FoodScore

Category · 39 foods · avg 49/100

Beverages

Milk alternatives, juices, sodas, coffee, tea, sports drinks.

49avg score

Beverages covers everything you drink except plain water (which is implicitly a neutral 100). This includes plant-based milks, 100% juices, sodas, coffee, tea, kombucha, sports drinks, energy drinks, and flavored sparkling waters. Per 100g values translate to per 100ml for all practical purposes.

Added sugar in beverages is one of the most researched dietary contributors to weight gain and metabolic disease. The USDA DGA recommends keeping added sugars below 10% of total calories, and sweetened beverages are the single largest source of added sugars in the US diet. Unsweetened beverages (water, tea, coffee, unsweetened plant milks) are all scored highly.

Unsweetened plant milks, black coffee, plain tea, and kombucha score in the 70-85 range because they are NOVA 1-2 and carry few penalties. Regular sodas, sweetened sports drinks, and juice cocktails score below 30 because of added sugar and NOVA 4 classification. Artificially sweetened beverages (Diet Coke, Coke Zero) score higher than their sugared versions but are still penalized for ultra-processing.

Score distribution

029
Avoid
3
3044
Poor
10
4559
Decent
14
6074
Good
12
7589
Very good
0
90100
Excellent
0

Top 20 beverages

ranked by FoodScore (0–100)
  1. 01
    Clif Bar Chocolate Chip
    Good
    71
  2. 02
    Chocolate Chip Cookie
    Good
    66
  3. 03
    Coconut Milk Beverage
    Good
    64
  4. 04
    Coffee Espresso
    Good
    64
  5. 05
    Milk Chocolate
    Good
    64
  6. 06
    Passion Fruit Raw
    Good
    64
  7. 07
    RX Bar Chocolate Sea Salt
    Good
    64
  8. 08
    Vegetable Juice
    Good
    62
  9. 09
    Black Tea Brewed
    Good
    60
  10. 10
    Coffee Brewed
    Good
    60
  11. 11
    Green Tea Brewed
    Good
    60
  12. 12
    White Wine Vinegar
    Good
    60
  13. 13
    Built Bar Double Chocolate
    Decent
    59
  14. 14
    Arizona Iced Tea
    Decent
    58
  15. 15
    Perrier Sparkling
    Decent
    58
  16. 16
    San Pellegrino Sparkling
    Decent
    58
  17. 17
    Optimum Nutrition Gold Standard Whey Chocolate
    Decent
    55
  18. 18
    Soy milk (unsweetened)
    Decent
    51
  19. 19
    Dark Chocolate 70 Percent
    Decent
    50
  20. 20
    Dark Chocolate 85 Percent
    Decent
    50

Explore other categories

FruitsVegetablesGrains & breadsLegumes & plant proteinDairy & alternativesMeat & poultry