Gelato is typically made with fresh fruit or other ingredients such as chocolate (pure chocolate, flakes, chips, etc.), nuts, small confections or cookies, or biscuits. Gelato made with water and without dairy ingredients is also known as sorbetto (also known as sorbet). Traditionally, milk-based gelato originated in northern Italy, while the fruit-and-water based sorbetto came from the warmer parts of southern Italy.

Dairy gelato is made with whole cow’s milk and contains 4–8% butterfat depending on the ingredients (nuts, milk, or cream increase the fat content). North American-style ice creams contain more butterfat than gelato, ranging from 10% to 18% since more cream is used. Like high-end ice cream, good quality gelato combines high quality ingredients with milk and cream, soy milk, or water. Gelato is usually made with whole milk which is 3–4% butterfat, and often cream is added to improve the texture. Unlike ice cream, gelato ingredients are not homogenized together, and the result is that the product melts faster than ice cream.