Sun Drop has 64mg of caffeine in a 12 fl oz can. That is more than Mountain Dew's 54mg in the same size, which is why the citrus soda's fans keep insisting it hits harder. Both numbers are published on Caffeine Informer's Sun Drop page and its Mountain Dew page, and Sun Drop's maker Keurig Dr Pepper lists the same 64mg on its product facts. At 5.33mg per fluid ounce, Sun Drop sits near the top of any mainstream soda ranking.
Short version if you are standing at the cooler: Sun Drop out-caffeinates the yellow-green soda most people reach for by about 10mg a can. It is not a lot in absolute terms, but it is real, and it is the whole reason the drink has a cult following in the Southeast and Midwest.
Why Sun Drop beats Mountain Dew
Caffeine in both sodas is an added ingredient, not something steeped out of a bean or leaf, so the number comes down to how each brand formulates. Keurig Dr Pepper builds Sun Drop to 64mg per 12oz. PepsiCo builds regular Mountain Dew to 54mg per 12oz. That 10mg gap holds across the standard can, and it widens in the bigger bottles because you are scaling a higher per-ounce dose. A 20oz Sun Drop lands around 105mg, per the brand's published figures, while a 20oz Mountain Dew is closer to 90mg.
For reference, 64mg is high for a soda but light next to coffee. A 12oz can of Coca-Cola classic is about 34mg and a 12oz Pepsi is about 38mg, so Sun Drop nearly doubles them. An 8oz cup of drip coffee runs roughly 95 to 120mg, meaning a can of Sun Drop is still a bit over half a small coffee. It reads strong for a soda because most sodas are weaker, not because it rivals a real cup.
Sun Drop caffeine by size and variety
| Product | Serving | Caffeine |
|---|---|---|
| Sun Drop (regular) | 12 fl oz | 64mg |
| Sun Drop (regular) | 20 fl oz | 105mg |
| Diet Sun Drop | 12 fl oz | 68mg |
| Diet Sun Drop | 20 fl oz | 114mg |
| Cherry Lemon Sun Drop | 12 fl oz | 64mg |
| Mountain Dew (regular) | 12 fl oz | 54mg |
Sources: Caffeine Informer for the 64mg per 12oz regular figure and the 54mg Mountain Dew comparison, with the diet and 20oz numbers from Sun Drop's published product data. Note the quirk that surprises people: Diet Sun Drop carries slightly more caffeine than regular, 68mg versus 64mg per 12oz, so switching to diet trims the sugar and nudges the buzz up, not down.
To scale for the container in your hand, work from about 5.33mg per fluid ounce. A 16oz can is roughly 85mg, a 20oz bottle is about 105mg, and a 2-liter poured into a 32oz fountain cup is around 170mg. The little 7.5oz mini cans come out near 40mg. Fountain versions drift a few mg either way depending on the machine's mix ratio, but the packaged cans hold the 64mg line.
The sugar load is the other half of the story. A 12oz Sun Drop carries 45g of sugar and 170 calories, per Caffeine Informer, which is higher than most colas and part of why the drink feels like it revs you up. A lot of what people call the Sun Drop rush is the sugar spike riding alongside the caffeine, not caffeine alone. If you want the stimulant without the sugar, Diet Sun Drop is the move, and it happens to carry a touch more caffeine.
One habit worth flagging if you drink these by the bottle: a 20oz Sun Drop is around 105mg, so two of them in an afternoon is roughly 210mg, past a large coffee. That is still inside normal territory for most adults, but it is easy to underrate a soda you think of as a treat. Track the ounces, not the cans, especially with the 20oz bottles that make up most convenience-store sales.
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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Related caffeine reads
- Dr Pepper caffeine content, the other Keurig Dr Pepper soda people misjudge.
- Big Red caffeine content, another regional cult soda with a number worth knowing.
- The full Barista Life caffeine database for every drink we have measured.
FAQ
Does Sun Drop have more caffeine than Mountain Dew? Yes. Sun Drop has 64mg per 12oz versus Mountain Dew's 54mg, a gap of about 10mg per can that widens in the larger bottles.
How much caffeine is in a 20oz Sun Drop? Around 105mg, since Sun Drop runs about 5.33mg per fluid ounce. A 16oz can is roughly 85mg and a 12oz can is 64mg.
Does Diet Sun Drop have less caffeine than regular? No. Diet Sun Drop actually has slightly more, 68mg per 12oz versus 64mg for regular. The diet version cuts the sugar, not the caffeine.