The best coffee drinks, ranked
The top 3 according to 76 votes from people: Cappuccino · Americano · Flat white. (Updated Aug 9, 2023.)
The coffee drinks people order most around the world, from Italian espresso classics to regional specialities, based on coffee guides, barista charts and US popularity data.
Top 20
-
1
Cappuccino
One third espresso, one third steamed milk, one third foam; Italians drink it only in the morning.
-
2
Americano
Espresso topped up with hot water; legend says it was invented for American soldiers in Italy.
-
3
Flat white
Double ristretto or espresso with thin velvety microfoam, born in Australia/New Zealand in the 1980s.
-
4
Cold brew
Coffee steeped in cold water for 12–24 hours, smooth and low in acidity.
-
5
Macchiato
Espresso 'stained' with a spoonful of milk foam.
-
6
Turkish coffee
Finely ground coffee boiled in a cezve with sugar and served unfiltered; UNESCO intangible heritage.
-
7
Irish coffee
Hot coffee, Irish whiskey and sugar topped with cream, created at Foynes airport in 1943.
-
8
Affogato
A scoop of vanilla gelato 'drowned' in a shot of hot espresso.
-
9
Espresso
About 30 ml of coffee extracted at 9 bar in 25–30 seconds; the base of almost everything else.
-
10
Iced latte
Espresso and cold milk over ice, the summer best-seller.
-
11
Pour-over (filter coffee)
Hand-brewed filter coffee (V60, Chemex), the speciality-coffee way to taste single origins.
-
12
Caffè latte
Espresso with lots of steamed milk and a thin layer of foam, the most ordered coffee-shop drink in the US.
-
13
Cortado
Espresso 'cut' with an equal amount of warm milk, from Spain.
-
14
Café de olla
Mexican coffee brewed in a clay pot with cinnamon and piloncillo.
-
15
Café con leche
Half coffee, half hot milk; Spain's and Latin America's breakfast coffee.
-
16
Mocha
Latte with chocolate syrup or cocoa, often topped with whipped cream.
-
17
Vietnamese iced coffee (cà phê sữa đá)
Strong robusta dripped through a phin filter onto condensed milk and ice.
-
18
Dalgona coffee
Whipped instant coffee over milk, a viral hit of 2020 lockdowns originally from Korea.
-
19
Ristretto
A shorter, more concentrated espresso pulled with less water.
-
20
Espresso tonic
Espresso poured over tonic water and ice, born in Scandinavian coffee bars.
How is this ranking ordered? By people's votes: each ▲ adds a point and each ▼ takes one away. Anyone can vote and add what is missing.
Is something missing?
Comments (1)
Flat white at #2 makes me happy. Cortado deserves more love too.