9 Secret Menu Starbucks Macchiato Flavors You'll Wish You Knew Sooner

As a barista, one of my absolute favorite drinks to make was a macchiato. I thought they were so beautiful, and the way the parts slowly mixed together was ultra enjoyable. And while your Starbucks barista can make a macchiato either hot or iced, the construction of the drink is nearly identical in either case — whether it's a regular or secret menu version.

It begins by adding pumps of syrup to the bottom of the cup for a flavored macchiato, then pouring cold or steamed milk on top of that; if it's iced, the ice is added after the milk. The really interesting part of a macchiato, though, is what happens next. That's when you pour the espresso shots over the top of the milk, which helps create what the word macchiato actually means: a mark of espresso. My favorite part (depending on the order)? At the end, you get to pretend you're creating some kind of a craft project by drizzling caramel, or in some cases mocha, all over the top. 

Though Starbucks only offers a handful of macchiatos on its regular menu, there are plenty of ways to customize the beverage's preparation to make something of a secret menu flavor. If you love a macchiato but are getting a little sick of your go-to order, consider giving one of these secret menu options a try on your next coffee run to Starbucks.

A caramel macchiato's vanilla syrup adds some sweetness to the drink, but I might argue that it needs a little extra. If you feel the same, the white mocha macchiato may be your ideal secret menu flavor.

Ordering a white mocha macchiato is pretty simple. Start with a simple grande iced caramel macchiato, but request the barista add a pump of white mocha, an extra caramel drizzle into the cup (and one on top), then a topper of sweet cream cold foam. With the expresso above the milk but below the cold foam, you'll notice a nice layered effect.

Though macchiatos, in general, can be made hot or iced, for something that utilizes vanilla sweet cream cold foam (as this one does)? You'll likely enjoy it the most if it's cold. If you're concerned about whether the white mocha sauce will be able to thoroughly melt into the drink, consider asking for the macchiato to be made upside down so the expresso is the first item to go into your cup. This way, the mocha can combine with the hot espresso more than the cold milk.

Starbucks has come out with a few small macchiato drinks, but leave it to coffee fans to discover a way to give your Starbucks caramel macchiato a touch of pumpkin flavor. For a pumpkin spice style macchiato, order a hot or cold caramel macchiato, but request it be made without vanilla syrup, and with pumpkin sauce instead. Ask for oat milk rather than 2%, as well, and you'll have yourself a pumpkin spice flavored macchiato.

The pumpkin flavor works especially well in a hot macchiato because the sauce is so thick. As a result, it actually gets a chance to melt into the drink rather than just sitting like a pile of syrup at the bottom of your cup. I like that this flavor can be easily swapped for the various sizes, as well; you don't always get that with secret menu options, but it's easy to change here.

Additionally, because the vanilla syrup is a little bit sweeter than the pumpkin sauce, expect this one to be less sweet than a typical caramel macchiato. Granted, you'll still have the caramel drizzle on top of the drink, which will certainly help. But if sweetness is a concern, I recommend adding pumpkin spice cold foam to the top, too. Like the white mocha caramel flavor, you probably won't want to order the cold foam on a hot drink, but it'll go well on an iced one.

While some Starbucks secret menu drinks are pretty simple to order, others are more involved. It's easy to feel like you're requesting the sun, the moon, and the stars when ordering something so different from what's on the menu. However, my experience was always that unique drinks made for an interesting change to an otherwise repetitious order of drinks. In fact, I often find that baristas are very interested in these unusual orders, and even promise to try them on their own — like the chocolate mousse macchiato.

The chocolate mousse macchiato is definitely one of the more creative secret menu options I've seen. But its modifications are simple enough that you should have no trouble ordering it. Begin by ordering a caramel macchiato, and asking for your barista to add some white mocha to the syrup mixture (which will already have vanilla). Depending on how much sweeter you want the drink, I recommend beginning with a single pump; you can possibly go up from there in future orders, after all, but one pump should be plenty for a tall or grande.

This drink should be made breve, which means it's made using half and half rather than the base milk of 2% (and is one of those essential Starbucks terms you need to know). For the drizzle on top, request mocha instead of caramel. Plus, for a little bit of texture, ask for cookie crumbles to be added, too, if your Starbucks location has it.

The vanilla syrup inside a caramel macchiato always seems like an ingredient secret menu creators either forget about, or choose to remove. In the case of the caramel hazelnut mocha, it's the latter, as you'll substitute the vanilla syrup with hazelnut, then add mocha pumps to your liking. For an extra burst of sweetness, add some extra caramel drizzle, too. If you're choosing to have this one iced, I recommend going for extra drizzle both on the top of the drink, as well as around the inside of the glass to really capture that fancy Starbucks drink feel.

Now, to be frank, this drink has a lot going on with it — and a lot of flavors, too. But if you genuinely enjoy heavily flavored drinks with a number of different aspects going on, you'll definitely appreciate the layered effect. I imagine this caramel hazelnut mocha would be even better with toffee nut syrup. Then again, seeing how Starbucks is removing toffee nut from the menu in November 2024, it's going to be awfully hard to get, so you'll need to settle for hazelnut.

When I was first learning how to make various Starbucks drinks, I was introduced to the marble mocha (sometimes called a tuxedo mocha). Featuring an even split of mocha syrup and white mocha, you most often see it applied to iced or hot mocha drinks. However, the very same concept can be applied to a macchiato. Of course, with the marble effect happening here via a mocha drizzle in a white colored drink, the marble is more of a visual effect than a name for the mixing of two different flavors of mocha.

I recommend going with a venti-sized order for this one. Additionally, in place of the vanilla syrup, request the drink be made with white mocha. This drink can certainly be made iced, but will probably be a better texture experience if made hot. With a hot drink, the white mocha can more easily melt into the hot milk and espresso.

Now, if you're choosing to get it iced because you simply can't step away from an iced drink no matter what (no one gets this better than I do), then you'll want to request it be made upside down so the espresso shots and white mocha come together at the bottom of your cup. Request that your barista replace the caramel drizzle with mocha instead. For the bast marbling, ask for mocha drizzle around the inside of the cup, too. And if you like oat milk, this one is especially good with the plant-based replacement.

If you're reading this, there's little doubt you've already enjoyed a caramel macchiato. However, there is one simple addition that can take your caramel macchiato from a good drink to a great drink. After all, the simple addition of a vanilla sweet cream cold foam will upgrade your caramel macchiato to create a richer taste and feel. It'll make those first few sips more enjoyable, and even give your espresso a little bit more time to sync to the bottom of the glass (rather than just settling toward the top).

In addition to requesting the vanilla sweet cream cold foam topper, if you're ordering your drink in person, ask your barista to mark the cold foam with the caramel rather than the drink itself. This way, you'll have that caramel macchiato marking on top of your cold foam, rather than having to wait to get into the drink below to enjoy the caramel. On that note, if you're worried about not getting enough caramel throughout the drink, I recommend drizzling it on the inside of the cup, as well. If you want even more mild and smooth flavor, too, try it with blonde espresso roast (which is my personal favorite).

While working at Starbucks, one of the very first things I learned about vanilla is that many people don't understand that ordering French vanilla actually means you're getting a mixture of hazelnut and vanilla flavoring. Starbucks does not have a French vanilla syrup, after all, so if you order a French vanilla drink, you're getting this even split of hazelnut and vanilla. While it's possible this isn't the case at all locations, it was at mine — and offers a way to enjoy a French vanilla macchiato.

If French vanilla is one of your favorite flavors, making a caramel macchiato into a French vanilla macchiato is simple: just ask your barista to replace half the pumps of vanilla with hazelnut. If you're ordering it through the app, it's even easier, as you simply cut the vanilla in half and add that much of the hazelnut. If you happen to have to oddly split number, I recommend rounding up to give yourself the same number of pumps for each flavor.

For a time, Starbucks had honey syrup. Now, as of 2024, it's not something you can select when customizing anymore (at least not from my nearby locations). But every store is a little different, so there might be a Starbucks near you that still stocks the syrup. In any case, to order a honeycomb macchiato, request  your barista squeeze honey packets into your cup with the vanilla at the bottom.

I recommend one packet for tall, two for grande, and three for venti. At the bottom of your cup, the honey and vanilla will mingle together, so give it some nice swirls to really mix it up before sipping. The same idea applies here as others that have a thick bottom, and you might consider ordering this one hot rather than iced.

If you'd like to ensure sweetness is holistic throughout your drink, this is another secret menu drink to consider ordering with extra caramel drizzle on top and throughout the cup. This isn't going to add a whole lot of caramel flavor, but it will give you a little sweet addition, which really drives home the honeycomb taste and feel.

Starbucks has only recently begun allowing customers to substitute milk in its drinks with vanilla sweet cream. This is a good thing, because as thick as its consistency is, it makes an absolutely decadent replacement. For a caramel macchiato that's rich and creamy — and quite close to a Frappuccino — I recommend subbing your typical 2% milk for this vanilla sweet cream to create a caramel cloud variety.

This will give your entire drink a little more sweetness, and heavily impact the texture, too. Swapping your milk is a very specific request that you have to make under the milk customization section in the app. If you add it as a topper, you're simply going to order it as a vanilla sweet cream cold foam topper on your macchiato. Now, those who have a weak stomach when it comes to milk might want to stay away from this customization. But if you're able to handle it, I couldn't recommend it more.