Most adults need around 75–90 mg of vitamin C per day from food and/or supplements, and it’s best not to exceed 2,000 mg per day on a regular basis unless your doctor advises otherwise.

Quick Scoop

  • Adult women: about 75 mg/day.
  • Adult men: about 90 mg/day.
  • Pregnant: about 85 mg/day.
  • Breastfeeding: about 120 mg/day.
  • Smokers: add +35 mg/day to the above, because smoking depletes vitamin C.
  • Maximum recommended (tolerable upper limit) for adults: 2,000 mg/day , mainly to avoid side effects like diarrhea, nausea, and cramps.

Typical daily targets

Most healthy adults do well aiming roughly for:

  • 1–2 servings of vitamin‑C‑rich foods (e.g., citrus, berries, kiwifruit, peppers, broccoli), which often gives 100–200 mg/day without trying too hard.
  • If using a supplement, a common daily dose is 100–500 mg , staying comfortably below 2,000 mg/day total from food plus supplements.

When you might need more (with medical guidance)

  • Smoking, chronic illness, poor diet, or certain digestive conditions can increase vitamin C needs, so some people use higher daily supplements short‑term under professional supervision.
  • Very high “megadose” regimens (thousands of mg per day) are controversial and can raise the risk of stomach upset and, in some cases, kidney stones, so they should not be tried without a clinician involved.

If you have kidney disease, a history of kidney stones, iron‑overload disorders (like hemochromatosis), or are on multiple medications, talk with your doctor or pharmacist before taking vitamin C supplements above basic RDA levels.

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Wondering how much vitamin C per day is ideal? Learn evidence‑based daily vitamin C needs for men, women, pregnancy, smokers, safe upper limits, and how supplements fit in.