A morning cup of Joe simply doesn’t feel right if you are not sipping it from your fav mug. A coffee mug can actually tell a lot about you and it’s easy to guess whether you are a true coffee aficionado by the stains on the inside of it. Instead of throwing it away, let us teach you how to remove coffee stains from cups.
Here’s the quick and easy way to do it:
- Sprinkle some baking soda into the cup
- Add several drops of lemon or vinegar
Alternative: Pour a spoon of coarse salt and a couple of crushed ice cubes inside - Let whatever mixture you choose to sit there for about 5 to 10 minutes
- Rinse the cup with clear water
Don’t forget that brown coffee stains are immune to soap and warm water, making them useless.
- Also read: How to clean a stainless steel coffee pot?
You need something more powerful to fight off the discoloration issues related to coffee stains.
Table of Contents
How to Remove Coffee Stains from Mugs – The 6 Best Methods!
Below you’ll find 6 brilliant tricks that will most definitely help you to get rid of those nasty stains!
1. Salt and Lemon
- Squeeze a quart of lemon into your coffee cup
- Cover the stained area completely
Optional step: Add a spoon of salt (optional but recommended for tougher stains) - Let the mixture sit for 10 minutes
- Rinse with clear water
2. White Vinegar
- Heat some vinegar in a microwave
- Pour it into your cup
- Leave it overnight (if the staining is severe) or let it sit for about an hour
- Rinse away with clear water
- Also read: How to clean a coffee maker with baking soda?
3. Baking Soda
- Sprinkle 2 teaspoons of baking soda or more to cover stained spots
- Add some water to it to make a paste
- Use a microfiber cloth to rub the paste into the inside of the cup
- Scrub until there are no visible stains and rinse with water
4. Denture Tablets
- Fill the cup with warm water to the top
- Add a denture tablet
- This will create a fizzy reaction that should last for a couple of minutes
- Once the fizzing stops, empty the cup
- Fill it with warm water and add a drop of soap
- Scrub the inside of the cup with a brush
- Rinse it with clear water
5. Hydrogen Peroxide and Baking Soda
- Pour ½ of your coffee mug with hydrogen peroxide
- Add 2 tablespoons of baking soda
- Stir with a spoon
- Wait for 30 minutes to 1 hour until the liquid turns brown
- Dump the liquid into the sink
- Wash the cup with dish soap and warm water
- Rinse the cup with cold water and dry with a cloth
6. Melamine Sponge
- Use a melamine sponge to rub dry the inside of the cup
- Scrub the inside for a couple of minutes
- Fill it with warm water and add a drop of dish soap
- Rinse with clear water
Coffee Stains Dos and Don’ts
There are important factors to consider when dealing with coffee stains, so read carefully!
- Also read: What is in a coffee maker cleaner?
Kicking off with:
1. Dos
Wash your cups with a dish soap within 30 minutes after you consume the coffee.
The longer the coffee residue sits in the mug, the greater the chance of discoloration.
If you can clearly see multiple stains and cracks on the inside of your cup, there’s no point in investing any effort and time into removing the stains.
Recycle it and find a new favorite mug but make sure to take better care of it!
2. Don’ts
Don’t use abrasive materials when trying to scrape off stains from your coffee mug.
Why? Because this can damage the surface even more.
Instead, stick to the cleaning agents we recommended above and only resort to using dishwashing brushes and sponges.
How Do You Get Coffee Stains Out of a Stainless Steel Travel Mug?
This is a superb and mega easy way of getting rid of the coffee stains in your stainless steel travel mug:
- Add 2 teaspoons of baking soda into your stainless steel mug
- Top it off with white vinegar
Note – never close the lid of your mug when using this mixture to de-stain it!
That’s because the combination of baking soda and vinegar can generate pressure within the mug and damage it from the inside when the lid is closed.
- Also read: How to clean a coffee thermos?
When the reaction subsides, brush the walls of the mug with a brush and rinse it with water to give it a nice and crisp finish.
How Do You Get Coffee Stains Out of Ceramic Cups?
Here’s our top recommended method for eliminating coffee-related stains from your precious ceramic cups:
- Grab some baking soda and water
- Make a paste inside the mug and use a brush to spread it all over the inside of the mug
- Wait for a couple of minutes for it to work and rinse away with water
Conclusion
Now you’ll be able to conquer those nasty stains with the help of our super helpful tips and methods on how to remove coffee stains from cups.
There’s no doubt that this kind of stains is definitely rather tricky and hard to deal with, especially soap and water won’t be of any use.
But we’d like to know – would you be sorry to throw away your favorite mug in the trash?
And how long do you typically leave it to sit before washing it?
Lastly, have you tried any of the above-mentioned tips and did they work?
Leave a comment with your answer below!
Did somebody say coffee? Two shots of espresso for me, thanks. Oh, nevermind – I’m Simon, nice to e-meet you, dear CoffeeLifior! I like to write, drink coffee and I believe in Jesus. Highly-caffeinated drinks are my thing, but you can occasionally see me sip on decaf (my wife never finishes her coffee). Speaking of which, I’m off to grab another cup of caffeinated goodness now, laters!
Last update on 2021-04-14 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API