Black coffee calories are close to zero: a cup has about 2. It's what you add that changes the number.
This page gives black coffee without sugar calories for each type of coffee, what sugar, honey, ghee, lemon and milk add, and how a black cup compares with a milky one. For the basics, see our guide to black coffee.
How many calories in black coffee?
A 200 ml cup of brewed black coffee has about 2 calories. Instant coffee and a shot of espresso come to about 3 a cup. So the calories in black coffee hardly count. Each teaspoon of sugar adds about 16, and milk adds the most.
Calories by type of black coffee
Here's 1 cup black coffee calories by type, from the USDA's food database:
| Black coffee | Amount | Calories (about) |
|---|---|---|
| Brewed coffee (filter, French press, pour-over) | 200 ml | 2 |
| Instant coffee | 150 ml | 3 |
| Espresso | 30 ml shot | 3 |
| Americano | one shot topped up with water | 3 |
The method makes almost no difference. Plain coffee is mostly water.
Black coffee with sugar and other add-ons
Black coffee with sugar calories depend on how many spoons you add. These figures are also from the USDA, except milk, which is from India's ICMR-NIN:
| Add-on | Amount | Calories (about) |
|---|---|---|
| Sugar | 1 tsp | 16 |
| Honey | 1 tsp | 21 |
| Ghee | 1 tsp | 37 |
| Lemon juice | 1 tbsp | 3 |
| Cow's milk | 50 ml | 34 |
| Buffalo milk | 50 ml | 59 |
So the common cup with 2 teaspoons of sugar comes to about 34 calories. A spoon of ghee adds more than two spoons of sugar, which is worth knowing before you try black coffee with ghee. Lemon adds almost nothing; more on black coffee with lemon.
Black coffee vs milk coffee calories
Here's how a black cup compares with the milky coffee most of us grew up with:
| Cup | Calories (about) |
|---|---|
| Black coffee, 200 ml | 2 |
| Black coffee with 2 tsp sugar | 34 |
| Milky coffee: 100 ml cow's milk, 2 tsp sugar | 100 |
| Milky coffee: 100 ml buffalo milk, 2 tsp sugar | 150 |
| Café latte (about 180 ml milk), no sugar | 120 |
Swap two milky cups a day for black and you cut about 200 calories a day. Milk does add protein and calcium, though, so whether black is "better" depends on what you want from your cup.
Does black coffee have any nutrients?
Very little. A 200 ml cup has about 100 mg of potassium and 6 mg of magnesium, according to the USDA, and almost no protein, fat or carbohydrate. Coffee's other compounds, like its antioxidants, don't show up as calories.
Black coffee calories FAQs
Does black coffee have calories?
Yes, but very few: about 2 in a 200 ml cup. For counting calories, you can treat plain black coffee as close to zero. The calories come from what you add.
Is black coffee okay for weight loss?
Yes, especially as a swap for milky, sugary coffee, which can have 100 calories or more a cup. Read more about black coffee for weight loss.
Does black coffee break a fast?
With about 2 calories a cup, black coffee is close to nothing. Whether it "breaks" a fast depends on the plan you follow, so go by your plan's own rules.
The bottom line
Black coffee has about 2 calories a cup. Sugar, honey, ghee and especially milk are where the calories come from, so count those, not the coffee.