“Savory” or “Savoury”—What's the difference?

Usage by country

Where each spelling is used

Of the 12 countries below, 5 prefer “savory” and 6 prefer “savoury”. Usage levels are out of 100; the more common spelling in each country is in bold.

Usage level out of 100 (if available).
Country	savory	savoury	Preference
United States	97	3	“savory”
United Kingdom	25	75	“savoury”
India	19	81	“savoury”
Philippines	95	5	“savory”
Canada	61	39	“savory”
Australia	23	77	“savoury”
Liberia	0	0	Not enough data
Ireland	31	69	“savoury”
New Zealand	24	76	“savoury”
Jamaica	42	58	“savoury”
Trinidad & Tobago	56	44	“savory”
Guyana	62	38	“savory”

Usage

Examples in context

Real sentences for each spelling. Hover an example to copy it.

“savory”

…coca (which has sweet and savory varieties) from Catalonia, Valencia and…
…grapes are best paired with savory foods rich in flavor, such…
Savory taralli may be flavored with…
Savory, winter (Satureja montana)
…dish has cleaner and more savory taste.
Savory dishes include Yorkshire pudding, black…
…a flavoring in sauces for savory dishes like grit cakes with…
…cinnamon is "often used in savory dishes of chicken and lamb"…
…which is also used in savory and sweet mixtures, such as…
"Savory" was the album's first single,…

“savoury”

…including Pitman Sea-Side Paste, Pitman Savoury Nut Meat, Nuto Cream, Brazose…
…or baked pastry with a savoury filling, such as spiced potatoes,…
…and soy sauce to many savoury dish often in the form…
…and clear taste; ranged from savoury salty, fresh sourness, mild sweetness,…
Anglo-Saxon England developed meat and savoury herb stewing techniques before the…
…of other spices (sweet and savoury and earthy) and the flavours…
…ancient Rome, either as a savoury appetizer or as a dessert…
…dough can be sweet or savoury.
…sandwiches, pasta bowls and other savoury snacks.
…using the Jacob's brand for savoury biscuits and McVities for sweet

Examples are Wikipedia snippets under the CC ShareAlike 3.0 license.

Too much to remember?

Looking for a tool that handles this for you wherever you write?

Install Sapling Try the grammar checker