Question of the month: What’s the difference between Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar?

Each month we take one of your questions and ask an in-house expert at Coca-Cola Great Britain to answer it. This month it’s Health and Nutrition Manager Anna Wheeler’s turn to explain…

Your question

Anna’s answer

This is a question I get asked a lot.

I can see where the confusion comes from. Both Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar allow you to enjoy your favourite soft drink without the sugar and calories you get in Coca-Cola Classic.

That’s because both variants are made using the same sweeteners (aspartame and acesulfame-K), which means they can both be sugar- and calorie-free, without compromising on taste.

However, when it comes to taste, that’s where the two differ slightly. Coca-Cola Zero Sugar looks and tastes more like Coca-Cola Classic, while Diet Coke has a lighter taste because it’s made with a different blend of flavours – or has a different flavour base, as some might say.

We have a saying that there’s a Coca-Cola out there for everyone. And like all our drinks, both Diet Coke and Coca-Cola Zero Sugar come in different shapes and bottle sizes – whether that’s a 250ml can for drinking on-the-go or a 1.75L bottle to keep in your fridge for sharing with friends and family. Whatever your reason for wanting a Coca-Cola, sugar free shouldn’t have to mean having fewer options.

Now for a little bit of history...

Diet Coke has been around since the 80s. It was the Coca-Cola system's first sugar free cola and arrived in Great Britain in 1983, where it quickly became one of our most popular drinks with an extremely loyal fan base.

Since then, the signature silver and red packaging has become almost as iconic as Coca-Cola Classic itself. From the infamous ‘Diet Coke break’ TV ads to collaborations with fashion designers like Jean Paul Gaultier and Marc Jacobs to create limited edition bottles and cans – it’s become a real cultural phenomenon over the years.

Coca-Cola Zero Sugar is newer to the game but it’s already making a name for itself as a sugar free alternative to Coca-Cola Classic. It launched this summer with a new and improved taste, after years of innovation and recipe development. It replaced Coca-Cola Zero, which came out in 2006.

Stay tuned for next month’s post, and if you have a question get in touch or tweet us at @CocaCola_GB.

Anna Wheeler is a Health and Nutrition Manager at Coca-Cola Great Britain. She's a registered nutritionist, tennis enthusiast and has been with the company for more than four years. Follow Anna on Twitter and LinkedIn.