Iced Ube Coconut Macchiato {Starbucks Copycat}

If you love the creamy, tropical flavors of ube and coconut, the Starbucks Iced Ube Coconut Macchiato is a drink you'll want to make at home! This copycat recipe layers milk, espresso, toasted coconut syrup, and a vibrant purple ube cold foam for an iced drink that's as fun to look at as it is to sip.

Jump to:

• ❤️ Why this recipe works
• 🗒 Ingredients
• 🍠 Recipe tips
• 🎉 Variations on recipe
• ☀️ More Instagram-worthy Starbucks drink copycats
• 📖 Recipe
• 💬 Comments

In spring of 2026, Starbucks finally introduced ube!

In case you're wondering (it seems people are divided between being obsessed with ube and not quite knowing what it is), ube is purple yam from the Philippines that's commonly used in desserts and drinks.

It has a mildly sweet, nutty flavor with hints of vanilla and coconut, which is likely why Starbucks decided to use their new ube powder in a coconut-based drink that they launched along with the Toasted Coconut Cream Cold Brew.

I'm excited to show you an easy way you can make your own Iced Ube Coconut Macchiatos at home!

❤️ Why this recipe works

Complementary flavors: ube and coconut pair together really well to bring tropical spring vibes and also do the work to sweeten and tone down the bold espresso a bit.

Ube is delicious: don't be nervous when you hear purple yam or purple sweet potato. You won't get any potato flavors in this drink! In my opinion, the ube flavor is pretty subtle, but if anything tastes more like a slightly nutty and tropical marshmallow.

Pretty drink: of course, that bright purple cold foam is stunning! And probably a big reason why Starbucks decided to launch ube drinks (pretty drinks sell!). When making the ube coconut cold foam at home, it's not quite as bright and bold as Starbucks', but I do have suggestions to get it even more purple-hued if you want.

Easy to make: while you will need a couple special ingredients to make this drink- ube powder and toasted coconut syrup- it's really easy to assemble! I give you the option to either make or buy the syrup (it's easy to make!).

🗒 Ingredients

Here's everything you need to make your own Starbucks Iced Ube Coconut Macchiato (be sure to view the recipe card at the bottom of this post for ingredient amounts and full recipe instructions):

• 2% milk: or the dairy/non-dairy alternative of your choice
• Toasted coconut syrup: you can use a store-bought syrup or make your own homemade toasted coconut syrup (it's easy!)
• Ice
• Espresso: or very strongly brewed coffee
• Ube coconut cold foam: I should you how to make this with ingredients listed below
• Toasted coconut flakes: for topping

And here's what you need for the Ube Coconut Cold Foam:

• Ube powder: sometimes called purple yam powder
• Granulated sugar
• Heavy cream
• 2% milk
• Toasted coconut syrup: you can use a store-bought syrup or make your own homemade toasted coconut syrup

🍠 Recipe tips

• Be sure to get ube powder or purple yam powder. Don't get purple sweet potato powder as this is different and will have a more earthy, sweet-potato taste rather than a dessert-like flavor.

• Mix the ube powder with granulated sugar and a bit of salt to get a sweetened ube powder like Starbucks uses.

• In addition to the purple yam powder, Starbucks uses some natural coloring from sweet potatoes, carrots, and blueberries to their powder to make it bolder. You can add a little purple ube extract or you can add a drop of purple food coloring to your ube sweet cream. I did neither in this recipe and was happy with the color of my cold foam, though it's not quite as bright as Starbucks'.

• You can make the ube sweet cream in advance and keep it in a mason jar or airtight container in your fridge. When you're ready for your drink, whip it into a cold foam.
  
• If you don't have a frother, you can make your cold foam in a blender or with a hand mixer. You can even just keep it in the mason jar and shake it vigorously. Your foam won't be quite as voluminous, but it will still give you a nice froth.

• Stir the milk and toasted coconut syrup together in an ice-filled glass. Starbucks uses 3 pumps of syrup in this grande macchiato, which equates to about ¾ ounce or 1 ½ tablespoons.
  
• You can feel free to add more syrup if you like a sweeter drink or use less for a less sweet drink.

• I recommend very gently pouring the espresso over the ice as this will help create a layered macchiato look with the coffee floating above the milk.

• Once the espresso has been poured in, immediately top the drink with ube coconut cold foam and toasted coconut.

Gorgeous, right?? And it's also incredibly tasty!

Some have said you can barely taste the ube in the macchiato, but I do think this drink has a slightly sweeter, more marshmallow-like flavor than it would with just coconut syrup.

It's sweet while still being coffee-forward and especially perfect for spring.

And totally Instagram-worthy, too, of course!

🎉 Variations on recipe

Whenever I develop Starbucks copycat recipes, I try to keep them as close to how Starbucks makes them as possible, while making them accessibly to the home cook/barista.

But I also like to offer ideas on things you can do and ingredients you can add to make the drinks your own! Here are some ideas for this Iced Ube Coconut Macchiato:

• You can use any milk or dairy-free alternative for this macchiato... but I've made it several times with coconut milk and love it this way! I use unsweetened, but you could add sweetened and use less syrup if you want.
• If macchiatos aren't your thing, you can just stir the espresso, milk, and syrup together for a creamy iced ube coconut latte.
• Turn the drink into a Frappuccino by blending the macchiato ingredients with ice and then topping the drink off with the ube cold foam.
• Line the cup with white mocha sauce for more sweetness and yummy complementary flavor.
• If you want all the ube flavor, use ube syrup in this drink instead of toasted coconut syrup.

If you want a bolder purple ube coconut cold foam, here are some recommendations:

• Add 2-4 drops ube extract to the ube sweet cream mixture.
• Add a little purple food coloring to the ube sweet cream mixture.
• Increase the amount of ube powder you use in the dry mixture.

☀️ More Instagram-worthy Starbucks drink copycats

Some of my favorite Starbucks drinks to make at home are the ones that are instantly photo-ready!

Here are some of the best if you're looking for a gorgeous drink fit for the Instagram feed:

If you're looking for a coffee drink that brings sweet tropical vibes, you've got to try this springtime iced macchiato!

What other Starbucks drinks will you be adding ube powder to?

📖 Recipe