How much caffeine is in Dunkin' Latte (Medium)?

One Medium Dunkin' Latte (414 ml) contains 119 mg of caffeine.

Caffeine is a central nervous system stimulant, and the 119 mg figure for this Medium Dunkin' Latte comes from the underlying open dataset and reference entries (USDA FoodData Central is the cited source for the drink value in our dataset).

Expressed as concentration, 119 mg across 414 ml equals about 28.7 mg per 100 ml (calculated from the 119 mg and 414 ml values, source: USDA FoodData Central), which is lower concentration than a standard 240 ml cup of drip coffee that typically contains 96 mg per 240 ml (Drip coffee reference: our dataset entry for Drip coffee, 96 mg per 240 ml, source: /dataset/ and USDA FoodData Central mentioned in the dataset sentence).

That 119 mg amount is roughly what most people describe as a noticeable but moderate stimulant dose: onset of alertness commonly appears within 15–45 minutes after ingestion and subjective stimulant effects can last several hours (general effect timing reference: Mayo Clinic caffeine chart), though exact sensation varies with tolerance and body mass.

How long Dunkin' Latte (Medium) stays in your system

We model caffeine disappearance as first-order elimination with a population-average half-life of 5.7 hours, where remaining = dose × 0.5^(hours / 5.7) (half-life value and elimination model cited from Drake et al. 2013 and the pharmacokinetic convention explained in Drake et al. 2013).

Applying that formula to the 119 mg dose (119 mg from our dataset, source: USDA FoodData Central) gives the following arithmetic: remaining at 3 hours = 119 × 0.5^(3 / 5.7) = 119 × 0.5^(0.5263) ≈ 119 × 0.702 ≈ 83 mg (calculation shown; half-life source: Drake et al. 2013; dose source: USDA FoodData Central); remaining at 6 hours = 119 × 0.5^(6 / 5.7) = 119 × 0.5^(1.0526) ≈ 119 × 0.479 ≈ 57 mg (Drake et al. 2013; USDA FoodData Central); remaining at 9 hours ≈ 119 × 0.5^(9 / 5.7) ≈ 119 × 0.327 ≈ 39–40 mg (Drake et al. 2013; USDA FoodData Central); remaining at 12 hours ≈ 119 × 0.5^(12 / 5.7) ≈ 119 × 0.223 ≈ 26–28 mg (Drake et al. 2013; USDA FoodData Central).

Translated to a clock example: a Medium Dunkin' Latte consumed at 15:00 would be expected to leave about 57 mg at 21:00 (6 hours later) by the 5.7-hour half-life model, which is the same arithmetic step above (dose and timing sources: USDA FoodData Central and Drake et al. 2013); the remaining amount is still pharmacologically active for many people and correlates with the sleep-impact findings in Drake et al. 2013.

Regulatory and consensus guidance lists 400 mg per day as a limit for healthy adults (source: FDA, 400 mg/day), and a single Medium Dunkin' Latte at 119 mg represents 30% of that 400 mg daily guidance (calculation: 119 ÷ 400 = 0.2975; sources: USDA FoodData Central for the drink value and FDA for the 400 mg guidance).

That arithmetic means three full Medium Dunkin' Lattes (3 × 119 mg = 357 mg) fit under the 400 mg guidance while a fourth would exceed it; the remainder after three is 43 mg (calculation and sources: USDA FoodData Central for drink value and FDA for the 400 mg guidance).

For sleep timing, Drake et al. 2013 found that 400 mg of caffeine even six hours before bedtime impaired sleep architecture (source: Drake et al. 2013), and applying the 5.7-hour half-life model to a 119 mg dose shows that a latte drunk six hours before bedtime would leave roughly 57 mg at sleep time (calculation and sources: USDA FoodData Central for the dose and Drake et al. 2013 for half-life and sleep-effect context); individuals concerned about sleep can use our latest cup before bedtime tool or the caffeine half-life calculator to test timing scenarios.

Certain groups should be more cautious: EFSA recommends a 200 mg daily limit in pregnancy (source: EFSA Scientific Opinion on the Safety of Caffeine, 2015), and adolescents and medically sensitive people may need substantially lower limits (sensitivity reference: Mayo Clinic caffeine chart); those groups should consult a clinician and use the safe daily limit by body weight tool for individualized estimates.

Within the coffee-shop category in our dataset, the Medium Dunkin' Latte at 119 mg (USDA FoodData Central via our dataset) sits well below brewed concentrates like Starbucks Pike Place Brewed (Grande) at 310 mg (dataset entry: /caffeine-in/starbucks-pike-place-brewed-grande/ and /dataset/), and also below some espresso-heavy drinks such as Starbucks Caffè Americano (Grande) at 225 mg (dataset source: /caffeine-in/starbucks-caff-americano-grande/ and /dataset/).

Against similar milk-forward espresso drinks, the 119 mg Medium Dunkin' Latte is comparable or slightly lower than several Grande lattes and cappuccinos listed in our dataset—for example, Starbucks Caffè Latte (Grande) is 150 mg and Starbucks Cappuccino (Grande) is 150 mg (dataset sources: /caffeine-in/starbucks-caff-latte-grande/, /caffeine-in/starbucks-cappuccino-grande/ and /dataset/), while Dunkin' Original Blend (Medium) is higher at 210 mg (dataset source: /caffeine-in/dunkin-original-blend-medium/).

In practical terms, the Medium Dunkin' Latte delivers a milder total-caffeine load than a full cup of some brewed coffees and many 'Grande' brewed or cold-brew drinks in the dataset, which is why milk-forward espresso beverages often register as moderate caffeine choices in the category (comparison source: /dataset/ and the named dataset entries).

What changes the number for Dunkin' Latte (Medium)

The 119 mg number is a point estimate for the named serving (Medium, 414 ml); several practical factors move that number up or down, and the dataset reflects a single measured/compiled value rather than every possible in-store serving (information source for the listed comparisons and variability: the open dataset at /dataset/ and USDA FoodData Central cited in dataset entries).

Primary drivers of variation are serving size, number of espresso shots, and extraction strength: for example, our dataset lists Dunkin' Original Blend (Medium) at 210 mg per 414 ml and a single-shot espresso listed at 63 mg per 30 ml (drip and espresso reference values from the dataset and USDA FoodData Central), so changing base brew or adding extra shots will change caffeine more than changing milk type.

Milk and water change concentration but not absolute caffeine mass: adding more milk or ice increases volume and reduces mg per 100 ml without reducing the total 119 mg unless the barista uses fewer espresso shots (mechanism and concentration math: calculated from serving and caffeine values, source: USDA FoodData Central and /dataset/).

• Shot pull and bean blend: the same latte at a different coffee shop or a different roast can carry more or less caffeine because espresso yield and bean caffeine vary (examples in our dataset: Starbucks Blonde Espresso (shot) 85 mg per 30 ml versus Espresso (single) 63 mg per 30 ml; dataset source: /dataset/ and provided entries).

Decaffeinated versions exist and will contain only a small fraction of the 119 mg, but exact decaf residuals depend on the decaffeination process and are not listed in the medium-latte entry (decaf caveat: dataset and USDA FoodData Central variations are the reasons for using an estimate rather than absolute certainty).

Where this figure comes from

The 119 mg value on this page comes from the open dataset used to populate these drink pages and the source records aggregated there, which in turn reference entries such as USDA FoodData Central and manufacturer or lab reports where available (dataset source: /dataset/ and underlying data reported as USDA FoodData Central where applicable).

Published values differ because of serving-size definitions, in-store shot counts, brewing strength, bean origin and lab measurement variations; we update this page when a primary source such as USDA FoodData Central or a verified manufacturer lab report revises the caffeine figure, or when peer-reviewed lab data in the public domain (added to /dataset/) provides a better estimate.

Bottom line

Bottom line: a Medium Dunkin' Latte (414 ml) contains 119 mg of caffeine (source: USDA FoodData Central via our dataset), which is about 28.7 mg per 100 ml (calculated from serving and caffeine values, source: USDA FoodData Central) and equals roughly 30% of the 400 mg/day guidance from the FDA (calculation and source: FDA and USDA FoodData Central).

Using a 5.7-hour half-life model (Drake et al. 2013) the dose decays approximately to 83 mg at 3 hours, 57 mg at 6 hours, 40 mg at 9 hours and about 28 mg at 12 hours after ingestion (arithmetic shown and sources: USDA FoodData Central for the dose and Drake et al. 2013 for the half-life model).