User Question: How Much Caffeine is in K-Cup® Coffee?

You drink K-Cup® coffee for convenience. Whether your goal is to power through with an energy boost or decompress with a relaxing blend – K-Cup® coffee caffeine content is on your mind.

You need to know if your favorite roast is going to keep you up at night or leave you dragging in the afternoon. The good news is there are choices to suit your preferred caffeine consumption. In this post we will teach you about the caffeine content of K-cup® coffee and more.

How much caffeine is in Keurig® K-Cup® coffee?

This is a commonly asked question. Unfortunately, there is not a precise answer.  K-Cup® coffee contains between 75-125 mg of caffeine per 6 fluid ounces. As stands to reason, the serving size is an important variable. There are many factors that determine the level of caffeine in a cup of coffee. It is near impossible to blindly estimate an exact amount.

• Caffeine varies by roasting type. Contrary to popular belief, light roast coffee contains more caffeine than dark roast.  Beans that are roasted dark are exposed to prolonged heat which breaks down the caffeine and at the same time, creates bold flavor.
• Different types of coffee beans have varying amounts of caffeine. Arabica beans are gourmet. They produce higher quality, better tasting results. Arabica has less caffeine than its cheaper Robusta counterpart. K-Cup® pods with the Keurig® seal, contain ground Arabica beans.
• Coffee grinds vary in size. The finer the coffee grinds, the more caffeine it contains. Espresso is an example of a fine ground coffee. K-Cup® pods have medium size grinds.

• Brew time affects the amount of caffeine extracted. For example, french press coffee soaks in hot water for about four minutes. It has a high caffeine content.  Drip-style coffee is faster with less extraction time resulting in lower caffeine content.
• The hotter the water used in brewing, the higher the caffeine. 
• The amount of grounds used will change the caffeine level. Extra bold K-Cup® pods have twenty percent more coffee and extra caffeine per cup.

As you can see, there are too many factors to determine K-Cup® coffee caffeine content precisely. However, we know that measuring your caffeine intake is important. The K-Cup® pods  with the most caffeine are extra bold and medium roast brewed on the highest water setting of your coffee maker. If you just a little pick me up try Green Mountain Half Caff. Green Mountain Half Caff has about half the caffeine of an average roast. 

How much caffeine is in Starbucks®  K-Cup® Coffee

Starbuck’s K-Cup® coffee has about 13 mg of caffeine per ounce. Or, somewhere around 110 mg in an average serving size cup. You still need to keep things like the roasting level in mind. As we mentioned above, the lighter options have more caffeine. Want high caffeine K-Cup® pods? Starbucks also has a line of coffee called 2X Caffeine. If you are looking for the most caffeinated coffee, this is the one for you. 2X Caffeine scares the rest of us and we like to sleep. It has a whopping 260 mg per 8-ounce cup! This level of caffeine consumption should be handled with extreme caution. 

For comparisons sake, there is about 47 mg in a cup of instant coffee. And, surprisingly there is about 2 mg  in decaf coffee! Check out this coffee caffeine chart to learn more.

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