Coffee Drink
Irish Cream Coffee: Easy Baileys Recipe & Calories
Irish cream coffee combines brewed coffee with a sweet cream liqueur, such as Baileys Original. The liqueur supplies the creaminess and sweetness, so this simple hot version needs no separate milk, sugar or cream topping. It is different from both classic whiskey-based Irish coffee and coffee made with nonalcoholic Irish cream creamer.
Drink Snapshot
- Caffeine
- About 60 mg from coffeeReference for 150 ml brewed coffeeCoffee contribution, not a measured total for this cocktail.
- Calories
- About 160 kcalDefined Baileys Original recipeIncludes the liqueur energy, including alcohol.
Serving, sugar and sources
- Serving
- 150 ml brewed coffee + 50 ml Baileys Original; no toppings
- Made with
- Brewed coffee + Irish cream liqueur; contains milk and alcohol
- Sugar
- About 9 g total. No separate sugar is added; the liqueur is already sweetened.
- Preparation
- About 3 minutes with brewed coffee ready
Baileys UK Original label, USDA brewed-coffee energy and Mayo Clinic caffeine reference, checked 27 September 2026. See the full calculation or label comparison.
Key Takeaways
- 1Start with 150 ml hot brewed coffee and 50 ml Baileys Original Irish Cream; stir together in a 250 ml heatproof mug.
- 2The untopped serving has about 160 kcal and 9 g total sugar. Its coffee contributes about 60 mg reference caffeine.
- 3This recipe contains alcohol and milk. Irish cream coffee creamer is a different product, with its own ingredients and nutrition.
On This Page8 Sections
Irish Cream Coffee Recipe
Makes one hot drink in about 3 minutes with the coffee already brewed. Use a 250 ml heatproof mug or handled glass, leaving room to stir.
The 3:1 coffee-to-liqueur ratio by volume follows Baileys' published hot-coffee recipe. This version omits its decorative toppings and measures both liquids.
Ingredients
- 150 ml freshly brewed hot coffee
- 50 ml Baileys Original Irish Cream
Equipment and Preparation
Have a mug, spoon and ml measure or jigger ready. Brew coffee you enjoy drinking on its own; the drip-coffee guide covers an everyday filter preparation. Measure 150 ml of collected coffee after brewing, rather than putting 150 ml water through dry grounds and assuming the same amount will reach the mug.
Baileys Original is the named liqueur for this recipe and nutrition example. Other cream liqueurs can be used, but check their alcohol strength, dairy ingredients and label values.
Method
- Warm a 250 ml heatproof mug with hot water, then empty it.
- Measure 150 ml prepared hot coffee into the mug. Add 50 ml Baileys Original Irish Cream.
- Stir until evenly mixed. Serve without extra sugar or toppings, allowing it to cool to a comfortable drinking temperature.
The result is a mixed coffee drink, not a layered cream float. No steaming wand, shaker or separately whipped cream is needed.
Irish Cream Liqueur vs. Creamer and Irish Coffee
Read the ingredient name before choosing a recipe. These three drinks can share an Irish-cream association while containing different amounts of alcohol, milk and sugar.
This table scrolls horizontally on smaller screens.
| Name | What goes in the cup | What to expect |
|---|---|---|
| Irish cream coffee, this page | Brewed coffee and Irish cream liqueur | A stirred, sweetened, creamy alcoholic drink |
| Coffee with Irish cream creamer | Coffee and a flavored creamer | May be nonalcoholic; use that product's label |
| Classic Irish coffee | Coffee, Irish whiskey, sugar and fresh cream | A whiskey coffee with a separate cream layer |
The International Bartenders Association's Irish Coffee uses whiskey and fresh cream separately. A bottle of Irish cream is not required for that preparation.
Conversely, the Canadian Baileys Coffee Creamers FAQ says those creamers contain no alcohol or caffeine, but do contain dairy. That statement belongs to the creamer range, not to Baileys Original liqueur or to the coffee you pour it into.
Does Irish Cream Coffee Need Extra Whiskey?
No. The recipe here uses cream liqueur as its alcoholic ingredient. Adding whiskey makes a separate variation and changes the alcohol and calorie totals. If you want the classic whiskey-and-cream-layer experience, use the Irish coffee recipe linked above.
Adjust the Sweetness and Coffee Balance
Taste the mixed drink before adding sugar. The liqueur already provides sweetness, so extra syrup is optional rather than part of the basic method.
For a less liqueur-forward version, keep the same coffee portion and reduce the Baileys. The following is a calculation from the named label, not a report of tested tasting results:
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| Baileys Original added to 150 ml coffee | Approximate calories | Total sugar |
|---|---|---|
| 25 ml | 80 kcal | 4.5 g |
| 50 ml, this recipe | 160 kcal | 9 g |
Halving the liqueur also halves its alcohol contribution. It leaves the caffeine from the unchanged coffee portion essentially the same. Adding more coffee instead makes a larger drink and can increase caffeine.
If it tastes weak: check the brewed coffee before adding more liqueur. Use your normal balanced brew rather than extending the brewing time solely to make it more bitter.
If it cools too quickly: prewarm the mug and assemble with freshly brewed coffee. Add the liqueur in the mug; there is no need to boil the assembled drink.
For whipped cream or chocolate: add them as a separate variation and count their portion. Neither appears in the recipe, nutrition estimate or main drink illustration here.
Calories, Sugar, Caffeine and Alcohol
The untopped recipe provides about 160 kcal and 9 g total sugar, with about 60 mg reference caffeine from the brewed coffee. It contains milk, including lactose, and alcohol.
Serving calculation and source assumptions
The Baileys UK Original label lists 314 kcal and 18 g sugar per 100 ml. Our 50 ml portion contributes 157 kcal and 9 g sugar. That published energy already includes alcohol: do not add alcohol calories a second time.
USDA brewed coffee, NDB 14209, lists 1 kcal and 0 g sugar per 100 g. Approximating 150 ml plain brewed coffee as 150 g for this small energy contribution adds about 1.5 kcal. The total is about 158.5 kcal, rounded to 160 kcal.
Mayo Clinic's reference is 96 mg caffeine per 237 ml brewed coffee. Scaling 150 × 96 ÷ 237 gives 60.8 mg, displayed as about 60 mg from the coffee. The cited liqueur label does not provide a caffeine assay, so this is not a measured whole-cocktail total. Beans, brewing and instant or decaf substitutions change the coffee contribution.
At 17% ABV, 50 ml of this liqueur supplies 8.5 ml of pure alcohol before mixing. This is an ingredient calculation, not a laboratory measurement of the final drink's strength. Stirring it into hot coffee does not make this a nonalcoholic recipe.
Coffee does not cancel alcohol's effects, as the CDC explains.
Iced, Instant and Decaf Versions
Iced Irish cream coffee: chill 150 ml brewed coffee, then stir it with 50 ml liqueur over 100 g ice in a 350 ml glass. Start with cold coffee so the ice does not immediately dilute a hot drink. This keeps the same ingredient quantities; melting ice changes concentration and volume.
Instant coffee: prepare 150 ml according to the coffee maker's directions, then add the measured liqueur. The preparation is straightforward, but the brewed-coffee caffeine estimate above does not automatically apply.
Decaf: use a decaffeinated coffee base and keep the liqueur portion fixed. This changes caffeine, not the liqueur's alcohol, sugar or dairy content. It does not establish a zero-caffeine drink.
Common Questions
Can I put Baileys straight into hot coffee?
How much Baileys should I use?
Is Irish cream coffee alcoholic?
Can I make it dairy-free?
Editor's Take
Sources and Further Reading
7 references
External links open in a new tab
Serving estimates
- Baileys UKOriginal Irish Cream label17% ABV, milk/lactose and complete energy/sugar values(opens in a new tab)
- USDA Standard ReferenceBrewed coffee, NDB 14209Generic coffee energy and sugar composition(opens in a new tab)
- Mayo ClinicCaffeine in coffee96 mg per 237 ml brewed coffee; scaled reference, not an assay(opens in a new tab)