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Is theine the same as caffeine?

Yes: theine, mateine and caffeine are one and the same molecule. What changes is the dose per cup (95 mg in a cup of drip coffee, 47 mg in a cup of black tea, according to the USDA) and what comes with it, such as the theobromine in cocoa.

The same molecule in four cups, then what is left of it in the blood hour by hour: pick a drink, change the step or the time.

What is in a cup of coffee, tea, mate or cocoa?

Each dot is a 5 mg dose. Yellow: caffeine. Orange: theobromine. Aqua: theanine.

Drink:

  • humanThe doses: USDA average values for drip coffee, black tea and hot chocolate; mate from de Paula Lima and Farah (2019); theanine from Keenan (2011). The actual dose depends on the amount of coffee or leaves, the steeping time and the size of the cup.

How much caffeine is in a cup of coffee, tea, mate or cocoa?

DrinkCaffeineWhat comes with itWhat sets it apart
Drip coffee (8 oz, 240 ml)95 mgcafestol and kahweol if the coffee is not filteredthe highest dose per cup; a paper filter holds back cafestol, which raises “bad” cholesterol: LDL up 9 to 14% with 5 to 6 strong cups of French press coffee a day for 24 weeks (Urgert, 1996)
Espresso (1 oz, 30 ml)63 mgpartly cafestolvery concentrated, but a small cup
Black tea (8 oz, 240 ml)47 mgtheanine (about 24 mg per 200 ml), a little theobromine (5 mg)drunk with a meal, it can block 79 to 94% of the iron from plant foods (Hurrell, 1999)
Green tea (8 oz, 240 ml)28 mgtheanine (about 8 mg per 200 ml)about half as much caffeine as black tea
Chimarrão mate (8 oz, 240 ml)53 mg; 135 mg for a 500 ml (17 oz) gourda little theobromineit is traditionally drunk at about 70 °C (158 °F); drinks above 65 °C (149 °F) are classified as “probably carcinogenic” for the esophagus, because of the heat and not the plant (IARC, 2016)
Hot chocolate (8.5 oz, 250 ml)5 mg170 mg of theobrominetheobromine binds 2 to 3 times less well than caffeine to the fatigue receptors; it is a weak stimulant and takes 7.2 hours to drop by half

Average values from the USDA (coffee, tea, hot chocolate), de Paula Lima and Farah 2019 and Bastos 2005 (mate), Keenan 2011 (theanine). The actual dose depends on the amount of coffee or leaves, the steeping time and the size of the cup.

Good to know: this page explains what these drinks contain; it does not say which ones to drink. During pregnancy, with some medications or with heart rhythm disorders, caffeine is handled differently: talk to a health professional.

Frequently asked questions about theine and caffeine

Why does tea seem less stimulating than coffee?

Mostly because a cup of black tea contains half as much caffeine as a drip coffee: 47 mg versus 95 mg (USDA). Tea's theanine is another lead, but the studies that find an effect give 97 to 250 mg of theanine, while a 200 ml cup of black tea contains about 24 mg (Keenan, 2011; Camfield, 2014).

Does the caffeine in tea enter the blood more slowly?

People often say so, because of the tannins. In a small study, caffeine from tea and from coffee peaked at the same time, half an hour after the cup (Marks and Kelly, 1973, summarized by White, 2016).

Does chocolate keep you from sleeping?

A hot chocolate contains very little caffeine (5 mg) but 170 mg of theobromine. In 80 people, theobromine, even at 1,000 mg, did not have the stimulating effect of 200 mg of caffeine (Baggott, 2013).

What is mateine?

It is another name for caffeine, like theine or guaranine: the PubChem database lists them all under the same molecule.

How much caffeine a day does the European authority consider safe?

For a healthy adult, up to 400 mg a day and 200 mg at a time; 200 mg a day during pregnancy (EFSA, 2015).

See also

How long does caffeine stay in the body? What happens in the body during sleep? What time does the body make its hormones?

Sources

  1. USDA FoodData Central, SR Legacy: drip coffee (171890), espresso (171891), black tea (173227), green tea (171917), hot chocolate (171277).
  2. PubChem. Caffeine, CID 2519 (synonyms: theine, mateine, guaranine). pubchem.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/compound/2519
  3. Institute of Medicine. Caffeine for the Sustainment of Mental Task Performance, chapter 2. National Academies Press, 2001. NBK223808
  4. Lelo A, Birkett DJ, Robson RA, et al. Comparative pharmacokinetics of caffeine and its primary demethylated metabolites paraxanthine, theobromine and theophylline in man. Br J Clin Pharmacol, 1986;22(2):177-182. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2125.1986.tb05246.x
  5. Mumford GK, Benowitz NL, Evans SM, et al. Absorption rate of methylxanthines following capsules, cola and chocolate. Eur J Clin Pharmacol, 1996;51(3-4):319-325. doi:10.1007/s002280050205
  6. Baggott MJ, Childs E, Hart AB, et al. Psychopharmacology of theobromine in healthy volunteers. Psychopharmacology, 2013;228(1):109-118. doi:10.1007/s00213-013-3021-0
  7. Mitchell ES, Slettenaar M, vd Meer N, et al. Differential contributions of theobromine and caffeine on mood, psychomotor performance and blood pressure. Physiol Behav, 2011;104(5):816-822. doi:10.1016/j.physbeh.2011.07.027
  8. Bastos DHM, Fornari AC, Queiroz YS, Torres EAFS. Bioactive compounds content of chimarrão infusions related to the moisture of yerba maté (Ilex paraguariensis) leaves. Acta Farm Bonaerense, 2005;24(1):91-95. full text (PDF)
  9. de Paula Lima J, Farah A. Methylxanthines in stimulant foods and beverages commonly consumed in Brazil. J Food Compos Anal, 2019;78:75-85. doi:10.1016/j.jfca.2019.02.001
  10. Keenan EK, Finnie MD, Jones PS, et al. How much theanine in a cup of tea? Effects of tea type and method of preparation. Food Chem, 2011;125(2):588-594. doi:10.1016/j.foodchem.2010.08.071
  11. Camfield DA, Stough C, Farrimond J, Scholey AB. Acute effects of tea constituents L-theanine, caffeine, and epigallocatechin gallate on cognitive function and mood: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Nutr Rev, 2014;72(8):507-522. doi:10.1111/nure.12120
  12. Marks V, Kelly JF. Absorption of caffeine from tea, coffee, and Coca Cola. Lancet, 1973;1(7807):827. doi:10.1016/s0140-6736(73)90625-9
  13. White JR, Padowski JM, Zhong Y, et al. Pharmacokinetic analysis and comparison of caffeine administered rapidly or slowly in coffee chilled or hot versus chilled energy drink in healthy young adults. Clin Toxicol, 2016;54(4):308-312. doi:10.3109/15563650.2016.1146740
  14. IARC (International Agency for Research on Cancer). Press release No. 244: IARC Monographs evaluate drinking coffee, maté, and very hot beverages, June 15, 2016. pr244 (PDF)
  15. Urgert R, Meyboom S, Kuilman M, et al. Comparison of effect of cafetiere and filtered coffee on serum concentrations of liver aminotransferases and lipids: six month randomised controlled trial. BMJ, 1996;313(7069):1362-1366. doi:10.1136/bmj.313.7069.1362
  16. Hurrell RF, Reddy M, Cook JD. Inhibition of non-haem iron absorption in man by polyphenolic-containing beverages. Br J Nutr, 1999;81(4):289-295. doi:10.1017/s0007114599000537
  17. EFSA, NDA Panel. Scientific Opinion on the safety of caffeine. EFSA Journal, 2015;13(5):4102. doi:10.2903/j.efsa.2015.4102

True or false?

Theine is a different molecule from caffeine.

False. Theine, mateine and caffeine are names for a single molecule (PubChem).

An espresso contains more caffeine than a large cup of drip coffee.

False. Espresso is more concentrated, but the cup is small: 63 mg in 1 oz (30 ml), versus 95 mg in 8 oz (240 ml) of drip coffee (USDA).

The theobromine in chocolate stays in the blood longer than caffeine.

True. In the same study, it took 7.2 hours to clear half of the theobromine, versus 4.1 hours for caffeine (Lelo, 1986).

The steps as text

The texts shown during the animation, to read without it.

  1. One molecule, three names
    Caffeine, theine, mateine: it is the same molecule, made of 8 carbon atoms, 10 hydrogen, 4 nitrogen and 2 oxygen. It was named after the plant it was found in, before anyone understood it was the same.
  2. The dose changes from cup to cup
    A drip coffee provides on average 95 mg of caffeine, a mate 53 mg, a black tea 47 mg and a hot chocolate 5 mg (USDA; de Paula Lima, 2019). That is the first reason they do not feel the same.
  3. Cocoa bets on theobromine
    Hot chocolate contains little caffeine but 170 mg of theobromine, a cousin of caffeine. It binds 2 to 3 times less well to the brain receptors that signal fatigue: it barely wakes you up, but it stays in the blood a long time.
  4. Tea adds theanine
    Tea also contains theanine, about 29 mg in an 8 oz (240 ml) cup of black tea (based on Keenan, 2011). The studies where it helps people stay alert give 97 to 250 mg, together with caffeine, and the effect comes mostly from the caffeine (Camfield, 2014).
  5. Everything reaches the blood in under two hours
    Whatever the drink, caffeine peaks in the blood within 15 minutes to 2 hours, then the liver clears it slowly: about half is gone in 5 hours (Institute of Medicine, 2001). Caffeine from tea arrives as fast as caffeine from coffee.

Other texts from the animation

  • Theobromine from hot chocolate (170 mg, own scale)
  • Caffeine peaks in the blood within 15 minutes to 2 hours; 99% is absorbed within 45 minutes (Institute of Medicine, 2001). In a small study, tea and coffee arrived at the same time.
  • At the same speed, the black tea curve rises about half as high as the drip coffee curve: the cup contains half as much caffeine.
  • The liver clears half of the caffeine in about 5 hours, from 1.5 to 9.5 hours depending on the person (Institute of Medicine, 2001).
  • Theobromine from cocoa rises more slowly (peak about 2 hours after a chocolate, Mumford, 1996) and leaves more slowly: it takes 7.2 hours to clear half of it, versus 4.1 hours for caffeine in the same study (Lelo, 1986).
  • With this model, at 10pm about a sixth of the caffeine from the 8am coffee is left, and noticeably more of the theobromine from the chocolate.
  • The doses add up in the blood. The 135 mg total is measured (Bastos, 2005); the drop from one refill to the next is an assumption of the drawing.
  • The morning's mate rises more slowly than a coffee drunk all at once, but it ends up higher: 135 mg in total versus 95 mg. With this model, the peak comes a little after 10am and is a third higher than the coffee's.
  • Once in the blood, caffeine from mate is cleared exactly like caffeine from coffee: it is the same molecule.
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Metabolive. "Is theine the same as caffeine?" Updated November 8, 2026. https://metabolive.com/en/everyday/theine-vs-caffeine.