Caffeine in drinks
How much caffeine is in an espresso, a tea, a cold brew, an energy drink — and what actually changes the dose in your cup.
The number in the cup is rarely the one people assume. An espresso tastes strongest and often carries less total caffeine than a mug of filter coffee, because concentration is not dose.
Brew method, grind, contact time and serving size move the figure far more than the bean or the roast level do. Start with the reference table, then look up whatever it is you actually drink.
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Does cold brew have more caffeine than hot coffee?
Cold brew often has more caffeine than hot coffee — ~150–240 mg a serving. Why the long steep wins, and how it differs from iced coffee.
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Espresso vs filter coffee: which has more caffeine?
Espresso tastes stronger, but a single shot usually has less total caffeine than a mug of filter coffee. Why concentration isn't the same as dose.
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Energy drinks vs coffee: what's really different?
Per serving, an energy drink and a coffee have similar caffeine. The real differences: the sugar, the hidden guarana caffeine, and how fast you drink it.
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Matcha vs coffee: why the energy feels different
Matcha usually has less caffeine than coffee, plus L-theanine — an amino acid that smooths the lift into calmer focus. Why the two feel different.
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Does decaf have caffeine? Yes, a little
Decaf isn't caffeine-free — ~2–5 mg a cup versus ~95 mg for regular. What's really left, how it's removed, and why good decaf changes everything.
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Swiss Water vs. EA decaf: which process is best?
Swiss Water, sugar cane EA, CO₂ or methylene chloride? How the decaf methods compare on taste, chemistry and safety — and how to pick the best decaf.
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What is half-caf? The evening coffee trick
Half-caf is part regular, part decaf — about 45–50 mg of caffeine a cup instead of 95. What it is, the caffeine math, how to make it, and when to reach for it.
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Robusta vs. arabica: which has more caffeine?
Robusta has about twice the caffeine of arabica — roughly 2.2–2.7% vs 1.2% by weight. Why, how they taste, where each shows up, and what it means for your cup.
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Does your brew method change the caffeine?
Yes, but mostly through dose and contact time, not magic. How grind, heat, steep and ratio shape your cup — and how the common brew methods compare.
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How much caffeine is in tea? Green, black & more
A cup of tea has ~20–70 mg of caffeine — less than coffee. The mg by type (black, green, white, oolong), what changes it, and the tea-vs-coffee myth.
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Yerba mate, guarana & natural caffeine sources
Caffeine is the same molecule whatever the plant. Yerba mate, guarana, cacao, kola & more — the mg, and why 'natural' doesn't mean gentle.
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How much caffeine is in a Nespresso capsule?
An Espresso capsule holds 55–65 mg of caffeine, a Lungo 77–89 mg, and a large Vertuo up to 200 mg. The real figures, range by range.
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Capsules, pods or ground: where is the caffeine?
France's ANSES measured 150 mg per 100 ml in a capsule against 50 mg in filter coffee. But in the cup the ranking flips — here is why, format by format.
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Does a lungo capsule have more caffeine?
A lungo capsule holds 77–89 mg against 55–65 mg for an espresso. But stretching an espresso capsule with the button adds almost nothing. Here is why.
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How much caffeine in a coffee shop espresso?
An espresso served across a counter runs 60 to 80 mg — usually the top of that range. What is really in the cup, and why two cafés never match.
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Does a ristretto have less caffeine?
Yes, slightly — and it is the opposite of what it tastes like. Between a ristretto and a long shot the real gap is about ten milligrams.
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Does chicory coffee have caffeine?
Chicory root itself has none at all. But most drinks sold as chicory are blends — and one popular one carries 64 mg a cup, as much as an espresso.
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How much caffeine is in a Red Bull?
80 mg in the 250 ml can, 114 mg in 355 ml, 151 mg in 473 ml. The concentration never changes — the size decides, not the recipe.
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How much caffeine is in a Coca-Cola?
About 34 mg in a 355 ml can, roughly a third of a coffee. And Diet Coke holds more than the classic — 46 mg. The figures, variant by variant.
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How much caffeine from a bean-to-cup machine?
A bean-to-cup espresso holds 70–90 mg against 55–65 for a capsule. The gap is the dose of grounds — and that is the one you set yourself.
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Is a decaf capsule really caffeine-free?
Nearly, not quite: 3–6 mg in an Original capsule, up to 11 in a Vertuo. Ten to twenty times less than a regular capsule, without being zero.
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How much caffeine is in instant coffee?
About 30 mg per level teaspoon, so around 60 mg for a two-spoon cup. The real variable isn't the brand — it's your hand.
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Does milk change the caffeine in your coffee?
It holds none and removes none. A cappuccino and a macchiato weigh the same: 60 to 80 mg. Only the number of shots counts.
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What the "high caffeine content" label means
A mandatory statement above 150 mg per litre. But an espresso runs at 1,500 mg/L and carries nothing — because the rule sorts by category, not by dose.
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How much caffeine is in a Monster?
160 mg in the 500 ml can. The same concentration as a Red Bull — 32 mg per 100 ml — so the can size is the entire difference.
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How much caffeine is in a Starbucks coffee?
From 75 mg for a latte to 410 mg for a venti brewed coffee. Black coffee climbs highest — and going up a size doesn't always add coffee.
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Is restaurant decaf really decaf?
Yes — 'decaffeinated' is a regulated category, not a marketing claim. Reckon on 5 to 15 mg in the cup against 60 to 80 for a regular coffee.
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Does bottled iced tea have caffeine?
Yes, but very little: about 4 mg per 100 ml, so roughly 14 mg a bottle. Four to five times less concentrated than brewed tea.
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Guarana sodas: is the caffeine hidden?
Not hidden, just differently named: guarana's caffeine isn't called caffeine on the label. In a soda it stays very low all the same — 10 to 15 mg.