Instant coffee is a quick and easy way to start your day with some extra energy. However, if you keep track of your daily calories, it is important to know how many are in your morning coffee.
The average cup of instant coffee has about 4 calories, according to the United States Department of Agriculture. However, the exact number of calories will depend on the brand, style, and serving size. Calories will increase with the addition of milk, sugar, honey, creamer, or other ingredients.
If you are trying to stick to a strict calorie diet, you can rest assured that one serving of instant coffee each day will not hinder your ability to do so. Want a little more information on your morning cup of joe? Keep reading to learn how the amount of calories varies by brand, style, and mix!
Popular Brand’s Calorie Counts
We all have our favorite coffee brands and products. Because each of these brands and products has different ingredients and processes, their calorie counts may vary from the average 4 calories given by the USDA. Stay on track with your calorie goals by finding your favorite brand or product’s calorie count below.
Keep in mind, the following numbers are only for single servings. If you prefer to add more than the suggested serving size, the calorie count will increase.
Folgers
Folgers is one of the most popular coffee brands. Currently, there are five different instant coffee mixes sold by Folgers.
The Classic Roast sticks to the USDA’s average with only 3.5 calories per serving.
Both of Folgers’ cappuccino mixes (French Vanilla and Mocha Chocolate) contain 130 calories in one serving. These drinks should not require too many (or any) additives that would increase the calorie count more.
Maxwell House
Most of the Maxwell House Instant Coffee mixes are listed to have zero calories. However, the French Vanilla and the Cappuccino instant coffees contain 70 and 60 calories respectively.
Compared to other specialty coffee mixes, Maxwell House does an excellent job delivering a quality, low-calorie product. For more nutritional info visit the Maxwell House website here!
Nescafe
All instant coffee mixes sold by Nescafe are kosher and respectively grown. Nescafe instant coffee mixes are fairly low in calories compared to similar mixes sold by other brands.
Both of Nescafe’s decaf coffees contain zero calories. The rest of this brand’s instant coffee products contain either 2.4 calories (French and Dark Roasts), 3.5 calories (Colombia and House Blends), 10 calories (Dolca and Hazelnut mixes), or 15 calories (Cafe de Olla mix).
Waka Coffee
Waka Coffee, a sustainable coffee company, works to make coffee with limited water resources. Instant coffee boxes are recyclable and a portion of the company profits are donated to clean water projects across the world.
Each of Waka Coffee’s three instant coffee mixes (Colombian, Indian, and Colombian Decaf) contain about 11 calories per serving.
Coffee products from Waka contain no additives, fats, or sugars, so you can enjoy a delicious cup of joe without the stress of counting macronutrients and calories. Visit Waka Coffee here to learn more about their sustainable coffee mission.
Starbucks
Starbucks, although typically known for its made-to-order drink selection also sells several instant coffee products for you to enjoy at home. There are seven different Starbucks Instant Coffee Products categorized as either flavored, blonde, medium, or dark roasts.
Dark coffee roasts from the Starbucks VIA collection have calorie counts of 2.4 (French Roast), 3.6 (Decaf Italian), and 12 (Italian Roast).
Both of Starbucks’ medium roasts have a calorie count of 12 calories per serving (Colombia Coffee and Pike Place Roast).
The Veranda Blend is Starbucks only blonde instant coffee mix and one serving contains 5 calories.
While the more traditional coffee mixes maintain relatively low-calorie counts, Starbucks Sweetened Iced Coffee has the most calories by far. One serving of this flavored coffee contains 100 calories! Although this sounds like a ridiculous amount of calories, keep in mind this drink should not require any extra sweeteners or additives.
Additives’ Calorie Counts
Although a plain cup of coffee usually contains fairly few calories, many prefer to mix in additives to customize the product’s taste to their liking. These additives, while delicious, increase your coffee’s overall calorie count per serving.
Keep reading to learn about how different coffee additives affect your cup of coffee and which additive is the most calorie efficient!
Creamer
Like coffee, we each have our own preferences for coffee creamers. Some of the most common creamer brands are Nestle Coffee-Mate, Starbucks, Fairlife, and International Delight. While each of these brands has a variety of flavors and products, we will be looking at only the most basic flavor: plain cream. Specialty flavors will contain more sugar and flavoring resulting in a much higher calorie content.
Coffee mate’s “The Original” creamer contains 20 calories per serving.
Fairlife coffee creamer is one of the healthier creamer brands. Not only do Fairlife coffee products contain 40% less sugar but they are lactose-free too! The Fairlife Sweet Cream Creamer contains 30 calories per serving.
International Delight does not sell a plain coffee creamer, the closest product is the French Vanilla Creamer. One serving of the French Vanilla creamer contains 30 calories.
Starbucks also does not sell a plain creamer, so we will be looking at their Caramel Macchiato Creamer. This creamer by Starbucks contains 40 calories per serving.
Sugar
Sugar cubes, a common coffee additive, are not often counted for their calories. Although one serving of sugar is only one cube, (2.3 grams) most of us like to add a few more.
For each cube of sugar added to your coffee, the calorie count increases by 9.
Honey
Honey is a less processed, more natural coffee additive than sugar cubes. However, mixing this into your morning cup of coffee adds a significant amount of calories.
One serving of honey, one tablespoon, contains about 64 calories! Use this natural sweetener in moderation.
Milk
Creamer, although dairy-based, never has quite the same taste in coffee as real milk does. One serving of 1% milk is 103 calories per cup. However, chances are you use a much smaller amount in your daily coffee.
Rather, consider the calories added from one tablespoon of milk, which is only 6!
