If you like your coffee light and sweet, sweet cream coffee creamer is an a.m. essential. The name says it all: This stuff should be creamy and sweet, and whether it’s an Italian sweet cream creamer angling to taste like the inside of a cannoli or a regular sweet and creamy coffee creamer that simply bottles the flavor of lots of cream and lots of sugar, it should make coffee a joy to drink without distracting from the flavor of the coffee itself. But what’s the best sweet cream coffee creamer? I tried a bunch to find out.
In the world of coffee creamer, sweet cream coffee creamer is sort of a new kid on the block. Yeah, people have been ordering their Dunkin’ coffee light and sweet since the beginning of time (or thereabouts), but for decades the creamer section of the dairy aisle was dominated by flavored options like french vanilla, Irish cream, and hazelnut. Then Coffee-mate Italian Sweet Cream came along and changed the game forever. I know I switched and never looked back.
I will say that this was a slightly tricky ranking because a lot of sweet cream creamer tastes alike, especially once it’s been incorporated into a cup of coffee from our office Keurig. But we went ahead and ranked them on richness and overall flavor, and gave them superlatives so you can find the best one for your needs, including the best zero sugar Italian sweet cream coffee creamer and the best real cream variety if you have an aversion to creamers that are mostly made with water and oil. Read on for better mornings. (Note: We wanted to include a plant-based creamer, but didn’t find an option we liked; let us know in the comments if you’ve found one you love.)
- Lucerne Sugar Free Italian Style Sweet Cream
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Full disclosure: I am a sweet cream coffee creamer drinker, and I generally opt for zero sugar versions. For a while, it seemed like Coffee-mate was the only game in town, but now lots of more affordable store brands are making their own. I recently switched to Lucerne (sold at Albertsons-owned grocery stores), and I swear it’s better than or at least as good as Coffee-mate Italian Sweet Cream zero sugar—and it’s cheaper! Does it taste a bit like artificial sweeteners? It sure does. But if you’re used to drinking zero sugar creamer, you’ll be fine. Of all the zero sugar options we tried, this is the best sweet cream coffee creamer to buy.
Credit: Liv Averett / Vons
- Dunkin’ Extra Extra
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If you always order your coffee light and sweet when you go to Dunkin’, a.) Please keep an eye on your blood sugar; Type II diabetes is no joke, and b.) you should be buying this sweet cream coffee creamer for your coffee at home. This coffee creamer is made with real cream and sugar rather than oil and water. I used this in coffee made with one of those generic “doughnut shop” Keurig pods, and I swear it really did taste like Dunkin’ coffee. This is the best sweet and creamy coffee creamer to buy if you want your Dunkin’ fix but don’t need to be tempted to also buy a dozen Munchkins every morning.
Credit: Liv Averett / Walmart
- Coffee-mate Italian Sweet Cream
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I can’t say for sure that Coffee-mate is the originator of the Italian sweet cream coffee creamer trend, but it sure feels that way. It’s definitely the first brand I recall seeing and buying. And it’s still very good! I tasted this one alongside International Delight Sweet & Creamy creamer, which I liked better on its own—but who is drinking coffee creamer on its own? Coffee-mate tasted better in coffee. Additionally, International Delight is made with palm oil rather than soybean oil, and palm oil is pretty bad news for the environment. Say what you will about creamers made with oil—they are very rich and creamy! This remains one of the best sweet cream coffee creamers if you don’t care about your creamer actually being made with cream.
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Kroger Italian Style Sweet Cream Coffee Creamer
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This oil-based sweet cream coffee creamer from Kroger just barely edged out Coffee-mate in the flavor department. It’s another water, sugar, soybean oil slurry, but it has a distinctly fatty, almost coconutty flavor that reminded me of good canned whipped cream plus a touch of coconut oil. It’s really good! It’s the best oil-based sweet cream coffee creamer we tried.
Credit: Liv Averett / Ralphs
- Coffee-mate Natural Bliss Sweet Cream
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Okay, this is where things really get tricky. Coffee-mate Natural Bliss Sweet Cream and Chobani Sweet Cream coffee creamer are both stellar. They contain the exact same ingredients—milk, cream, sugar, and natural flavors—and have the same fat and calorie content. They’re both incredibly sweet and rich. These cream-based creamers are essentially tied. Chobani just gets a slight edge in the flavor department…
Credit: Liv Averett / Target
- Chobani Sweet Cream
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I made a couple of my colleagues taste coffee spiked with Chobani Sweet Cream and coffee spiked with Natural Bliss Sweet Cream, and Chobani came out on top. Chobani has a little bit of a marshmallowy cream flavor that resonated with everyone a bit more than the whipped cream flavor of the Natural Bliss. So, yes, Chobani is the best sweet cream coffee creamer—but if you pick up Natural Bliss instead, you’re gonna be just as happy.
Credit: Liv Averett / Ralphs
Best Zero Sugar
Best for Dunkin’ Fans
Best Rich
Best Unique
Runner-Up
Best of the Best
Other products we tried: International Delight Sweet & Creamy, Silk Sweet & Creamy, Coffee-mate Zero Sugar Italian Sweet Cream, Great Value Italian Sweet Cream, Barrissimo Italian Sweet Cream
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