If you’re only familiar with the basics of keto, milk might fool you.

It’s not particularly sweet or sugary, and you’ve undoubtedly heard that heavy cream is a keto diet staple. So milk would seem to be a keto-friendly choice.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t work that way. Dairy milk actually does contain a lot of sugar, since lactose is really just “milk sugar” composed of glucose and galactose. And that means milk contains a lot of carbs; there are 12 grams of carbs in a cup of whole milk, and even more in skim milk or 1% milk. (Cream is basically concentrated milk fat without most of the lactose. That’s why it’s OK for a keto lifestyle, although a little goes a long way since it’s high in fat and calories.)

Let’s zoom out, though, and look at “milk” in the big picture – because that picture is a lot brighter. Several nut and plant milks, like hemp milk and macadamia milk (each 0 grams of net carbs per serving), cashew milk (one gram) almond milk (1.4 grams) and coconut milk (2 grams) are all carb-friendly, but oat milk (8 grams) and soy milk (12 grams) are not. Some commercially-available plant and nut milks contain added sugar, though, so be sure to check the label.

Let’s be honest; you’re probably not going to drink hemp milk all day long. Let’s get to the news you can use.

Water

Plain water, sparkling water and unsweetened seltzer are obviously the perfect keto drinks. They’re calorie-free, sugar-free and carb-free, so you don’t have to think about carb counts or ketosis. In a word familiar to those on traditional dietary meal plans, water is “unlimited.”

Naturally, water will also keep you hydrated, although you’ll have to look somewhere else for electrolytes. Some “electrolyte waters” are keto-friendly (check the label first), but it’s better to get those micronutrients from the many healthy foods you can eat on the keto diet. You can also find some zero-carb electrolyte powders, and a few sports drinks and energy drinks contain zero carbs (but artificial sweeteners which may be unhealthy in other ways).

What about flavored waters? The safest approach is to squeeze a little lemon or lime into your tap water or sparkling water. You can also buy zero-carb water enhancers in some supermarkets or on Amazon. Otherwise, check the ingredients and nutrition labels; many of these products are flavored with generous amounts of fruit juice and sugar, making them carb-heavy.

Tea and Coffee

Tea

Unsweetened tea, whether it’s black tea, green tea, white tea, herbal tea or iced tea, is another of the most popular keto drink options. Adding heavy cream (in moderation) is a good way to get extra fat into your keto diet, too.

Sweeteners are another matter. You know by now that sugar is a no-no, but so are natural sweeteners like honey, molasses and agave syrup which are very high in fructose. The best options are monk fruit extract, stevia extract, and the food alcohol erythritol. Be careful before buying the first two, though, because monk fruit and stevia are so sweet that they’re often mixed with fillers or even sugar. And be careful with erythritol; some people find it causes stomach issues.

Coffee

The same green and red lights generally apply to coffee. Black coffee is great, coffee with cream is fine but milk is off-limits, and most coffee creamers and sweeteners aren’t acceptable on a keto diet. The good news: there are a number of keto-friendly options that can perk up a cup of black coffee – or even make it better for keto dieters.

The first is the “keto coffee” recipe you may have heard about. Sometimes called bulletproof coffee, it’s made by blending black coffee with MCT oil (which encourages the body to produce more ketones) and either ghee (a form of clarified butter) or unsalted, grass-fed butter. Many find bulletproof coffee to be very tasty; more importantly, it contains zero carbs and lots of healthy fat. It’s just so high in calories that you shouldn’t drink it more than once a day.

The better long-term choice is to add keto coffee creamer. The best is SuperCoffee’s Super Creamer, a liquid keto creamer that contains a generous amount of MCT oil. Other options include Bulletproof Creamer and Omega PowerCreamer, but they contain butter or ghee so they’re definitely not low-calorie.

What about those Starbucks coffee drinks most of us are addicted to? You’ll have to give up that daily latte, mocha or hot chocolate, but you’re not stuck with black coffee with cream, either. For low-carb Starbucks drinks, try a low-carb Pink Drink (1 gram of carbs) by ordering an Iced Passion Fruit Tango Tea with sugar-free syrup (instead of liquid sugar) and an ounce of heavy cream. If coffee is a must-have, order a Caffè Misto (1.5 grams) with steamed almond milk instead of dairy milk.

Disclaimer: we’re not encouraging you to drink to excess just because you’re on keto.

Basically, wine is fine; there are about two grams of net carbs in a glass of red, white or sparkling wine. Wine coolers are a different story, though, since they’re loaded with sugar and carbs.

You’re a beer drinker? You’re not out of luck, but you may have to change your regular brand. Bud and Heineken, as just two examples, have about 10 grams of carbs per bottle. But some brands are low-carb; Michelob Ultra and Budweiser Select 55 each have fewer than three grams.

The best alcoholic drinks for keto? Hard liquor. Whiskey, vodka, tequila, gin and brandy, for instance, all contain zero carbs. The problem comes when you use mixers or flavorings. A margarita, for example, has eight grams of carbs, a gin and tonic has 14, and a screwdriver contains 28 grams of carbs.

If you’re willing to do more than just open up the fridge and take out a drink, there are many other tasty keto options.

Fruit juice may be out, but you can juice all sorts of veggies like kale, spinach and cucumber together with herbs like basil or mint, and create your own yummy vegetable juice. Smoothies will be higher in carbs, since most fruit contains natural sugars, but choose carefully and you’ll be more than satisfied. Try a strawberries-and-heavy-cream smoothie, or a peanut-butter-and-almond-milk smoothie, and you can keep the net carbs under 10 grams.

Finding keto-friendly drinks can be challenging at first, but you’ll quickly discover that water and black coffee are far from your only options.