How to Make the Best Iced Coffee at Home

My go-to coffee shop order is iced coffee. It gives you a morning energy boost, but with the refreshing quench of an iced beverage. It's truly the best of both worlds. There's just one problem — it took me a while before I could replicate coffeehouse-quality iced coffee in my own home.

You see iced coffee, unlike cold brew, is brewed hot. It's then poured over ice, which can often leave you with a watered down, subpar coffee drink. So how do you avoid this? Use these methods to make full-flavored iced coffee at home.

How to Make Iced Coffee 2 Ways

Use one of these two methods to make fabulous iced coffee using what you have on hand.

1. How to Make Iced Coffee Using Room Temperature Coffee

This is probably the easiest way to make iced coffee, assuming you have the time. All you need to do is brew coffee as you normally would, allow it to cool, and pour it over ice. Let's break it down here:

Here's What You'll Need:

• A tall glass or travel tumbler ($12, Amazon)
• A long spoon
• Ice
• 1 8-ounce cup of coffee (brewed however you would normally)

Instructions:

1. Brew an 8-ounce cup of coffee using whatever brewing method you prefer.
2. Allow the coffee to sit out until it reaches room temperature; you can even place it in the fridge once it's cooled down slightly.
3. Fill a tall glass or a travel tumbler to the rim with ice.
4. Pour the room temperature or chilled coffee into the glass. Leave room for cream and sugar if you take it that way.
5. Add any additional ingredients you like in your coffee (simple syrup is a great way to sweeten up iced coffee), and stir. That's it! And of course you can't drink iced coffee without a cute reusable straw ($10, Amazon).

2. How to Make Iced Coffee Using Coffee Ice Cubes

If you really want to make sure your coffee will not be watered down, there's only one solution: coffee ice cubes! This method takes forethought, but once you have coffee ice cubes on hand you don't have to wait for the coffee to come to room temperature before you pour it over ice.

Here's What You'll Need:

• Room temperature coffee (brewed however you would normally)
• Ice cube tray (this set of flexible silicone trays is $18 on Amazon)
• A glass or travel tumbler ($12, Amazon)
• A long spoon
• 1 8-ounce cup of fresh, hot coffee

Instructions:

1. The night before, pour cooled coffee into ice cube trays. Freeze overnight.
2. In the morning, fill a glass or a travel tumbler to the rim with coffee ice cubes.
3. Pour fresh coffee over the ice. Leave room for cream and sugar if you take it that way.
4. Add any additional ingredients you like in your coffee (simple syrup is a great way to sweeten up iced coffee), and stir. That's it! And of course you can't drink iced coffee without a cute reusable straw ($10, Amazon).

Related:

• 12 Best Iced Coffee Drinks
• 40 Coffee Shop Drinks and Treats You Can Make at Home
• Browse our entire collection of Coffee Drinks.