Honey for Cough: Does It Work, How Much to Take, and 10 Homemade Honey Cough Syrups

Honey for Cough: Does It Work, How Much to Take, and 10 Homemade Honey Cough Syrups

Written and medically reviewed by Veronique Claes d’Erckenteel, D.C., chiropractor since 1991 · Last reviewed: 19 October 2026

Yes, honey helps a cough. It coats the throat, calms the urge to cough, and it’s the best studied natural cough remedy there is: in trials, a spoonful before bed reduced night coughing and helped both children and parents sleep better. Take one to two teaspoons, straight off the spoon or stirred into a warm (not boiling) drink, up to three or four times a day and always right before bed. Raw, dark honeys like buckwheat or a good manuka are the best choice. Children: half a teaspoon from 1 to 5 years, a teaspoon from 6 to 11. Never give honey to a baby under 12 months.

Honey is probably the oldest cough remedy in the world. Long before there was a pharmacy on every corner, there was a jar of honey in the kitchen cupboard, and every grandmother knew what to do with it: a spoonful for the tickle, a warm cup of lemon and honey for a sore throat, onion and honey syrup for a chesty cough that wouldn’t go away.

What’s lovely is that this is one of the rare cases where generations of wisdom and modern research agree completely. This guide covers how honey works, how much to take, which honey to choose and ten homemade honey cough syrups. It’s part of our cough series; for every type of cough, start with how to stop coughing.

Table of Contents

• Does Honey Help a Cough?
• How Honey Calms a Cough
• How Much Honey for a Cough?
• How to Take Honey for a Cough
• The Best Honey for Cough
• 10 Homemade Honey Cough Syrups
• Lemon and Honey for Cough
• Honey for Cough in Children
• Why No Honey Under 12 Months?
• Pregnancy, Diabetes and Who Should Avoid Honey
• When to See a Doctor
• Frequently Asked Questions

Does Honey Help a Cough?

Yes. Honey is the natural cough remedy with the most research behind it.

• A Cochrane review found that honey eased children’s coughs better than no treatment and about as well as some common cough syrups (Oduwole et al., Cochrane).
• In a double-blind trial, a spoonful of honey half an hour before bed reduced night coughing and improved sleep for children and their parents, compared with a placebo (Cohen et al., 2012).
• In another trial, dark buckwheat honey did better than no treatment for night cough and sleep quality (Paul et al., 2007).
• A review of natural cough remedies for children names honey as the remedy with the best evidence (Murgia et al., 2021).

Most of the trials were done in children, but the way honey works is the same in adults, which is why it’s the first remedy in our dry cough remedies and part of nearly every cough remedy at home.

How Honey Calms a Cough

Honey works in three ways at once:

• It coats the throat. Honey is thick and sticky, so it clings to the lining of your mouth and throat and calms the irritated nerve endings that trigger the cough.
• Sweetness calms the cough reflex. Sweet taste acts on the same area of the brainstem that controls coughing. In healthy volunteers, a sweet taste raised the threshold for coughing, while a bitter taste didn’t (Pecoraro et al., 2024).
• It’s naturally antibacterial and rich in antioxidants. Raw honey contains enzymes, polyphenols and flavonoids that support the throat while it heals.

And honey does all this without switching the cough off completely. That matters, because a cough is “the watchdog of the lungs”: it protects your airways and clears mucus. Honey calms the irritation without putting the watchdog to sleep.

How Much Honey for a Cough?

The children’s amounts are the ones used in the trials. More isn’t better: a few spoonfuls a day is plenty, and brush teeth after the last one.

How to Take Honey for a Cough

• Straight off the spoon. The simplest way, and the best for a tickly throat. Let it melt slowly on your tongue so it coats the back of the throat.
• Before bed. The most important spoonful of the day, about 30 minutes before sleep. See how to stop a cough at night.
• In warm tea or water. Let the drink cool to drinking temperature first. Boiling water destroys many of the enzymes in raw honey.
• As a homemade syrup with lemon, ginger, onion or thyme (recipes below).
• In warm milk with a pinch of turmeric. And no, milk doesn’t make more mucus, as our phlegm guide explains.

The Best Honey for Cough

Not all honey is the same. A cheap squeeze bottle from the supermarket is often blended, heated and filtered, and a lot of what makes honey special is lost on the way. What to look for:

Raw honey

Raw honey is never heated above hive temperature and only lightly strained, so it keeps its enzymes, pollen and antioxidants. It’s my first choice for a cough, ideally from a local beekeeper you trust. It’s often cloudy or set solid, which is a good sign, not a fault.

Pasteurised honey

Pasteurised honey has been heated so it stays runny and clear on the shelf. It still coats the throat and still works for a cough, but some of the enzymes and delicate compounds are lost. Important: pasteurising does not make honey safe for babies, because the spores that cause infant botulism survive heating.

Dark honey: buckwheat

Darker honeys generally contain more antioxidants than light ones. Buckwheat honey, dark and malty, is the honey used in one of the best known cough trials in children (Paul et al., 2007).

Manuka honey

Manuka honey from New Zealand is known for its strong antibacterial activity, measured as UMF or MGO on the label. There aren’t specific cough trials with manuka, but it’s a wonderful honey for a sore throat and a cough, and many people swear by it. Choose a certified one (UMF 10+ or MGO 250+), because a lot of fake manuka is sold.

Eucalyptus and thyme honey

Bees that forage on eucalyptus or thyme make a strongly flavoured honey that has been used for coughs and colds around the Mediterranean for generations.

Why quality matters

Honey can be contaminated with pesticides, antibiotics or heavy metals, and honey production is under pressure from climate change and bee disease (Pecoraro et al., 2024). That’s one more reason to buy raw honey from a beekeeper you know, or a certified organic brand.

10 Homemade Honey Cough Syrups

These homemade cough syrups with honey are traditional recipes, passed down in families rather than tested in clinical trials. The honey in each one is the part with the research behind it; the other ingredients add warmth, flavour and their own traditional benefits. All of them are for adults and children over 12 months.

Storage: keep syrups with fresh ingredients (onion, garlic, ginger, lemon, fruit) in a clean glass jar in the fridge and use them within a week. Throw away anything that smells off, bubbles or grows mould.

1. Honey, lemon and ginger syrup

The classic, and my favourite homemade cough syrup with honey and lemon.

1. Grate a thumb-sized piece of fresh ginger.
2. Simmer it in 120 ml (½ cup) of water for 10 minutes, then strain and let it cool until warm.
3. Stir in 120 ml (½ cup) of raw honey and the juice of 1 lemon.
4. Pour into a clean jar and keep it in the fridge.

Dose: 1 to 2 teaspoons for adults, up to 4 times a day. Children over 12 months: the honey amounts in the table above.

2. Onion and honey syrup

Pure grandmother medicine, and the most famous onion honey for cough recipe in European kitchens. Red onion makes a slightly sweeter syrup.

1. Peel and thinly slice 1 medium red or white onion.
2. Layer the slices in a clean glass jar, covering each layer with raw honey.
3. Close the jar and leave it at room temperature for 8 to 12 hours, or overnight. The onion releases its juice into a thin, sweet syrup.
4. Strain, and keep the syrup in the fridge.

Dose: 1 teaspoon every few hours for a chesty cough. More onion remedies in our cough remedies at home.

3. Garlic and honey

Garlic has been used for colds and coughs for centuries.

1. Crush or finely chop 3 to 4 cloves of fresh garlic and let them rest for 10 minutes.
2. Stir them into 4 tablespoons of raw honey.
3. Leave for an hour, then take it by the teaspoon. Make small, fresh batches and keep any leftovers in the fridge for a few days at most.

4. Thyme and honey syrup

Thyme is one of the best known herbs for coughs, especially chesty ones (Pecoraro et al., 2024).

1. Pour 250 ml (1 cup) of boiling water over 2 tablespoons of dried thyme (or a handful of fresh sprigs).
2. Cover and steep for 15 minutes, then strain.
3. Once it’s warm rather than hot, stir in 120 ml (½ cup) of raw honey.

Dose: 1 to 2 teaspoons, 3 to 4 times a day.

5. Black pepper and honey

A traditional remedy, especially in India, for a chesty cough. Black pepper warms and is thought to help loosen mucus.

1. Mix 1 tablespoon of raw honey with a pinch (about ¼ teaspoon) of freshly ground black pepper.
2. Add a pinch of ground ginger if you like.
3. Take it slowly off the spoon, or stir it into a cup of warm water.

6. Cinnamon and honey

Warming and gentle, lovely in the evening.

1. Mix 1 tablespoon of raw honey with ¼ teaspoon of ground Ceylon cinnamon.
2. Take it off the spoon or stir it into a cup of warm water or herbal tea.

7. Golden honey with turmeric

1. Mix 4 tablespoons of raw honey with 1 teaspoon of ground turmeric and a good pinch of black pepper (it helps your body absorb the turmeric).
2. Keep it in a small jar and take ½ to 1 teaspoon at a time, or stir it into warm milk.

8. Pineapple and honey

Pineapple contains bromelain, an enzyme traditionally used to thin mucus.

1. Blend 250 ml (1 cup) of fresh pineapple juice with the juice of ½ lemon, 1 tablespoon of raw honey, a small piece of fresh ginger and a pinch of black pepper.
2. Drink a small glass (60 ml) up to three times a day. Keep it in the fridge and use within 2 days.

9. Orange, lemon and honey

A vitamin C rich syrup, perfect in autumn when oranges and mandarins are in season.

1. Mix the juice of 1 orange (or 2 mandarins) and ½ lemon with 3 tablespoons of raw honey.
2. Warm it very gently, just enough to blend, and take 1 to 2 teaspoons at a time or stir it into warm water.

10. Whiskey, lemon and honey (adults only)

The hot toddy is the oldest adult cough remedy in the book: a shot of whiskey, the juice of half a lemon and a spoonful of honey in a mug of hot water. The honey, lemon and warmth do the real work. Honestly, I’d leave the whiskey out: alcohol dries you out, makes the lining of your nose swell and disturbs your sleep, which is the opposite of what a cough needs. Never for children, in pregnancy or with medication.

Lemon and Honey for Cough

Lemon and honey is the most searched cough remedy of all, and it deserves it. Lemon adds vitamin C and a fresh, sharp taste; honey coats the throat and calms the cough. Squeeze half a lemon into a mug of warm water (not boiling), stir in 1 to 2 teaspoons of raw honey and sip slowly. Add a few slices of fresh ginger for an even stronger cup. You’ll find more warm drinks in our tea for cough guide.

Honey for Cough in Children

For children over 12 months, honey is the best studied cough remedy there is, and it’s a much better choice than over-the-counter cough and cold syrups, which don’t help young children and can harm them. Give the amounts in the table above, ideally half an hour before bed, and brush their teeth afterwards. All the syrups on this page are fine for children over 12 months; just leave out the hot toddy and keep pepper and garlic mild. For everything else, see our guide to cough remedies for children.

Why No Honey Under 12 Months?

This is one rule worth understanding rather than just following. Honey can contain spores of Clostridium botulinum, the bacterium that causes botulism. Older children and adults swallow these spores without any problem, because a mature gut keeps them from growing. A baby’s gut can’t do that yet, so the spores can grow and release a toxin that causes infant botulism: weakness, constipation, a weak cry and poor feeding, which can lead to weeks in intensive care.

What the research shows:

• Spores have been found in honey samples, and matched to the strains found in sick babies (Arnon et al., 1979).
• In a US case-control study, babies who had eaten honey were much more likely to develop infant botulism, but only a minority of all cases had eaten honey (Spika et al., 1989). Most cases come from spores in dust and soil, which we can’t avoid.
• Honey is the one source that’s easy to avoid (Tanzi and Gabay, 2002).

So the rule holds up when you look at the evidence: the risk is rare, but real and serious, honey’s cough benefit has only been studied from 12 months, and nobody makes money from you waiting a few months. That’s why it’s not even pasteurised honey, honey in tea, honey on a dummy, or baked goods made with honey, until your baby’s first birthday. For babies with a cough, see the babies section in cough remedies for children.

Pregnancy, Diabetes and Who Should Avoid Honey

• Pregnancy and breastfeeding: honey is safe for a cough while pregnant or breastfeeding. An adult gut handles the spores, and they don’t reach the baby. It’s one of the gentlest cough remedies in pregnancy.
• Diabetes: honey raises your blood sugar like any sugar. Count it in, keep to a teaspoon at a time and check your levels.
• Allergy to bee products or pollen: raw honey contains pollen; skip it if you react to it.
• Teeth: honey is sticky and sugary, so brush after the bedtime spoonful.

When to See a Doctor

Honey calms a cough, but it doesn’t tell you what’s causing it. Diagnosis first, then treatment:

• Get help straight away for trouble breathing, chest pain, blue lips, coughing up blood, or any cough in a baby under 3 months. In an emergency, call 112 (Europe) or 911 (US).
• Your GP or family doctor for a cough with a high fever, a cough that keeps getting worse after a week, or one that lasts more than three weeks.
• A pulmonologist (lung specialist) for a cough with wheezing or breathlessness, or one that lasts more than eight weeks.
• An ENT specialist (ear, nose and throat) for a cough with constant throat clearing or post nasal drip.
• A gastroenterologist when the cough comes with heartburn or is worse after meals.
• A pediatrician for children with a whoop, a barking cough with noisy breathing, or a cough with every cold.

Read more in when a cough needs a doctor.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does honey stop coughing?

Honey calms a cough rather than switching it off. It coats the throat and its sweetness calms the cough reflex. In trials, honey before bed reduced night coughing and improved sleep better than a placebo or no treatment.

How much honey for a cough?

Adults: 1 to 2 teaspoons, 3 to 4 times a day, including one right before bed. Children: ½ teaspoon from 1 to 5 years, 1 teaspoon from 6 to 11 and 2 teaspoons from 12. Never under 12 months.

What is the best honey for a cough?

Raw, dark honey from a beekeeper you trust. Buckwheat honey was used in cough trials in children, and certified manuka honey is a strong antibacterial choice. Pasteurised honey still works, but loses some of its enzymes.

Is honey and lemon good for a cough?

Yes. Honey coats the throat and calms the cough, and lemon adds vitamin C. Mix half a lemon and 1 to 2 teaspoons of raw honey in warm, not boiling, water and sip slowly.

How do you make homemade cough syrup with honey?

Simmer grated ginger in water for 10 minutes, strain, let it cool until warm, then stir in an equal amount of raw honey and the juice of a lemon. Keep it in the fridge and use within a week.

Does onion and honey syrup work?

Onion and honey syrup is one of the oldest traditional cough remedies in Europe. The honey has the research behind it; the onion is traditional use. Layer sliced onion with honey in a jar overnight and take a teaspoon of the syrup every few hours.

Is honey safe for a cough in pregnancy?

Yes. Honey is safe while pregnant and breastfeeding, because an adult gut handles the spores that are dangerous for babies. Keep an eye on the amount if you have gestational diabetes.

Why can’t babies have honey?

Honey can contain spores of the bacterium that causes infant botulism. A baby’s gut can’t stop them from growing until around their first birthday. Pasteurising doesn’t kill the spores, so no honey in any form under 12 months.

Recommended

• How to Stop Coughing: What to Do When You Can’t Stop
• Cough Remedies at Home
• How to Stop Coughing at Night
• Cough Remedies for Children
• Tea for Cough

This article is for general information and does not replace a diagnosis from a qualified professional. Read our medical disclaimer or browse more natural remedies.

Veronique Cleas D'erckenteel

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