Fundamentals · 6 min read

How Much Caffeine Is in Coffee?

It's not as simple as 'espresso has the most caffeine.' The answer depends on brew method, bean type, serving size, and roast level. Here are the real numbers.

Caffeine by Brew Method

Here's the data most people are looking for. These numbers are per standard serving, because serving size matters more than concentration. Espresso is more concentrated per ml, but you drink 30ml of espresso vs. 350ml of drip coffee.

Brew Method Serving Caffeine Per 100ml

Drip Coffee 350 ml 170–220 mg

Cold Brew 350 ml 150–240 mg

French Press 350 ml 140–200 mg

Pour Over (V60) 250 ml 120–170 mg

AeroPress 200 ml 80–120 mg

Espresso (double) 60 ml 120–140 mg

Espresso (single) 30 ml 60–70 mg

Moka Pot 60 ml 100–130 mg

Instant Coffee 250 ml 60–90 mg

Decaf 350 ml 5–15 mg

The Espresso Myth

Espresso has the highest concentration of caffeine (around 200mg per 100ml), but the lowest total caffeine per serving because you drink so little. A large drip coffee has 2–3x more caffeine than a double espresso.

What Affects Caffeine Content?

Bean Type

Arabica 1.2% caffeine

Robusta 2.2% caffeine

Robusta has nearly double the caffeine of Arabica. Most specialty coffee is Arabica. If your supermarket coffee tastes harsh and gives you the jitters — it probably contains Robusta.

Roast Level

Contrary to popular belief, dark roasts and light roasts have nearly identical caffeine by weight. Dark roasts lose mass (water evaporates), so if you measure by scoops, a scoop of dark roast has slightly less caffeine. But if you weigh your coffee (as you should), the difference is negligible.

Brew Time & Temperature

Longer extraction and hotter water both pull more caffeine. Cold brew compensates for its lower temperature with a much longer steep time (12–18 hours), which is why it ends up with similar or even higher caffeine than hot methods.

Grind Size & Ratio

Finer grinds extract more caffeine (more surface area). And using more coffee per cup = more caffeine. A French press at 1:12 will have more caffeine than a drip at 1:16 from the same beans.

Daily Caffeine: What's Safe?

General guidelines (healthy adults)

400 mg FDA recommended daily max ≈ 2 large drip coffees

200 mg Pregnant / nursing limit ≈ 1 large drip coffee

100 mg Adolescents (daily max) ≈ 1 small pour-over

Individual sensitivity varies wildly. Some people metabolize caffeine 4x faster than others due to the CYP1A2 gene. If you feel anxious or can't sleep, you may be a slow metabolizer — reduce intake regardless of the numbers.

Caffeine Half-Life

Caffeine's half-life is 5–6 hours for most people. That means if you drink 200mg of caffeine at 2 PM, you still have ~100mg in your system at 8 PM — enough to affect sleep quality even if you feel fine falling asleep.

💡

The 2 PM rule. Most sleep researchers recommend cutting off caffeine by early afternoon. If you want an afternoon coffee, switch to half-caf or a smaller serving. Your sleep quality will thank you — and better sleep actually makes your morning coffee work better.