Espresso has 63mg of caffeine per 1 oz shot and brewed decaf coffee has 5.6mg per 8 oz cup, so the gap is about 11x. You would need roughly 11 servings of brewed decaf coffee to match one 1 oz shot of espresso.
Brewed decaf coffee vs espresso: the numbers
| Brewed decaf coffee | Espresso | |
|---|---|---|
| Caffeine per serving | 5.6mg per 8 oz cup | 63mg per 1 oz shot |
| Caffeine per fl oz | 0.7mg | 63mg |
| Servings to reach 400mg | 71 | 6 |
| Source | Caffeine Informer | USDA FoodData Central |
Both figures were checked against their source before this page went up: brewed decaf coffee against Caffeine Informer (source) and espresso against USDA FoodData Central (source). Brewed drinks and cocoa foods vary by batch, so published figures are averages rather than guarantees.
What the gap means in practice
Espresso is doing the real work here. The practical question is not which number is bigger but whether brewed decaf coffee is small enough to ignore in your day: at 5.6mg per 8 oz cup you would need 71 servings to reach the 400mg reference point, against 6 for espresso.
As an Amazon Associate, Barista Life earns from qualifying purchases.
If you are chasing the low end on purpose, the bean and the process matter more than the brewer: browse decaf coffee beans on Amazon and check whether the bag says Swiss Water or CO2.
For context, the FDA cites 400mg of caffeine a day as an amount generally not associated with negative effects in healthy adults. Tolerance and health vary, so treat these numbers as information, not advice.
Related reading
- Brewed decaf coffee: the full caffeine breakdown
- Espresso: the full caffeine breakdown
- Does decaf have caffeine? Every decaf drink ranked
- Hidden caffeine: the foods and drinks people forget to count
- The verified caffeine database
- Compare any two drinks side by side
FAQ
Does brewed decaf coffee or espresso have more caffeine? Espresso, at 63mg per 1 oz shot against 5.6mg per 8 oz cup for brewed decaf coffee.
How much caffeine is in brewed decaf coffee? 5.6mg per 8 oz cup, which works out to about 0.7mg per fl oz. The figure comes from Caffeine Informer.
Is brewed decaf coffee caffeine free? No. Brewed decaf coffee carries 5.6mg per 8 oz cup. It is a small amount, but small is not the same as none.
Barista Life runs on coffee people. Browse the Barista Life shop to support the site.
Get the good coffee stuff
One email a week: what we verified, what is worth buying, and what is not. No spam, unsubscribe any time.