Does Light Or Dark Roast Have More Caffeine

Is there more caffeine in light or dark roast coffee?

Some coffee drinkers swear that they get an extra jolt from dark roast. Light roast drinkers swear that only their preferred roast gives the coveted energy boost.

So, who is right?

Is there more caffeine in light roast or dark roast coffee?

Well, that depends.

The roasting process itself does not affect the caffeine content of the beans.

Research shows that caffeine is very stable. Whether a bean is roasted lightly or darkly, the original caffeine content of the bean remains the same.

What about once coffee is brewed – does a cup of light or dark roast coffee have more caffeine?

As coffee beans are roasted, the water within them starts to evaporate, leading to a weight loss of about 12-25%. The extent of this weight loss correlates with the roast duration; the longer the beans are roasted, particularly in darker roasts, the more moisture they lose and hence, the more weight they shed.

What does that have to do with caffeine?

Well, it all depends on how you measure your coffee.

If you measure your coffee by scoop or spoon:

If you measure your coffee by scoop before brewing, a light roast will yield more caffeine. The light roast beans themselves are denser, so each scoop will contain more coffee than a dark roast.

Since caffeine level is unaffected by the amount of roasting, more beans = more caffeine.

If you measure your coffee by weight using a scale:

Weighing coffee pre-brewing reveals that dark roast, due to its lighter weight, requires more beans to reach a desired weight than light roast, thereby increasing the caffeine content in the brew.

If you want to maximize your caffeine intake in each cup of brewed coffee:

• Measure your coffee by weight using a scale
• Select a dark roast