Energy drinks

Energy Drink Caffeine Comparison: Red Bull vs Monster vs Celsius and 60 More

Energy drink caffeine comparison for 60+ cans: Red Bull, Monster, Celsius, Bang, Ghost, Alani Nu and more, by can size and mg per 100 ml, plus sleep impact.

By the Caffeine vs Water team · 28 September 2026 · 11 min read

This energy drink caffeine comparison puts more than 60 cans and shots side by side, from a small Red Bull to a 24 oz Rockstar XDurance. The label number alone can mislead you because cans come in different sizes, so every row also shows caffeine per 100 ml. That's the fair way to compare strength.

All values come from the drink catalog in our app, which uses brand nutrition pages and caffeine databases (September 2026). Recipes change and regional versions differ, so check your can's label. A UK Monster, for example, has less caffeine per ml than a US one.

Energy drink caffeine comparison table

Grouped by brand. Sizes are the published US serving unless marked otherwise.

Three patterns stand out. Most mainstream cans sit at 32–34 mg per 100 ml: Red Bull, Monster, Rockstar Original, NOS, Full Throttle, Relentless and Mother are all in that band. The "performance" brands (Celsius, Alani Nu, Prime, C4, Reign, Bang) sit at 42–63 mg per 100 ml. And shots are in a class of their own: a 2 oz 5-hour Energy packs 200 mg into a couple of swallows.

Red Bull vs Monster caffeine

The Red Bull vs Monster caffeine question mostly comes down to can size. Red Bull says a 250 ml can has 80 mg, a 355 ml can 114 mg, a 473 ml can 151 mg and a 591 ml can 198 mg. That's a steady 32 mg per 100 ml. A standard 16 oz Monster has 160 mg, or about 34 mg per 100 ml.

So a 16 oz Monster is not "twice as strong" as a Red Bull. It's twice the size of the classic 8.4 oz Red Bull. Pour them into the same glass and you'd struggle to tell them apart on caffeine. Where Monster adds up is the range: Java Monster coffee blends have 200–210 mg in 15 oz, and the 24 oz can has 240 mg.

Celsius caffeine: why it's stronger than it looks

A 12 oz Celsius is a smaller can than a 16 oz Monster but holds more caffeine: 200 mg, according to Celsius's own Essential Facts page. That's about 56 mg per 100 ml. The bigger versions go further:

• Celsius and Celsius Vibe, 12 oz: 200 mg
• Celsius Essentials, 16 oz: 270 mg
• Celsius Heat, 16 oz: 300 mg
• Celsius On-the-Go stick: 200 mg (Heat stick: 300 mg)

Celsius itself advises no more than two 12 oz cans a day, and only one Essentials in 24 hours for people with a high caffeine tolerance. Two regular cans is exactly 400 mg, the most the FDA and EFSA consider generally safe for healthy adults in a day, with nothing left for a morning coffee.

Alani Nu, Prime Energy (US) and Reign Storm share the same 200 mg per 12 oz. Prime's UK can is weaker, at 140 mg per 330 ml.

Which energy drink has the most caffeine?

By the can, the strongest drinks in our catalog are:

1. Rockstar XDurance, 24 oz: 400 mg, a full day's limit in one can
2. Redline Xtreme, 8 oz: 316 mg, at 133 mg per 100 ml the most concentrated can on the list
3. 300 mg, 16 oz: Bang, Reign, Celsius Heat, C4 Ultimate, Raze, Bucked Up, Rockstar XDurance
4. Celsius Essentials, 16 oz: 270 mg

At the other end, Lucozade Energy is a sports-style drink with 12 mg per 100 ml, and Red Bull Simply Cola has 32 mg per can, about the same as a regular cola. For comparison with soft drinks, see caffeine in soda.

Coffee-shop energy drinks

Chains now sell energy refreshers over the counter. They're weaker per ml than cans but come in bigger cups.

Pre-workout powders

Pre-workouts aren't drinks until you add water, and the dose depends on the scoop, not the glass. Many are stronger than any can.

What the caffeine in an energy drink means for your sleep

Using the same model as our app (a typical 5.5-hour half-life), here's roughly how long each strength takes to drop below 50 mg, a sensible level to have left at lights-out:

A 3 pm Celsius still leaves about 75 mg in a typical adult at 11 pm. Slow metabolisers, including people who are pregnant or on the pill, need even longer. The ranked version is in energy drinks and sleep, and the general rule is in when to stop drinking coffee before bed. To try your own can and bedtime, use the caffeine bedtime calculator.

For the daily picture, the FDA and EFSA both cite 400 mg a day as generally safe for healthy adults, and EFSA adds that single doses up to 200 mg are fine. Several cans on this list go past 200 mg at once. How that adds up across a day is covered in how many energy drinks a day is safe and how much caffeine is too much. In Caffeine vs Water, a 300 mg can goes on the same curve as your morning coffee, so you can see how the two add up.

Who should skip them

The FDA notes that medical experts advise against energy drinks for children and teens. The International Society of Sports Nutrition says they aren't recommended for children or for anyone who is pregnant, trying to become pregnant or breastfeeding, and that people with heart, metabolic or neurological conditions should talk to their doctor first. If you're a parent, caffeine for teens has the age-by-age guidance.

Sources

1. Red Bull. How much caffeine is in a can of Red Bull Energy Drink?
2. Celsius. Essential Facts.
3. U.S. FDA. Spilling the Beans: How Much Caffeine is Too Much?
4. EFSA Panel on Dietetic Products, Nutrition and Allergies. Scientific Opinion on the safety of caffeine. EFSA Journal, 2015.
5. Jagim AR, et al. International Society of Sports Nutrition position stand: energy drinks and energy shots. J Int Soc Sports Nutr, 2023.
6. Brand nutrition pages and caffeine databases, as compiled for the Caffeine vs Water drink catalog (September 2026).

General wellness information, not medical advice. If you're pregnant, have a heart condition, or take medication that affects caffeine, check your limits with a doctor.