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Americans frequently talk about adding "creamer" to their coffee. This term is basically unheard of here in the UK, and I'm trying to work out what our equivalent term is, or if it's just a product we don't have (in which case I'd like to know what it actually is).

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    I've been calling Coffee-Mate and its off-white-powder competitors 'creamer' since I first knew about them, probably more than 50 years ago (certainly the 1970s). Some people might say 'whitener'. I am a UK native, born to UK native parents in south London, who now lives in Bristol. Commented Jan 10 at 9:11
  • Cream - creamer - the creamest. Commented Jan 12 at 15:54
  • @tevemadar - aged 14, I eagerly read a novel called I Jan Cremer. Commented Jan 23 at 20:01

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GdD’s answer gives a good starting point: creamer is a very broadly used term, and formulations vary widely between brands. There are some commonalities between them, though, that seem worth mentioning. Creamer is typically:

  • creamier than milk (in consistency, for liquid creamer, or fat content, for powdered) — roughly comparable to half and half, a milk-cream blend common in the US, typically around 10–15% fat;

  • significantly sweetened, compared to natural dairy milk or cream;

  • and often optionally flavoured, with typical flavours including vanilla, hazelnut, caramel (but “unflavoured” is the default).

This is based partly on my own experience (as a Brit who lived c.10 years in the US and Canada), backed up by looking through ingredients of creamers on several US grocery chain websites (Wegman’s, Giant Eagle, Sam’s Club). Three useful examples are:

  • Coffee Mate original, probably the most prototypical brand (think Heinz ketchup): “corn syrup solids, hydrogenated vegetable oil (coconut and/or palm kernel and/or soybean), and less than 2% of sodium caseinate (a milk derivative)**, mono- and diglycerides, dipotassium phosphate, sodium aluminosilicate, natural and artificial flavor, annatto color.”

  • N’Joy, a cheap bulk brand: “Corn Syrup, Solids, Palm Palm Kernel and/or Coconut Oil, Sodium Caseinate”

  • Chobani, a premium brand: “Milk, Cream, Cane Sugar, Natural Flavors” (with 1.5g fat and 5g sugar per US tablespoon (15ml), according to its nutrition card)

The first two are more typical — mostly very cheap artificial ingredients. The third is less typical (20 years ago when I lived in the States, such things were just starting to appear in posh stores like Whole Foods; now they seem more widespread but still a distinctly “premium” option), but quite informative — it shows what a “creamer” is expected to be like, in terms of more basic (and hence internationally-familiar) ingredients: a sweetened milk-cream blend.

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  • FWIW, Coffee Mate is definitely available in the UK, and has been for a very long time. When I started work in 1993, I used to buy it for my break time coffee, because there wasn't a fridge at work. I quickly realised that black coffee was a better option, because the stuff was revolting, but YMMV if you really can't tolerate black coffee. Commented Jan 11 at 20:17
  • @Graham - take a tip from a busy office worker - Coffee Mate works well with various brands of hot chocolate powder (the kind without dried milk, and, for my taste, no sugar either). I know the Coffee Mate company make their own hot-choc mixes, but I like my method. Commented Jan 11 at 21:14
  • @MichaelHarvey As another busy office worker, I've found that sweet black coffee is perfectly drinkable even when it's gone cold, so that works better for me. :) Commented Jan 12 at 2:17
  • @Graham - I do prefer black (unsweetened) coffee myself; drinking choc with creamer is an occasional alternative. Brits of my age will recall a raconteur, Peter Ustinov, who is supposed to have said that one of the tragedies of life is that 'coffee does not taste like it smells'. Personally I am OK with that, especially since I gave up smoking. Commented Jan 12 at 9:50
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Creamer is short for non-dairy creamer, a usually powdered but sometimes liquid substitute for milk/cream for coffee and tea. There are many different brands with different formulas, some have milk derivatives but none of them have any real dairy in them. They are shelf stable and keep for a very long time once opened.

You can actually find it in the UK, it's called 'whitener' and not creamer.

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    Creamer is a generic definition @Tristan, there's many different formulas. What's in common is they don't require refrigeration, whereas oat milk or other milk substitutes do once opened. I'm not sure what additional detail you're looking for. Commented Jan 8 at 16:48
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    not all creamer is shelf stable when opened. It is a parallel word to "sweetener" and means "something I put in coffee that serves a similar purpose to cream". Yeah, that covers a lot of ground. Yeah, people often just say "cream" while using something that totally isn't cream at all. But that's the deal. Sweetener includes stevia, honey, aspartame, and tons more. Creamer is similarly large and for the same reasons. Commented Jan 8 at 17:25
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    @Tristan it may be largely marketing (and packaging size) that stops non-dairy milks being sold as creamer. But with (many) creamers being powder or concentrated (with respect to actual milk) liquids, it does make sense to market non-dairy milks differently when they're intended to replace dairy milk 1:1 in more things than hot drinks. Commented Jan 9 at 8:44
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    @Tristan If you can think of a better way of phrasing an answer then please do so, rather than providing a flow of negative comments. Commented Jan 9 at 8:48
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    @MarkMorganLloyd I have now accepted the answer... Also, seeing as the whole point of this question is me asking for information I don't have, I'm unable to provide the information I said would improve the answer. Commented Jan 9 at 11:08

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