Coffee
Caffeine in Cold Brew
200mg
per 16 oz
≈ 2 coffees≈ 3 Red Bulls50% of FDA daily max
Is that a lot?
Cold Brew is 50% of the FDA’s recommended daily maximum, in a single 16 oz.
Green tea
Espresso
Red Bull
Coffee
Cold Brew
FDA daily max · 400mg
Before bed
When can I drink Cold Brew and still sleep?
Your Cold Brew cutoff
You drink it at
Bedtime
Cold Brew · 200 mg · assuming an average ~5 h half-life
At bedtime
66 mg
may delay sleep
Latest safe Cold Brew: 1:00 PM
How much caffeine is in Cold Brew?
Cold brew's long, cold steep pulls a lot of caffeine, landing a 16 oz serving near 200 mg, about double a standard cup of coffee. Its smooth, low-acid taste hides just how concentrated it really is.
| Serving | Caffeine | Sugar |
|---|---|---|
| 16 oz | 200 mg | 0 g |
Long steep extracts more caffeine; Starbucks Grande ≈ 205 mg.
Will Cold Brew affect your sleep?
Starting at 200 mg, cold brew needs about ten hours to fall under 50 mg, so a midday glass can still be active well into the evening. An early-afternoon cold brew is one of the sneakier sleep disruptors.
Heads up
At 200 mg, a second Cold Brew in a day pushes you toward the FDA’s 400 mg ceiling — and that’s before any coffee or tea. Log everything in the calculator to see your real daily total.
Source: Starbucks official; USDA