A user on TikTok has gone viral after claiming they were charged for asking for “light ice” in their drink at a Target Starbucks.
In a video with over 1.1 million views as of Saturday, TikTok user Mariah claims she made the discovery after a stop at Starbucks during a “small little Target trip.”
“Asked for light ice and now they’re charging for light ice which makes no sense,” she wrote in the text overlaying the video. “What is this!!!”
@mariah7166 #fyp #starbucks #target #absurd ♬ original sound – Addictive lyrics <3
This isn’t the first time that Starbucks has been accused of charging more for light ice, though the policy appears inconsistent depending on the location.
In a discussion following a viral video about Starbucks up-charging customers, a user claimed they were charged $0.60 for light ice. Another discussion on the topic on Reddit spurred a range of claims, with some saying they’ve never been charged for light ice while others claimed they were charged anywhere from $0.30 to $1 after asking for less or no ice.
One potential reason for this, as TikTokers speculated, is the extra product needed to fill a full cup when someone asks for light ice.
“We literally ask for light ice so we have more than 2 sips!” a user noted.
“They are charging for the extra product they have to use to even out the drink since you aren’t getting the normal serving of ice they use to measure their drinks,” a second alleged.
“Blame it on the people who were like ‘order your grande drink with no ice and ask for a venti cup of ice on the side,’” a third wrote.
Thankfully, it seems the practice of charging extra for ice is not yet universal, as many users claimed they had not shared Mariah’s experience at their local Starbucks.
That said, many lamented the seemingly ever-increasing cost of drinks at the chain.
“My GRANDE vanilla latte costs $5.45 now,” a user claimed.
“I freaked out I ordered a grande shaken brown sugar latte with sweet cream and it was like $7.45!” exclaimed another. “I was in such shock I couldn’t even enjoy it.”
“My grande was 9.28$ the other day,” stated another TikToker. “my jaw dropped.”
We’ve reached out to Starbucks via email and Mariah via TikTok comment.
