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Here’s how to make refreshingly tangy limeade! This homemade drink uses less sugar than store-bought for a perfectly balanced flavor.
Want a way to beat the heat? Try this homemade limeade recipe. This refreshing lime drink has a tangy pop that will make you smile…at least, it did for everyone at my house!
Homemade limeade from real limes is infinitely tastier than store-bought. You use less sugar to get even more real, sweet-tart flavor. The finish to the sip almost feels like you’re drinking a margarita, but it’s just limes, sugar, and water.
It’s a perfect summer drink for parties, or for making a big pitcher to drink off of all week. A friend of mine brought some over recently, and it made our evening. Here’s what to do!
What is limeade?
Limeade is a drink that’s made with limes, sugar, and water. It’s like lemonade, but made with limes! It’s popular in the United States, tropical countries like Guyana and Trinidad, and in Southeast Asian countries like Thailand. What you’ll find in many of those places is likely less sweet than the American version, though.
The 2 ingredients you need
All you need are 2 ingredients for limeade, plus water:
- Limes: To make a full pitcher of 8 servings, you need about 10 limes. There are 2 tablespoons of lime juice in the average lime, and you’ll need 20 tablespoons for the recipe. If you want to make limeade by the glass, I’ll have some tips in a bit.
- Sugar: The best sugar to use here is plain old granulated sugar. This type of sugar makes for the best green limeade color. You can use other sugars like cane sugar or coconut sugar, but the color will be darker. If you prefer alternative sweeteners, try this limeade with honey or maple syrup.
Make limeade the easy way!
Many limeade recipes call for boiling a simple syrup on the stove. This is time-consuming and heats up the sugar. I decided to make my recipe even simpler. Here’s all you have to do for this limeade:
- Juice the limes. This is the most time-consuming part of the process…by far! If I have one essential tip for you here, it’s to get a good juicer. Then you don’t have to do the rolling on the table trick, or break your fingers trying to squeeze as hard as you can.
- Mix the sugar with 1 cup of warm water. All you have to do is mix sugar into warm water, and it dissolves. There’s no need to heat it on the stove.
- Add the cold water and lime juice, and some ice. Cool it back down by adding the water, lime juice, and some ice. Limeade is served!
Making limeade by the glass
This recipe makes 8 to 9 cups of limeade, which is actually quite a bit. If you want to make this lime drink by the glass, here’s what to do:
- Squeeze 2.5 tablespoons lime juice into a glass. That’s 1 large lime or 2 small ones.
- Add 2 tablespoons of sugar and 2 tablespoons of warm water and stir until it dissolves.
- Add 1 cup cold water and a handful of ice. Water it down more if necessary. Enjoy!
Variation: cherry limeade!
The most famous spin on limeade is cherry limeade. These two fruits go hand-in-hand. The sweet and tart go perfectly together! You can use this limeade recipe and add cherry flavor using the juice from a jar or maraschino cherries for a fresh cherry limeade.
Let’s say you want lemonade
The process of making lemonade is the same as this lime drink, but it uses lemons instead. Here are a few of my favorite types of lemonade:
- Fresh Lemonade: Freshly squeezed lemons and sugar make an extraordinary sweet-tart flavor.
- Bourbon Lemonade: This is a perfect summer drink! Make fresh-squeezed lemonade and swirl in some whiskey for a spicy finish.
- Spiked Lemonade: Beat the heat with this fresh and boozy homemade lemonade!
This limeade recipe is…
Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based, dairy-free, and gluten-free.
Easy Limeade Recipe
Here’s how to make refreshingly tangy limeade! This homemade drink uses less sugar than store-bought for a more real, sweet-tart flavor.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 0 minutes
- Total Time: 10 minutes
- Yield: 8 (8 to 9 cups) 1x
- Category: Drink
- Method: Squeezed
- Cuisine: American
- Diet: Vegan
Ingredients
- 1 ¼ cups lime juice (9 to 10 limes)*
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 7 cups water, divided
- Ice
- Fresh mint, for garnish (optional)
Instructions
- Juice the limes.
- Add the sugar and 1 cup warm water to a large pitcher and stir until it is dissolved.
- Add 6 cups cold water and lime juice.
- Add ice and serve.
Notes
*To make it by the glass: Squeeze 2.5 tablespoons lime juice into a glass (1 large lime or 2 small). Add 2 tablespoons sugar and 2 tablespoons warm water and stir until it dissolves. Add 1 cup cold water and a handful of ice.
More recipes with limes
There are so many great things to do with extra limes! This zesty citrus adds a zing to anything it touches. Here are some of my favorite lime recipes:
- Try Easy Lime Vinaigrette or Cilantro Lime Dressing, both fast to whip up.
- You’ll want to bathe in my Cilantro Lime Crema or Cilantro Lime Ranch.
- Go for Cilantro Lime Shrimp for an easy dinner in 10 minutes!
- This Lime Water is healthy, looks beautiful, and tastes extraordinarily refreshing.
- Mix up zingy Lime Curd to top cakes and waffles.
So easy to make and such a great balance of citrus and sweet. I had a bunch of limes leftover from a party and still have enough to make another pitcher.
I had a 2 lb. bag of small limes and it took almost the full bag. I had 2 limes left over. My family absolutely loves this limeade. I don’t think it is too sweet although I wouldn’t want to add any more sugar. The proportion of sugar to lime juice is just right. I’m saving this recipe to make again.
Me and my mother loved it.
I meant to say I may try dialing back the sugar to a single tablespoon or a tablespoon and a half to see if it tastes less sweet but still sweet enough.
I made a single cup of it, and thought it was great, but overly sweet for me personally. On my next try, I may try dialing. But overall very tasty and a great way to use up limes that you have sitting around when you buy a bag of limes.
I liked this recipe, but I’m not sure it takes 9-10 limes to get 1 1/4 cups of juice. It took me 4.5 limes to get that. Just in case you don’t want to have a ton of extra ones sitting around if you don’t use limes a lot. Or don’t want to make a double batch.