Keto-Friendly Drinks: What to Drink and What to Avoid

Beverage choices are often overlooked when first starting a ketogenic lifestyle, especially as many commercial products are marketed as keto-friendly. 

Let’s explore which drinks truly support a ketogenic diet and the options that don’t, and learn what to look for on beverage labels so you can make keto‑friendly choices.

What makes a drink keto-friendly?

“Drinks are one of the most common sources of hidden carbs on keto,” explains Dr. Berg. ”Even small servings of certain beverages can raise blood sugar levels enough to temporarily slow or interrupt ketosis.”

Fortunately, you can quickly determine whether a drink is truly keto-friendly by checking if it’s:

• Low in total and net carbohydrates
• Doesn’t contain added sugars or starches
• Limits artificial sweeteners, colors, and preservatives

For those following a Healthy Keto® lifestyle, product quality and sourcing are also crucial. It’s recommended to prioritize beverages with reputable third-party certifications, such as United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) Organic, non-genetically modified (non-GMO) project verified, or similar standards.

These certifications can help reduce exposure to certain artificial ingredients and agricultural contaminants, including herbicide residues such as glyphosate.

According to research published in Scientific Reports, higher urinary glyphosate levels were associated with poor glucose balance and elevated markers of impaired blood sugar regulation in adults.

Watch the video below to discover why you should avoid diet sodas on keto.

Keto drinks to enjoy

Many keto drinks are very low in carbs and focus on simple ingredients without added sugars or ultra-processed additives.

Unsweetened hot or iced tea is naturally carb-free and comes in a wide variety, including green tea, black tea, and caffeine-free herbal teas.

Black coffee is another reliable option. Some people also enjoy bulletproof coffee, blended with nourishing fats such as butter, ghee, or medium-chain triglyceride (MCT) oil. This creates a satiating drink that can help extend intermittent fasting windows and may reduce sugar cravings during the transition into a low-carb diet.

For those who enjoy dairy or milk alternatives, heavy cream is an excellent low-carb creamer, though it should be used in moderation due to its high caloric density. Unsweetened almond milk, coconut milk, and plain kefir can also be good options.

Other hydrating keto-friendly choices include:

• Plain water
• Carbonated water
• Sparkling water
• Mineral water
• Club soda
• Sugar-free flavored waters infused with cucumber, lemon, lime, or berries

High-quality sugar-free electrolyte drinks are also an excellent option during keto adaptation to support hydration, mineral balance, energy, and muscle comfort.

Drinks to avoid on keto

Certain beverages can quickly increase carbohydrate intake and make it difficult to maintain ketosis, especially those with added sugars, juice concentrates, refined starches, and sweetened dairy or milk alternatives.

Cow’s milk contains lactose, a natural milk sugar that can provide enough carbohydrates to exceed typical ketogenic limits when consumed regularly.

In addition, sweetened plant milks and higher-carb options such as oat milk, sweetened almond milk, and rice milk are also generally unsuitable for a low-carb lifestyle.

Many commercial plant-based milks also contain gums, emulsifiers, and stabilizers to improve texture and shelf life. One common example is carrageenan, which, according to research published in Food & Function, has been associated with increased intestinal inflammation.

Other drinks that aren’t recommended on keto include:

• Sweetened energy drinks
• Sweetened coffee beverages, such as lattes, frappes, and flavored drinks
• Tonic water
• Fruit juice and juice blends
• Fruit-infused drinks made with high-glycemic fruits or added sugars
• Conventional sports drinks
• Most regular sodas

Although typically sugar-free and low in calories, most diet sodas contain artificial ingredients that may influence cravings, appetite regulation, and the gut microbiome. For these reasons, diet sodas are generally best avoided on Healthy Keto.

Alcohol should also be avoided, as it triggers blood sugar fluctuations, disrupts sleep, and contributes to systemic inflammation. This applies to all kinds of alcohol, including low-carb seltzers, hard liquors such as tequila, vodka, and whiskey, as well as sweet and dry wines such as cabernet sauvignon, pinot grigio, and sauvignon blanc.

As the body perceives and processes alcohol as a toxin, the liver prioritizes metabolizing it over burning fat, which can significantly interfere with fat adaptation and ketosis.

How to read beverage labels on keto 

Many manufacturers use marketing language to make drinks appear healthier than they really are, but these claims don’t always reflect ingredient quality or blood sugar impact. 

This is why even seemingly healthy juices or fitness drinks can quickly stall your progress, highlighting the importance of knowing how to properly decode product labels and identify which beverages will truly support your ketogenic health goals.

Here are three key beverage components to review when looking for keto-friendly drinks.

1. Serving size and servings per container

First, check the exact serving size and the number of servings in the bottle. This is crucial as a beverage may appear low in carbs per serving, but the serving size may be unrealistically small. 

If a product lists two or three servings per container and you finish the entire bottle, you’re consuming double or triple the carbohydrates, sugars, and calories.

2. Total carbohydrates, sugars, and added sugars 

Start by reviewing total carbohydrate content per serving, then check total sugars and added sugars. 

A product’s total carbohydrate count shows the overall carb content for one serving. Total sugars include both naturally occurring and added sugars, and added sugars indicate how much refined sugar was added during processing.

For keto beverages, aim to choose drinks with as close to zero carbs per serving as possible, especially those you consume regularly.

Any amount of added sugars is a strong indicator that a drink is not truly keto-friendly and will likely cause a substantial spike in blood glucose levels, temporarily halting ketosis and leading to energy dips throughout the day.

Some individuals also calculate net carbs by subtracting dietary fiber and, in some cases, certain sugar alcohols from total carbohydrates. Even when using net carbs, it’s still advisable to avoid drinks that contain added sugars or large amounts of rapidly absorbed carbohydrates.

3. Ingredients list and quality

The ingredients list is usually the most revealing of whether a product truly aligns with a Healthy Keto diet.

In general, longer ingredient lists, especially those that include many artificial or highly processed ingredients, tend to indicate a lower-quality drink.

When reviewing the ingredients list, look first for added sugars and syrups, then for hidden high-glycemic starches and refined flours, followed by artificial sweeteners and food colorings, and finally for ultra-processed seed oils.

Additionally, when reviewing labels, it’s worth noting that ingredients must be listed in descending order by weight, meaning the first few items make up the bulk of the product.

Common names of these ingredients include:

• Sugars and syrups: glucose, glucose syrup, high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), dextrose, maltose, cane sugar, invert sugar
• High-glycemic starches and refined flours: modified corn starch, modified wheat starch, modified food starch, maltodextrin, rice flour, tapioca flour
• Artificial sweeteners and food colorings: aspartame, sucralose, acesulfame potassium (Ace-K), saccharin, Red 40, Yellow 5, Yellow 6, Blue 1
• Ultra-processed seed oils: vegetable oil, corn oil, soybean oil, canola oil, cottonseed oil, sunflower oil, safflower oil

Beverages with short, simple ingredient lists containing recognizable ingredients, such as water, herbs, food-based colors, minerals, or natural low-glycemic sweeteners such as stevia, monk fruit, or allulose, are often the best options for supporting ketosis.

FAQ

Sources

1. Feng X, Wang M, Wang Y, Liang R, Yan C. Associations between environmental glyphosate exposure and glucose homeostasis indices in US general adults: a national population-based cross-sectional study. Sci Rep. 2025;15(1):1627. doi:10.1038/s41598-024-84694-5.
2. Bellanco A, Félix J, Díaz Del Cerro E, Martínez Cuesta MC, De la Fuente M, Requena T. Influence of consumption of the food additive carrageenan on the gut microbiota and the intestinal homeostasis of mice. Food Funct. 2024;15(12):6759-6767. doi:10.1039/D4FO01418A.