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Calories · Café & desserts

Calories in bubble tea (milk tea with pearls)

A typical restaurant serving of bubble tea (milk tea with pearls) (one 500 ml cup with tapioca pearls, regular sugar, about 520 g) is about 280 calories, usually 180–450.

Restaurant portions vary; this is a typical estimate, not a label. Also called boba milk tea, pearl milk tea, milk tea.

~280
Bubble tea (milk tea with pearls)

The usual range

Drawn on one 0–2,000 scale shared by every dish page, so plates compare at a glance.

Protein, carbs and fat

  • Protein2 g
  • Carbs54 g
  • Fat7 g

One serving

Serving
one 500 ml cup with tapioca pearls, regular sugar
Weight
~520 g
Per 100 g
~55

The dish

About bubble tea (milk tea with pearls)

A cup of bubble tea gets nearly all its calories from sugar syrup, the chewy tapioca pearls and creamer. Lowering the sweetness level is the single biggest lever, followed by fewer pearls and skipping foam toppings.

What moves the number

Why one plate is 180 and another 450

  • Sugar syrup (sweetness level)
  • Tapioca pearls
  • Creamer or full milk
  • Cheese foam or pudding toppings

Ordering lighter

If you want a lighter plate

  • Choose 25–50% sugar
  • Ask for half pearls
  • Pick fresh milk over creamer

Side by side

Next to other Café & desserts dishes

Café & desserts · typical restaurant servingAll about Café & desserts food →

  • Cappuccino~100one small café cappuccino, 12 fl oz · usually 60–180
  • Latte~210one medium café latte, 16 fl oz · usually 100–300
  • Glazed donut~250one medium glazed yeast donut · usually 190–450
  • Ice cream~250one generous parlor scoop in a cup · usually 130–500
  • Matcha latte~250one 16 oz café matcha latte with 2% milk, sweetened · usually 180–400
  • Bubble tea (milk tea with pearls)~280one 500 ml cup with tapioca pearls, regular sugar · usually 180–450
  • Croissant~280one café butter croissant · usually 200–450
  • Banana bread~320one thick café slice, without butter · usually 250–550
  • Mocha~320one medium café mocha, 16 fl oz · usually 150–500
  • Fruit smoothie~360one small café smoothie with fruit and yogurt or milk · usually 200–750
  • Hot chocolate~380one 12 fl oz café hot chocolate with whipped cream · usually 150–600
  • Brownie~400one café brownie · usually 250–750

In PlateDiary

A rough number for the dishes you save — only if you want one.

Off unless you turn them on

Calories in PlateDiary are off unless you turn them on. Switch them on and, when PlateDiary AI reads your photo of the table, each dish gets one rough “~” number. Accept it or change it; a number you correct is remembered for that dish. With Calories off, the app looks exactly as it did before.

A read sends small pictures of the cut-out dishes, with the place's name as a hint — never the table photo, faces or your location. Calorie numbers never go to analytics, and nothing is written to a health app. PlateDiary AI starts with free tries; here is how it works.

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How these numbers were made

Method and sources

Last reviewed

Restaurant portions and cooking vary, so these are typical estimates for one serving, built from the sources below. Treat it as a rough number: your plate may land anywhere in the range.

If you manage a health condition, ask a doctor or registered dietitian.

AI helped draft this page; every number was checked against the sources.

  1. USDA FoodData Central (FNDDS) — Tea, bubble
  2. Korea MFDS Food Composition Database — Milk bubble tea, restaurant chain (밀크 버블티)

Questions

Questions people ask.

How many calories are in bubble tea (milk tea with pearls)?

A typical restaurant serving of bubble tea (milk tea with pearls) (one 500 ml cup with tapioca pearls, regular sugar, about 520 g) is about 280 calories, usually 180–450. The number depends mostly on the portion and how it is cooked.

Is milk tea the same as bubble tea?

Broadly, yes: milk tea with tapioca pearls is what most shops call bubble tea or boba, about 280 for a 500 ml cup at regular sugar.

Does 25% sugar make a big difference?

It is the single biggest lever, since sugar syrup is most of the cup. Fewer pearls and no cheese foam come next.

What changes the calories in bubble tea (milk tea with pearls)?

Sugar syrup (sweetness level). Tapioca pearls.

How can I order bubble tea (milk tea with pearls) lighter?

Choose 25–50% sugar. Ask for half pearls.

Can PlateDiary show calories for the dishes I eat out?

Yes, if you want it to: calories in PlateDiary are off unless you turn them on. Switch them on and each dish you save from a photo of the table gets one rough “~” number you can accept or change.