Calories in Coffee Drinks: Espresso, Latte, Cappuccino, Flat White, Iced Coffee
Quick answer: Coffee has almost no calories: an espresso is about 3 kcal, a black filter coffee 2–5. Everything else in the cup is where the number comes from. A cappuccino is 80–120 kcal; a latte 100–190 depending on size and milk; a flat white 110–140; a mocha 250–360; a flavoured iced or blended coffee 250–450. Two milky coffees a day plus a syrup is 300–400 kcal — the calorie equivalent of a meal, and the single most consistently forgotten item in food logs.
Calories by drink
Values for a standard café size (about 350 ml where milk-based) made with whole milk. Skimmed milk cuts roughly 40%; oat milk is similar to whole; almond milk is lowest.
| Drink | Size | Calories (whole milk) | Calories (skimmed) | Sugar |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Espresso | 30 ml | 3 kcal | — | 0 g |
| Americano / long black | 250 ml | 5 kcal | — | 0 g |
| Filter / drip coffee, black | 250 ml | 2–5 kcal | — | 0 g |
| Coffee with a splash of milk | 250 ml | 20–30 kcal | 15 kcal | 1–2 g |
| Macchiato (espresso, dash of foam) | 60 ml | 15 kcal | 10 kcal | 1 g |
| Cortado / piccolo | 120 ml | 40 kcal | 25 kcal | 3 g |
| Cappuccino | 240 ml | 110 kcal | 65 kcal | 8 g |
| Flat white | 240 ml | 120–140 kcal | 75 kcal | 10 g |
| Latte | 350 ml | 170–190 kcal | 100 kcal | 14 g |
| Latte, large | 470 ml | 230 kcal | 130 kcal | 18 g |
| Iced latte | 350 ml | 130–150 kcal | 80 kcal | 11 g |
| Mocha | 350 ml | 300–360 kcal | 250 kcal | 30–35 g |
| Caramel / vanilla latte (2 pumps syrup) | 350 ml | 250 kcal | 180 kcal | 30 g |
| Blended / frappé-style coffee with cream | 470 ml | 350–450 kcal | — | 45–60 g |
| Cold brew, black | 350 ml | 5 kcal | — | 0 g |
| Cold brew with sweet cream foam | 350 ml | 110–150 kcal | — | 14 g |
| Bulletproof coffee (butter + MCT oil) | 250 ml | 230–450 kcal | — | 0 g |
| Instant coffee, black | 250 ml | 2 kcal | — | 0 g |
| 3-in-1 instant sachet | 1 sachet | 60–90 kcal | — | 8–12 g |
The sugar column is mostly lactose from milk in plain drinks; in flavoured drinks it is added sugar and counts toward the 25 g free-sugar limit.
What the additions cost
| Addition | Amount | Calories | Sugar |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whole milk | 100 ml | 62 kcal | 5 g |
| Semi-skimmed milk | 100 ml | 47 kcal | 5 g |
| Skimmed milk | 100 ml | 35 kcal | 5 g |
| Oat milk (barista) | 100 ml | 55–65 kcal | 4–7 g |
| Soy milk | 100 ml | 40–55 kcal | 2–4 g |
| Almond milk (unsweetened) | 100 ml | 13–20 kcal | 0–1 g |
| Coconut milk drink | 100 ml | 20–30 kcal | 2 g |
| Single cream | 1 tbsp | 30 kcal | 0.5 g |
| Whipped cream topping | 1 serving | 80–120 kcal | 3–6 g |
| Sugar | 1 tsp (4 g) | 16 kcal | 4 g |
| Flavoured syrup | 1 pump (~10 ml) | 20–25 kcal | 5 g |
| Flavoured syrup | standard 3–4 pumps | 60–100 kcal | 15–20 g |
| Sugar-free syrup | 1 pump | 0–2 kcal | 0 g |
| Honey | 1 tsp | 20 kcal | 6 g |
| Caramel drizzle | 1 serving | 30–40 kcal | 6 g |
A "latte with two sugars and vanilla" is a 190 kcal latte plus 32 kcal of sugar plus 60 kcal of syrup: about 280 kcal and 36 g of sugar — the full day's free-sugar allowance in one cup.
The milk-choice myth
People switch to oat milk expecting fewer calories. Barista oat milk is 55–65 kcal per 100 ml — the same as whole milk — and often has added sugar and oil. Almond milk is the only common plant milk that meaningfully cuts calories (about 15 kcal per 100 ml), and it adds almost no protein. If calories are the goal, skimmed milk is the effective swap; if the goal is something else (taste, lactose, ethics), choose on that basis and log what it actually is.
Why coffee is the most under-logged item of the day
Three reasons it slips through:
- It is a drink, not food. People log meals; they do not log "a coffee."
- It is habitual. The same drink every day stops registering.
- The number feels small. 170 kcal is "nothing" once; over a week it is 1,200 kcal.
Someone who drinks two whole-milk lattes a day and never logs them is under-counting by 350–400 kcal daily — enough to erase an entire planned deficit. It is one of the most common reasons "I'm in a deficit but not losing" turns out not to be a deficit.
Does coffee itself affect weight?
A little, and mostly in the right direction. Caffeine raises metabolic rate by a few percent for a couple of hours (roughly 10–20 kcal per cup), slightly increases fat oxidation, and can reduce appetite short-term. Black coffee before exercise modestly improves performance. None of this offsets a syrup. Regular coffee drinkers also adapt, so the effect fades. Treat black coffee as a free drink with minor benefits, and milky coffee as food.
The limits: caffeine after early afternoon disrupts sleep — its half-life is 5–6 hours — and poor sleep raises next-day hunger and carb cravings more than any coffee benefit compensates for. Eating for energy →
How to log coffee accurately
Voice is ideal: "large oat latte", "cappuccino with one sugar", "black americano". Size, milk and sweetener are the three facts; the app does the rest.
Photo of a takeaway cup identifies almost nothing — a latte and a mocha look identical from the outside. Say what it is.
Barcode for bottled and canned coffee drinks and instant sachets, where the label is exact and often surprising (bottled iced coffees run 150–250 kcal and 20–30 g sugar).
The habit that fixes coffee logging is to log the drink when you order it, not when you remember it at dinner. In CalMePlease that is a three-second voice note, and the sugar column of its ten metrics is where a daily syrup habit becomes visible.
FAQ
How many calories are in a latte? About 170–190 kcal for a standard 350 ml latte with whole milk; 100 with skimmed milk; 230 for a large. Flavoured syrups add 60–100 kcal.
How many calories are in a cappuccino? About 110 kcal with whole milk, 65 with skimmed, for a 240 ml cup. Less than a latte because there is more foam and less milk.
How many calories are in a flat white? About 120–140 kcal with whole milk, 75 with skimmed. Similar to a cappuccino with slightly more milk.
How many calories are in black coffee? 2–5 kcal for filter, 3 for an espresso, 5 for an americano. Effectively zero.
Does oat milk have fewer calories than regular milk? No — barista oat milk is roughly equal to whole milk (55–65 kcal per 100 ml) and often has added sugar. Almond milk is the low-calorie option.
How many calories are in iced coffee? Depends entirely on the milk and sweetener: an unsweetened iced americano is 5 kcal; an iced latte 130–150; a sweetened blended coffee 350–450.
Does coffee break a fast? Black coffee has under 5 kcal and is generally considered fine during intermittent fasting. Milk, sugar or syrup end the fast.
Related: Hidden sugar: where it comes from · Eating for energy · Why you crash after lunch
CalMePlease logs a coffee from a three-second voice note and shows the sugar next to the calories. Free on the App Store.
