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What is Flat White Coffee? The Difference Between Flat White and Latte - Which Has More Milk?

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Flat White coffee is a coffee beverage invented in Australia, composed of espresso and milk. In China, Flat White is called "Ao Bai" or "Fu Rui Bai." The preparation process for Fu Rui White involves first extracting a double shot of espresso, then frothing the milk to create foam, and most

Espresso coffee is a popular choice in coffee shops. While many people now prefer to brew coffee at home, espresso remains a favorite for many. Especially during summer, iced espresso drinks become even more popular. Among espresso drinks, latte is the most common choice.

Some say latte is essentially a masterpiece of coffee plus milk, and indeed, that's accurate. Latte is a classic Italian espresso drink made with espresso and milk. The name "Latte" actually means "milk" in Italian, so essentially, the beverage now known worldwide as Coffee Latte is basically a product of milk mixed with coffee (without milk foam at the time).

So what about Flat White coffee? Flat White is a style that Australians developed and made their own by extending the imported espresso culture around World War II. The emergence of Flat White was an evolution of local milk coffee in the isolated continent. Among the first white Australian immigrants, most were of British and Irish descent. In their understanding, there was only black coffee and white coffee—black coffee being pure filtered coffee, and white coffee being coffee with milk. Later, during immigration waves, Italians opened coffee shops here, and the collision of languages and dietary habits forced Italian coffee shops to adapt. Over time, a milk coffee called Flat White was formed. Later, when Australian coffee culture was exported to other regions, because New Zealanders and Australians couldn't clearly explain the origin of Flat White, it became even more confused when spread abroad, resulting in various versions of Flat White, all claiming to be authentic.

Flat White Coffee

Flat White is a coffee drink originating from Australia, hence also known as Australian White Coffee, though some argue that it actually originated in New Zealand. Besides the dispute over its origin, the preparation methods for Flat White vary. Flat White is a milk coffee drink with a stronger coffee flavor/less milk and thinner milk foam. In the choice of espresso base, New Zealanders prefer to use Double Ristretto to make Flat White, while Australian baristas prefer to use Single Espresso.

In Australia, people only make Flat White hot, because once ice is added, it becomes a Flat White that has lost its soul, as ice dilutes the overall concentration. Therefore, it can also be understood that making Flat White cold essentially makes it a latte.

Latte and Flat White are both made from espresso mixed with milk, but they offer two different experiences. "Flat White is the Australian version of latte" and "Latte is milk with coffee flavor, while Flat White is coffee with milk flavor."

How to Distinguish Between Latte and Flat White Coffee?

What are the differences in taste between these two?

01 Milk Foam

Everyone knows that beautiful milk foam on the surface of espresso makes the drink look appealing, and some believe that if the milk foam isn't beautiful, the espresso isn't good either. Latte's foam is about 1cm thick, making it relatively easy for latte art; Flat White's foam is only about 5mm thick, relatively finer, smoother, and lighter, with high integration between milk and espresso, resulting in a silky texture.

02 Espresso Portion

Typically, both drinks have the same coffee content, but because Flat White uses a smaller cup, the proportion of espresso is higher, resulting in a stronger coffee flavor. Latte, on the other hand, has a heavier milk flavor and relatively less coffee taste. The cup sizes differ—a standard latte is around 300ml, while Flat White comes in a smaller cup, about 210ml (this is FrontStreet Coffee's serving size, which may vary depending on the coffee shop). So when you order a Flat White and see a smaller cup than latte, don't think it's a mistake—that's how it's supposed to be served.

03 Taste

Latte and Flat White have basically the same ingredients, with the main difference being concentration and the texture of drinking milk foam. Because Flat White uses less aerated milk, the texture is thicker and smoother, while latte's foam is more aerated, resulting in a lighter drinking experience. Drinking latte is about tasting the light and dense foam sensation, while drinking Flat White emphasizes the smooth and silky texture, as well as the balance between milk flavor and coffee flavor.

If you like milk coffee but want a more prominent coffee flavor, you can try Flat White; if you don't want too much coffee flavor, you can try latte.

Flat White has less milk proportion than latte, and the espresso concentration is also stronger. The authentic Flat White uses an espresso called Ristretto, while regular latte and Americano use Espresso.

Here are FrontStreet Coffee's parameters for making Flat White and latte, so everyone can compare more intuitively.

FrontStreet Coffee's Latte Standard:

Uses a 300ml ceramic coffee cup, with 40g espresso base and 260ml milk plus foam. Foam thickness is about 1cm (foam aeration level: 5/10 full milk aerated to 7/10 foam).

FrontStreet Coffee's Flat White Standard:

Uses a 220ml glass, with 30g ristretto espresso and 190ml milk plus foam. Foam thickness is about 0.5cm (foam aeration level: 5/10 full milk aerated to 5.5-6/10 foam).

Differences: In terms of cup size, latte is larger than Flat White. Visually, latte has slightly thicker foam with a slight bulge, while Flat White has thinner foam with a flat appearance. In terms of flavor, latte has a stronger milk flavor, while Flat White has a more prominent coffee flavor. Therefore, Australians jokingly say that latte is coffee-flavored milk (meaning essentially milk), while Flat White is milk-flavored coffee (meaning essentially coffee).

How to Make Flat White?

So how exactly do you make Flat White? And how do you make latte? What coffee beans are suitable for making espresso? Next, FrontStreet Coffee will answer these questions one by one.

FrontStreet Coffee uses a Pegasus E98 espresso machine with the following extraction parameters:

- Pressure: 9 bar
- Temperature: 94°C
- Time: 20-30 seconds
- Coffee-to-water ratio: 1:1.7-1:2
- Coffee dose: 12g (single espresso) 20g (double espresso)
- Espresso yield: 20ml (single) 40ml (double)

Recommended Milk to Coffee Ratio for Flat White

- Milk: Whole fresh milk (FrontStreet Coffee uses Kowloon Dairy fresh milk)
- Milk aeration temperature: 50-60°C (too low temperature won't bring out the lactose in milk, too high temperature will destroy the protein in milk, resulting in a grainy texture)
- Foam thickness: 5mm (1cm foam is for latte, 1.5cm foam is for cappuccino)
- Espresso content: 40ml
- Milk content: 140ml

The ratio for making latte is as follows:

FrontStreet Coffee uses the Pegasus E98 espresso machine.

FrontStreet Coffee uses double espresso for making latte, with coffee beans extracted showing the following flavor characteristics: distinct fruit acidity, subtle berry aroma, rich wine and chocolate flavors, and a comfortable aftertaste.

- Milk: Whole fresh milk (FrontStreet Coffee uses Kowloon Dairy fresh milk)
- Milk aeration temperature: 50-60°C (too low temperature won't bring out the lactose in milk, too high temperature will destroy the protein in milk, resulting in a grainy texture)
- Foam thickness: 1cm (thinner than 1cm foam is for Flat White, thicker than 1cm foam is for cappuccino)

The above are the parameters used by FrontStreet Coffee when making Flat White and latte. Each coffee shop uses different coffee beans and different models of espresso machines, so the milk-to-coffee ratio, bean selection, extraction parameters, etc., for latte will vary slightly from shop to shop. Naturally, the flavors will also be different.

But generally, latte is a coffee drink with a large amount of milk mixed into espresso. Different coffee beans will produce different latte flavors, different milks will also result in different latte flavors, and even different coffee-to-milk ratios can present different flavors.

For daily Flat White preparation, FrontStreet Coffee uses a "Sunflower Warm Sunshine" blend coffee bean made from sun-dried Yirgacheffe blended with Honduras Sherry. Through daily adjustments to extraction parameters, the ristretto extraction parameters on the day this article was written were 19.8g of coffee grounds extracting 30g of coffee liquid in 27 seconds.

When FrontStreet Coffee makes Flat White, the coffee-to-milk ratio is 1:6. In 30g of coffee liquid, 180g of hot milk with light, aerated foam is poured through the center, minimizing damage to the crema. Some coffee shops also use the latte-making method, fully integrating milk with espresso and then creating latte art, with a coffee-to-milk ratio also around 1:6.

FrontStreet Coffee's Brewing Suggestions:

Regardless of which coffee you're brewing, the freshness of the coffee is very important for the flavor. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee ships all coffee beans within 5 days of roasting. FrontStreet Coffee's roasting philosophy is "freshly roasted good coffee," ensuring that every customer who places an order receives the freshest coffee when it arrives. The coffee's resting period is about 4-7 days, so when customers receive it, it's at its peak flavor.

For friends who need ground coffee, FrontStreet Coffee kindly reminds you: if coffee beans are ground in advance, there's no need for a resting period, because during transportation, the pressure of carbon dioxide produced in the package also helps round out the coffee flavor, so you can brew a cup immediately upon receiving the ground coffee. However, ground coffee needs to be brewed promptly, as coffee grounds oxidize quickly when exposed to air, meaning the coffee flavor will dissipate relatively quickly, and the coffee won't taste as good. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends purchasing whole beans and grinding them fresh for each brew to better experience the coffee's flavor.

Additionally, FrontStreet Coffee believes that to brew a delicious cup of coffee, you must practice more, because different brewing techniques will result in different coffee flavors! Welcome to FrontStreet Coffee to discuss coffee!

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

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