If you love iced coffee, you've probably noticed that “iced coffee” and “cold brew” don't taste the same, even when they look identical in the cup.
That difference comes down to one thing: the brewing method.
Quick Answer: What's the difference between iced coffee and cold brew?
The main difference between iced coffee and cold brew is that iced coffee is brewed hot and then chilled, while cold brew is made by steeping coffee grounds in cold water for 12-24 hours.
Cold brew often tastes smoother and less sharp, and it can be higher in caffeine depending on the recipe, whereas iced coffee is faster to prepare.
In this article, I'll break down the taste, brew time, caffeine numbers, and the easiest at-home methods for both.
Let's go more in-depth now!
Iced coffee vs. cold brew: The main differences
Iced coffee and cold brew coffee are two popular types of coffee. Both are easy to make at home, but each offers a unique experience.
Cold brew takes significantly longer to make (around 12-24 hours), but it yields a smoother, less sharp-tasting cup of coffee.
On the other hand, Iced coffee can be made in a matter of minutes.
However, there are numerous distinct features that make both coffees unique in their own way.
Below, you can find the key differences between these two popular types of coffee:
| Comparison: | Iced coffee: | Cold brew: |
| Flavor notes | Sweet and well-balanced flavor | Smooth taste with slightly bitter notes |
| Brewing time | About 5 minutes | 12 to 24 hours |
| Caffeine content | 170 to 220mg of caffeine | 250mg of caffeine |
| Perceived acidity | Medium to low | Low |
| Water brewing temperature | 90-98 °C | Cold tap water |
| Add-ins? | Ice cubes, optional sweetener of choice | Ice cubes, optional sweetener of choice |
Below, I'll go over the differences in taste, the brewing process, the calorie and caffeine differences, and how to make these cold coffee versions yourself:
What is the difference in taste?
Cold brew coffee tends to have a stronger flavor than iced coffee.
This is because cold brew coffee uses more ground coffee and is steeped for a longer period. This process develops more flavor than the brewing process used for iced coffee.
The longer the coffee is steeped, the more pronounced the coffee flavor becomes.
At some point, mainly after the 18-hour mark, it will develop bitter and even sour flavors that aren't necessarily great. But the coffee tastes stronger regardless.
You can make iced coffee with any brewed coffee you prefer, such as that from a French press, Chemex, or even a Hario V60. I'll discuss all your options further below.
On the other hand, cold brew coffee is made only one way: steeping ground coffee and cold water for well over 12 hours. I like to steep my coffee between 15 and 16 hours.
As you might've guessed, cold brew coffee is stronger in flavor because it has been given more time the extract those delicious flavors and oils out of the coffee beans.
Tip: Check out the best coffee beans for making cold brew coffee in this article!
However, iced coffee can taste a bit sharper when brewed hot and then chilled quickly.
By directly placing ice on top of hot coffee, it chills fast and can bring out brighter, tangier notes than you might like.
If that's not your thing, I have a simple technique to make it taste smoother!
You'll find a step-by-step guide a bit further down on how to make yourself a nice cup of iced coffee.
How many calories are in these coffees?
Both coffees can be made as low-calorie drinks. Coffee itself has virtually no calories.
However, when you add milk or milk alternatives, sweeteners, and other ingredients, the calorie counter will increase.
In the table below, you can see how many calories your coffee will contain when adding different kinds of milk and sweeteners to it:
| Adding: | Amount added: | How many calories: |
| Whole milk | 1 oz (30 ml) | 19 calories |
| 2 % fat milk | 1 oz (30 ml) | 15 calories |
| Nonfat milk | 1 oz (30 ml) | 10 calories |
| Almond milk | 1 oz (30 ml) | 7 calories |
| Oat milk | 1 oz (30 ml) | 16 calories |
| Soy milk | 1 oz (30 ml) | 15 calories |
| Simple syrup | 1 tbsp | 25 calories |
| Brown sugar syrup | 1 tbsp | 50 calories |
| Honey | 1 tbsp | 64 calories |
As you can see from the table above, I've only listed 1 oz of milk or milk alternative.
This is because when it comes to iced coffee and cold brew coffee, you still want to taste the coffee, but you might want to dilute it slightly.
Adding just 1 oz of milk of your choice to your iced coffees gives you a diluted version of the coffee, but the intense coffee flavors are still there.
I like to drink my cold coffee quite strongly, but you might not feel the same.
If you want to add more milk to your iced coffee, simply double the amount.
It's really easy to look at the table above and double the number of calories from the milk of choice. This way, you'll have an insight into how many calories are in cold coffee.
What is the difference in caffeine content?
There's a big difference in caffeine content between iced coffee and cold brew coffee. Iced coffee contains between 170 and 220mg of caffeine, while cold brew coffee ranges from 240 to 280mg of caffeine.
Because iced coffee can be made using various brewing techniques, I've listed a few brewing techniques best used when brewing iced coffee and noted the amount of caffeine in each:
| Brewing technique used: | Amount of caffeine for 1 cup (0.24 l) |
| Chemex | 172 mg |
| Hario V60 | 185 mg |
| French press | 223 mg |
| Cold brew | 240-280 mg |
Cold brew coffee has the most caffeine content of all the coffees listed. The amount of caffeine in a cup of coffee can change depending on the number of hours it has steeped.
When the coffee is steeped for just 8 hours, it already contains a whopping 240 mg of caffeine; this can increase to 280 mg when steeped for 24 hours.
Now you see why this can change depending on the person making the coffee in the first place. I like to steep my coffee for 15 to 16 hours at most.
Therefore, the caffeine content will be approximately 250-260 mg.
You can even make cold brew concentrate, which has even higher caffeine content.
This specific version is diluted with water afterward to reduce its strength to a normal drinking level, similar to the cold brew mentioned above, which can be served directly after filtering.
How to make iced coffee at home
The best part about making iced coffee at home is that it's quick and efficient.
To make iced coffee yourself, you'll need the following items:
- 1 cup (0.24 L) brewed coffee of choice
- Ice cubes
- Optional: a touch of milk or a coffee sweetener
As I mentioned earlier, you can use any brewed coffee you prefer for this technique. I prefer using a French press for coffee, as it has a full-bodied taste.
But if you like your coffee on the less punchy side, you can choose to brew coffee using a pour over technique like Chemex or Hario V60.
These coffee techniques have a more rounded flavor that isn't so strong.
Optionally, you can make iced coffee using Nespresso coffee pods. You can check out this guide to Nespresso iced coffee if you want to learn more about it.
To make the iced coffee, follow the next steps:
- Brew the coffee of your choice.
- Place enough ice cubes in your favorite coffee cup to fill it to 2/3 of the way.
- Once your coffee has been brewed, directly pour it into your ice-filled cup.
- Stir until the coffee has cooled thoroughly, and optionally add more ice cubes to make it extra cold.
- Now is the time to spice things up and add ice, some milk or a milk alternative, or even some coffee syrup, such as chocolate syrup.
You've now made some great iced coffee from scratch. This technique of iced coffee is great when you just want an iced coffee in a matter of minutes.
If you have more time, let the coffee cool down completely without adding ice. This will help with the sourness that some iced coffee tends to have.
The ice cubes cool the drink so quickly that you can end up with a sharper, brighter taste than you had hoped for.
To counteract this, let the coffee cool down completely, and then add ice to make yourself that delicious iced coffee.
Tip: For a more in-depth view of how to make an iced coffee, check out my recipe here!
How to make cold brew coffee at home
Making cold brew is one of the simplest ways to make coffee, in my opinion. There are just a few steps involved to make it taste amazing.
You'll need the following items:
- 80 grams of coarsely ground coffee
- 800 ml of cold tap water
- A large container, such as a mason jar or preferably a French press
- Ice cubes
- Optionally: some milk and a coffee syrup
If you want, you can make a larger volume of cold brew coffee. Use the 1:10 ratio of ground coffee to cold water for a delicious cold brew every time.
The first thing you have to do is choose a place to keep the coffee while steeping.
I prefer to use a French press for this, which features a built-in filter that makes it much easier. However, you can also use a large resealable container for this purpose.
Follow the steps below:
- If you haven't done so, grind your coffee beans into a coarse grind size.
- Add the coffee beans to the container or French press.
- Pour the cold tap water on top.
- Stir the coffee and water mixture until all the coffee grounds are evenly wet.
- Cover the coffee and let it steep for 15 hours. You can leave the covered coffee on your kitchen table to steep.
- After the coffee has steeped for 15 hours, it's time to filter it.
- To filter, either press down on the plunger of your French press or run the contents through a sieve with cheesecloth or a coffee filter when using a large container. These techniques will remove unwanted coffee particles from your coffee:
Your coffee is now ready and can be enjoyed as is or with just a touch of milk or a milk alternative added. The choices are endless.
If you want to learn more about this coffee, you can check out the methods of making cold brew coffee and espresso cold brew.
Extra iced coffee tips
There are a few ways to make your iced coffee even better, and I'd like to share my thoughts with you about them.
Down below, you'll find two techniques that make iced coffee so much better:
Make coffee ice cubes
A great way to go against the melting ice cubes is to make coffee ice cubes. Coffee ice cubes are really easy to make and can be made with leftover coffee or made in larger batches at once.
To make coffee ice cubes, fill an ice cube tray with your preferred coffee. Preferably, a strong-tasting coffee that you enjoy using for iced coffee.
I like to use these ice cube bags filled with water, but cooled-down coffee works just as great for this technique:
Place the coffee cubes in your freezer for the next few hours to freeze.
Now, the next time you plan on slowly sipping your iced coffee, you can add a few of these coffee ice cubes to your coffee and enjoy.
You can even replace all your regular ice cubes with coffee ice cubes to achieve the best-tasting coffee possible.
However, I found that using half normal and half coffee ice cubes works great for this.
Double brew your iced coffee
I've already told you about the diluting of your iced coffee.
Because you're using a large amount of coffee and ice, some of those ice cubes will melt back into water when heated.
Imagine sitting in the sun, slowly sipping on your iced coffee. You forget to drink the iced coffee for a second, and most, if not all, ice cubes are gone.
They've melted and have become water again, making your coffee taste flatter.
Here's where double brewing your coffee comes in handy.
You'll use double the amount of ground coffee beans to brew the same amount of coffee you would typically make by double-brewing coffee.
For example, if you're brewing 2 cups of pour over coffee, you'd generally use about 38-40 grams of coffee.
To double brew your coffee, you'll change the ratio of coffee to water to 76-80 grams.
This will ensure that the slowly melting ice cubes do not impact the strength of the coffee.
If you want to learn more about double brewed coffee, you can check out this great article I wrote about it. There are some cool tips in there that might be useful.
Iced coffee vs. cold brew, which is better?
Cold brew coffee is generally considered to be a better-tasting alternative to iced coffee.
It tends to have a smoother taste and a more balanced flavor profile. Iced coffee tends to have sour notes that make the coffee taste a bit less pleasing and more watery.
So for me, cold brew coffee is the clear winner.
Although the coffee has to steep for a very long time to create that distinct and robust flavor, iced coffee seems to be less pleasing and exciting in terms of taste.
If you're not quite sure which of the two fits you better, I recommend the following:
- Iced coffee is perfect for you if you want a refreshing and caffeinated drink in just a few minutes.
- Cold brew coffee is the way to go if you have more time on your hands and prefer a smoother, highly caffeinated drink.
On a brighter note, when using the tips to double brew your coffee to make an iced version and using coffee ice cubes to cool it, it gets better in flavor and has the same smoothness as cold brew coffee
Even using the double brewed method will give your iced coffee the boost that it needs.
Related coffee comparison articles
Are you wondering how cold brew and iced coffee compare to other types of coffee?
Great! Check out the articles below for more in-depth coffee comparisons:
- Cold Brew vs. Espresso
- Cold Brew vs. Iced Americano
- Iced Coffee vs. Iced Americano
- Iced Coffee vs. Iced Espresso
- Iced Coffee vs. Iced Latte
And to compare more coffees, visit the coffee comparison hub!
Conclusion
Now that you know all about these cold coffees, you get to make and try these coffees yourself, so you can decide which of the two suits you best.
For me, cold brew coffee is the better option.
But for you, this can differ. You might like a less strong coffee taste and don't want to wait at least 12 hours to drink your coffee. Test the coffees out, and let me know how it goes!
I've covered the most important aspects of brewing coffee at home; however, there is still much more to learn about home-brewing coffee.
Learn more about coffee
If you're interested in learning more, you can check out the articles listed below:
