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Home › Chart guides › Scoville Scale Chart
The Scoville scale measures chilli heat in Scoville heat units, from zero for a bell pepper to millions for the superhots. This chart gives typical ranges for peppers from mild to superhot, including the jalapeño, habanero, ghost pepper, Carolina Reaper and Pepper X.
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How hot is that chilli? Typical heat ranges, from the sweet bell pepper to the record breakers.
| Pepper | Scoville heat units | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Bell pepper | 0 | No capsaicin at all; sweet, not hot |
| Banana pepper | 0-500 | Tangy, often pickled for sandwiches |
| Pimento | 0-500 | The red stuffing in green olives |
| Anaheim | 500-2,500 | Long green chilli, roasted and stuffed |
| Poblano (ancho when dried) | 1,000-2,500 | Chiles rellenos, mole |
| Pepper | Scoville heat units | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Jalapeño | 2,500-10,000 | The everyday benchmark: nachos, salsa, poppers |
| Chipotle | 2,500-10,000 | A smoke-dried ripe jalapeño |
| Guajillo | 2,500-10,000 | Dried; fruity, mild heat for sauces and stews |
| Fresno | 2,500-10,000 | Like a jalapeño, usually picked red |
| Serrano | 10,000-25,000 | Fresh salsas, pico de gallo |
| Chile de árbol | 15,000-30,000 | Thin red chilli, dried for salsas and oils |
| Pepper | Scoville heat units | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Cayenne | 25,000-50,000 | Dried and ground as cayenne pepper |
| Tabasco | 25,000-50,000 | The pepper in Tabasco sauce |
| Pequin | 30,000-60,000 | Tiny, fiery, smoky-citrusy |
| Thai bird's eye | 50,000-100,000 | Thai curries, stir-fries, nam pla prik |
| Pepper | Scoville heat units | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Scotch bonnet | 100,000-350,000 | Caribbean jerk and pepper sauces |
| Habanero | 100,000-350,000 | Fruity heat; hot sauces and salsas |
| Pepper | Scoville heat units | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Ghost pepper (bhut jolokia) | 855,000-1,041,427 | North-east India; record holder from 2007 |
| Trinidad Moruga Scorpion | About 1,200,000 average | Trinidad and Tobago |
| Carolina Reaper | About 1,641,000 average | South Carolina; record holder 2013 to 2023 |
| Pepper X | About 2,693,000 average | South Carolina; the hottest on record (2023) |
For scale: pure capsaicin, the compound that makes chillies hot, rates about 16,000,000 SHU.
Heat varies plant to plant: sun, soil, water stress and ripeness can move a pepper across its range.
Pharmacist Wilbur Scoville devised his taste-dilution test in 1912; labs now measure capsaicinoids with HPLC and convert to SHU.
Ranges are typical published values and differ between sources. Milk or yogurt, not water, cools the burn.