Coffee alternatives, from decaf to rooibos, and how much caffeine each has

What do you reach for at 3pm when a third coffee feels like one too many? A cup of instant holds about 100 mg of caffeine [1], so even a small swap makes a dent.

Good coffee alternatives include tea, which has less caffeine, and decaf, which has very little. Rooibos, chicory, barley and herbal teas have none at all [1][2][3][4][5][6]. For energy without the caffeine, a short walk did better than a small dose of caffeine in one trial [7]. Here's how they compare, cup for cup.

What can I drink instead of coffee?

Start by deciding whether you want less caffeine or none. Coffee is at the top for comparison.

Yerba mate is the surprise on the list. It holds about as much caffeine as tea or a weak coffee [8], so it's a swap in flavour rather than in caffeine. Matcha sits in the same camp, and our matcha vs coffee guide goes into the detail.

Mushroom coffee is a different case. It's coffee blended with mushroom powder, so the caffeine depends on the coffee in each serving, as our mushroom coffee guide explains.

Does decaf coffee have caffeine?

Yes, a little. Which? measured 2 mg in a Costa decaf and 6 mg in a Pret decaf latte [2]. That means one cup of instant has about as much caffeine as 17 to 50 cups of high-street decaf, which is a lot of decaf.

Decaf is coffee that has been through a process to remove caffeine. In England, instant coffee can only be labelled decaffeinated if caffeine makes up no more than 0.3% of its dry coffee content [12]. A US study found caffeine, at varying levels, in decaf drinks bought from coffee shops [13], so if you need to avoid caffeine completely, pick a drink that never had any.

Part of a coffee's lift may be the ritual itself. In one trial, regular coffee drinkers who'd gone a day without caffeine drank decaf, and those told it was normal coffee reported a bigger drop in cravings and tiredness than those told the truth [14].

What are the best caffeine-free coffee alternatives?

If you miss the roasted taste, these get closest.

• Chicory coffee. The root is dried and roasted, and it's valued as a caffeine-free alternative to coffee [4]. Its inulin fibre can cause wind and bloating, though amounts up to 10 g a day were well tolerated in a small trial [10].
• Barley coffee. Roasted grain drinks like barley and rye have no caffeine [5]. Barley contains gluten, so it isn't suitable if you have coeliac disease [11].
• Dandelion coffee. It's made from the plant's root and sold as caffeine-free, though we found no lab test of its caffeine. Dandelion in food amounts is considered likely safe, and the evidence is mixed on whether it causes allergies in people sensitive to ragweed or daisies [15].
• Rooibos. Rooibos is free of caffeine and low in tannins [3].
• Herbal teas. Peppermint, chamomile and other herbal teas are made from plants other than the tea bush, and a lab test of 20 teas found no caffeine in the herbal ones [6].

Coffee alternatives for energy

Movement is worth a try. In a small trial of 18 young women short on sleep, 10 minutes of walking up and down stairs left them feeling more energetic than a 50 mg caffeine capsule, which is about half a cup of instant [1][7]. Over weeks, regular exercise raised feelings of energy and lowered fatigue across 81 trials of 7,050 people [16].

If you'd rather keep some caffeine, tea gives you about three quarters of a cup of instant [1]. Yerba mate sits in a similar range, but it's traditionally drunk at about 70°C. The WHO's cancer agency classes drinks above 65°C as a probable cause of oesophageal cancer, so let any hot drink cool a little [9].

How do I switch from coffee?

Swap one cup at a time, starting with the latest one of the day. A single 100 mg dose may affect sleep in some adults near bedtime, and up to 400 mg a day raises no safety concerns for healthy adults [17]. Our caffeine calculator adds up your day.

Stopping all at once can bring headaches and tiredness for a few days [18]. Our caffeine withdrawal guide covers how to cut down gently.

In pregnancy, the NHS advises no more than 200 mg of caffeine a day, and no more than 4 cups of herbal tea, avoiding teas with liquorice root [1].

Where Nooroots fits

If you're cutting back on coffee but still want support for calm focus, Nooroots Ashwagandha + Lion's Mane is caffeine-free. It pairs certified organic KSM-66 ashwagandha with lion's mane fruiting body extract, for calm focus and calm resilience on demanding days.

Frequently asked questions

Does green tea have caffeine?

Yes. The NHS puts a cup of black or green tea at about 75 mg, against about 100 mg for a cup of instant coffee [1].

Does peppermint tea have caffeine?

Pure peppermint tea shouldn't contain caffeine, because it's made from mint leaves rather than the tea plant. A lab test of 20 teas found none in the herbal ones, though its summary doesn't name each herb [6].

Is decaf coffee caffeine-free?

No. High-street decaf held 2 to 6 mg a cup in Which? tests, far less than regular coffee but not zero [2].

What is the healthiest alternative to coffee?

There's no single answer, as it depends on what you want to cut. If caffeine is what you want to avoid, rooibos, herbal teas and chicory coffee have none [3][4][6].

Does yerba mate have more caffeine than coffee?

Usually not. Lab figures put yerba mate at about 40 to 80 mg per 150 ml, similar to green tea or a weak coffee [8].

Is chicory coffee good for you?

It's caffeine-free and rich in inulin, a type of fibre [4]. Inulin can cause wind and bloating, though up to 10 g a day was well tolerated in a small trial [10].

Read more about cutting down without the headaches in our guide to caffeine withdrawal.

References

Every source here is listed so you can read it yourself. This guide is for general information and doesn't replace advice from your GP. We check it again at least every six months.

1. NHS. Foods to avoid in pregnancy (caffeine and herbal tea sections). Page last reviewed 15 June 2026. Accessed 31 October 2026. nhs.uk/pregnancy/keeping-well/foods-to-avoid
2. Which? (2026). Caffeine levels in high-street coffees vary significantly, Which? finds. Published 25 August 2026. Accessed 31 October 2026. which.co.uk
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9. International Agency for Research on Cancer (2016). IARC Monographs evaluate drinking coffee, maté, and very hot beverages. Press release no. 244, 15 June 2016. Accessed 31 October 2026. iarc.who.int
10. Bonnema AL, Kolberg LW, Thomas W, Slavin JL (2010). Gastrointestinal tolerance of chicory inulin products. Journal of the American Dietetic Association 110(6): 865-8. PMID 20497775
11. NHS. Coeliac disease. Page last reviewed 31 March 2023. Accessed 31 October 2026. nhs.uk/conditions/coeliac-disease
12. The Coffee Extracts and Chicory Extracts (England) Regulations 2000 (SI 2000/3323), regulation 5. Accessed 31 October 2026. legislation.gov.uk
13. McCusker RR, Fuehrlein B, Goldberger BA, Gold MS, Cone EJ (2006). Caffeine content of decaffeinated coffee. Journal of Analytical Toxicology 30(8): 611-3. PMID 17132260
14. Mills L, Boakes RA, Colagiuri B (2016). Placebo caffeine reduces withdrawal in abstinent coffee drinkers. Journal of Psychopharmacology 30(4): 388-94. PMID 26933153
15. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health. Dandelion. Last updated November 2024. Accessed 31 October 2026. nccih.nih.gov/health/dandelion
16. Wender CLA, Manninen M, O'Connor PJ (2022). The Effect of Chronic Exercise on Energy and Fatigue States: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Trials. Frontiers in Psychology 13: 907637. PMID 35726269
17. European Food Safety Authority. Caffeine (topic page, summarising the EFSA scientific opinion on the safety of caffeine, EFSA Journal 2015; 13(5): 4102). Accessed 31 October 2026. efsa.europa.eu
18. Juliano LM, Griffiths RR (2004). A critical review of caffeine withdrawal: empirical validation of symptoms and signs, incidence, severity, and associated features. Psychopharmacology 176(1): 1-29. PMID 15448977