All the Drinks on the McDonald’s Coffee Menu, Ranked by a Former Barista
Updated: Aug. 08, 2023
Your cheat sheet for choosing your favorite beverage from the McDonald's coffee menu.
If you’re on-the-go and find yourself at McDonald’s needing a caffeine fix, it might surprise you to know that the McDonald’s coffee menu gives you 20 menu options. Yes, 20! But with so many to choose from, where does one begin trying to determine the best McDonald’s coffee? As a former barista with seven years slinging espresso, I did the “hard work” of taste testing for you. (You’re welcome!)
I tried a range of beverages that cover all the drink types and ranked them according to my tastes. But I also gave my best educated recommendations for what others might like based on each drink’s characteristics—a former pastime of mine. While working the espresso bar back in the day, I made a little game of guessing what customers would order before they got to the counter, and I was correct a spooky percentage of the time. So, I’ve got solid intel for you.
13. Premium Roast Coffee
While this is definitely a lighter-bodied coffee, I proclaim this drip option on the McDonald’s coffee menu to be a very dependable fast-food coffee. I always need cream and sugar with drip coffee, but I feel like I could drink this black just because it has such an even flavor.
Who will love it: People who prefer light-bodied flavors
Who should skip it: Anyone who’s used to dark roasts
12. Americano
With a more robust flavor and a nice, sweet edge, I preferred the Americano over the premium roast. That said, it’s still a very light punch of espresso, but it gets the job done.
Who will love it: People looking for a little more umph than the premium roast has to offer
Who should skip it: Anyone who needs more espresso than the two shots in an Americano
11. Latte
This ranks higher for me than the previous drinks simply because I am a latte girl. I need a milky base with my dose of caffeine, so lattes will always win out over drip or Americanos for me.
Who will love it: Latte loyalists
Who should skip it: Lactose intolerant coffee connoisseurs
10. Cappuccino
I preferred the McDonald’s cappuccino to a latte because it served up a stronger coffee flavor thanks to a higher percentage of foam. This being said, it still should have had more foam than it did. A standard cappuccino should be half foam, and this was only one-third.
Who will love it: Someone who wants a stronger espresso flavor
Who should skip it: Anyone who would normally go for a dry (i.e. mostly foam) cappuccino
9. Hazelnut Cappuccino
I love me some hazelnut, so this one just beat out the straight-up cappuccino, but I could have done with a bit less sweetness. The flavor itself was actually great though.
Who will love it: Anyone who’s hazelnut-happy
Who should skip it: Anyone who dislikes nutty flavors
8. Caramel Frappe
Oh, this one’s a sweet treat! One of my biggest pet peeves is a blended coffee drink that’s too icy, and I am pleased to report that this frappe from the McDonald’s coffee menu was perfectly creamy, if a bit sweet for my taste.
Who will love it: Blended coffee drink enthusiasts
Who should skip it: On-the-rocks folks
7. Mocha Frappe
This blended delight really brings the chocolate in a way that chocolate-lovers will appreciate, and also makes for a pretty muted coffee flavor. Whether that’s a good thing or a bad thing is up to you!
Who will love it: Those who are big on chocolate and just so-so on coffee
Who should skip it: Coffee purists
6. Vanilla Latte
The vanilla latte is to the McCafe menu as a white tee is to the wardrobe: classic, consistent and predictably basic the way you count on it to be. It’ll always be a solid choice.
Who will love it: Pretty much everyone
Who should skip it: Almost no one
5. Mocha Latte
I am not much of a mocha person, so keep that in mind with my rating. I actually really liked this one because it was less a chocolate bomb than it was an extra-creamy and vaguely Christmas-y delight. Two big pluses in my book!
Who will love it: People who want a wintry drink but who think hot chocolate is too sweet
Who should skip it: True chocolate devotees
4. French Vanilla Latte
This one ranks higher than the regular vanilla because I thought it was a more well-rounded flavoring. The “French” part of “French vanilla” is a hint of hazelnut (a little trick for all you at-home baristas!), and it really makes for a warm, malty flavor.
Who will love it: Those who prefer a little softness to their vanilla flavor
Who should skip it: Hazelnut haters
3. Caramel Macchiato
Even though I generally shy away from sweet coffee drinks, I’m a sucker for a caramel macchiato. I would have loved more espresso flavor coming through, and the caramel drizzle wasn’t visible on top, but this one had a nice caramel flavor.
Who will love it: Anyone who’s crazy for caramel
Who should skip it: Anyone who’s not about the froufrou drinks
2. Iced Caramel Macchiato
Order this if you want a creamy, decadent treat! I’ll usually go for a caramel anything, and this one had a great flavor, was sweet in the way you want a dessert to be sweet (i.e. not overly sweet, but also definitely a treat) and was pretty to look at.
Who will love it: Someone who wants to treat themselves, and prefers on-the-rocks to blended
Who should skip it: Anyone who’s not a dessert person
1. Iced Coffee
This was my number one for a few reasons. The McDonald’s iced coffee came lightly sweetened and had a little creaminess to it, making it something you could order without needing to stop at the condiment bar to doctor it up. It was perfect as-is, and the mellow coffee strength made it really refreshing—a word I don’t think I’ve ever used to describe coffee before. We’re officially calling it the best McDonald’s coffee on the menu!
Who will love it: New-to-coffee customers and loyal coffee-lovers alike
Who should skip it: Anyone who is serious about strong coffee—this is not that
Originally Published: August 01, 2023
