The 9 Best Starbucks Drinks Under $5

CORRECTION 11/25/25: A previous version of this article stated adding caramel an espresso shot is free of charge; there is a small fee for the sauce.

When you place a Starbucks order the first few times, there's a good chance you'll experience a fair amount of sticker shock. With syrups, additions, and milk substitutions, and even the occasional no water request, Starbucks drinks can go from reasonable to far too expensive very quickly. To help quell the totally preventable sticker shock, I have assembled some of the best Starbucks drinks you can get for under $5.

While creating this list, I aimed to choose drinks that could be ordered in the grande size for under $5, but there are several that have the whole range of sizes under that $5 mark. Please note that price varies greatly from Starbucks location to location. For instance, when I was doing my initial research for this piece, I happened to be on Florida's Gulf Coast, where I found you can get a Cortado for just shy of $5. However, by the time I got back home in Central Florida, the same order had reached $5.75 at my closest location. Since some of the pricier Starbucks locations tend to be my regular stops, I used these locations as my starting point. My hope is that new Starbucks customers, and even ones who have experienced their own fair share of dramatic Starbucks totals, will find something to help save a little bit of money.

For a quick drink that packs a sufficient caffeine punch without being overly sugary, consider ordering Espresso Con Panna. You can get this hot drink in a solo, doppio, triple, or quad shot. No matter which size you choose, it will come con panna (with cream) in the form of a dollop of whipped cream on top. If you've never had an Espresso Con Panna, you may be surprised just how dramatically a simple dollop of whipped cream transforms your espresso. Since Starbucks baristas make whipped cream in-house using heavy cream and vanilla syrup, the cream also imparts flavor in addition to the creamy texture. If you're going simple, it's just enough to make the espresso less biting.

Even with a rather simple order like this one, there are some tweaks you can make to the recipes that won't increase the total at the end. Asking for extra whipping cream, for instance, won't cost anything, and if you need a little more creaminess in your drink, this is a great solution. If you, like me, prefer blonde roast espresso from Starbucks, swapping out the signature roast for the blonde espresso is another free upgrade. The best part is regardless of what size Espresso Con Panna you order, they're all under $5. While a solo will be $3.35, a quad is only $4.05.

Lattes may be a classic coffeehouse go-to, but if you want something similar though not as strong tasting, consider a Caffè Misto. Starbucks Caffè Misto always reminds me of the type of coffee drink my mom would make for herself when I was younger because it is half brewed coffee and half steamed milk. It's the ideal drink for those who want some coffee flavor, but need it toned back with a fair amount of creamer. The milk works well here because it gets steamed too. The resulting drink is one that is still warm, unlike the room temperature versions you may get from adding a bunch of cold creamer to brewed coffee.

Like the Espresso Con Panna, the entire range of sizes is perfect for this ranking because even the venti has a price of $4.65. The smallest size, a short, is a full dollar less, coming at $3.65. If you want additional flavor with your coffee, the price will go up, so you'll need to stick to a tall or short to keep that total under the $5 range.

For me, coffee is best served ice-cold, even in the chilliest, snowiest of climates. For those with similar preferences, Starbucks offers some solid, basic options. Perhaps the most obvious of chilly coffees is the classic Iced Coffee. Honestly, this does what it says — it's brewed coffee that has been chilled and poured over ice.

Thankfully, you don't need to choke down just black coffee to stay under $5 budget. I recommend adding pumps of the classic syrup sweetener and whipped cream. Both additions are included in the price. For some creaminess in the coffee before whipped cream has time to fully integrate, you can ask for room in your cup and then add your own creamer with those set out carafes at Starbucks stores. A grande version of this coffee will only set you back $4.45, but it's the largest option to stay under $5.

Cold brew has more or less taken over the cold coffee section at most coffee shops. Due to its lush and smooth texture, Starbucks Cold Brew always tastes incredible, so it's no wonder customers have come to love it. Cafes large and small seem to have some kind of an answer for customers' love of cold brew, and Starbucks is no different, having offered Cold Brew since the spring of 2015.

Like iced coffee, you can order it with classic sweetener and whipped cream. You will stay withing the budget, but there is no room for any additional add-ins. However, you should have in mind that there are several cold brew options that are pricier than the standard Cold Brew version. For example, all Starbucks Cold Foam flavors will break your $5 budget. However, going for a simple grande Cold Brew with liquid sweetener and whipped cream will keep you just under budget at $4.95.

After you've spent a fair amount of time ordering Starbucks coffees, you will probably come up with some great hacks to save money. Perhaps one of the best ways to save money I've come across is constructing your own coffee drink and using Iced Espresso as the base.

To do this, it's best to order over the app to keep potential confusion to a minimum. Start with an Iced Espresso in your chosen shot quantity. I like to start with a doppio for two shots of espresso. Change the roast type to blonde for a smoother drink and then click customize. You can choose your cup size and add whipped cream for free, then line the cup with caramel and top it with a caramel drizzle for a small charge. I also recommend adding a splash of milk and your chosen flavor. Two brown sugars and two caramel syrup pumps go fabulously together. Even with all those customizations, your drink will come to $4.25, so it's still under $5. Of course, there are far more changes you can make to your Iced Espresso, but these are some solid starting points.

Once upon a time, Starbucks customers created a drink they dubbed the Medicine Ball. While Starbucks baristas wish you would stop ordering the Medicine Ball, it has more to do with the use of the term and all the connotation it carries than anything else. This drink doesn't claim to heal the sick in any fashion, but I've always found it felt great on a sore throat. Today, Starbucks has the drink on the menu as Honey Citrus Mint Tea, and at $4.75, it's just as delicious.

To make this sugary drink, baristas steam lemonade and steep tea right in the sugary drink. To that, they add honey for all of its soothing potential. If you're feeling too ill to venture to Starbucks drive-thu for one of these drinks, there's always a copycat Starbucks Medicine Ball recipe you could wrangle, but the sum of ingredients to make it will certainly put you over that $5 mark.

The key to getting the best drinks under $5 is selecting ones that give you the most flavor for your money. In Starbucks iced tea world, one of the very best options is the Iced Peach Green Tea Lemonade. With green tea, peach juice blend, and lemonade all rolled into one, you get juicy, tart, and refreshing tea all mixed together. In the summer, this is the type of drink you bring for a picnic or a breezy beach day.

For a grande, you'll spend $4.95, keeping it just within the budget. You could also swap the green tea out for black or passion tea to really change the flavor and feel of the drink. This swap shouldn't cost you extra, but you'll need to request the change in person at the drive-through or counter as there isn't a way to order this customization over the app.

One of the most refreshing drinks you can order at Starbucks is the Iced Passion Tango Tea Lemonade. This tea combines lemonade with the blend of hibiscus, lemongrass and apple, all shaken up with ice. It makes for the best kind of fruity and floral lemonade, ideal for a spring or summer day.

Since this one only uses lemonade and tea (rather than also the juice like the Iced Peach Green Tea Lemonade), it's slightly cheaper, coming at $4.65. If the drink isn't sweet enough all on its own, you can ask for classic sweetener to make it even better. One of my favorite parts about this tea is that the bright magenta color really makes for a colorful, photo-ready drink. In my experience, baristas will frequently forget to add lemonade to this tea, so if it doesn't taste quite right, be sure to ask for it to be made again. Since this is an herbal tea, it is also caffeine-free, perfect for younger Starbucks fans who probably aren't quite old enough to take on a caffeinated drink like an icy latte or Refresher.

For another tasty caffeine-free drink that fits the $5 budget, consider ordering Starbucks Hot Chocolate. Of course, this drink is ideal for young Starbucks customers, but I find that it really hits on especially cold evenings. While I enjoy a typical Starbucks hot chocolate, you can make it even better by substituting half of your mocha pumps for white chocolate mocha. This provides a smoother experience, and it is likely one that people who prep cocoa drinks at home will find more enjoyable. The total cost comes to $4.65.

If it happens to be fall when you are ordering your Hot Chocolate, I heartily recommend substituting half of mocha pumps for pumpkin spice. This might seem like a very strange substitution, but the combination of mocha and pumpkin spice flavors makes for a surprisingly enjoyable fall treat. For even more flavor, you can ask for pumpkin spice sprinkles on top of your whipped cream.

I worked at Starbucks as a barista for several years in college, and during that time, I grew accustomed to creating some fabulous off-menu options behind the counter. However, I also learned that even the less expensive drinks are delicious. I used my knowledge of the Starbucks menu and how the different drinks taste to pull together some of the best offerings Starbucks has on its base menu. I primarily considered flavor when selecting these choices but bang for your buck was also top of mind. Ones that made the list offered a reasonably sized drink with a delicious flavor. While there are other drinks that would fit within the budget, I chose to leave those off because they weren't quite as tasty or didn't offer enough for your money.