What's the Difference between Diet Coke and Coke Zero?

Did You Know?
Aspartame, an artificial sweetener added in Coca Cola beverages is 180-200 times sweeter than sugar.

Since its introduction in the late 19th century, Coca Cola has become one of the most iconic brands in the soft drinks industry.

In 1944, The Coca Cola Company in the United States made 'Coke' as its trademark on all its forthcoming products. In the late 20th century, Coca Cola received a lot of flak from heath watchers for its high calorie content. For instance, a 150 ml can of regular Coke has around 63 calories.

So, keeping the calorie content in mind, the company came up with two new versions of regular Coke; Diet Coke (launched in the early 1980s) and Coke Zero (introduced in 2005). These two products are low-calorie versions of regular Coke.

Both these beverages are formulated without using sugar. Hence, one does not have to really worry about calories, when having these beverages. In short, these beverages are sugar-free soft drinks that have been formulated for the calorie-conscious. The following write-up elaborates more on the difference between Diet Coke and Coke Zero.

Caffeine

Diet Coke 
♦ Caffeine content of Diet Coke is higher than that of Coke Zero. For instance, 100 ml of Diet Coke contains 12.8 mg of caffeine.

Coke Zero
♦ A 100 ml can of Coke Zero supplies around 9.6 mg of caffeine.

Diet Coke
♦ Although Diet Coke is strongly advertised as a beverage with no calories, it does contain anywhere between 1 to 4 calories.

Coke Zero
♦ Coke Zero has 0.5 calories per 100 ml. However, this calorie content is negligible; hence the beverage is described as a zero-calorie drink.

Diet Coke
♦ Although there are different variants of Diet Coke, the most widely available version primarily contains aspartame, an artificial sweetener. An 8 oz serving of Diet Coke contains around 125 mg of aspartame.

Coke Zero
♦ Coke Zero contains a combination of two sweeteners that include aspartame and acesulfame potassium.

However, the amount of aspartame in Coke Zero is significantly less than in Diet Coke. An 8 oz can of Coke Zero has approximately 58 mg of aspartame.

Diet Coke
♦ Introduced way back in 1982, it is little wonder that Diet Coke is far more popular than Coke Zero. Its popularity can be gauged from the fact that the beverage stands second in the top 10 bestselling soft drinks in the world as of 2013.

Coke Zero
♦ Although the popularity of Coke Zero is gradually increasing, it hasn't yet reached the list of top 10 bestselling soft drinks.

Diet Coke
♦ Although the coloring agents and natural flavors added in both the beverages are the same, the type of food additives used are different. Phosphoric acid (E338) that acts as an acidulating agent is added in Diet Coke.

Coke Zero
♦ Coke Zero, apart from containing phosphoric acid (E338), also has sodium citrate (E331).

Diet Coke Plus, a modified version of Diet Coke was launched in 2009 in the UK. The drink was added with minerals and vitamins to boost its nutritional value. However, its production ceased in 2011. So, currently there are no variants in Diet Coke that provide essential nutrients.

Similarly, Coke Zero comes with different flavors but none of them contain added minerals. Hence, there is no point in discussing which is better nutrition-wise.

One cannot forget that food additives like phosphoric acid added in Diet Coke or Coke Zero impart acidity to these soft drinks. The high concentration of these food acids can actually damage the tooth enamel. So drinking these beverages frequently, is not advisable.