The temperature dependence of the heat capacities in solid state C-p(T) of 18 mono-, di-, and poly-saccharides has been determined using a power-compensation differential scanning calorimeter. The saccharides were alpha-D-xylose, D-ribose, 2-deoxy-D-ribose, methyl-beta-D-ribose, alpha-D-glucose, 2-deoxy-D-glucose, alpha-D-mannose, beta-D-fructose, alpha-D-galactose, methyl-alpha-D-glucose, sucrose, maltose monohydrate, alpha-lactose monohydrate, cellobiose, maltotriose, N-acetyl-D-glucosamine, alpha-cyclodextrin, and beta-cyclodextrin. The measurements were carried Out at atmospheric pressure and from T = (288.15 to 358.15) K for 15 saccharides and from T = (288.15 to 328.15) K for D-ribose, 2-deoxy-D-ribose, and methyl-beta-D-ribose. The present results are compared against literature values both at single temperatures, where most of the data are available, and throughout a range of temperatures. i.e., for C-p(T). The predictions of a recently published correlation for organic solids are briefly discussed. By grouping saccharides in subsets, our present results can be used to compare amongst saccharide isomers and to assess the effect of different chemical groups and molecular size. (C) 2008 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.