Tea or Coffee

You wake up. You get your kick of caffeine. You’re still tired.

While we swear by our morning beverage, and research tells us again and again that there are benefits of both, which one is really better for you? We broke it down by category.

You need a jolt

It only takes about 10 minutes for your body to feel caffeine’s effects. Caffeine makes your body release hormones that keep you active, boosting your heart rate and blood pressure. But where do coffee and tea differ? Tea packs in lesser caffeine per cup than coffee.

Your choice: Coffee

You want to stay healthy

Here’s the rundown on coffee: A 2009 study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine found that people who drank four cups of coffee daily were 30 percent less at risk of developing type 2 diabetes than non-drinkers. It’s also been shown that men who drank at least three cups of coffee daily were 9 percent less likely to have skin cancer than those who drank less than one cup monthly.

But health benefits of tea—especially green tea—are well documented, too. It’s well known that antioxidants in green tea can aid in repairing a weak immune system because it has EGCG, an antioxidant that recharges the white blood cells that prevent viruses from reactivating. Green tea is also loaded with catechins, powerful antioxidants that research has shown could help prevent prostate cancer.

Your choice: Either

You’re trying to lose weight

Here’s the good news, caffeine has been shown to slightly reduce appetite. But drinking green tea daily could lead to about an inch off your waistline in 12 weeks. That’s because EGCG and caffeine in green tea can help shrink fat cells and makes muscle cells more active.

Your choice: Tea

You want to gain muscle

While tea might be better for burning fat, coffee is the winner when you want more muscle. Guys who drank 2 1/2 cups of coffee a few hours before working out could sprint 9 percent longer in distance than when they didn’t, according to a recent study in Medicine and Science in Sports and Exercise. Why? Caffeine can stimulate your muscles, which can help you power through with more reps.

Your choice: Coffee

You want to boost your mood

When British researchers tricked daily coffee drinkers into drinking decaf, they scored the same on puzzle tests as caffeinated coffee drinkers. That’s because we’ve associated coffee with energy, so we intuitively expect to have a caffeine kick.

But tea has been linked to calming your nerves. Jasmine and lavender tea drinkers, for example, experienced a decreased heart rate simply by smelling their tea, according to a recent study published in the European Journal of Applied Physiology.

Your choice: Tea