Are you on a low-carb ketogenic diet? Let me tell you something great: you don’t have to drive past Starbucks for life! While most Starbucks drinks contain heap amounts of carbohydrates, know that they have other guilt-free and low-carb options for you, and we are here to break it down for you.
Starbucks keto-friendly beverages
Caffè Americano
This coffee type is made of espresso shots diluted with hot water. As per the Starbucks website, a grande cup has 3 espresso shots and contains 2 carbs only.
Brewed coffee
With this one, no matter what size cup you choose, your drink will always contain zero carbohydrates. Clover® Brewed coffee is one of the strongest coffee offered by the company, with absolutely no carbs, as long as you drink it pure black.
Espresso
- Solo espresso: 1 espresso shot
- Doppio: 2 espresso shots
- Triple: 3 espresso shots
- Quad: 4 espresso shots
Espressos contain 1 carb per shot, according to Starbucks. On the other hand, USDA claims that a shot generally contains only 0.5 grams.
Espresso Con Panna
Espresso Con Panna is a doppio with whipped cream on top and generally contains 3 grams of carbohydrates. It is sweetened with vanilla syrup. Thus, that will add up to the sugar content.
But, despite that, Espresso Con Panna is still filed as a low-carb drink because even the largest size only contains about 5 grams of carbohydrates. You may tone this down by requesting to lessen the whipped cream.
Espresso Macchiato
This one is also made of espresso but topped with a dollop of steamed and foamed 2% milk. The sweetness of the milk gives that delicious sweetness to tone down the espresso taste. Typically. I recommend avoiding 2% milk, but with Macchiato, the milk is so scarce that it won’t add a significant amount of carbs. The largest Quad drink only houses 4 carbs and 25 calories.
Unsweetened iced coffee
A quick way to order a keto-friendly iced coffee is to emphasize “unsweetened” or “no classic syrup” as you order. Otherwise, the barista will automatically add 3 to 7 pumps of classic syrup.
Iced Americano
As simple as it goes, this mix of espresso shots with added water and ice contains only 2 grams of carbohydrates in one cup.
Cold brew coffee
A better keto-friendly option is the cold brew because it contains zero carbohydrates. You don’t have to tell the barista not to put in sweeteners since their recipe has no classic syrup or other sweeteners. This is also a naturally sweeter beverage than iced coffee.
More Starbucks keto drinks + how to order
Low Carb Pink Drink
With its vibrant pink hue and yummy flavor, this easily claimed its rightful fame. Its base is Iced Passion Tango Tea but sugar-free syrup instead of liquid cane sugar. It is topped with 1 ounce of heavy cream for that extra flavor.
A 16-ounce serving contains:
- Calories: 101
- Fat: 11 grams
- Protein: 1 gram
- Carbs: 1 gram
- Fiber: 0 grams
Order an Iced Passion Tango Tea with added four pumps of sugar-free syrup and an ounce of heavy cream to get this drink.
Caffè Misto
This is a great keto drink since it’s only made of equal parts coffee and steamed milk. To make it even more keto-friendly, have almond milk instead of dairy milk. You may also choose to combine water and heavy cream to replace milk altogether.
A 16-ounce serving with 8 ounces of almond milk contains:
- Calories: 37
- Fat: 2.6 grams
- Protein: 1.5 grams
- Carbs: 1.5 grams
- Fiber: 0 grams
A 16-ounce serving with 4 ounces of heavy cream and 4 ounces of water contains:
- Calories: 404
- Fat: 43 grams
- Protein: 3.4 grams
- Carbs: 3.3 grams
- Fiber: 0 grams
To get this drink, order for a Caffè Misto with either almond milk or equal parts of water and heavy cream.
Low Carb London Fog
The base of this drink is Earl Grey Tea with added milk and four vanilla syrup pumps. Again, opt for a sugar-free syrup and an ounce of heavy cream to replace milk.
A 16-ounce serving contains:
- Calories: 101
- Fat: 11 grams
- Protein: 1 gram
- Carbs: 1 gram
- Fiber: 0 grams
Order an Iced London Fog Tea Latte to get this drink and request 1 ounce of heavy cream and sugar-free syrup.
Skinny Mocha
This is Caffè Mocha but with sugar-free skinny mocha sauce and equal parts heavy cream and water to decrease the carb content. However, always remember that opting for 4 ounces of heavy cream raises the calorie count to 470 and the fat content to 45 grams.
A 16-ounce serving contains:
- Calories: 117
- Fat: 4 grams
- Protein: 7.5 grams
- Carbs: 13.5 grams
- Fiber: 4 grams
Order Skinny Mocha with equal parts heavy cream and water and mocha syrup to get this drink.
Keto White Drink (Iced Peach Tranquility)
This drink gives off flavors like peach cobbler. This is made of unsweetened Peach Citrus White Tea with heavy cream and 2-4 pumps of sugar-free vanilla syrup. Take note that no water should be added and should be topped with light ice. Overall, this contains 4 carbs.
For this drink, ask for a Grande Iced Peach Tranquility with sugar-free vanilla syrup and a bit of heavy cream. Serve over light ice.
Keto Frappuccino
A low-carb frappuccino will still offer you that sweet and creamy cup of the cup with only 5 carbs. Order a Grande Iced Coffee and request 3 pumps of sugar-free vanilla syrup and 2 splashes of heavy cream double blended to get this drink. Serve with light ice.
Keto Nitro Cold Brew
Cold brew is already a non-carb drink with less acidity and sweeter coffee. But if you want to add spice without going overboard with the carb content, you may ask the barista to add a splash of heavy cream and 2 pumps of sugar-free vanilla syrup. This will only raise the carb content to 3!
Keto Double Shot on Ice
As the term implies, this drink is made of two espresso shots with low-carb milk and sugar alternatives. Order a Grande Double Shot on Ice to get this drink and request 2-4 whole earth packets and almond milk. Emphasize that no classic syrup should be put in. This drink contains 1.5 net carbs.
Keto Iced Shaken Espresso
You can turn the icy and creamy Iced Shaken Espresso into a keto-friendly drink by ordering this way: Grande Iced Shaken Espresso, but use almond milk or heavy cream and 2 pumps of sugar-free vanilla or sugar-free cinnamon dolce syrup. Should you need additional sweetness, add a Whole Earth packet! This drink houses 4 net carbs.
Keto Iced Blonde Vanilla Latte
To get an Iced Blonde Vanilla Latte, order it Grande but ask for milk to be replaced with heavy cream or almond milk and sugar with 3 pumps of sugar-free vanilla syrup. This will house 4 net carbs only.
Keto Cafe Miso
If you love your coffee milky, you should try this café au lait! To try it, order a Grande Caffe Misto but ask for almond milk instead of 2% milk, which will only contain 2 net carbs.
Keto Flat White
To turn the Starbucks Flat White into a keto drink, order a Short Flat White with equal parts water and heavy cream sweetened with 2 Whole Earth packets. Ordering it this way will only have it contain 1.5 carbs only.
But if you need more caffeine kick, order this 3-carb drink:
- Grande Flat White
- ¾ water and ¼ heavy cream
- 4 Whole Earth packets
Let’s talk about tea!
Most teas contain 0 carbs per serving, making them a great keto-friendly drink. Well, except for matcha tea blend and tea lattes containing either milk, sugar, or both. If a tea also houses honey, that surely will pack some carbs as well.
Some keto-friendly hot tea you can also order are:
Chai Tea
Chai Tea is made of black tea with Indian spices infused in it. Specifically, there’s clove, cinnamon, ginger, and cardamom. However, note that this is different from an Iced Chai Tea Latte, which is not keto-friendly as it houses 22 grams of carbs!
Earl Grey Tea
This is a citrusy black tea with bergamot and contains 0 grams of carbohydrates. Plus, it’s also caffeinated! Specifically, it houses 40 grams of caffeine in a grande serving.
Royal English Breakfast Tea
Another tea with 0 grams of carbohydrates is this blend of black teas. It’s also packed with 40 mg of caffeine per serving.
Emperor’s Clouds & Mist
This is a green tea variant with zero carbs and 16 mg of caffeine per serving.
Jade Citrus Mint Brewed Tea
Another green tea hot drink with no carbs, but this time, packed with 40 mg of caffeine per serving.
Mint Majesty Tea
A herbal tea made of mint and lemon verbena blend for that refreshing experience without the carbs.
Peach Tranquility Tea
This tea is 100% keto-friendly and combines peach pieces, lemon verbena, rose hips, candied pineapple, and chamomile blossoms. Although candied pineapple contains sugar, it’s pretty negligible that it does not add to its carb content.
Unsweetened Iced Tea
You can order any iced tea available on the menu but make sure to request to have it “unsweetened” or with “no liquid cane sugar” to keep it keto-friendly.
Low-carb add-ons and alternatives
Now, you can almost turn any drink into a low-carb one by knowing which components to use instead. Let’s break down some of them:
Almond milk
Although almond milk houses sugar, the total net carbs remain just 5 per 8 fl. oz. A splash of this milk type will add sweetness and flavor to your cup without packing in lots of carbs. Unsweetened almond milk is also available to make your drink even more keto-friendly.
Half & Half
This is another keto-friendly option that only contains 3.6 grams of fat in a 3 fl. oz. serving.
Heavy cream
Heavy cream, especially lattes, is a great alternative to 2% milk. However, note that while it does not raise the carb content, it’s packed with calories. A tall latte with heavy cream instead of milk houses a whopping 800 calories per serving. Wow!
Whipped cream
By default, Starbucks’ whipped cream houses regular vanilla syrup. It contains 2 grams of carbs per serving, so take note of that. It may not be a lot, but the more you have in your cup, the higher the carb content is.
Sugar-free vanilla syrup
This is a sucralose-based syrup that only contains 0.5 grams of carbs per pump. It also contains maltodextrin. Unfortunately, these sugar substitutes aren’t the best for someone following a keto diet, but it’s an undeniably better option than sugar. A good measurement to follow is:
- Short: 1 pump
- Tall: 2 pumps
- Grande: 3 pumps
- Venti: 4 pumps
Sugar-free cinnamon Dolce syrup
This low-carb cinnamon syrup only houses 1 gram of carbohydrates per pump. Again, follow the same tip if you want:
- Short: 1 pump
- Tall: 2 pumps
- Grande: 3 pumps
- Venti: 4 pumps
Splenda
Splenda is another sucralose-based sweetener you may ask your barista to add to your cup.
Whole Earth sweetener
This is by far the best and most keto-friendly alternative you can ask for from your Starbucks barista. It is made of stevia, erythritol, and monk fruit, better substitutes than sucralose. It houses 0 net carbs as well!
Nutmeg, cocoa, vanilla powder, or cinnamon
You may have your barista sprinkle any of these for added flavor!
Starbucks keto tips
Some of the things you should keep in mind to have that keto-friendly drink at hand:
- Skip the whipped cream!
- Skinny drinks aren’t always keto-friendly. “Skinny” only means fat-free and sugar-free syrup. Most skinny drinks from the company are packed with 20 grams of carbs!
- Opt for heavy cream or almond milk instead of dairy or 2% milk.
- Sugar-free does not mean carb-free, but at least they house fewer carbs than a sugar-packed sweetener.
- Bring your sweeteners, such as Whole Earth, which is a better alternative than Splenda or Stevia.
Happy drinking!
As I’ve said, you don’t always need to drive past your local Starbucks branch if you’re on a keto diet. Know how to order, and you can almost turn any drink into a low-carb one.
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Disclosure: No compensation or free products were received in exchange for writing this review.
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