Coffee mate is one of the most popular coffee creamer brands in the US. The brand is owned by Nestlé, and comes in a wide variety of flavors.
But what's actually in Coffee mate? Are there any questionable ingredients? How does the nutrition of Coffee mate compare to other popular creamer brands? And how do real people rate and describe the taste and effects of Coffee mate?
In this article we'll answer all of these questions and more, as we analyze the ingredients in Coffee mate based on clinical studies, to give our take on whether or not the brand is a healthy choice.
We'll compare Coffee mate to other popular coffee creamer brands, and feature unsponsored user reviews.
Ingredient Analysis
The ingredients in Coffee mate Vanilla Caramel Liquid Coffee Creamer are shown above.
Sugar is the first active ingredient, and a 2019 medical review documents that diets high in added sugar promote obesity.
While each serving of this creamer only provides 5 grams (g) of sugar, we think that reducing refined sugar intake as much as possible is a healthy choice.
Dipotassium phosphate is an emulsifier, and ingestion of phosphates was described as "damaging to health" in a medical review that we cited in our article on Muscle Milk.
Natural and artificial flavor ingredients are used to create the flavor experience, and an animal study found some artificial flavors to be toxic.
Carrageenan is a thickening agent that's been shown in at least one animal study to disrupt gut function.
Overall, we consider Coffee mate to be unhealthy because it's essentially water, sugar and non-nutritive filler ingredients.
Coffee mate vs. the Competition
Chobani and International Delight are two of the most popular coffee creamers in the US.
Here's our take on how each of these brands compares to Coffee mate in terms of healthiness:
Chobani
Like Coffee mate, contains sugar (at the same 5 g dose) and natural flavors.
However, this creamer is also flavored with vanilla extract and is free of artificial flavor and phosphates.
Winner: Chobani
international Delight
Very similar formulation to Coffee mate. Contains sugar (at the same 5 g dose), carrageenan, natural and artificial flavors and phosphates.
However, International Delight coffee creamer also contains sodium stearoyl lactylate which is clinically shown to have negative effects on gut function.
Winner: Coffee mate
Is Natural Bliss Healthier?
Natural Bliss is another coffee creamer brand on the Coffee mate website that's marketed as a healthy option.
The ingredients in Natural Bliss Vanilla Liquid Coffee Creamer are shown below:
This is a much simpler and healthier formulation than Coffee mate in our opinion.
Natural Bliss is free of artificial flavors, phosphates, carrageenan, and has 20% less added sugar per serving.
While we don't currently recommend Natural Bliss due to the use of refined sugar and natural flavoring additives, we definitely think it's a better option than Coffee mate nutritionally.
Real People Try Coffee mate
A YouTube creator named James Hoffmann has a review of a large number of coffee creamers that has over 1 million views and includes Coffee mate:
A TikTok creator named "Staygoldlex" has a video that includes Coffee mate French Vanilla in a homemade iced coffee recipe:
@staygoldlex Instant coffee always hits 😋 #nescafe #instantcoffee #icedcoffee #coffeetiktok #coffeeaddict #coffeeathome #coffeemate ♬ original sound - Staygoldlex
Our Clean Creamer Pick
Bulletproof Original Creamer is our top creamer pick.
This creamer is made with grass-fed butter (one of the only products on the market we've come across with dairy from pastured animals), MCT oil and acacia gum.
There are no unhealthy additive ingredients like artificial flavors or refined, added sugar.
This creamer costs under $1 per serving at the time of publishing this article.
