If you're choosing between Bare Brew and Celsius, you're already asking the right question. Both are marketed as clean energy. Both have zero sugar. But one has 2 ingredients and the other has 15+. Here's the honest breakdown so you can decide which one belongs in your fridge.
This comparison is for anyone who's tired of decoding ingredient labels and wants a straight answer: which drink gives you cleaner energy, and where does each one actually win?
The Quick Version
Bare Brew is cold brew coffee with 2 ingredients (100% Arabica coffee and filtered water), 320mg of natural caffeine, zero sugar, zero sweeteners, and zero calories. Celsius is a sparkling fitness drink with 200mg of caffeine from green tea and guarana, zero sugar, 10 calories, and a proprietary blend that includes sucralose, taurine, and about a dozen other ingredients.
They solve the same problem — energy without the sugar crash — but they take very different paths to get there.
Head-to-Head Comparison
| Category | Bare Brew | Celsius | Winner |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caffeine | 320mg per 12oz can | 200mg per 12oz can | Bare Brew (60% more) |
| Caffeine Source | 100% Arabica coffee (natural) | Green tea extract + guarana + added caffeine | Bare Brew (single source) |
| Ingredients | 2 (coffee, water) | 15+ (including sucralose, glucuronolactone, taurine) | Bare Brew |
| Sugar | 0g | 0g | Tie |
| Artificial Sweeteners | None | Sucralose | Bare Brew |
| Calories | 0 | 10 | Bare Brew |
| Flavor Options | 1 (black cold brew) | 14+ flavors | Celsius |
| Availability | Online (DTC) + select retail | Gas stations, grocery stores, gyms nationwide | Celsius |
| Price Per Can | ~$3.99 retail | ~$2.50-$2.89 retail | Celsius |
| Acidity | 67% less acidic than regular coffee | Contains citric acid | Bare Brew |
Where Celsius Wins
Flavor variety. If you want sparkling watermelon, peach vibe, or arctic vortex, Celsius has you covered with 14+ flavors. Bare Brew is black cold brew. That's it. If you need variety, Celsius wins this category outright.
Availability. Celsius is in every gas station, Target, Walmart, and gym cooler in America. You can grab one anywhere. Bare Brew ships direct-to-consumer and is in select retail locations. If convenience matters most, Celsius has the edge.
Price. At roughly $2.50-$2.89 per can retail, Celsius costs less than Bare Brew's ~$3.99. On a pure cost basis, Celsius is the more affordable option.
Where Bare Brew Wins
Ingredient transparency. Two ingredients. Coffee and water. You can read the entire label in two seconds. Celsius uses a proprietary MetaPlus blend with taurine, guarana, glucuronolactone, ginger root extract, green tea extract, and sucralose. None of those are necessarily dangerous — but "clean" gets harder to define when you need a chemistry background to read the label.
No artificial sweeteners. Celsius uses sucralose to achieve its zero-sugar, flavored formula. Bare Brew doesn't use any sweeteners at all — artificial or natural. For people specifically avoiding sucralose (and there are a lot of you, based on my DMs), this is the deciding factor.
Caffeine per serving. 320mg vs 200mg. Bare Brew delivers 60% more caffeine from a single, natural source. If you're looking for maximum clean energy per can, Bare Brew is the stronger option. Worth noting: the FDA considers 400mg the daily recommended max, so one can of either still keeps you well within range.
Zero calories. Bare Brew has literally nothing in it except coffee and water, so it's 0 calories. Celsius has 10 per can. Not a huge difference, but if you're tracking macros precisely, zero is zero.
The Ingredient Breakdown
Bare Brew's full ingredient list: 100% Arabica coffee, filtered water.
Celsius's full ingredient list (Original flavor): Carbonated filtered water, citric acid, taurine, guarana seed extract, fruit juice (for color), green tea extract, caffeine, vegetable juice (for color), calcium carbonate, sucralose, ascorbic acid, glucuronolactone, ginger root extract, natural flavor, calcium pantothenate, niacinamide, pyridoxine hydrochloride, riboflavin, chromium chelate, biotin, cyanocobalamin.
Count those. That's 21 ingredients vs 2. Both drinks have zero sugar and deliver real caffeine. The difference is everything else in the can.
Who Should Pick Which
Pick Celsius if: you want flavored energy drinks, prefer sparkling beverages, need something you can grab anywhere, want moderate caffeine (200mg), or are on a tight budget.
Pick Bare Brew if: you want the shortest ingredient list possible, are avoiding artificial sweeteners entirely, prefer coffee-based caffeine over blended sources, want maximum caffeine per can, or prioritize knowing exactly what's in your drink.
Both are miles better than a Monster or Red Bull. The question is whether "clean" means zero sugar — or zero complexity.
Try Bare Brew Cold Brew — 2 ingredients, 320mg caffeine, zero sugar, zero sweeteners. Newsweek's "Best Cold Brew" winner.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Bare Brew healthier than Celsius?
It depends on how you define "healthy." Bare Brew has fewer ingredients (2 vs 15+), no artificial sweeteners, and zero calories. Celsius includes added vitamins and its MetaPlus blend with thermogenic properties. If your priority is ingredient simplicity and avoiding sweeteners like sucralose, Bare Brew is the cleaner option. If you want added vitamins and a thermogenic blend, Celsius offers more functional ingredients.
Does Celsius have more caffeine than cold brew?
No. Celsius contains 200mg of caffeine per 12oz can. Bare Brew cold brew contains 320mg per 12oz can — 60% more caffeine. Most standard cold brews range from 150-250mg per serving, making Bare Brew one of the strongest on the market.
Is sucralose in Celsius safe?
Sucralose is FDA-approved and generally recognized as safe. However, some consumers prefer to avoid artificial sweeteners based on ongoing research into gut microbiome effects and personal tolerance. Bare Brew avoids the question entirely by using no sweeteners of any kind.
Can I replace my pre-workout with Bare Brew or Celsius?
Both deliver enough caffeine to serve as a pre-workout alternative. Bare Brew's 320mg is comparable to most dedicated pre-workout supplements. Celsius's 200mg is solid but on the lower end for heavy lifters. Neither contains beta-alanine, creatine, or other common pre-workout compounds — they're caffeine sources, not full pre-workout replacements.
