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11 Starbucks healthy drinks: From Nitro Cold Brew To Chai Tea Latte

It’s no secret that some of the most popular drinks on the Starbucks menu are high-calorie treats. But for active people everywhere, healthy Starbucks drinks are not that difficult to find.

In addition to several options on the menu that are low in fat, calories, or sugar, many of the drinks Starbucks offers are easy to modify to make them a little less decadent.

So, If you want to learn more about the best healthy Starbucks drinks in 2024, keep on reading!

healthy drink starbucks

Tips For Easy Healthy Starbucks Drinks

While Starbucks offers some drinks that come automatically with healthier options, there are a few ways you can customize your usual drink order.  

As such, some of the more calorific Starbucks drinks you might want to try are adjustable to make them a little more manageable. 

By switching up a few of the factors that make up your drink order, you can cut calories, fat, and sugar.

Related Reads: Best Starbucks Coffee, Starbucks Drinks For Kids, Low Calorie Starbucks Drinks

Sugar-Free Syrups

While Starbucks doesn’t offer all of its syrups in a sugar-free option, several of its most popular flavors get the sugar-free treatment, at least on a seasonal basis. 

While the selection used to be much larger in the base flavors like Hazelnut and cinnamon dolce, Starbucks carries sugar-free vanilla syrup as part of its standard range.

Certain seasonal flavors also get a sugar-free option, so it’s a good idea to ask your barista.

You can also choose to sweeten your latte or other beverage with Stevia, either by requesting it from your barista as part of your order or by adding it yourself at the milk station. 

The powdered spices for topping your drink are also sugar-free: cinnamon, nutmeg, and cocoa powder are all commonly available to add a no-sugar kick to your drink.

Related Read: Starbucks Syrup VS Sauce

Alternative Milks

While most Starbucks locations in the US use 2% milk by default, certain drinks on the menu call for whole milk as the automatic choice. 

To reduce the calories in your Starbucks order, consider opting for a different milk choice: nonfat milk (also known as skim milk), almond milk, coconut milk, soy milk, oat milk, and other options all have lower calories and often less fat.

For comparison’s sake, a grande latte at Starbucks has the following calories, depending on the milk you use:

  • Nonfat milk: 130 calories
  • Oat milk: 190 calories
  • Almond milk: 100 calories
  • Soy milk: 170 calories
  • Coconut milk: 140 calories
  • 2% milk: 190 calories
  • Whole milk: 220 calories
milk in coffee starbucks

Reduce The Syrup Pumps

If you want to reduce the sugar (and therefore the calories, as well) in your Starbucks drink of choice, but there isn’t a sugar-free syrup option, you can also reduce the number of pumps of syrup your drink gets. 

Each drink at Starbucks has a set “recipe,” which includes the number of pumps of syrup for flavored lattes. 

Tall drinks usually get 3 pumps of syrup, grande drinks typically get 4, hot venti drinks get 5, and cold venti drinks get 6. 

While this ensures a strong flavor and sweetness in the finished drink, you might find that you don’t need that much syrup to achieve Starbucks’ joy.

If you find that the flavor is too weak with fewer pumps, you can always ask the barista to add more back into the drink.

Hold The Whip

Starbucks uses heavy cream and flavored syrup (usually vanilla syrup) to make their whipped cream in-house. 

While this means the topping is delicious, it also makes for a calorie-dense treat with lots of fat and calories.

One of the simplest ways to cut the calories on your favorite Starbucks treat is to ask for “no whip” on your drink if your drink of choice has whipped cream by default. 

Frappuccinos, mochas, and most of the seasonal specialty drinks include whipped cream, and they are generally just as delicious without the whip.

Go Tall, Not Grande or Venti

Another easy way to cut the calories, fat, and sugar in your Starbucks drink is to opt for a smaller size. 

The grande Starbucks size is 16 ounces, while the tall is 12. For some of the richer drinks at Starbucks, 12 ounces is definitely enough to satisfy your craving while still being fewer calories

The same logic also applies for the larger sizes, like venti or (for iced drinks) trenta. 

If you buy your drink in a smaller size, you can still enjoy all the pleasures of the treat but just consume less of it.

Related Reads: Starbucks Cup Sizes, TikTok Drinks

Read The Nutritional Facts

The menu board at Starbucks includes calorie counts for most of the popular drinks available.

 You can also see the nutrition facts, including fat, sugar, and calories, for the grande size of your drink of choice on the Starbucks website. 

By looking at the calorie counts and other information, you can make a more informed choice about what you want to drink and also figure out some ways that you might be able to cut calories, fat, or sugar from your beverage of choice.

low calore frappe starbucks illustrated

11 Healthy Starbucks Drinks with Incredible Flavor

If you want low-calorie Starbucks drinks, they are always available through the menu. The more challenging question to answer is which one to order!

But we’ve got you covered. The following drinks are good options for anyone who wants a nice treat with a little less sugar, fat, and fewer calories.

 1. Skinny Vanilla Latte

One of the favorites among healthier Starbucks drinks, the skinny vanilla latte makes an easy swap for the higher-calorie standard version. 

The skinny vanilla latte includes sugar-free vanilla syrup, nonfat milk, espresso, and a bit of milk foam on top. You can order this drink hot or iced, so it’s a suitable treat for any season.

  • Calories: 120 (grande)

Related Read: Starbucks Lattes

2. Light Frappuccino

Starbucks offers a few light Frappuccino options, including coffee, mocha, caramel, java chip, and vanilla. 

Each option comes out about 33 calories less than the standard versions, which is a significant improvement. These versions are also lower in sugar and fat.

Light Frappuccinos include skim milk and use sugar-free sweetener in the base to create a frozen coffee drink with fewer calories.

  • Calories, Light Coffee: 110 (grande)

3. Blonde Flat White

The Starbucks flat white line of drinks is lower in calories than a typical latte because there is more coffee and less milk. 

It’s also easy to further reduce the caloric profile in your flat white by using nonfat milk instead of the standard whole milk. 

The drink features blonde espresso and steamed milk, a little darker than a latte but still a nice and creamy drink.

Don’t worry. You can also get this cold for an iced coffee with a little more style.

  • Calories (whole milk): 220 for a grande
  • Calories (skim milk): 120 for a grande

4. Nitro Cold Brew

One of the best healthy Starbucks drinks from the perspective of calories, sugar, and fat is the nitro cold brew. 

Starbucks Cold brew coffee infused with nitrogen is naturally sweet with no added sugar and creamy without any milk at all. 

Of course, you can add a splash of skim milk if you want, but many people find they can drink this iced coffee beverage neat with no problem.

In our opinion, there isn’t much like a fizzy nitro cold brew!

  • Calories: 5 (grande)

Related Read: Cold Brew Drinks At Starbucks

5. Americano

Another very low-calorie Starbucks drink option, the Americano, is a classic iced coffee choice for dieters. 

Made up of nothing more than shots of espresso and hot water in the standard version, you can also get this hot drink over ice.

If the flavor is a bit too intense, you can add sugar-free sweetener, nonfat milk, or both to lighten things up while keeping the calories low.

  • Calories: 15 (grande)

6. Iced Brown Sugar Oat Milk Shaken Espresso

While the brown sugar syrup in this Starbucks iced drink adds to the calories, the alternative milk, just a splash, helps keep the calorie count reasonable. 

This iced coffee drink is nothing more than shots of espresso, brown sugar syrup, and a small amount of oat milk, shaken up with ice and served. 

  • Calories: 120 calories (grande)

7. Iced Shaken Green Iced Tea

If you’re not a fan of coffee, shaken iced green tea is a perfect choice if you’re trying to order healthy Starbucks drinks without coffee. 

The beverage is simple: double-brewed green tea with water and ice, no sugar and fat, and ultimately no calories. 

You can add a sugar-free sweetener of your choice or use the freedom of the zero-calorie iced green tea base to add a little syrup.

  • Calories: 0 (all sizes)

8. Berry Hibiscus Refresher

The entire Refreshers line of Starbucks drinks is lower in calories, sugar, and fat than most of Starbucks’ standard offerings. 

If you really want to avoid added calories, stick with the base drinks, the Refreshers themselves. 

Our favorite is the Berry Hibiscus Refresher, which combines green coffee extract, hibiscus tea, and real fruit juice for a fruity and refreshing sip that still packs a caffeine punch for a natural low-calorie drink.

  • Calories: 70 (grande)\

Related Reads: Starbucks Refreshers, Starbucks Secret Menu Drinks

9. Nonfat Cafe Mocha

Although Starbucks discontinued its sugar-free mocha sauce many years ago, it’s definitely possible to cut the calories on your favorite chocolate-coffee beverage. 

A nonfat mocha with no whipped cream still gets plenty of rich chocolate flavor from mocha sauce, along with shots of espresso, steamed nonfat milk, and a little foam for a hot drink. 

  • Calories: 250 (grande)

10. Nonfat Iced Caramel Macchiato

This skinny take on the Starbucks classic caramel macchiato cuts out a big chunk of calories, making this one of the most popular sweet but healthy Starbucks drinks. 

You can trim the sugar as well by choosing sugar-free syrup. However, the drink is still a major treat: vanilla syrup, regular or sugar-free, with steamed nonfat milk and espresso shots, topped with caramel sauce drizzle in a distinctive pattern.

  • Calories: 190 (grande, regular vanilla), 135 (grande, sugar-free syrup)

11. Nonfat Chai Tea Latte

The chai tea latte has a definite cult following among the classic Starbucks drinks. 

There are a few ways around the calories, sugar, and fat in the original. The easiest modification is to ask for low-fat milk or skimmed milk in your chai latte, with the organic chai tea concentrate and hot water.

That still leaves some sugar, but the calorie count isn’t too bad.

  • Calories: 210 (grande)

You can improve things even further by ordering a nonfat chai hot tea misto, which uses chai tea bags instead of the Starbucks concentrate. 

  • Calories: 70 (grande)