Blackberry vs Mulberry: What's the Difference?
Short answer: Blackberries (genus Rubus) grow on thorny brambles and are aggregate fruits with a solid core; mulberries (genus Morus) grow on trees and are elongated clusters on a thin stem. Mulberries are softer, milder, and less tart, and they stain everything. They are not closely related despite looking alike.
| 🖤 Blackberry | 🟪 Mulberry | |
|---|---|---|
| Taste | Deep, winey sweet-tart with earthy, almost woodsy notes and gentle tannin; fully ripe berries are lush, underripe ones sour and astringent. Bigger isn't sweeter — black and dull-matte is. | Black mulberries are the prize — winey, honeyed, sweet-tart, and fragile as wet tissue. White mulberries are milder and candy-sweet (often dried); the long Pakistan types eat like fruit ropes. |
| Type | Berry | Berry |
| Peak season | Summer, Autumn | Summer, Spring |
| Origin | Temperate Eurasia and North America — one of humanity's oldest foraged fruits | Black mulberry: Western Asia/Persia; white mulberry: China (domesticated to feed silkworms) |
| Calories (per 100 g) | 43 | 43 |
| Sugar (per 100 g) | 4.9 g | 8.1 g |
| Vitamin C (per 100 g) | 21 mg | 36.4 mg |
| Typical price | Mid | Premium |
Side by side in a bowl, a blackberry and a mulberry can be nearly impossible to distinguish - both are dark, glossy, and built from tiny bead-like segments. But they come from completely different plants and aren’t botanically related at all.
Blackberries grow on thorny brambles (genus Rubus, in the rose family) and are aggregate fruits: a cluster of drupelets around a solid white core they keep when picked. Mulberries grow on trees (genus Morus) and are multiple fruits formed from a whole flower spike, which is why they’re longer and more cylindrical and usually keep a short green stem.
Taste is the other tell. Mulberries are soft, delicate, and mild - sweet with only gentle tartness, and so fragile they’re rarely sold fresh in shops (they bruise and stain instantly). Blackberries are firmer, more tart-sweet, and travel far better. If it has a little stalk, is soft and squishy, and stains your fingers deep purple, it’s almost certainly a mulberry.
Frequently asked questions
Are blackberries and mulberries related?
No. They only look similar. Blackberries are brambles in the genus Rubus (rose family); mulberries grow on trees in the genus Morus. They belong to entirely different plant families.
How do I tell them apart?
Mulberries are longer and more cylindrical with a tiny stem still attached, and they're softer and milder. Blackberries are rounder, firmer, glossier, and more tart, and they grow on thorny canes.
Which tastes sweeter?
Mulberries are usually milder and sweeter with less acidity, which is why some people find them a little bland compared with the brighter, tarter blackberry.