Global Food Field Guide

How Much Is in Your Energy Drink?

Nine of the biggest energy drinks, broken down by what's actually inside the can. We line up ingredients side by side, then rank them by the two numbers that matter most: caffeine and sugar per serving.

Verified June 2026 • Read the wrapper for the final word — recipes change

● Listed explicitly on the label ● Present but grouped under a generic term × Not listed ? Not documented in reviewed sources

Swipe the table sideways to see every column →

Ingredient	🇦🇹 Red Bull Red Bull · 8.4 fl oz (250ml)	🇺🇸 Monster Monster Energy (Green) · 16 fl oz (473ml)	🇺🇸 Rockstar Rockstar Original · 16 fl oz (473ml)	🇺🇸 Bang Bang Cotton Candy · 16 fl oz (473ml)	🇺🇸 Prime Prime Energy · 12 fl oz (355ml)	🇺🇸 Celsius Celsius Original · 12 fl oz (355ml)	🇺🇸 Reign Reign Total Body Fuel · 16 fl oz (473ml)	🇺🇸 NOS NOS Original · 16 fl oz (473ml)	🇦🇹 Red Bull Sugarfree Red Bull Sugarfree · 8.4 fl oz (250ml)
Shared base — what nearly all contain
Carbonated water	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Caffeine	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Citric acid	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Natural and/or artificial flavors	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Stimulants & amino acids
Taurine	●	●	●	×	●	●	×	●	●
Guarana extract	×	●	●	×	×	●	×	●	×
Panax ginseng extract	×	●	●	×	×	×	×	×	×
L-carnitine	×	●	●	×	×	×	×	×	×
BCAAs (leucine, isoleucine, valine)	×	×	×	●	×	×	●	×	×
CoQ10	×	×	×	●	×	×	●	×	×
Creatine (creatyl-L-leucine)	×	×	×	●	×	×	×	×	×
Green tea extract	×	×	×	×	×	●	×	×	×
Ginger root extract	×	×	×	×	×	●	×	×	×
L-theanine	×	×	×	×	●	×	×	×	×
Glucuronolactone	×	●	●	×	●	×	×	●	×
Inositol	×	●	●	×	×	×	×	●	×
Sweeteners
Sugar (sucrose/glucose)	●	●	●	×	×	×	×	×	×
High-fructose corn syrup	×	×	×	×	×	×	×	●	×
Erythritol	×	×	×	×	●	×	×	×	×
Sucralose	×	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Acesulfame potassium (Ace-K)	×	×	×	●	●	×	●	×	●
Aspartame	×	×	×	×	×	×	×	×	●
B-vitamins
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine)	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Vitamin B12	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●	●
Niacin / Niacinamide (B3)	●	●	●	●	×	●	●	×	●
Pantothenic acid (B5)	●	×	●	×	×	●	×	×	●
Riboflavin (B2)	×	●	●	×	×	●	×	×	×
Acids, colours & preservatives
Sodium citrate	×	●	●	×	×	×	●	●	×
Sodium bicarbonate	●	×	×	×	×	×	×	×	●
Sodium benzoate (preservative)	×	●	●	●	●	×	●	×	×
Potassium sorbate (preservative)	×	×	●	●	●	×	●	×	×
Benzoic / sorbic acid (preservative)	×	●	×	×	×	×	×	×	×
Sodium hexametaphosphate (preservative)	×	×	×	×	×	×	×	●	×
Added artificial colour	●	●	●	×	×	×	×	●	●

So which is the least healthy?

Energy drinks come in wildly different can sizes, so we compare each one per can — the amount you actually drink in a sitting. Two numbers dominate the health story: caffeine (the stimulant load) and sugar (empty calories). The headline finding: the highest-caffeine cans (Bang and Reign, both 300mg) are sugar-free, while the sugariest cans (Rockstar, Monster, NOS) pile on 54–63g of sugar — over a day's worth in a single can.

Caffeine per can

Bang (16 oz)

300 mg Most caffeine

Reign (16 oz)

300 mg

Prime (12 oz)

200 mg

Celsius (12 oz)

200 mg

Monster (16 oz)

160 mg

Rockstar (16 oz)

160 mg

NOS (16 oz)

160 mg

Red Bull (8.4 oz)

80 mg

Red Bull Sugarfree (8.4 oz)

80 mg

Sugar per can

Rockstar (16 oz)

63 g Most sugar

Monster (16 oz)

54 g

NOS (16 oz)

54 g

Red Bull (8.4 oz)

27 g

Bang (16 oz)

0 g Sugar-free

Prime (12 oz)

0 g

Celsius (12 oz)

0 g

Reign (16 oz)

0 g

Red Bull Sugarfree (8.4 oz)

0 g Sugar-free

Per 100ml, Red Bull and Monster both land at ~11g sugar — but Monster's bigger 473ml can means 54g total versus Red Bull's 27g.On caffeine density, Bang packs ~63mg per 100ml while Red Bull sits at ~32mg per 100ml — Bang is nearly twice as concentrated, and in a can twice the size.

For sheer sugar, Rockstar Original is the worst offender at 63g a can — about 16 teaspoons, more than a 12 oz Coke, plus 160mg of caffeine. But on caffeine, Bang and Reign top out at 300mg per 16 oz can — roughly the FDA's entire suggested daily ceiling in one drink. Considering both together, the sugary giants (Rockstar, Monster, NOS) are the least healthy for everyday drinking, while Bang and Reign are the ones to watch for caffeine overload.

Caffeine and sugar figures are per single standard can; can sizes differ (8.4 oz for Red Bull, 12 oz for Prime/Celsius, 16 oz for Monster/Rockstar/Bang/Reign/NOS).

Ingredient lists reflect US-market formulations; recipes and colours vary by region and are reformulated periodically (e.g. Bang's amino/creatine blend).

A row marked present means the ingredient is explicitly listed on the label; sugar-free drinks rely on sucralose and/or acesulfame potassium instead of sugar.

Figures compiled from official brand sites and major retailer labels, verified June 2026; always check the can you buy, as formulations change.

Sources

Ingredient formulations, allergen statements and product sizes change over time and between manufacturing facilities. This infographic reflects published lists reviewed in June 2026 and is for general interest only. For allergy, dietary or regulatory decisions, always read the wrapper of the specific product in your hand.