How much caffeine is in Yerba mate?

A standard 240 ml serving of yerba mate contains 85 milligrams of caffeine. That works out to 35.4 mg per 100 ml, a concentration that places it closer to drip coffee (96 mg per 240 ml) than to most true teas.

With roughly 0.9 times the caffeine of a same-sized cup of brewed coffee, yerba mate delivers a substantial but often smoother lift — partly because its natural theobromine and other xanthines moderate the edge. A single serving provides 21% of the FDA’s 400 mg daily guidance for healthy adults.

For many people the effects begin within 15–30 minutes and can feel like enhanced alertness without the jitteriness some get from coffee. Because 85 mg is a moderate dose, the experience tends to be clear and sustained rather than sharp and crash-prone. Many users report a ‘clear head’ feeling compared to coffee’s sometimes frantic buzz, which may be partly attributable to the theobromine content.

How long Yerba mate stays in your system

How Long 85 mg Stays in Your System

Using a population-average elimination half-life of 5.7 hours, the remaining caffeine from this 85 mg dose can be estimated: after 3 hours about 59 mg, after 6 hours 41 mg, after 9 hours 28 mg, and after 12 hours still 20 mg — roughly the caffeine of a small cup of green tea. Elimination half-life can range from 1.5 to 9.5 hours depending on genetics, liver health, and whether a person smokes or takes oral contraceptives, so individual decay may be faster or slower.

If you finish your yerba mate at 3 p.m., by 11 p.m. (8 hours later) approximately 32 mg remains in your bloodstream. That persistent low-level caffeine can delay sleep onset and reduce deep sleep, according to a 2013 study by Drake et al. For sleep-sensitive individuals, our latest cup before bedtime tool can help personalise cut-off times based on your target bedtime.

Daily Limits and Bedtime Timing

The FDA and EFSA both advise that healthy adults keep total daily caffeine below 400 mg. One 240-ml cup of yerba mate at 85 mg represents 21% of that ceiling, meaning you could drink up to four full servings (340 mg) and still stay within the guideline — a fifth cup would nudge you to 425 mg. For pregnant women, the EFSA recommends no more than 200 mg per day; a single yerba mate already provides 42.5% of that limit. Adolescents should aim for no more than 100 mg daily (2.5 mg per kg of body weight), so one serving might already be close to their cap.

Because a dose of 85 mg still leaves roughly 20 mg circulating after 12 hours, timing matters for sleep. To have less than 10 mg at a 11 p.m. bedtime, you would need to finish your last mate before about 8 a.m. — earlier than most people’s first cup. In practice, limiting consumption to the morning or early afternoon keeps most of the caffeine cleared by night. Check your own safe window with our safe daily limit by body weight calculator.

Individuals who metabolise caffeine slowly — about 10–15% of the population due to CYP1A2 gene variants — may experience effects lasting over 12 hours from this 85-mg dose. For these slow metabolisers, even a morning mate can still leave 30–40 mg at bedtime, which is why some choose to cut caffeine earlier. The safe daily limit tool helps factor in body weight for a more personalised upper boundary.

Yerba Mate vs. Other Teas and Coffee

Among commonly consumed teas, yerba mate occupies a higher tier of caffeine content. It delivers roughly 81% more caffeine than a cup of black tea (47 mg) and about three times as much as green tea (28 mg). Even matcha, prepared with 1 teaspoon of powder in 240 ml, comes in at 70 mg — still 15 mg below yerba mate.

When you look beyond tea, yerba mate’s 85 mg is nearly identical to a 250-ml can of Red Bull (80 mg) and about half of a large Monster Energy (160 mg in 473 ml). Against drip coffee’s 96 mg, it sits just a notch lower, making a single cup a reasonable swap for those who want a gentler but still effective boost.

Beyond the numbers, yerba mate’s stimulation feels distinct for many people because it contains theobromine, the relaxing compound also found in chocolate, alongside caffeine. This combination can produce a sustained, balanced energy without the peak-and-crash profile of a high-caffeine soda or a strong coffee. For a direct mg-to-mg look at several drinks at once, try our caffeine comparison tool.

What changes the number for Yerba mate

What Changes the Caffeine in Your Cup

The 85 mg figure is a representative value for 240 ml of traditionally brewed yerba mate, but actual content can vary widely. The most important factors include the amount of leaf used, water temperature, steeping time, and whether you keep adding water to the same leaves — a common practice with a gourd and bombilla.

• Brewing method: Traditional preparation involves packing a gourd about two-thirds full of leaves and repeatedly pouring hot water; each pour extracts less caffeine, but the total ingested over multiple refills can far exceed 85 mg.
• Serving size: A standard gourd often holds 150–200 ml of liquid, but the continuous refill means a single “session” may provide 200–400 mg of caffeine across several hours.
• Leaf type: Some yerba mate is smoked (traditional), while air-dried or lightly processed versions may have slightly different caffeine concentrations. Published analyses report a range of 30–100 mg per 240 ml.
• Decaf options: Decaffeinated yerba mate exists but is uncommon; it would contain about 2–5 mg per serving, similar to other decaf teas.

Because of these variables, treat the 85 mg baseline as your starting point for a single 240 ml steep. If you’re a heavy mate drinker who refills the same leaves throughout the day, your total caffeine intake can easily exceed that of a strong coffee drinker.

Cold-brewed yerba mate, which steeps for 12–24 hours in cold water, can extract a similar amount of caffeine as hot brewing, though the slower extraction often yields a mellower taste. Commercially canned yerba mate drinks, such as those from Guayakí, list caffeine content on the label — typically between 70 and 150 mg per can, depending on size and added ingredients.

Where this figure comes from

Where the 85 mg Number Comes From

The value of 85 mg per 240 ml for brewed yerba mate is sourced from the USDA FoodData Central database, which reports 35 mg per 100 ml. That entry reflects a typical hot-water steep of commercially available yerba mate leaves. Other authoritative databases, such as those used by academic institutes or product-testing labs, sometimes report a range between 70 and 100 mg for the same volume — differences that arise from natural variation in leaf caffeine content and brew strength.

The USDA figure is derived from a composite sample of commercial products tested using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), the gold standard for caffeine quantification. We also review data from the European Food Safety Authority’s comprehensive 2015 caffeine report and the FDA’s consumer guidance, but these tend to focus on safe limits rather than individual drink values. We monitor new laboratory analyses and will adjust the figure if a rigorously verified update becomes available — all noted in our open caffeine dataset.

Bottom line

Bottom Line

A 240 ml cup of brewed yerba mate provides 85 mg of caffeine — close to a coffee (96 mg), far above black tea (47 mg), and right around a small energy drink. That’s 21% of the 400 mg daily limit for healthy adults, and the dose decays to about 20 mg after 12 hours.

Because yerba mate is rarely consumed as a single discrete cup, the total caffeine load from a traditional gourd session can be multiple times higher than the 85 mg figure suggests. If you refill your gourd several times, you might ingest 200–400 mg over a morning — equivalent to two to four cups of coffee. So treat the 85 mg as your baseline for a one-off 240 ml quick steep, and adjust upward for prolonged drinking.