High Calorie Drinks, Smoothies and Milkshakes

Written by James Frost, founder of Flaming Phoenix. Updated October 2026.

High calorie drinks pack 300 to 1,000 calories into one glass, and the best are built on whole milk: 300 ml of it blended with a banana, oats, peanut butter and honey comes to about 680 calories. Most shop-bought milkshakes manage only 62 to 75 calories per 100 ml, barely above whole milk's 66.

The NHS suggests that adults who need to gain weight add around 300 to 500 calories a day, and have high-calorie drinks such as milkshakes between meals, not just before them. One of the drinks below covers that on its own.

Every recipe on this page is weighed, with the calories worked out per ingredient: whole milk at 66 calories per 100 ml from the Tesco label, milk powders from their own labels, and everything else from McCance and Widdowson's Composition of Foods, the UK government dataset. Brands differ by a few per cent, so treat the totals as close, not exact.

What drink has the most calories?

Of drinkable liquids, double cream has the most calories at 496 per 100 g, well ahead of sweetened condensed milk (310), tinned coconut milk (169) and whole milk (66 per 100 ml).

Cooking oil is higher still at 899 per 100 g, but nobody drinks it. Cream and coconut milk are also the answer to "high fat drinks": double cream carries 54 g of fat per 100 g and tinned coconut milk 17 g. Values are McCance and Widdowson's unless a label is named.

Liquids to build a drink on

• Double cream: 496 per 100 g; 50 ml adds about 250.
• Sweetened condensed milk: 310 per 100 g; 30 g adds 93.
• Tinned coconut milk: 169 per 100 g; half a 400 g tin is 338.
• Evaporated milk: 166 per 100 g.
• Whole milk: 66 per 100 ml (Tesco); a pint is 375.
• Sweetened soya drink: 43 per 100 g, so plant drinks need more add-ins.
• Shop-bought fruit smoothie: 48 per 100 ml (innocent Strawberries, Bananas & Apples).

Add-ins that raise the count

• Peanut butter: 607 per 100 g; two tablespoons (32 g) add 194.
• Whole milk powder: 504 per 100 g (Peak); 30 g adds 151 and 7.7 g of protein.
• Skimmed milk powder: 347 per 100 g (Marvel); 30 g adds 104 and 10.7 g of protein.
• Porridge oats: 381 per 100 g; 40 g adds 152.
• Vanilla ice cream: 169 per 100 g; three scoops (150 g) add 254.
• Greek-style yoghurt, full fat: 133 per 100 g; a 150 g pot adds 200.
• Avocado: 171 per 100 g of flesh; half a Hass avocado (about 70 g) adds 120.
• Banana: 81 per 100 g peeled, so a medium banana adds about 80.
• Honey: 288 per 100 g; a 20 g tablespoon adds 58.

Milk powder is the add-in most people have never tried. It is how the NHS Scotland North guidance on drinks makes fortified milk, and it is the base of the cheapest drink on this page.

High calorie smoothie recipes

A high calorie smoothie needs a dense base (whole milk or coconut milk), a fat (nut butter), a starch (oats or banana) and something sweet; with all four, one glass reaches 600 to 1,000 calories.

Fruit alone will not get you there. A shop-bought fruit smoothie is 48 calories per 100 ml, so the calories in these recipes come from milk, oats and peanut butter rather than juice.

Peanut butter, banana and oat smoothie (683 calories)

• 300 ml whole milk: 198
• 1 medium banana, 100 g peeled: 81
• 40 g porridge oats: 152
• 32 g peanut butter (2 tablespoons): 194
• 20 g honey (1 tablespoon): 58

Total 683 calories and about 23 g of protein, in roughly 450 ml, which makes it the breakfast shake of the set. Blend the oats with the milk first for 20 seconds so the drink is smooth rather than gritty. If 683 calories in one go feels like a lot, pour it into a flask and sip across the morning.

The 1,000 calorie smoothie (1,071 calories)

• 400 ml whole milk: 264
• 50 g skimmed milk powder: 174
• 50 g peanut butter: 304
• 50 g porridge oats: 190
• 1 medium banana, 100 g peeled: 81
• 20 g honey: 58

Total 1,071 calories and about 50 g of protein with no protein powder, because the milk powder alone adds 18 g. This is the one to make if you searched for a high calorie protein shake. Split it into two glasses, one now and one in the fridge for the afternoon. For more builds at this level, see the homemade weight gainer shakes guide.

Coconut and mango smoothie, dairy-free and vegan (641 calories)

• 200 g tinned coconut milk (half a 400 g tin): 338
• 100 g frozen mango: 48
• 1 medium banana, 100 g peeled: 81
• 30 g porridge oats: 114
• 20 g golden syrup: 60

Total 641 calories. Golden syrup keeps it vegan where honey would not. It is low in protein at about 7 g, so if that matters, add 32 g of peanut butter for another 194 calories and 7 g of protein.

High calorie milkshake recipes

A high calorie milkshake is mostly ice cream and cream: 250 ml of whole milk, 150 g of vanilla ice cream and 50 ml of double cream make about 670 calories.

Classic vanilla milkshake (667 calories)

• 250 ml whole milk: 165
• 150 g vanilla ice cream (about three scoops): 254
• 50 ml double cream: 248

That is roughly 150 calories per 100 ml, about double a bottle of Frijj or Yazoo. For chocolate, add 20 g of drinking chocolate powder (75) for 742 calories. For peanut butter, add 32 g (194) for 861. Ice cream choice moves the total too: 150 g of a luxury chocolate or caramel ice cream (262 per 100 g) adds 139 more than vanilla, and the high calorie ice cream guide ranks the tubs.

Banana malt milkshake (510 calories)

• 250 ml whole milk: 165
• 1 medium banana, 100 g peeled: 81
• 25 g Horlicks powder: 95
• 100 g vanilla ice cream: 169

Malt gives a biscuity flavour that works warm as well as cold. Warm the milk and leave out the ice cream and banana for a 260-calorie bedtime malt.

Hot high calorie drinks

Hot drinks add calories with no blender: a fortified hot chocolate made with whole milk, milk powder and cream is about 480 calories, against roughly 150 for a 200 ml mug made with semi-skimmed milk.

Fortified hot chocolate (477 calories)

• 250 ml whole milk: 165
• 25 g drinking chocolate powder: 94
• 20 g skimmed milk powder: 69
• 30 ml double cream: 149

Fortified milk (583 to 677 calories a pint)

• 568 ml (1 pint) whole milk: 375
• Plus 60 g skimmed milk powder: 208, for 583 calories and 41 g of protein
• Or plus 60 g whole milk powder: 302, for 677 calories and 35 g of protein

Whisk the powder into a little of the milk first, then add the rest. Use it anywhere you would use milk: on cereal, in tea, in every recipe on this page.

Warm milk with honey and butter (297 calories)

• 250 ml whole milk: 165
• 20 g honey: 58
• 10 g butter: 74

A bedtime drink that adds close to 300 calories without anyone noticing a bigger meal. For a thicker mug, stir half a Phoenix Bar into 250 ml of whole milk: 265 to 279 calories from the half bar plus 165 from the milk, about 430 to 445 in total, with the texture of a thin porridge.

Shop-bought high calorie drinks in the UK

Of the ready-made drinks checked for this page, meal drinks such as yfood are the most calorie-dense at 100 calories per 100 ml (500 a bottle); ordinary milkshakes are 62 to 75 calories per 100 ml.

Prices and labels checked on Tesco and Huel's own pages in October 2026, cheapest per 100 calories first:

• Tesco British Whole Milk, 4 pints: about 1,500 calories for £1.65, roughly 11p per 100 calories.
• Yazoo Chocolate Milkshake, 1 litre: 620 calories for £2.10, about 34p per 100 calories.
• Shaken Udder Chocolush, 750 ml: about 560 calories for £2.65, about 47p per 100 calories.
• Müller Frijj Chocolate, 330 ml: about 250 calories for £1.50, about 61p per 100 calories.
• yfood Classic Choco, 500 ml: 500 calories and 30 g of protein for £3.50, 70p per 100 calories.
• Huel Ready-to-drink: 400 calories and 20 g of protein, £42.25 for 12 as a one-off order (about £3.52 a bottle), 88p per 100 calories.

The useful finding is how little a branded milkshake adds over plain milk. A pint of fortified milk made with whole milk powder costs about £1.21 at those Tesco prices (41p of milk, 80p of powder) and gives 677 calories, around 18p per 100.

When are drinks better than food?

Drinks beat food when chewing or stomach space is the problem: a small appetite, early mornings, the hour after a long session and hot days.

A smoothie can be sipped over an hour and needs no chewing, which is why it often goes down when a plate would not. The trade-offs are real, though:

• Before meals: the NHS advises not filling up on drinks before eating, so have them between meals or after.
• Teeth: the NHS limits fruit juice and smoothies to 150 ml a day in total and suggests having them at mealtimes, because blending fruit releases sugars that can damage teeth.
• Away from a kitchen: milk drinks need a fridge and usually a blender. For a long day out, something solid travels better. A Phoenix Bar is up to 557 calories in a compact, lightweight 120g bar with no fridge needed, and our comparison of the highest calorie bars in the UK sets it against the alternatives. Shakes against bars is weighed up properly in which meal replacement bar type is best.

If you or someone you look after is losing weight without trying, or eating has suddenly dropped off, speak to a GP before relying on drinks to make up the difference.

How to drink more calories without feeling full

• Sip, do not gulp: pour a 683-calorie smoothie into a 750 ml flask and drink it across the morning.
• Make tomorrow's batch tonight: a milk smoothie keeps in a sealed bottle in the fridge until the next day, so the blender comes out once.
• Change the base, not the size: semi-skimmed milk is 46 calories per 100 g against 63 for whole milk in McCance and Widdowson's data, and fortifying whole milk takes a pint from 375 to as much as 677.
• Start small: the 297-calorie warm milk at bedtime is an easy first habit before the bigger drinks.
• Pair drinks with the right food: these 1,000 calorie meals and high calorie soup recipes use the same cream, coconut milk and butter tricks in a bowl.

Frequently asked questions

Are smoothies high in calories?

Shop-bought fruit smoothies are not: innocent's Strawberries, Bananas & Apples is 48 calories per 100 ml, or 72 in a 150 ml glass. A smoothie only becomes high calorie when you add milk, oats, nut butter or coconut milk. The three recipes above run from 641 to 1,071 calories a glass.

What is the best drink to gain weight?

Fortified whole milk is the cheapest: a pint of whole milk with 60 g of whole milk powder is 677 calories for about £1.21 at Tesco prices. The NHS suggests adding 300 to 500 calories a day, and half a pint between meals, at about 340 calories, covers it.

How do you make a 1,500 calorie shake?

Start with the 1,000 calorie smoothie and add 50 ml of double cream (248) and another 30 g of peanut butter (182): 1,071 + 248 + 182 = 1,501 calories, in roughly 700 ml. That is a lot of liquid for one sitting, so split it into a morning glass and an afternoon one.

Is a 3,000 or 5,000 calorie shake realistic?

Not as one drink. A 5,000 calorie shake is five of the 1,000 calorie smoothies, around 3 litres of liquid. If your target is that high, spread several drinks between meals and build the rest from food, as the 3,000 calorie meal plan and 5,000 calorie meal plan show.

Can a high calorie drink replace a meal?

Now and then, yes. yfood's 500 ml bottle is 500 calories with 30 g of protein, and the 683-calorie oat smoothie covers a light breakfast. As a daily habit, drinks work best on top of meals rather than instead of them, which is how the NHS frames them for gaining weight.

Related guides

• Homemade weight gainer shakes: bigger builds and protein-led shakes
• Calorie-dense foods: the full list of foods with the most calories per gram
• High calorie snacks ranked by calories per bite
• High calorie breakfast ideas
• High calorie porridge
• How to gain weight
• 3,000 calorie meal plan
• High calorie bars and Phoenix Bars: up to 557 calories in a small, soft 120g bar

Sources: NHS, Healthy ways to gain weight; NHS, 5 A Day: what counts?; NHS Scotland North, Drinks high in calories; McCance and Widdowson's Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset 2021; Tesco product pages for whole milk, Yazoo, Shaken Udder, Müller Frijj, yfood, innocent, Marvel and Peak, and Huel's ready-to-drink page, all checked October 2026.