Provided are a rubber composition having good fuel economy and good rubber strength while maintaining good appearance, and a pneumatic tire formed from the rubber composition. The rubber composition contains: a rubber component including a diene rubber; a reinforcing filler; and a glycerol fatty acid triester of plant origin. The diene rubber includes an isoprene-based rubber. The glycerol fatty acid triester has a content of saturated fatty acids of 10 to 25% by mass and a content of monovalent unsaturated fatty acids having one unsaturated bond of less than 50% by mass, each based on 100% bymass of the constituent fatty acids of the triester. The reinforcing filler is present in an amount of 50 parts by mass or less per 100 parts by mass of the rubber component.