Kit
Latte vs cappuccino vs flat white: what’s the difference?
Oct 19, 2026 · 5 min
Same espresso, different milk: how much, how much foam, and what size cup. How a latte, cappuccino and flat white differ, and how to make each one at home.
Quick comparison
All three start with espresso and milk. Breville says that in many cafes, milk drinks use about 36 g to 40 g (about 1.5 oz) of espresso from 18 g to 20 g of coffee, and that what changes is how much milk you add and how you texture it. Cafe sizes and foam habits vary by country and shop; treat the figures below as guidelines from Breville’s write-up (including language it attributes to the Specialty Coffee Association), not a single correct recipe.
Cappuccino
Breville notes a common belief that a cappuccino is thirds: espresso, steamed milk and foamed milk. It also quotes the Specialty Coffee Association definition as a 5 to 6 oz coffee-and-milk drink that should balance rich, sweet milk and espresso. On foam, Breville says the SCA calls for at least 0.4 inches of foam on top, twice the foam height it gives for a latte or flat white, and that because that is a minimum, baristas and drinkers interpret foam levels differently around the world.
Latte
Breville says a latte uses the same amount of espresso as a cappuccino, with more steamed milk making up the extra volume. It places lattes starting at 6 oz and often 8 oz or larger. With more milk, the espresso tastes milder than in a smaller cup. For texture, Breville puts latte microfoam around 0.2 inches, thinner than cappuccino foam.
Flat white
Breville describes flat whites as generally 5 to 6 oz, using a similar amount of coffee and milk to a cappuccino, with the difference in how the milk is textured rather than in cup size alone. Like the latte, it puts flat-white microfoam around 0.2 inches. Breville also notes the drink’s contested Australia / New Zealand origin story; for home baristas, what matters is the smaller cup and thinner foam.
Making each at home
The drink name is mostly milk volume and foam thickness on the same espresso. Breville’s guidance: for lattes and flat whites, incorporate less air so you keep a thinner layer of microfoam; for a cappuccino, add more air so the foam is thicker and more rigid. How to purge, position the wand and stop on a Bambino Plus is in how to steam milk for espresso.
What machine features help
Milk drinks need a steam wand you can control. The Breville Bambino Plus review covers one machine with auto and manual milk texturing. If you are still choosing a first kit, start with the beginner home espresso kit. Capsule machines can make milk drinks too, but the tradeoffs are separate: machine vs capsule.
Sources
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