How to Safely Use Caffeine to Fight Off Headaches

If you’re prone to headaches, you may have noticed that drinking a cup of coffee or another caffeinated beverage can help ease your pain. Caffeine can relieve many types of headaches, especially when you combine it with pain relievers. 

But caffeine is also a migraine trigger. And if you regularly drink caffeine, skipping your daily cup of coffee can trigger headaches. 

So that means caffeine helps headaches, but it also causes headaches. How can both things be true? Here’s what you need to know about how to use caffeine while avoiding a headache.  

What causes headaches?

Many things can cause headaches — from dehydration and sinus infections to headache disorders like migraines and cluster headaches. Some causes of headaches are better understood than others. Scientists are still trying to figure out what causes all the different types of headaches and why some people are more prone to headaches than others. 

A headache may feel throbbing, sharp, or dull. The brain, muscles, blood vessels, and nerves all contribute to headaches. Different triggers cause these tissues to send pain signals to the brain. The end result is a headache.  

Does caffeine help treat headaches?

Caffeine can help treat headaches, especially migraines and tension-type headaches. But it’s important to point out that caffeine by itself won’t provide much headache relief. 

Studies show that caffeine boosts the effects of pain relievers like aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol), and ibuprofen (Motrin) by 40%. That’s why over-the-counter (OTC) headache medications, like Excedrin, contain caffeine and one (or more) of these other pain relievers. Caffeine increases the body’s ability to absorb these medications so they can work better and faster.

Researchers also think that the mood-boosting properties of caffeine can also help people feel better as they wait for the pain relievers to kick in. 

What type of headaches will caffeine help?

Caffeine helps fight off headaches triggered by the chemical adenosine. This includes:

• Migraines (including menstrual migraines)

• Tension-type headaches

• Hangover headaches

• Post-traumatic headaches

• Hypnic (“alarm-clock”) headaches

If you get one of these types of headaches, caffeine may help you get rid of your headache. 

What form of caffeine should you take for your headaches?

You can use whichever form of caffeine you like best. That includes drinks like coffee, tea, caffeinated water, and energy drinks as well as caffeine tablets and caffeine-containing OTC pain relievers. 

What really matters is how much caffeine you take. The exact amount of caffeine in drinks can vary depending on how you make them. But the amount of caffeine in OTC medications will be constant. 

If you know that you need a specific amount of caffeine in order to feel relief, it’s a good idea to stick with caffeine-containing medications. The FDA regulates these medications, so you know you’re getting the exact amount listed on the label. 

How much caffeine should you take for headaches?

Unlike most medications, there’s no exact amount of caffeine that’s recommended for headache treatments. 

Many people simply reach for a cup of coffee to wash down OTC pain relievers when they feel a headache coming on. But there’s some evidence that you should aim for 100 mg to 130 mg of caffeine if you’re adding it to aspirin, acetaminophen, or ibuprofen for headache relief. 

OTC combination medications, like Excedrin, contain 130 mg of caffeine in addition to a typical adult dose of acetaminophen and aspirin.  

What are the side effects from taking caffeine?

Caffeine can lead to side effects like: 

• Nervousness

• Fast heart rate

• Nausea

• Dizziness

Experts point out that caffeine (and caffeine-containing medications) aren’t meant to be used regularly. If you’re using these products more than once or twice a week, talk to your healthcare provider about other options to control and prevent headaches. 

Does caffeine cause headaches?

Caffeine by itself hasn’t been shown to cause headaches. But regular caffeine use can lead to caffeine-withdrawal headaches. Caffeine-withdrawal headaches (or caffeine-rebound headaches) are a type of headache that people experience when they stop taking caffeine. Studies show that using as little as 100 mg of caffeine each day for 3 days straight can set you up for caffeine-rebound headaches. 

But you don’t have to swear off caffeine completely. Studies also show that caffeine-rebound headaches aren’t that common. Only about 2% of people develop significant caffeine-rebound headaches. You can avoid these headaches by making sure you don’t rely too much on caffeine-containing products to manage your headaches. 

For some people, caffeine is a migraine or headache trigger. If you have a headache syndrome or migraines, keep a headache diary to see if caffeine is a trigger for you. If you notice you develop more symptoms when you drink caffeine, try to avoid caffeinated products. 

You may still be able to use caffeine-containing medications to fight off a headache or migraine. But you should also talk to a healthcare provider about other treatment options that may be a better fit. 

Who should not take caffeine?

Caffeine can worsen some medical conditions, including:

• High blood pressure

• Irregular heart rate (arrhythmia) 

• Heart disease

• Reflux

• Stomach ulcers

• Seizure disorders

• Chronic kidney disease

• Chronic liver disease

If you have one of these medical conditions, talk to your healthcare provider about whether it’s safe for you to use caffeine-containing medications. There may be a safer option for you to try. 

Why trust our experts?

Written by:

Jennifer Sample, MD

After a fellowship, Dr. Sample worked as the medical director at the University of Kansas Hospital Poison Center (The University Of Kansas Health System Poison Control Center), which served the state of Kansas for poison exposures. In 2007, she returned to Children’s Mercy Hospital in Kansas City, Missouri, as a consultant in clinical pharmacology and medical toxicology.

Edited by:

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH

Patricia Pinto-Garcia, MD, MPH, is a medical editor at GoodRx. She is a licensed, board-certified pediatrician with more than a decade of experience in academic medicine.

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