Guayakí vs CLEAN Cause: Which Canned Yerba Mate Wins?

The first thing you'll notice is carbonation. Guayakí's canned mate is still — non-carbonated, more like a juice or iced tea than a soda. CLEAN Cause is sparkling, with a soda-like fizz that makes it the obvious swap for a carbonated energy drink or soft drink.

This is mostly preference, but it changes how each one feels. Guayakí drinks smooth and easy; CLEAN Cause is crisp and effervescent. If you specifically miss the fizz of a soda, CLEAN Cause wins on feel alone.

This is the biggest real difference. Guayakí's flavored cans (like Revel Berry) are sweetened and fruit-forward — they taste like a sweet berry drink with mate's earthy base underneath, which is exactly why they're so approachable, but they carry more sugar. CLEAN Cause keeps sugar low (~5g), so it tastes crisper and lighter, leaning on the sparkle rather than sweetness.

If you're watching sugar — for training, diet, or just preference — CLEAN Cause is the cleaner pick. If you want something that drinks like a treat and don't mind the sweetness, Guayakí's berry cans deliver. (Note that Guayakí makes a range of flavors and some unsweetened options exist; the popular Revel Berry is on the sweeter end.)

Caffeine is nearly a wash. Guayakí lands around 150mg per can; CLEAN Cause around 160mg per 16oz. Both sit in strong-energy-drink territory and well above a typical cup of brewed mate (~30–50mg per 8oz). For most people the ~10mg gap is negligible.

Both brands wear their values openly, but differently. Guayakí (now also marketed as Yerba Madre) is the category pioneer — a Certified B Corporation built on organic, regeneratively-grown, Fair Trade mate, with a long-running 'market-driven restoration' model supporting rainforest communities. CLEAN Cause is built around recovery: it donates 50% of its profits to addiction recovery scholarships.

If the social mission is a tiebreaker for you, it comes down to what you want to support — regenerative agriculture and rainforest communities (Guayakí) or addiction recovery (CLEAN Cause). Both are genuine, not greenwashing afterthoughts.

Decide on fizz and sugar first, since that's where they actually differ. Buy Guayakí if you want a still, sweet, berry-forward mate that drinks like a soda-juice hybrid — easy, approachable, ~150mg caffeine. Buy CLEAN Cause if you want a sparkling, low-sugar can with a crisp taste, ~160mg caffeine, and a recovery mission.

And if you'd rather have zero sugar entirely, neither is your top pick — see Mateina, the zero-sugar canned option, in our canned roundup.