might only be a single grocery store. But if you have access to a couple of different stores, plan a research trip. Just go to the store and walk up and down the isles looking for products marked “no salt added” or “low sodium”. Be sure to make a list, either on paper or on your phone, of the products you find!

Shop online for low salt products.

I typically buy most of my low sodium food products online. Let’s face it, most grocery stores simply do not carry a big selection of low salt products. For example, I’ve never seen salt- free baking powder in a grocery store. Besides, purchasing online saves me time and eliminates the worry that my local grocer will stop carrying a favorite low sodium item.

I either buy from Amazon (for the free shipping) or buy direct from the manufacturer.

I haven’t completely eliminated trips to my local grocery store because I need fresh meats and produce. Plus there are some products like Aldi’s low sodium bread or Sprouts’ no salt added marinara sauce that I can’t buy online.

Read the Nutrition Label

Always read a product’s nutrition label. Always!

Marketing folks design the packaging so they tout things like “25% less salt” to entice shoppers. While a product may indeed have 25% less sodium, that statement doesn’t tell you how salty the recipe was at the start. For example, Progresso has a “Reduced Sodium” Chicken Noodle soup. The sodium in a can of that soup is over 1,000 mg of sodium! So yes, it is reduced from their main chicken noodle soup but it is not a low sodium product.

Meanwhile, there are a few FDA standards a manufacturer must meet in order to make any of the following claims:

• “No Salt Added” and “Unsalted” means no salt has been added during processing. Doesn’t mean it is a sodium-free food, just means they didn’t add any salt.
• “Low Sodium” on a food label means there is 140 mg or less of sodium in a serving.
• “Very Low Sodium” on a food label means there is 354 mg or less in a serving.
• “Salt Free” on a food label means there is less than 5mg of sodium in a serving.

Here’s my list of low sodium products…

Below you’ll find a list of about 100 products that are low in sodium. I have them broken up into categories to make it easier to find what you need.

For more information click the product picture or the button under the product name. In many cases, I have linked to a page where you can purchase the product. Other products are linked to the “find a store page” on the product’s website.

This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.

I know this isn’t every low sodium product on the market. But I hope this is enough to get you started! I will keep this list updated as I continue to discover new products. If you have an item you want to share, drop it in the comments below or click here to send me a note.

BAKING STAPLES

Baked goods have a tremendous amount of hidden sodium that comes from baking powder and baking soda. A single teaspoon of baking soda contains 1,259 mg of sodium! An easy way to cut down on salt while still enjoying a cookie or muffin is to bake with sodium-free products.

BEANS

From baked beans to refried beans and from hummus to soups, a no salt added bean can be the foundation of a low sodium meal. Yes, you can use dried beans but that can be a time-consuming process since you have to hydrate the beans. No salt added canned beans are an excellent alternative. Check your local store because they may carry a store-brand line of no salt added beans. Sprouts Farmers Market and Walmart each carry a line of generic beans without salt.

BREAD & WRAPS

Bread seems so innocent, but it is a sneaky source of sodium. When I have time, I like to bake my own no-salt bread. But that isn’t always practical (and it doesn’t last too long because of the lack of salt!). Luckily, there are great options to have bread that won’t throw off your low sodium lifestyle.

BREAKFAST

Starting off the day with a low sodium breakfast sets you up for success the rest of the day. Sure, on weekends you might have time to whip up pancakes from scratch. But most mornings you need something quick and easy that won’t sabotage your salt intake before 9 a.m.

BROTH AND STOCK

An unsalted broth can be the foundation of a delicious low sodium meal; from casseroles to soups and beyond, there are seemingly endless ways to leverage these products.

CONDIMENTS

Sometimes what we add to a sandwich or meal can tip the entire dish into unhealthy territory. Condiments are the source of a lot of hidden salt (and sugar!) But there are options available that offer either no added salt or reduced salt.

GRAVY MIX

HOT DOGS

I can hear comments coming right now from all corners. But trust me, it is possible to find a lower sodium hot dog. Now let’s keep things in perspective. At 260mg of sodium, the Coleman hot dogs aren’t low in sodium but they are significantly lower than traditional hot dogs. Besides, it allows you to have a treat during a summer cookout!

HOT SAUCE

NUT BUTTERS AND SPREADS

OLIVES & POTATOES

SALAD DRESSING

SALSA

SEAFOOD

SNACKS

I’ll be honest, this is probably one of the harder categories to track down. Many of the FritoLays products pop up on a store shelf only to disappear later.

NO/LOW SALT SPICES AND SEASONINGS

TOMATO PRODUCTS