Many people drink coffee for its caffeine content, but how much caffeine is actually in coffee? The amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee actually varies widely. Here’s a look at just how much caffeine is in your cup of coffee.
Caffeine Levels in Coffee Depend on Species and Brew Method
The amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee depends primarily on the species of coffee, which is either coffea arabica or coffea robusta, and brew method. Surprisingly, caffeine content doesn’t depend on roast level.
In general, coffea robusta has about twice as much caffeine as coffea arabica. Arabica, however, tastes more than twice as good as robusta. Virtually all specialty coffee, including all the coffees we offer, are arabicas.
For the purposes of caffeine content, brew methods can be simplified into three: espresso, brewed coffee and cold-brewed coffee. While there are many ways to make brewed coffee, including with a manual pour-over, automatic coffee maker or French press, the caffeine content between these varies little.
Specific Caffeine Levels in Different Cups of Coffee
Here’s a more specific look at how much caffeine is in various coffee:
| Coffee | Caffeine |
| Decaf (any brew method, either species) | 0 – 15 milligrams |
| Espresso (1 shot, arabica) | 70 milligrams |
| Brewed Coffee (6-ounce cup, arabica) | 100 milligrams |
| Espresso (1 shot, robusta) | 140 milligrams |
| Brewed Coffee (6-ounce cup, robusta) | 200 milligrams |
| Cold-Brewed (either species) | varies, but a lot |
Although the specific caffeine levels vary, cold-brewed coffee has more caffeine than any other way of making coffee. In fact, cold-brewed arabica coffee can rival the caffeine levels of robusta espresso and brewed coffee. The higher caffeine content comes from steeping the grounds for an extended period of time (our recipe calls for 12 hours of immersion). Because of the extremely high caffeine content, cold-brewed coffee is usually used as a concentrate.
Pick the Coffee You Like
Even though many people need the pick-me-up that coffee provides, we often recommend selecting a coffee for its flavor rather than caffeine content. Unless you need to avoid caffeine for a medical reason, simply find a coffee that you like and drink that. Adjust how much you drink to match how much caffeine you want to consume. (The Mayo Clinic recommends a maximum of 400 milligrams of caffeine per day for healthy adults.
Try Our Sample Pack of Arabica Coffee
When selecting a coffee for its flavor, you’re going to choose an arabica coffee. To see just how good they taste, order our sample pack. You’ll get four freshly roasted arabica coffees to try.
