Coffee is one of the most popular beverages in the world, and you’d be hard-pressed to find one household in America that doesn’t have at least one avid coffee drinker. For many of us, coffee is an integral part of our day, whether it’s to kick off the morning, get through the afternoon, or simply unwind on the front porch after supper.
There are many ways that coffee can be prepared, including French press, dripped, instant, cold brew, and percolated coffee. All of these methods have various caffeine amounts. However, for our purposes, we want to know how much caffeine there is in percolated coffee.
While this varies according to different factors that we’ll discuss below, an 8-ounce cup of percolated coffee averages 200 mg of caffeine, which is considered to be quite a high amount of caffeine, considering the FDA recommends no more than 400 mg of caffeine in a 24-hour period.
We’ll compare percolated coffee’s caffeine content to other coffee brewing methods and more below, so stay tuned.
Caffeine Content Comparison of Percolated Coffee vs Other Coffee Methods
Percolated Coffee contains 200 mg of caffeine per 8-ounce cup, so let’s see how it stacks up to other coffee methods below.
| Percolated Coffee: | 200 mg per 8-ounce cup |
| Drip or Filter Coffee: | 95 to 165 mg per 8-ounce cup |
| French Press Coffee: | 107 mg per 8-ounce cup |
| Espresso: | 47 to 64 mg per 1-ounce shot |
| Cold Brew Coffee: | 150 mg per 12-ounce serving |
| Starbucks Blonde Roast: | 180 mg per 8-ounce serving |
| Starbucks Featured Dark Roast: | 130 mg per 8-ounce serving |
While these are average caffeine amounts in the different coffee methods, there are other factors to consider.
Other Factors To Consider
Brewing Method
The brewing method can have a huge impact on the caffeine content. Percolated coffee has a caffeine content of 200 mg per 8-ounce cup, whereas coffee made using the drip method only has 95 to 165 mg per 8-ounce cup.
Type of Coffee Bean Used
The coffee bean you are using for your coffee also determines the amount of caffeine in your finished product. For example, Arabica coffee beans have less caffeine than Robusta coffee beans.
The Roast Type
Not only do the coffee beans determine the caffeine content, but so does the type of roast you choose. Darker roasts have a deeper flavor with hints of caramel, chocolate, and nuts, so you would think they would have the most caffeine. This actually isn’t true since lighter roasts have higher caffeine content. If you check our comparison guide above, you’ll see that the Blonde Roast from Starbucks has 50 mg more caffeine than its Dark Roast.
Serving Size
Of course, you probably already know that the size of the coffee impacts the amount of caffeine in your cup. Most caffeine measurements for coffee are based on an 8-ounce cup, but if your cup of coffee is larger, the caffeine content will be higher.
Final Thoughts
Percolated coffee has, on average, 200 mg of caffeine per 8-ounce cup, which is a little high on the caffeine scale, so if you have a caffeine sensitivity, you might want to steer clear of this brewing method unless you clear it with your doctor first.
However, other factors need to be considered when determining how much caffeine is in a cup of coffee, so you’ll need to do your research to determine which is the best coffee, brew method, and serving size to meet your needs. Once you’ve figured that out, you’re free to enjoy your fragrant coffee of choice in style, and there’s nothing better.
Featured Image Credit: Africa Studio, Shutterstock
