Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate, also known as triose phosphate or 3-phosphoglyceraldehyde and abbreviated as G3P, GA3P, GADP, GAP, TP, GALP or PGAL, is a metabolite that occurs as an intermediate in several central pathways of all organisms.

[§ 1] During plant photosynthesis, 2 equivalents of glycerate 3-phosphate (GP; also known as 3-phosphoglycerate) are produced by the first step of the light-independent reactions when ribulose 1,5-bisphosphate (RuBP) and carbon dioxide are catalysed by the rubisco enzyme.

G3P is generally considered the prime end-product of photosynthesis and it can be used as an immediate food nutrient, combined and rearranged to form monosaccharide sugars, such as glucose, which can be transported to other cells, or packaged for storage as insoluble polysaccharides such as starch.

Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate occurs as a byproduct in the biosynthesis pathway of tryptophan, an essential amino acid that cannot be produced by the human body.

Glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate occurs as a reactant in the biosynthesis pathway of thiamine (Vitamin B1), another substance that cannot be produced by the human body.