Broccoli vs cauliflower: calories compared

Swapping one for the other costs little in calories, 31 against 23 per 3.5 oz (100 g) raw, and cauliflower has slightly fewer carbs, 4.7 g against 6.3 g. In vitamins, broccoli comes out ahead. USDA samples give raw broccoli 91 mg of vitamin C against 67 mg in cauliflower, and British tables give it about six times the vitamin K, 185 mcg against 31.

Cooking changes the picture. In British tables, boiling cut vitamin C by about 45% in both, while folate fell by almost two thirds in broccoli and by 13% in cauliflower. Steaming keeps about 85% of vitamin C and folate in vegetables generally. In a trial in healthy adults, adding mustard powder to cooked broccoli raised sulforaphane in urine, a marker of uptake, more than fourfold.

Two groups should take note. If you take warfarin, NIH advises keeping vitamin K intake consistent, and swapping cauliflower for broccoli is a big change in vitamin K. Across 23 diet trials, cabbage family vegetables sped up CYP1A2, an enzyme that breaks down some medicines, by 20 to 40%, so ask a pharmacist before a big change. The thyroid worry finds little support. A review of 123 studies concluded that daily brassica vegetables pose no adverse effect on thyroid function, particularly with adequate iodine.

Eat whichever you enjoy, steamed rather than boiled.

Evidence behind this note

1. Level E Raw broccoli averaged 91 mg of vitamin C per 3.5 oz (100 g) against 67 mg in raw cauliflower in USDA samples, and USDA lists 102 mcg of vitamin K for broccoli but no vitamin K value for cauliflower. USDA FoodData Central, Foundation Foods, release 2026-04-30
2. Level E British tables give raw broccoli about six times the vitamin K of raw cauliflower (185 mcg against 31 mcg per 3.5 oz (100 g)) and more protein, vitamin C and folate at similar calories. CoFID 2021 (Public Health England, OGL v3.0)
3. Level E Boiling in water cut vitamin C by about 45% in both vegetables in British tables, and folate fell by almost two thirds in broccoli but only 13% in cauliflower. CoFID 2021 (Public Health England, OGL v3.0)
4. Level E By USDA retention factors for vegetables, steaming keeps 85% of vitamin C and folate, while boiling covered in water and draining keeps 75% of vitamin C and 65% of folate. USDA Table of Nutrient Retention Factors, Release 6 (2007), Retn_Code 3784 and 3775
5. Level B In a crossover trial on 12 adults, adding 1 g of brown mustard powder to 7.1 oz (200 g) of cooked broccoli raised sulforaphane uptake more than fourfold. Mol Nutr Food Res, 2018
6. Level E NIH names broccoli among the most common US sources of vitamin K and advises people on warfarin to keep their vitamin K intake consistent, since sudden changes can raise or lower the drug's effect. NIH Office of Dietary Supplements, Vitamin K Fact Sheet for Health Professionals
7. Level B Pooling 23 diet trials, eating cruciferous vegetables, the family that includes broccoli and cauliflower, raised CYP1A2 drug-metabolizing activity by 20 to 40%. Clin Pharmacol Ther, 2020
8. Level C The old warning that cabbage family vegetables harm the thyroid did not survive a review of the evidence, as long as iodine intake is adequate. Int J Mol Sci, 2024

Written from the studies and agency guidance we hold for both foods, reviewed by the Bioma editorial system. How we verify.

Read more about these foods

• Broccoli and cauliflower: the vegetables that talk to your medicines
• Broccoli: the enzyme you cook off, and how to get it back
• Cauliflower: most of what is known is about its family

Rankings and guides

• Calories: what it does and what the evidence shows
• Which foods give the most protein for the fewest calories?
• Dietary fat: what it does and how much you need
• Broccoli: full nutrition facts

More comparisons

• Broccoli vs asparagus

• Broccoli: USDA FoodData Central, Broccoli, raw, FDC ID 747447 · full profile · all forms of broccoli
• Cauliflower: USDA FoodData Central, Cauliflower, raw, FDC ID 2685573 · all forms of cauliflower

Each food is one USDA entry, chosen as it is usually eaten. Other cuts, brands and preparations differ; the links show them. % DV uses FDA Daily Values for adults. How we verify.