60 Starbucks Menu Items to Avoid

Special Report

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Published: February 20, 2024 8:50 am

There are more Starbucks stores than McDonald’s locations in the United States. In fact, the only fast-food franchise with more U.S. stores than Starbucks is Subway. (Here’s a list of the fast-food brands with the most locations in the U.S.) Chances are, you live near one (or two, or three, or four) Starbucks locations. The Seattle-based coffee chain has become part of the daily routine for millions of Americans. However, that morning latte or sweet Frappuccino treat might be harming your health more than you realize. While Starbucks does offer lots of menu items that can be part of a healthy lifestyle, many of its most popular offerings are packed with sugar and calories.

The American Heart Association recommends no more than 36 grams of sugar for men and 25 grams for children, teens, and women each day. And, according to the National Library of Medicine, an adult woman should consume 2,000 calories per day to maintain her weight. An adult man should consume 2,500 daily calories to maintain his weight.

We found 60…that’s right…60 menu items at Starbucks that contain more sugar than is recommended for the entire day for an adult man. Many of these items are also loaded with calories.

Compiling the List

sugar falling from a spoon — Sugar content was the main metric we used to evaluate these Starbucks menu items.

24/7 Wall St. used the nutritional information provided on the Starbucks website to compile this list. Only standard menu items available in February 2024 were evaluated, meaning seasonal drinks such as the wildly popular Pumpkin Spice Latte (or PSL, as it is commonly known) were not included. (If you’re already anticipating the return of the PSL this fall, you should know that a grande PSL contains 50 grams of sugar and 390 calories.)

Secret menu items were also not included. If your standard order is a Cinnamon Toast Crunch Drink, Ferrero Rocher Frappuccino, Purple Drink, or Baby Yoda Frappuccino, you’ll have to figure out the nutritional information on your own.

Each menu item’s nutritional information was evaluated based on the standard order that appears on the Starbucks online menu. No changes or adjustments were made. Beverage sugar and calorie content are calculated for a Grande size. Frappuccinos are made with whole milk. Many hot lattes are calculated with 2% milk unless otherwise noted. If whipped cream and other toppings are part of a beverage’s standard order, they are included in the sugar and calorie totals.

While many of these menu choices can’t ever be deemed as truly healthy, consumers can significantly reduce the total sugar and calories by choosing a smaller size, selecting a milk alternative, and eliminating whipped cream and syrup toppings.

While these 60 menu items from Starbucks contain more than the daily recommended sugar intake for adult men, it must be noted that several other Starbucks offerings come very close. For example, an Iced Caramel Macchiato contains 34 grams of sugar. A Caffè Mocha is filled with 35 grams of sugar. Both drinks contain quite an unhealthy amount of sugar, but they fell just under the 36-gram cutoff in our survey.

The following menu items are ordered by sugar content. When the sugar content of multiple items was tied, they were then ordered by calorie content.

60. Hot Chocolate

Sugar: 37 grams
Calories: 370

One hot chocolate from Starbucks contains 37 grams of sugar, which is more than the daily 36 grams recommended for men and 25 grams recommended for women.

59. Double Chocolate Brownie

Starbucks brownie — A Starbucks chocolate brownie

Sugar: 37 grams
Calories: 480

58. Chestnut Praline Latte

Starbucks sign — A Starbucks hanging exterior sign

Sugar: 38 grams
Calories: 330

57. Pumpkin & Pepita Loaf

Sugar: 38 grams
Calories: 390

56. Iced Lemon Loaf

A Starbucks counter inside a retail store.

Sugar: 39 grams
Calories: 450

55. Iced Pistachio Latte

Starbucks blurred background — A Starbucks store with a blurred background

Sugar: 40 grams
Calories: 260

54. Cinnamon Dolce Latte

Sugar: 40 grams
Calories: 340

53. Chestnut Praline Crème

Starbucks storefront — The storefront of a Starbucks

Sugar: 41 grams
Calories: 350

52. Espresso Frappucino

A Starbucks Frappuccino with whipped cream

Sugar: 42 grams
Calories: 210

51. Chai Tea Latte (hot or iced)

Chai tea latte with scone — A chai tea latte with a scone in the background

Sugar: 42 grams
Calories: 240

50. Iced White Chocolate Mocha

Starbucks coffee cup with sleeve — A Starbucks coffee cup with a sleeve

Sugar: 42 grams
Calories: 390

49. Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Crème Frappuccino

Starbucks employee and customer at a drive-thru — A Starbucks employee and a customer at a drive-thru

Sugar: 43 grams
Calories: 310

48. Chestnut Praline Crème Frappuccino

Starbucks signage — Starbucks exterior signage

Sugar: 43 grams
Calories: 340

46. (tie) Vanilla Crème

Sugar: 43 grams
Calories: 350

46. (tie) White Chocolate Crème Frappuccino

Sugar: 43 grams
Calories: 350

45. Gingerbread Loaf

Sugar: 43 grams
Calories: 380

44. Iced Caramel Brulée Latte

coffee shop blurred background — A Starbucks coffee shop in a blurred background

Sugar: 44 grams
Calories: 400

43. Blended Strawberry Lemonade

Source: Alex Wong / Getty Images News via Getty Images

The Starbucks logo

Sugar: 45 grams
Calories: 190

42. Coffee Frappucino

Sugar: 45 grams
Calories: 230

41. Pistachio Latte

Young man making latte in coffee — A barista making latte in a coffeeshop

Sugar: 45 grams
Calories: 320

40. Chai Crème Frappuccino

Starbucks store exterior with patio seating

Sugar: 45 grams
Calories: 340

38. (tie) Iced Gingerbread Oatmilk Chai

Source: Kevin Dietsch / Getty Images News via Getty Images

The Starbucks siren logo in the sunlight

Sugar: 45 grams
Calories: 360

38. (tie) Pistachio Crème Frappuccino

Sugar: 45 grams
Calories: 360

37. White Chocolate Mocha

Starbucks cup with lid and stopper — A sleeved Starbucks cup with a lid and stopper

Sugar: 46 grams
Calories: 390

36. Caramel Ribbon Crunch Crème Frappuccino

A Starbucks barista writing on Frappuccino cup

Sugar: 46 grams
Calories: 420

35. Chocolate Cookie Crumble Crème Frappuccino

Long line outside a Starbucks store — A long line stretching outside a Starbucks store

Sugar: 46 grams
Calories: 460

34. Pistachio Crème

Man drinking from a Starbucks cup — A man drinking from a Starbucks cup

Sugar: 47 grams
Calories: 330

33. Double Chocolaty Chip Crème Frappuccino

Starbucks hanging sign — A hanging sign with the Starbucks logo

Sugar: 47 grams
Calories: 410

32. White Hot Chocolate

Young girl at Starbucks drinking hot chocolate — A young girl at Starbucks drinking hot chocolate

Sugar: 48 grams
Calories: 400

31. Caramel Brulée Latte

Starbucks Caramel Brulée Latte — A Caramel Brulée Latte in a Starbucks holiday red cup

Sugar: 48 grams
Calories: 410

30. Caramel Brulée Crème Frappuccino

Sugar: 49 grams
Calories: 380

29. Iced Peppermint Mocha

Starbucks signage at night — Starbucks signage illuminated at night

Sugar: 49 grams
Calories: 420

28. Peppermint Mocha Crème Frappuccino

Sugar: 50 grams
Calories: 390

27. Caramel Brulée Crème

Starbucks red cup — The Starbucks holiday red cup with a sleeve

Sugar: 50 grams
Calories: 420

24. (tie) Mocha Frappuccino

Sugar: 51 grams
Calories: 370

24. (tie) Strawberry Crème Frappuccino

Starbucks exterior sign — Exterior signage at a Starbucks location

Sugar: 51 grams
Calories: 370

24. (tie) White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino

Sugar: 51 grams
Calories: 370

23. Vanilla Bean Crème Frappuccino

Sugar: 52 grams
Calories: 380

22. Iced Chai Tea Latte with Oleato Golden Foam

Starbucks Oleato sign — A sign introducing Starbucks’ Oleato menu items

Sugar: 53 grams
Calories: 510

21. Gingerbread Oatmilk Chai

Starbucks outdoor seating — Outdoor seating at a Starbucks

Sugar: 54 grams
Calories: 310

20. Caramel Frappuccino

Sugar: 54 grams
Calories: 380

19. Chocolate-Covered Strawberry Crème Frappuccino

Sugar: 54 grams
Calories: 410

18. Peppermint Mocha

Baristas prepare Peppermint Mocha samples — Starbucks baristas preparing Peppermint Mocha samples

Sugar: 54 grams
Calories: 440

17. Pistachio Frappuccino

Source: itchySan / Getty Images

The Starbucks illuminated logo

Sugar: 55 grams
Calories: 380

16. Mocha Cookie Crumble Frappuccino

Sugar: 55 grams
Calories: 480

15. Chestnut Praline Frappuccino

Sugar: 56 grams
Calories: 380

14. Peppermint Hot Chocolate

Starbucks cup with sleeve — A Starbucks cup with a sleeve on a blurred background

Sugar: 56 grams
Calories: 440

13. Sugar Cookie Almondmilk Frappuccino

Starbucks in New York City — A Starbucks store in New York City

Sugar: 58 grams
Calories: 370

12. Caramel Brulée Frappuccino

Sugar: 58 grams
Calories: 400

11. Peppermint White Chocolate Crème Frappuccino

Bottles for syrup in coffee shop. — Syrup flavor pump bottles at a Starbucks

Sugar: 58 grams
Calories: 420

10. Java Chip Frappucino

Starbucks in a strip mall — A Starbucks location in a strip mall

Sugar: 59 grams
Calories: 440

9. Caramel Ribbon Crunch Frappuccino

Sugar: 60 grams
Calories: 470

8. Matcha Crème Frappuccino

Sugar: 61 grams
Calories: 420

7. Caffè Vanilla Frappuccino

Sugar: 63 grams
Calories: 410

6. Peppermint Mocha Frappuccino

Busy Starbucks in Manhattan — A busy Starbucks in Manhattan

Sugar: 63 grams
Calories: 430

5. Iced Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha

Sugar: 68 grams
Calories: 490

4. Caramel Apple Spice

A caramel apple beverage with whipped cream

Sugar: 70 grams
Calories: 380

3. Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha

Coffee Shop Drinks Found To Contain Excessive Amounts Of Sugar — A peppermint white chocolate mocha in a Starbucks mug

Sugar: 72 grams
Calories: 510

2. Peppermint White Chocolate Mocha Frappuccino

Mall Starbucks — A Starbucks inside a mall

Sugar: 73 grams
Calories: 470

1. Peppermint White Hot Chocolate

Sugar: 74 grams
Calories: 520

One Grande peppermint white hot chocolate from Starbucks contains more than twice the recommended daily sugar intake for an adult man. For children, teens, and women, the drink falls just one gram short of tripling the recommended daily amount of sugar.

For some additional perspective, consider this: a regular-sized Snickers bar contains 28 grams of sugar. One peppermint white hot chocolate from Starbucks contains more sugar and 2 ½ Snickers bars! It also contains more calories than two of these candy bars.

If you are looking for the single most unhealthy item on the Starbucks menu, this is it.

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Read more: Special Report, calories, fat, Frappuccino, healthy, latte, mocha, Pumpkin spice, sugar, unhealthy, Food

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