The Matcha Myth: How Many Calories Are You Really Sipping?

If you’ve ever strolled into a café and ordered a “matcha latte,” chances are you felt a little virtuous. After all, matcha is green, it’s antioxidant-rich, it's kind of trendy.

But - and this is a big but - not all matcha drinks are created equal. Underneath that jade hue, calories can sneak in via milk, syrups, whipped cream, and more.

Let’s break it down, sip by sip.

Pure Matcha (Just Tea + Water) = Almost Zero Calories

In its simplest form, matcha is powdered green tea whisked into water. No milk, no sweetener. That version is essentially negligible in calories - 5 or 10 kcal at most.

This is your “baseline”. The pure category with the fewest “extras.” But most cafés don’t serve matcha this dry. Instead, they cloak it in dairy (or dairy alternatives) and sugar. That’s where things get interesting.

The Usual Suspects: Milk + Syrup + Whipped Cream

Here’s how those additions usually inflate the calorie count:

• Milk (dairy or plant-based) - adds fat, protein, and carbs. Whole milk adds more than skimmed or almond/soy milks.

  
  

• Syrups / sweeteners / sugar - flavoured syrups (vanilla, caramel, etc.) add a lot of sugar (and calories).

  
  

• Foam, cream, drizzles - extra creaminess comes at the cost of fat & sugar.

  
  

• Serving size - a “large” may double what you’d expect in a “small.”

A typical matcha latte can range from as low as ~70 kcal to well over 300 kcal depending on these choices.

Famous Brand Examples & Surprises

Let’s glance at a few well-known names to see how matcha gets dressed up (or overloaded):

// Starbucks

• A Grande (16 oz) Matcha Latte with 2% milk: ~220 calories.

• Their Iced Matcha Latte: ~190 calories (for a certain size) with some fat and ~25 g sugar.

• In another listing, a Grande Matcha Latte is shown as 240 calories with 32 g sugar and 12 g protein.

• Also, data from MyFoodDiary suggests:

  “Starbucks Matcha Green Tea Latte w/ 2% Milk — Grande (16 oz)” = 240 kcal

So you see: depending on the source, values can vary, but the ballpark is 200–250 kcal for a typical mid-size.

// Costa

• Matcha Latte, Medium, made with whole milk (Costa US): ~ 470 kcal.

• Iced Matcha Latte, Medium, with whole milk: ~ 320 kcal.

• In Costa’s UAE “Hot Drinks Nutrition Guide,” a “Full Fat Milk Matcha Latte, Small (224 ml)” is ~ 227 kcal.

• For “Full Fat Milk Matcha Latte, Large (376 ml)” it is ~ 365 kcal.

These numbers show clearly: the milk (and the amount thereof) makes a big difference.

// Joe & The Juice

Joe & The Juice combines matcha with other ingredients, turning it into a more powerful “energy” beverage.

• Their Big Matcha Energy with Plant Protein: ~ 320 kcal.

• Another source lists Big Matcha Energy at ~ 338 kcal.

• For a simpler version: Matcha Oat Latte (12 oz / ~355 ml) is ~ 120 kcal.

• A “Regular Matcha Oat Latte” (different serving size) shows ~ 214 kcal in another nutrition database.

Because Joe & The Juice often combines matcha with plant proteins, extra fats, and sometimes additional sweeteners, the calorie count can climb fast.

Hidden Calories: What to Watch For

Even if you order a “healthy” matcha latte, here are the sneaky extras that bump calories upward:

Hidden Element	What It Adds	Why It Sneaks In
Flavoured syrups	20–50 cal per pump	Invisible flavour boost; you might not think to subtract them
Whipped cream / drizzles	fat + sugar	“Optional” but often assumed
Milk choice	Whole vs skim vs nut milk	Some cafés default to whole milk
Extra scoops of matcha	matcha blends sometimes have added sugar	More powder = more calories
Foam / cream toppings	more fat	Adds texture — at a cost
Large sizes	multiplies everything	A “grande” vs “small” can double or triple your intake

A few examples:

• One Reddit user noted that when Starbucks uses “classic” syrup (regular sweetener), you might be adding ~80 extra calories (say, 4 pumps × 20 kcal) on top of milk and matcha.

  
  

• A diet-focused site says a “standard matcha latte” could be anywhere from 70 to 200 kcal, with most of the variation coming from milk type and added sweeteners.

  
  

• In Starbucks’ “Healthy Matcha Strawberry Cream Cold Foam,” adding four scoops + vanilla syrup + two percent milk pushes it to ~240 kcal.

Tips to Drink Matcha (Without the Calorie Hangover)

Want your matcha fix but not the caloric overload? Here are some friendly hacks:

1. Choose a lighter milk: almond milk, oat milk (light), or skimmed.

   
   

2. Go easy on syrup or ask for sugar-free versions.

   
   

3. Skip whipped cream and drizzles (they add aesthetic but also fat & sugar).

   
   

4. Ask for fewer scoops of matcha powder if possible (some blends contain added sugar).

   
   

5. Watch your size - a smaller cup saves more than you think.

   
   

6. Check the menu’s nutrition info - many cafés now publish it online or in-store.

   
   

7. Customize boldly - cafés are used to modifications. “Less sweet,” “no foam,” “almond milk,” etc., are your friends.

Matcha, in its pure form, is nearly calorie-free. The trouble is when cafés turn it into a latte, frappé, or dessert in disguise. Many of those gorgeous Instagram-worthy green drinks hide fat, sugar, and flavouring that can push them into dessert territory.

If you enjoy matcha, by all means sip away, but be mindful and customize smartly. You'll preserve the benefits (antioxidants, gentle caffeine boost) without drowning them in extra calories.