Dunkin Sparkd Energy has 96mg of caffeine in a small, 144mg in a medium, and 192mg in a large, per Caffeine Informer. That sounds like a lot until you put it next to the coffee menu. A medium hot coffee from the same counter has 210mg, per Caffeine Informer's Dunkin coffee data. So the biggest Sparkd you can buy has less caffeine than a medium drip. If you switched to Sparkd because it felt like the stronger option, you traded down.
The bright pink drink is the weak one
This surprises customers constantly. Sparkd looks like an energy drink, it is marketed like an energy drink, and the guarana on the ingredient list reads like an energy drink. But the actual concentration is low. Caffeine Informer pegs the large Sparkd at 6mg of caffeine per fluid ounce across its 32 ounces. Dunkin brewed coffee runs about 15mg per fluid ounce. Ounce for ounce, the plain drip is two and a half times stronger than the neon sparkling thing.
Part of that is by design. Sparkd launched in early 2024, a few months after Panera's Charged Lemonade lawsuits made every chain nervous about high-caffeine drinks that do not look like coffee. Dunkin kept the numbers modest and scaled them cleanly with size, which is why the small, medium, and large land at such tidy figures. Coffee gets no such caution, because everyone already expects coffee to be caffeinated.
The base is sparkling water with an energy blend syrup, not coffee. The caffeine comes from a guarana seed blend that includes added caffeine, plus a vitamin and mineral mix with B3, B6, B12, zinc, and manganese. The large Berry Burst runs 170 calories and 37 grams of sugar per Caffeine Informer's listing, so it is closer to a soda than a black coffee on the nutrition panel too. One more note from behind the counter: not every location carries it, so check the app before you build your order around one.
Sparkd Energy vs Dunkin coffee, by the numbers
All figures below are from Caffeine Informer's pages for Sparkd Energy, brewed coffee, and cold brew.
| Drink | Small | Medium | Large |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sparkd Energy | 96mg | 144mg | 192mg |
| Brewed coffee | 150mg (10 oz) | 210mg (14 oz) | 300mg (20 oz) |
| Cold brew | 174mg | 260mg (24 oz) | 347mg |
Read that table left to right and the pattern is obvious: at every size, Sparkd is the lightest option on the board. A small brewed coffee beats a medium Sparkd. A medium cold brew beats a large Sparkd by 68mg. And Dunkin's extra large brewed coffee, which has no Sparkd equivalent, sits at 359mg, nearly double the biggest Sparkd.
For context, the FDA cites 400mg of caffeine a day as an amount generally not associated with negative effects in healthy adults. How caffeine affects you depends on your own tolerance and health, so treat these numbers as information, not advice.
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How Sparkd stacks up elsewhere
Against canned energy drinks, Sparkd holds its own better than it does against coffee. A large Sparkd at 192mg sits in the same territory as the stronger canned options. We break those down in our Celsius caffeine guide if you want the can-by-can numbers.
And if you are ordering at Dunkin and actually want the strongest thing on the menu, the answer is cold brew or a large drip, not anything pink and sparkling. The full menu, espresso drinks included, is in our complete Dunkin caffeine guide.
Looking for a different drink? The full caffeine database has every chain and can we have verified, including Red Bull.
FAQ
Does Sparkd Energy have more caffeine than Dunkin coffee? No. A large Sparkd has 192mg, while a medium brewed coffee has 210mg and a large has 300mg, per Caffeine Informer. Every coffee size beats the Sparkd size next to it.
Where does the caffeine in Sparkd Energy come from? It comes from a guarana seed blend that includes added caffeine, mixed into an energy syrup with B vitamins, zinc, and manganese. The base is sparkling water, not coffee, per Caffeine Informer's ingredient listing.
How much caffeine is in a medium Sparkd Energy? A medium Sparkd Energy has 144mg of caffeine, per Caffeine Informer. That is less than a small Dunkin brewed coffee, which has 150mg.