Caffeine-Free Pepsi

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Caffeine Free Pepsi
Pepsi caffeine free newlogo.png
Caffeine free Diet Pepsi.jpg
Can of Caffeine-Free diet Pepsi
with the 2005 design
Type Cola
Manufacturer Pepsi
Origin United States
Introduced1982;44 years ago (1982)
Related products Caffeine-Free Coca-Cola
Website pepsi.com/caffeine-free

Caffeine-Free Pepsi [1] is a version of Pepsi that omits the caffeine that is customarily part of a cola. The drink has been marketed by PepsiCo since 1982. A sugar-free variant, Caffeine-Free Diet Pepsi, also exists. Caffeine-Free Pepsi is marketed and distincted with a gold colored brand and packaging. [2]

Contents

History

The product was introduced under the brand name Pepsi Free in 1982. [3] It was claimed by PepsiCo to be 99.7 percent caffeine free. [4] Diet Pepsi Free, a version based on Diet Pepsi, was also launched. [5] [6] The "Pepsi Free" name was phased out by 1987[ citation needed ] and both were rebranded to their present names. As of 1994, it ranked as the tenth most sold soft drink in the United States. [7]

Pepsi Free (as it was then known) was the subject of a scene in the 1985 blockbuster film Back to the Future . Upon entering a café in 1955, Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) asks for a Tab (Coca-Cola's first version of a sugar-free soft drink, which was not available until 1963) and is told that he cannot have a "tab," unless he orders something. He then asks for a Pepsi Free and is told, "If you want a Pepsi, pal, you're gonna pay for it!" ("Free" is here being mistaken for gratis.). [8] [9]

Notes

  1. ↑ "CAFFEINE FREE PEPSI - Trademark Details". Justia Trademarks. Retrieved February 24, 2026.
  2. ↑ "Breathtaking Design Strategy" (PDF). Arnell Group. 2008.
  3. ↑ Dougherty, Philip H. (1982-10-25). "ADVERTISING; Pepsico Sets the Debut Of a Drink, Pepsi Free". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  4. ↑ "Decaffeinated Pepsi Free heads for US marketplace". Christian Science Monitor. ISSN   0882-7729 . Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  5. ↑ Ferraro, Thomas (November 2, 1984). "Pepsi dumps saccharin out of diet drinks - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved 2023-03-03.
  6. ↑ "Pepsi introduces diet and caffeine free colas - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved 2025-09-10.
  7. ↑ "Corrections (Published 1995)". The New York Times . 1995-02-02. Retrieved 2025-09-10.
  8. ↑ "Diet Drinks Get Aliases (Published 2004)". 2004-12-20. Retrieved 2025-09-10.
  9. ↑ Meslow, Scott (2010-10-26). "5 Things 'Back to the Future' Tells Us About the Past". The Atlantic. Retrieved 2025-09-10.
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