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    Home » Recipes » Simple Syrups

    Quick Homemade Vanilla Simple Syrup for Coffee and Drinks

    Published: Aug 8, 2023 · Updated: Aug 8, 2023 by Katy McAvoy

    I love when you share my recipes!

    Jump to Recipe·Print Recipe·★★★★★5 from 1 review

    Disclaimer: This post contains affiliate links.

    The quintessential coffee house sweetener is easier to make at home than you think! Three easy pantry ingredients is all you need to create delicious homemade vanilla simple syrup. 

    A small jar of vanilla simple syrup.
    Jump to:
    • Ingredients for Vanilla Syrup
    • How to Make Homemade Vanilla Simple Syrup 
    • Recipe Tips 
    • How to Use Homemade Vanilla Syrup 
    • FAQs and Substitutions 
    • Don’t Miss These Simple Syrup Recipes for Coffee
    • More Delicious Recipes You'll Love
    • Print the Recipe Card
    • Easy Vanilla Syrup for Coffee

    This homemade vanilla syrup recipe couldn't be simpler to make! It's the best way to sweeten your coffee drinks at home, especially if you're a fan of cold brew coffee.

    Homemade vanilla coffee syrup is a liquid sweetener making it ideal for cold beverages so you don't have to worry about grit in your drink from pure cane sugar.

    Making your own vanilla syrup from simple ingredients easily found at the grocery store is quick and tastes better than Starbucks vanilla syrup or any other simple syrup you buy at the store.

    And all we're doing is taking a basic simple syrup recipe and dressing it up with whole bean vanilla or quality vanilla extract! 

    Skip the drive to your favorite coffee shop and make this homemade syrup in your own kitchen! 

    Ingredients for Vanilla Syrup

    Ingredients for vanilla simple syrup.
    • White sugar - Choose either cane sugar or beet sugar
    • Vanilla extract or a whole vanilla bean - High quality vanilla is necessary in this recipe. Use a real vanilla bean or 100% pure vanilla extract.

    How to Make Homemade Vanilla Simple Syrup 

    Bring water to a low boil in a small pot over medium heat. Add sugar.

    Sugar being poured into a small pot.

    Stir until the sugar dissolves. Remove from heat. Add in vanilla extract or vanilla beans.

    Vanilla extract being poured into a jar of syrup.

    Let the mixture sit until it reaches room temperature. (This is especially important if you’re using a vanilla beans instead of extract.) Remove vanilla beans, if using, or leave it the syrup for a stronger flavor.

    Pour your syrup into a glass, airtight container. 

    Store syrup in the refrigerator until ready to use.

    Vanilla syrup being poured into a cup of coffee.

    Recipe Tips 

    • Cool the syrup completely before using it in cold drinks. Using hot or even room temperature syrup in cold drinks will cause the ice cubes to melt more quickly resulting in a watery drink. 
    • Use only 100% vanilla extract made with real vanilla bean. (The expensive one, not the cheap extract made with artificial vanilla flavoring.) This makes a HUGE difference in the vanilla flavor in your syrup. 
    • Customize the sweetness level by adjusting the amount of sugar in your syrup. The standard ratio of sugar to water in simple syrup is 1:1. Make a sweeter rich syrup by increasing the sugar to a 2:1 ratio. Decrease the sweetness to create a light syrup level by using a 1:2 ratio of sugar to water. 
    A small jar of vanilla simple syrup.

    How to Use Homemade Vanilla Syrup 

    • To sweeten your morning coffee - Either hot or cold! 
    • Add it to your favorite hot chocolate. 
    • Whisk 1 teaspoon of vanilla syrup into 1 tablespoon of heavy cream until the cream is frothy. Use it as homemade sweet cream foam on top of iced coffee.
    • Drizzle 1-2 tablespoon of syrup over fresh fruit and chopped, fresh mint for a quick fruit salad.
    • Add to a glass of Coca-Cola to make your own vanilla Coke at home.
    • Make a French soda (pictured below) - Fill a tall glass with ice. Add in 2 oz vanilla syrup and 4 oz of club soda or sparkling water. Pour 1 tablespoon of heavy cream on top. Stir, sip and enjoy! 
    A hand picking up a glass of vanilla French soda.

    FAQs and Substitutions 

    Why isn’t my syrup clear?

    If you’re used to seeing clear or light yellow vanilla syrups at coffee shops, the brown color of this syrup might surprise you. By using pure vanilla extract or vanilla beans, you’re creating a syrup with completely natural color in it, which isn’t always the case with the syrups found in coffee shops. 

    I used vanilla beans and now there’s little black specs in my syrup. Why?

    These are little flecks of flavor from the inside of the vanilla bean. As it steeps in the hot syrup, it’s very possible that your vanilla bean has released a few of the flecks from inside of it. (This will be especially true if you cut the vanilla bean in half before putting it into the syrup.) 

    How long will vanilla simple syrup last in the refrigerator?

    Vanilla simple syrup will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks. Discard it if the syrup becomes cloudy or you see any change in its color. 

    What should I store my syrup in?

    I highly recommend using an air-tight glass jar - like a pint mason jar or bottle with a tight-fitting lid. Plastic containers can give off the flavors of whatever was stored in them last, which will impact the flavor of your syrup. Using glass avoids this.

    Drinks made using vanilla simple syrup.

    Don’t Miss These Simple Syrup Recipes for Coffee

    Simple syrup is a delicious and easy way to add both sweetness and flavor to your coffee. I love my pumpkin spice syrup or cinnamon syrup in my coffee, especially in the fall and during the holidays when I'm drinking more hot sips.

    Pumpkin Spice Syrup
    Pumpkin Spice Syrup
    A glass jar of cinnamon simple syrup with a cup of coffee.
    Cinnamon Simple Syrup

    More Delicious Recipes You'll Love

    • How to Make Fresh Mint Simple Syrup
    • Easy and Refreshing Blackberry Vanilla Vodka Martini
    • Fresh Strawberry Pineapple Martini with Vanilla Vodka (Video)
    • Two Ingredient Coffee Syrup (Kahlua Substitute)
    • All Natural Gingerbread Coffee Creamer

    Print the Recipe Card

    Print

    Easy Vanilla Syrup for Coffee

    A jar of vanilla simple syrup.
    Print Recipe
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    ★★★★★

    5 from 1 review

    This delicious vanilla simple syrup is easy to make at home and delicious in your morning cup of coffee.

    • Author: Katy McAvoy
    • Prep Time: 5 min
    • Cook Time: 5 min
    • Total Time: 10 min
    • Yield: 12 oz 1x
    • Category: Simple Syrup
    • Method: Stove Top
    • Cuisine: American

    Ingredients

    Units Scale
    • 1 cup of water
    • 1 cup of sugar
    • 1 tbsp vanilla extract or 1-2 large vanilla beans

    Instructions

    Bring water to a low boil in a small pot over medium heat. Add sugar. Stir until sugar has dissolved. Add in vanilla extract or vanilla bean. Remove from heat.

    Let the mixture sit until it reaches room temperature. (This is especially important if you’re using a vanilla bean instead of extract.) Remove vanilla bean, if using, or leave it in for a stronger vanilla flavor.

    Pour into a glass, airtight container.

    Store syrup in the refrigerator until ready to use. Syrup will keep in the refrigerator for up to 3 weeks. 

    Equipment

    Image of Vanilla Beans

    Vanilla Beans

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    Image of Small Saucepan

    Small Saucepan

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    Glass Bottles

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    Nutrition

    • Serving Size: 1 oz
    • Calories: 68
    • Sugar: 16.8 g
    • Sodium: 1.1 mg
    • Fat: 0 g
    • Carbohydrates: 16.8 g
    • Fiber: 0 g
    • Protein: 0 g
    • Cholesterol: 0 mg

    Keywords: vanilla coffee syrup, homemade vanilla syrup, coffee syrup, vanilla bean syrup,

    Did you make this recipe?

    Share a photo and tag me @katymcavoy on Instagram! I can’t wait to see what you made!

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    I love when you share my recipes!

    About Katy McAvoy

    Katy is the author, photographer, home cook, mixologist, and Michigander behind MittenGirl.com. Since 2017, she's been crafting easy-to-make cocktails and delicious meals, along with sharing her love of all things Michigan (a.k.a. The Mitten)!

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      Recipe rating ★ 5 Stars ☆ ★ 4 Stars ☆ ★ 3 Stars ☆ ★ 2 Stars ☆ ★ 1 Star ☆

    1. June

      August 08, 2023 at 9:45 am

      ★★★★★

      Reply

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    Katy McAvoy

    Hi! I’m Katy (she/her). I’m an author, photographer, home cook, mixologist, Michigander, and lover of all things food and drink. I never turn down a good happy hour and believe that a couple hours of meal prep pays off for days. Follow me on Instagram to check out what I’m working on next!

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