

With other brewing methods, especially methods that allow the ground coffee to sit in the hot water, the amount of caffeine extraction will be much greater. Perhaps not as much caffeine gets extracted with espresso, depending on the espresso brewing method, which we will look at in a minute. Roughly speaking, all available caffeine is extracted during the first minute of hot water extraction.Ĭonsider the brewing time of an espresso shot is from 15-25 seconds – with boiling water, of course. Very hot water, near boiling, will extract caffeine from coffee much quicker than say, a cold brew coffee process, which would take hours longer to extract the same amount of caffeine. Water temperature makes a big difference as to how quickly caffeine is withdrawn from the coffee grounds. Temperatureįor coffee and caffeine, heated water acts as a solvent. This applies to other coffee brewing methods as well. This doesn’t fully happen with some coffee brewing methods.ĭrip coffee brewing may appear to fully saturate the coffee grounds after brewing is completed, but the saturation of the coffee grounds may only occur during part or at the end of the drip process. In order for the most caffeine to be extracted during the coffee brewing process, the ground coffee needs to be 100% saturated with water. If you’re drinking anything you consider to be a quality cup of coffee, it’s probably from the lower-caffeine Arabica beans.Ĭaffeine for espresso vs regular coffee – caffeine extraction factors Saturation Not taking into account decaffeinated coffee beans, different coffee bean varieties have naturally occurring and varying levels of caffeine.įor example, as coffee beans go, Robusta coffee has about twice as much caffeine as Arabica coffee. Caffeine in different coffee bean varieties Espresso coffee requires a much finer coffee grind compared to the grind for drip-brewed coffee.Īll brewing methods being equal, generally speaking, the finer the coffee grind, the higher the coffee’s caffeine level will be. Various degrees of coffee grinding can affect caffeine extraction and are used for different brewing methods. A lighter color means a lighter roast and more caffeine. What is your coffee’s roast? Take a look at the color of the roast. Some refer to it as “burning off the caffeine.” The prolonged heat of heavier roasting breaks down the caffeine molecule. However, darker roasts generally have lower caffeine levels than lighter roasts. We hate to say it… but the caffeine you consume will vary by all kinds of factors.Īt the end of this, we will try and give you some perspective by comparing a known quantity – a double shot of Starbucks espresso vs an 8 oz cup of Starbucks regular black coffee.Ĭaffeine levels for espresso vs regular coffee – coffee bean factors Caffeine levels of different coffee roastsĭo darker coffee roasts have more caffeine because they have a stronger flavor? Many people believe so. So, how does the caffeine in espresso vs coffee all breakdown? Oh, and what exactly is a “regular” cup of coffee? Is it an 8 oz cup of French press coffee or drip coffee? (this writer drinks about 30 fluid ounces of coffee every morning )Īnd why isn’t there an exact amount of caffeine determined for express or coffee instead of an average? And how can the amount of caffeine range so much? And then most people drink more than an 8 ounce cup of coffee – sometimes way more. Some coffee drinks are made with more than 1 shot of espresso. (We are going to consider a double shot of espresso as 2 fluid ounces) In fact, there is conflicting information as to what a shot of espresso is – is it 1 fluid ounce? Some consider a double shot of espresso to be 1.5 fluid ounces, while others specify it as 2 fluid ounces… hmm. Type of coffeeīut this doesn’t tell the whole story, does it? a single cup of coffee, or about 8 ounces, has about 110 mg of caffeine on average. Let’s see if we can get the straight scoop.Ĭaffeine in espresso vs coffee – quick answers but many questionsĪ single shot of espresso, or 1 fluid ounce, has about 75 mg of caffeine on average vs. Most people assume that espresso has way more caffeine than the normal cup of coffee – but they would be wrong. Would it surprise you to learn that your daily latte with a double espresso shot has less caffeine than 2 small cups of regular coffee? Caffeine in an espresso vs a regular cup of coffee may not be what you might expect.
