8 Drinks With More Caffeine Than A Cup Of Coffee

For many people, a cup of coffee is an essential start to the day — partially out of habit and partially due to the pleasant jolt of caffeine it imparts. As per VeryWell Health, an average eight-ounce cup of brewed black coffee contains somewhere between 90 and 95 milligrams of caffeine. That works out to between 11.25 and 11.88 milligrams per ounce. (Let's go ahead and use 11.5 going forward for ease of calculation.) Of course, certain coffee varieties, like Starbucks's blonde roast, rank as some of the most-caffeinated cafe drinks. The generally accepted "safe" limit for daily adult caffeine consumption is around 400 milligrams, assuming you have no contraindicating health conditions. 

When just a cuppa coffee won't do the job, there do, in fact, exist several widely available drinks that will deliver more of a caffeine punch ... sometimes much more. Science knows the best time to drink coffee, but it's up to you when the best time is to smack yourself in the face with a hefty dose of go-go juice. Is it a big test or project at work? A stressful day of chores at home? Sometimes, you really need a whole lotta caffeine, and the following drinks are meant to deliver. As always, keep in mind that exceeding the recommended daily limit for caffeine can have consequences, especially when done repeatedly over time, and even short-term side effects like jitters, the feeling of a racing heart, and irritability (according to the FDA). Individual tolerance is subject to vary widely. 

Matcha is a specific type of Japanese green tea that packs a caffeine wallop that's wholly dependent on how it's prepared. There are also different qualities of matcha, with ceremonial-grade being the most luxe. Its grassy flavor might conceal the fact that it contains a decent amount of caffeine in one serving: 19 to 44 milligrams per ounce (per Healthline). To amp up the caffeine level, use more matcha powder in less water. This will make the resulting beverage thicker, impacting your drinking experience as much as the caffeine levels. 

Death Wish Coffee, as a brand, embraces the ethos of sustainability and the allure of seriously strong joe. Its Power Surge ground coffee, which is labeled "higher caffeine," packs 210 milligrams in a six-ounce prepared serving — a mindblowing 35 milligrams per ounce. Believing that extra beans make your coffee stronger is a common myth, but you don't need any tricks to get a serious rush from this bevvie. All Death Wish coffees are made with robusta beans, and Power Surge is a dark roast. 

When we covered energy drinks with the most caffeine, Celsius featured highly. A 12-ounce can of either Celsius or Celsius Vibe contains 200 milligrams of caffeine, or 16.7 milligrams per ounce. Celsius Essentials, the brand's stronger variety, contains 270 milligrams of caffeine in a 16-ounce can, or 16.88 milligrams per ounce. The sparkling drinks are ideal for those who enjoy a crispy seltzer but still want the zip of caffeine. If you're thirsty, take care before chugging one of these bad boys, or you might consume more caffeine than you intended. 

When you want to avoid coffee grinding mistakes and, at the same time, blast yourself with possibly the highest per-ounce smash hit of caffeine there is, you want Black Insomnia's line of ground and whole-bean coffee. As an example, one eight-ounce brewed cup of its Dark Roast ground coffee contains a dazzling 1,105 grams of caffeine, or 138.13 grams per ounce. That approaches three times the recommended daily caffeine limit for healthy adults. For a slightly less intense jolt, the brand's canned products contain 210 milligrams of caffeine in an 8.45-ounce can, or 24.9 milligrams per ounce. 

When you're stocking your Yeti cooler (with its long average lifespan), you might be tempted to load it up with Bang Energy drinks if you're seeking the most energizing dose of canned caffeine. Available in flavors like Purple Haze and Lime Pop Drop, you'll get 300 milligrams of caffeine in a 16-ounce can, which comes out to 18.75 milligrams per ounce. Bang Energy routinely tops lists of caffeine when it comes to canned energy drinks that are widely available, meaning that it might be your first choice if you want a serious boom. 

Ryse is a company known for its supplements and potent pre-workout elixirs, but its proprietary line of energy drinks is nothing to scoff at, either. While its Fuel line of drinks contains more caffeine, at 200 milligrams, those seriously into macros might be tempted by its Energy line, which contains 150 milligrams of caffeine per 12-ounce can (12.5 milligrams per ounce). That's not a ton more than coffee but comes packed with eight grams of protein and gut-friendly prebiotics. It's not a protein powerhouse like tofu but still offers an unexpected benefit in the form of an energy drink. 

HiCAF Teas definitely lives up to its name, unlike many things in life. China might be, hands down, the country that drinks the most tea, but they're likely not reaching for this caffeine-fortified product by Republic of Tea, the teabags of which brew up 110 milligrams of caffeine in a six-ounce cup (or 18.3 milligrams per ounce). That measurement is for the Breakfast Black variety, but some flavored variations pack even more of a buzz. Tea usually gets sidelined by coffee in the caffeine stakes, but this quaff proves that you needn't choose. 

When talking caffeine, it doesn't have to come down to a tradeoff between coffee and an energy drink — get you a beverage that can do both. Java Monster, a product of Monster Energy, contains real coffee kissed by the components of an energy drink, for 200 milligrams of caffeine per 15-ounce can, or 13.3 milligrams per ounce. Good coffee is all about balanced ingredients, and Java Monster offers you cafe-standard choices like Mean Bean (vanilla), Salted Caramel, and Irish Creme. When regular coffee doesn't get you hype enough, this might be the can for which you reach.