What are the 5 things humans can taste: Sweet, Sour, Salty, Bitter, and Umami

November 29, 2025 •

4 min read

The average adult has anywhere from 2,000 to 10,000 taste buds, each containing receptor cells that allow us to detect the world of flavor. Beyond the complex combinations of smell and texture, these sensory organs boil down all food and drink into a handful of core perceptions. So, what are the 5 things humans can taste?

Quick Summary

The human sense of taste is a complex physiological process that relies on five basic sensations: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and savory, or umami. Specialized receptor cells within taste buds across the tongue and other oral areas detect these chemical compounds to provide crucial information about the food we consume.

Key Points

Five Basic Tastes: Humans can perceive five core taste sensations: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami (savory).
Taste vs. Flavor: Taste is limited to the five basic sensations on the tongue, while flavor is a more complex perception that also includes smell, texture, and temperature.
Umami is Savory: Umami is the fifth basic taste, identified in 1908, and refers to the rich, savory flavor of foods high in the amino acid glutamate.
Taste Buds are Widespread: Taste buds, located on papillae across the tongue, can detect all five tastes, debunking the myth of distinct "taste zones".
Aging Affects Taste: After age 50, taste buds lose sensitivity and regeneration ability, which can lead to a diminished sense of taste, sometimes favoring bitter and sour over sweet and salty.
Super and Non-tasters: Genetic differences mean some people, called supertasters, have more taste receptors and a heightened sense of taste, particularly for bitterness.
Evolutionary Significance: Each basic taste serves an evolutionary purpose, such as detecting energy-rich foods (sweet) or identifying potential toxins (bitter).

The Five Foundational Tastes

For centuries, the sense of taste was considered a simple matter involving only four tastes: sweet, sour, salty, and bitter. However, a landmark discovery in 1908 by Japanese chemist Kikunae Ikeda identified a fifth taste, which he called "umami". Umami is a Japanese word that translates to "pleasant savory taste" and was officially recognized by the scientific community after umami receptors were found on the human tongue in 2002. Together, these five basic sensations form the foundation of how humans perceive taste.

Sweet

Sweetness is arguably one of the most universally enjoyed tastes, signaling the presence of energy-dense carbohydrates and sugars, like glucose. This biological signal encourages the consumption of calorie-rich foods, an important survival trait. The sensation is triggered by specific proteins in taste receptor cells. Sweet foods include:

Fruits like strawberries and bananas
Candies and baked goods
Honey and maple syrup

Sour

Sourness, or tartness, is the taste of acids and is caused by hydrogen ions. In nature, a strong sour taste often indicates that fruit is unripe or that a food is spoiled, which served as a crucial evolutionary warning. However, when balanced, the sour taste can be a pleasant and refreshing element of many foods and drinks, such as:

Lemons and other citrus fruits
Vinegar and pickles
Yogurt

Salty

Saltiness is primarily caused by sodium chloride (table salt) but can also be triggered by other mineral salts. Sodium is a vital electrolyte for regulating fluid balance and other bodily functions, so our ability to detect saltiness ensures we get enough of this essential mineral. Many people enjoy a salty taste, which is found in foods like:

Soy sauce
Processed meats
Potato chips

Bitter

Bitterness is caused by a very diverse group of chemical compounds and, like sourness, is an important evolutionary defense mechanism. Since many toxic or poisonous substances in plants are bitter, a strong rejection of this taste served to protect our ancestors from harm. While we still avoid intensely bitter things, many cultures have acquired a taste for moderately bitter foods and beverages, including:

Coffee and dark chocolate
Leafy greens like arugula and kale
Some beers

Umami (Savory)

Umami is the rich, savory, and meaty taste that adds depth to many dishes and is caused by the amino acid glutamate. It is often described as a pleasant, mouth-coating sensation and is naturally present in foods with a high protein content. It is a powerful flavor enhancer and can be found in:

Aged cheeses like Parmesan
Mushrooms and tomatoes
Meat broths and cured meats

Taste vs. Flavor: Understanding the Difference

While we often use the terms interchangeably, taste and flavor are not the same thing. Taste is a physiological process based on the five basic sensations detected by our taste buds. Flavor, on the other hand, is a more holistic sensory experience. It is a combination of taste, aroma (detected by the olfactory receptors in our nose), texture, and even temperature. This is why food often seems bland when you have a stuffy nose; without the crucial component of smell, your brain cannot construct a complete flavor profile.

Are You a Supertaster?

People vary significantly in their perception of taste. Research has shown that individuals can be categorized as non-tasters, medium tasters, or supertasters based on their sensitivity to certain bitter compounds. Supertasters, who have a higher number of taste receptors, experience tastes—especially bitterness—more intensely than the average person. This can affect their food preferences, sometimes causing them to dislike bitter vegetables like broccoli or very dark chocolate.

Comparison of the Five Basic Tastes


Taste	Chemical Trigger	Evolutionary Purpose	Common Food Examples
Sweet	Sugars and other carbohydrates	To signal high-energy, nutrient-rich foods	Fruits, honey, candy
Sour	Acids, primarily hydrogen ions	To detect unripe or spoiled foods	Lemons, vinegar, yogurt
Salty	Sodium ions (Na+)	To regulate and encourage intake of essential minerals	Soy sauce, table salt, cured meats
Bitter	A diverse group of plant compounds	To warn against potentially toxic substances	Coffee, dark chocolate, arugula
Umami	Amino acids, specifically glutamate	To signal the presence of protein	Mushrooms, aged cheese, meat broth

The Future of Taste Perception

While the five basic tastes are well-established, scientists continue to research other possible tastes. Research has suggested the existence of receptors for fat, or "oleogustus," a potential sixth basic taste. Other recent studies have even proposed ammonium chloride, a component in some candies, as another candidate. As research progresses, our understanding of taste and flavor may continue to evolve, offering new insights into why we like what we eat.

Authoritative Link: Human Biology of Taste - PMC

Conclusion

Our ability to experience the intricate and satisfying flavors of food is built upon a surprisingly simple foundation of five basic tastes. Sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami work in concert with our sense of smell, temperature, and touch to create the rich sensory experience we call flavor. This ancient biological system not only brings us pleasure but also serves a vital protective role, helping us navigate the complex chemical landscape of what we consume. From detecting the energy in a sweet fruit to avoiding a potentially toxic bitter plant, these five tastes are fundamental to our survival and enjoyment of life.

Frequently Asked Questions

Taste refers only to the five basic sensations detected by your taste buds: sweet, sour, salty, bitter, and umami. Flavor is a more comprehensive sensory experience that combines taste with aroma (smell), texture, and temperature.

No, the idea of a 'tongue map' is a misconception based on an old misinterpretation of research. In reality, all parts of the tongue containing taste buds can detect all five basic tastes, though some areas may be slightly more sensitive to certain tastes.

Umami is a Japanese word for a pleasant savory or meaty taste. It is often described as a satisfying, rich, and mouth-coating sensation that adds depth to a dish.

When you have a cold, your sense of smell is often impaired. Because flavor is a combination of taste and smell, the inability to detect food's aroma significantly reduces the overall flavor experience.

While not officially accepted as a basic taste, research has identified a distinct taste for fatty acids, sometimes called "oleogustus". This suggests fat could be a sixth basic taste, though more study is needed.

As we age, taste buds lose some of their sensitivity and their ability to regenerate slows down. This can diminish the perception of all tastes, though some studies suggest that sensitivity to sweet and salty flavors decreases more rapidly than to sour and bitter.

Being a supertaster is a genetic trait linked to having a higher number of taste receptors within the fungiform papillae on the tongue. This causes supertasters to experience certain tastes, especially bitterness, with much greater intensity than average tasters or non-tasters.