Low Sugar Drinks at McDonald's

10 Sugar-Free And Low Sugar Drinks at McDonald’s

10 sugar-free low sugar drinks at McDonald’s. In this post, I am going to be talking about what the sugar-free and low-sugar drink options at McDonald’s are. In it, I’ll list the 10 lowest sugar drinks available on the McDonald’s Menu and share with you some sugar-free and lower sugar drink options. McDonald’s sells 70 to 210 million drinks per day. Yes, you didn’t read that wrong. After all, you need something to go with those fries and burgers. With drinks often being the main culprit for how we consume sugar, you may want to know exactly what the sugar-free and lower sugar options are at McDonald’s.

What are the 10 Lowest Sugar Drinks at McDonald’s?

The below table shows the 10 lowest sugar drinks at McDonald’s.


McDonald’s DrinkSugar Content
Americano0g
Premium Roast Coffee0g
Diet Coke0g
Hot Tea0g
Unsweetened Iced Tea0g
Dasani Water0g
Iced Coffee with Sugar-Free Vanilla SyrupSmall – 1g Medium – 2g Large – 2g
Small Iced Latte7g
Honest Kids Organic Apple Juice8g
Small Cappuccino9g

10 Lowest Sugar Drinks at McDonald’s – Item-by-Item

Let’s dig in and go over each of the 10 lowest sugar drinks available at McDonald’s.

1. Americano – 0g of Sugar

Top of the list with 0g of sugar (together with a caffeine hit) is the McDonald’s Americano. It is a “simple and satisfying” drink made of hot water poured over Rainforest Alliance Certified espresso. And it contains 0g of sugar, no matter what size you order.

2. Premium Roast Coffee – 0g of Sugar

Another 0g sugar coffee option at McDonald’s is the premium roast coffee made from 100% Arabica beans. If you choose to add coffee creamer this does not add any sugar to your drink. McDonald’s does have two sweeteners available – Equal and Splenda. Both sweeteners add 1g of sugar (to any size of coffee).

3. Iced Coffee with Sugar-Free Vanilla Syrup – 1g-2g of Sugar

Iced coffee with sugar-free vanilla syrup is a low sugar McDonalds drink – just make sure to request the sugar-free vanilla syrup.

This drink is a great refreshing caffeinated option. Unlike the Premium Roast Coffee and the Americano this drink does contain a small amount of sugar. A small contains 1g of sugar and a medium and large contains 2g of sugar.

4. Small Cappuccino – 9g of Sugar

If a frothy hot coffee is what you crave when in McDonald’s then rest assured that a small Cappuccino contains 9g of sugar. There is no added sugar in a McDonald’s cappuccino – this sugar comes from the naturally occurring sugar in milk.

5. Small Iced Latte – 7g of Sugar

A small iced latte from McDonald’s contains less sugar than a small Cappuccino at 9g of sugar. Again, this isn’t from added sugar but from naturally occurring sugar in milk.

6. Hot Tea – 0g of Sugar

Don’t like coffee, but still want a sugar-free drink? Then a hot tea from McDonald’s may be your answer. This hot black tea is made from orange pekoe and pekoe cut black tea. Any size cup contains 0g of sugar.

7. Unsweetened Iced Tea – 0g of Sugar

Who doesn’t love a cold, refreshing iced tea on a hot day? The good news is that you can also get the McDonald’s orange pekoe and pekoe cut black tea as an “iced tea”. Just make sure to order the unsweetened and not the sweet version.

8. Dasani Water – 0g of Sugar

It is water – a simple but classic drink. Don’t forget if you want a refreshing healthy drink when visiting McDonald’s, they sell bottles of Dasani water. This purified water contains enhanced minerals. Water – is the ultimate zero-sugar drink.

9. Honest Kids Organic Apple juice – 8g of Sugar

If you are picking a drink for your little one next time you are in McDonald’s, the Honest Kids Organic Apple Juice is a great option.

A carton contains 8g of sugar. This is less than the two other kids’ drink options on the Mcdonald’s menu. For example, the reduced sugar chocolate milk contains 14g of sugar and the low-fat milk jug contains 11g of sugar.

Also, just to compare this apple juice carton to the other juice option on the McDonald’s menu – Minute Maid – a small Minute Maid contains 32g of sugar and a large Minute Maid contains 58g of sugar.

10. Diet Coke – 0g of Sugar

Diet Coke is what most people opt for when looking for a zero-sugar soda. It is a good option to have on the menu because the other non-diet soda drinks on the menu at McDonald’s range from 27g-80g of sugar depending on the size and the soda.

Also, to put it into context, a Diet Coke contains 0g of sugar. In comparison, a full sugar Coke contains 28g of sugar in an extra small cup and 77g of sugar in a large cup.


What About Other Fast Food Chains?

Do you want to know the low sugar and sugar-free options at some of your other favorite fast-food chains? If you do, check out some of my other posts below:


Low Sugar Drinks at McDonald's - McCafe

Frequently Asked Questions About McDonald’s Drinks and Sugar

In the below section I will be answering all your niggling questions about the sugar content of the drinks menu at McDonald’s.

Does McDonald’s Have Sugar-Free Drinks?

There are seven sugar-free drinks on the McDonald’s drinks menu. These seven drinks are:

  1. Premium Roast Coffee
  2. Americano
  3. Diet Coke
  4. Unsweetened Iced Tea
  5. Dasani Water
  6. Hot Tea
  7. Unsweetened Tea

What Drink Has the Least Sugar at McDonald’s?

The following seven drinks contain the least sugar (0g) on the McDonald’s menu. These seven drinks are:

  1. Premium roast coffee
  2. Americano
  3. Diet Coke
  4. Unsweetened iced tea
  5. Dasani water
  6. Hot tea
  7. Unsweetened tea

What Diet Drinks Does McDonald’s Have?

McDonald’s has one diet drink on its menu – Diet Coke.

Does McDonald’s Diet Coke Have Sugar in it?

McDonald’s Diet Coke does not contain sugar. It is instead sweetened with aspartame.

How Much Sugar is in A McDonalds Sprite?

A Sprite at McDonald’s can contain between 27g to 69g depending on the cup size. The amount of sugar per cup size is:

  • Extra small McDonalds Sprite – 27g of sugar
  • Medium McDonalds Sprite – 51g of sugar
  • Large McDonalds Sprite – 69g of sugar

Does McDonald’s Have Any Sugar-Free Coffee Drinks?

McDonald’s has two sugar-free (0g) coffee drinks on the menu – the Americano and their Premium Roast Coffee.

Does McDonald’s Latte Have Sugar?

A McDonald’s latte does not contain added sugar. A McDonald’s latte does, however, contain naturally occurring sugar from the whole milk used. A small latte contains 11g of sugar, a medium 15g of sugar, and a large 19g of sugar of naturally occurring sugar from whole milk.

Is There Sugar in McDonald’s Iced Coffee?

There is liquid sugar in a McDonald’s iced coffee. A small McDonald’s iced coffee contains 22g of sugar, a medium McDonald’s iced coffee contains 28g of sugar, and a large McDonald’s iced coffee contains 42g of sugar.

How Much Sugar Is There in A Large Iced Coffee from McDonald’s?

A large McDonald’s iced coffee contains 42g of sugar.

Can You Order McDonald’s Iced Coffee Without Sugar?

You can replace the liquid sugar in a McDonald’s iced coffee with sugar-free vanilla syrup. This reduces the sugar content to 1g of sugar in a small and 2g of sugar in a medium and large.

How Much Sugar is in McDonald’s Vanilla Iced Coffee?

These are the breakdown of sugar in each size of McDonald’s Vanilla Iced Coffee:

  • Small McDonalds Iced French Vanilla Coffee – 17g of Sugar
  • Medium McDonalds Iced French Vanilla Coffee – 23g of Sugar
  • Large McDonalds Iced French Vanilla Coffee – 34g of Sugar

How Much Sugar is in A McDonalds Caramel Iced Coffee?

There is 20g of sugar in a small caramel iced coffee from McDonald’s. There is 26g of sugar in a medium caramel iced coffee and 39g of sugar in a large caramel iced coffee from McDonald’s.

How Much Sugar in An Iced Caramel Macchiato at Mcdonald’s?

There are 29g of sugar in a small Mcdonald’s iced caramel macchiato and 42g of sugar in a medium caramel macchiato.

How Much Sugar is in A Large Caramel Macchiato from McDonald’s?

There are 53g of sugar in a large caramel macchiato from Mcdonald’s.

How Many Grams of Sugar Is in a Caramel Frappe from McDonald’s?

There are:

  • 55g of sugar in a small McDonald’s caramel frappe;
  • 67g of sugar in a medium McDonald’s caramel frappe; and
  • 89g of sugar in a large McDonald’s caramel frappe.

Does McDonald’s Sweet Tea Have Sugar?

McDonald’s Sweet tea is sweetened with medium invert sugar. There are 24g of sugar in a small, 29g of sugar in a medium, and 40g of sugar in a large McDonald’s Sweet tea.

Does McDonald’s Iced Tea Have Sugar?

McDonald’s iced tea does not contain sugar. There is 0g of sugar in a McDonald’s iced tea, regardless of the size.

Does McDonald’s Have Unsweetened Tea?

McDonald’s does have unsweetened tea – McDonald’s has unsweetened iced tea on the menu as well as unsweetened hot tea. Both teas contain 0g of sugar.

Which Has More Sugar – McDonald’s Sweet Tea or Coke?

McDonald’s Coke has more sugar than McDonald’s Sweet tea. So you can see exactly how much I have compared sugar content for each size of Sweet Tea and Coke size in the table below.


Cup SizeMcDonald’s Sweet Tea Sugar ContentMcDonald’s Coke Sugar Content
Extra Small17g28g
Small24g39g
Medium29g56g
Large40g77g

Low Sugar Drinks at McDonald's - Soda Drinks

Sugar-Free and Low Sugar Drinks At McDonald’s – The Final Bite

Lowest sugar drinks at McDonald’s. So, what is the main takeaway from all the information above? Well, if you are looking for a lower sugar or zero sugar drink at McDonald’s your best bet is either black coffee, unsweetened tea (hot or cold), or a Diet Coke. Let’s face unless it is morning, and you are looking for a pick-me-up – your best bet is going to be unsweetened tea or a Diet Coke.

Full confessional time, on a hot day when I am looking for a reasonably priced drink, I often go to the McDonald’s drive-through to get a large unsweetened iced tea. Not only is it ridiculously priced (when compared to other coffee chains), it is a great option for a hot day. Plus, if you really want it sweetened you can always ask for some Splenda or just carry some sugar-free sweetener with you in the car.

And remember…

Low Sugar Drinks at McDonald's

Ingredients and/or manufacturing processes may change. Always double-check ingredient lists and nutritional information before purchasing any food items.


WANT TO FIND MORE LOW SUGAR OPTIONS?

Do you want to learn about some other low-sugar options at your favorite coffee chains, fast food, or restaurant joints, or just while you are shopping for groceries? If you do, then check out some of my other articles below: