Energy drink withdrawal: timeline, symptoms and a taper plan by can

Energy drink withdrawal is caffeine withdrawal. It usually starts 12 to 24 hours after your last can, is at its worst somewhere between 20 and 51 hours, and lasts 2 to 9 days, according to a 2004 review of 66 studies. Headache, tiredness and low mood are the common signs.

Key points

• The timeline comes from a review by Juliano and Griffiths, published in Psychopharmacology in 2004.
• About half the people in the experiments got a headache. About 13% had symptoms bad enough to get in the way of work or daily life.
• Stopping as little as 100 mg a day can cause symptoms. One Monster is about 160 mg, so even a one can habit counts.
• Cutting down over a few weeks is gentler than stopping at once. The FDA says to cut back gradually.
• Chest pain, fainting or a racing heart that will not settle is not normal withdrawal. Get medical help.

How long does energy drink withdrawal last?

For most people, 2 to 9 days. That range is from Juliano and Griffiths, who pulled together 57 experiments and 9 surveys on caffeine withdrawal. The worst part is usually day two. After that it eases, slowly, then all at once.

The withdrawal the research describes is caffeine withdrawal. The taurine and the B vitamins are not part of that story. What you miss is the caffeine, and the routine around it.

Time since your last can	What usually happens
0 to 12 hours	Often nothing yet. You may feel the usual afternoon dip.
12 to 24 hours	Symptoms start: a dull headache, tiredness, trouble focusing.
20 to 51 hours	The peak. Headache, drowsiness, irritability, low mood, foggy thinking.
Day 3 to day 9	Easing. Energy comes back in patches. Cravings tied to habits stay.
After day 9	For most people the physical symptoms are gone. The 3 pm urge may not be.

Bigger habits tend to hit harder. The review found the incidence and severity of symptoms went up with the daily dose, so someone on three cans a day should expect more than someone on one.

What are the symptoms of energy drink withdrawal?

The review checked 49 reported symptoms and found 10 that held up in controlled studies: headache, fatigue, low energy, lower alertness, drowsiness, feeling less content, depressed mood, difficulty concentrating, irritability, and feeling foggy. Flu-like feelings, nausea and muscle pain or stiffness were judged likely to be real too.

Headache is the big one. In the experiments, 50% of people got one. That is a coin flip, so plan for it rather than hope.

What the list does not include: chest pain, fainting or a heart that keeps racing. Those are covered further down.

How much caffeine is in each energy drink?

This is the number that matters for a taper. Cans vary a lot, and the same brand can differ by country, so check your own label.

Drink	Can size	Caffeine	Source	Cans to reach 400 mg
Red Bull	250 ml	80 mg	Red Bull	5
Monster Energy	16 fl oz, or 500 ml outside the US	160 mg	Caffeine Informer	2.5
Celsius	12 fl oz	200 mg	Caffeine Informer	2
Prime Energy	12 fl oz	200 mg	Caffeine Informer	2
Diet Coke, for comparison	12 oz	46 mg	Coca-Cola	8.7
Coca-Cola, for comparison	12 oz	34 mg	Coca-Cola	11.8

I checked these on 24 October 2026. Red Bull and Coca-Cola publish their figures. Monster, Celsius and Prime did not show a caffeine figure on the brand pages I could open, so those three come from Caffeine Informer, a caffeine database. I left out Bang and Power Horse because I could not check a current label.

The 400 mg line is the amount the FDA cites for most healthy adults. EFSA says the same for a day and adds that a single dose up to 200 mg raises no concern. Look at the table again with that in mind: one Celsius or one Prime is already the whole single dose.

How do you taper off energy drinks without the crash?

Cut the caffeine by about a quarter each week, and do it by can. The FDA says that if you drink caffeine every day and want to cut back, you should do it gradually. There is no study that names the perfect rate. I picked a quarter a week for this plan because each step is small and you are done in about a month.

Your daily habit now	Week 1	Week 2	Week 3	Week 4	Week 5
4 cans	3 cans	2 cans	1 can	Half a can, or a smaller can	None
3 cans	2 cans	2 cans	1 can	Half a can	None
2 cans	1 and a half	1 can	Half a can	None
1 can	Three quarters	Half a can	A quarter, or a smaller can	None

A few things that make the table easier to follow:

• Drop the late can first. Keep the morning one longest. It is the one your day is built around.
• Swap down, not out. Moving from a 200 mg Celsius to an 80 mg Red Bull is a cut of more than half while you still hold a can.
• Pour off part of it. Half a can goes in the sink, the rest in a glass with ice. It sounds silly. It works.
• Watch for hidden caffeine. Coffee, tea, cola and pre-workout all count. Swapping three Monsters for three coffees is not a taper.
• Expect a bad day. If a step gives you a headache that will not shift, stay at that step for an extra week. Nobody is grading you.

Cold turkey works too, and some people prefer one hard week to a slow month. If you go that way, pick a quiet weekend for days one and two, drink water, and do not plan anything that needs your sharpest focus.

When do chest pain or palpitations mean see a doctor?

The FDA says caffeine withdrawal is not considered dangerous, though it can be unpleasant. Headaches and tiredness are expected. Chest pain is not on the list.

The NHS lists caffeine as a common cause of palpitations. It says to call 999 or go to A&E if palpitations do not go away, or if they come with chest pain, shortness of breath, feeling faint or passing out. Outside the UK, use your local emergency number. See a GP if they keep coming back, last more than a few minutes, or you have a heart condition or a family history of one.

Also talk to a doctor before you change your intake if you are pregnant, take medicine for your heart, blood pressure or mood, or have a health condition. EFSA's limit in pregnancy is 200 mg a day, which is one Celsius.

And teenagers: the FDA notes that medical experts advise against energy drinks for children and teens. If you are a parent reading this for your son or daughter, a slow taper with a doctor's help is the safer path.

How does FizzFree help with an energy drink taper?

FizzFree is the tracker I built, and it counts energy drinks as well as regular and diet soda. For an energy drink habit, three parts do the work.

• Reduce mode. It tapers you down over the weeks you choose, like the table above, or you can quit at once.
• Craving SOS. A timer, a few swaps and the reason you wrote for quitting. Day two is when I would use it most.
• The numbers. Your streak, the money you keep, and the caffeine, sugar and calories you skipped.

There is one free streak freeze every month for the day you slip, and no account. The tracker is free with ads and Premium is optional. See FizzFree, or read my comparison of apps to quit energy drinks if you want to look at the others first. It is a tracker, not a medical treatment.

Frequently asked questions

How long does energy drink withdrawal last?

Usually 2 to 9 days. Symptoms start 12 to 24 hours after the last can and peak between 20 and 51 hours, per a 2004 review of 66 studies. Cravings tied to habits, like the afternoon can, can last longer than the headache. If symptoms go past two weeks, talk to a doctor.

Is energy drink addiction real?

Caffeine dependence is real. The 2004 review found withdrawal symptoms from stopping as little as 100 mg a day, and argued that avoiding those symptoms is a big part of why people keep drinking caffeine. The sugar and the routine add to the pull. I wrote more about this in is soda addictive.

What helps an energy drink withdrawal headache?

A slower taper is the main lever, because the review found symptoms grow with the dose you stop. Beyond that, I would keep day two easy, drink water and sleep. If you want a painkiller, ask a pharmacist which one suits you. If the headache is severe or unusual for you, see a doctor.

Can I quit energy drinks cold turkey?

Yes. The FDA says withdrawal is not considered dangerous, though it can be unpleasant. Expect the worst of it on day one and day two. If you are pregnant, take regular medicine or have a heart condition, ask your doctor first. The caffeine withdrawal timeline has the hour by hour version.

How many energy drinks a day is too many?

For healthy adults, the FDA and EFSA use 400 mg of caffeine a day. That is five 250 ml Red Bulls, two and a half Monsters, or two Celsius or Prime cans, by the figures above. EFSA also says a single dose up to 200 mg raises no concern. Pregnant people and teens need far less.

How I wrote this

On 24 October 2026 I read the Juliano and Griffiths review on PubMed, the FDA's caffeine guidance, EFSA's caffeine summary and the NHS page on palpitations. I took the Red Bull and Coca-Cola caffeine figures from the brands' own pages. The Monster, Celsius and Prime brand pages were blocked or gave no number, so those three figures come from Caffeine Informer, and you should check your own can. The taper table is my own plan built on the FDA's advice to cut back gradually, not a medical protocol.

This is general information, not medical or veterinary advice. Ask your doctor or vet.

By John Osakwe, founder of Etest Tech Hub. I have built apps and websites since 2015, including Etest CBT, FizzFree and Pawlarm.