Rumors that the Starbucks unicorn frappe will return are rampant on TikTok, but is it just more 2016 nostalgia?
People on social media are expressing nostalgia for Starbucks’ discontinued Unicorn Frappe—and spreading rumors about its return.
TikTok creator Saige Chambers was 10 when the drink was released. “I waited nine years for this, and I might finally get closure,” Chambers announced in a video from Jan. 7, 2026. “Correct me if I'm wrong, but I just heard Starbucks is bringing back the Unicorn Frappuccino.” She said she made her grandmother drive to one Starbucks location after another in search of the frap she called “the Labubu of 20 whatever 16.”
“I don't have much memory of how it went other than sobbing every time I went to the Starbucks window, and they told me they didn't have one. People were making dupes. People were, like, freezing it and selling it on eBay. I don't know what it was, but Starbucks had us in a chokehold,” Chambers said. “And to this day I still wonder what it tastes like.”
The unicorn frappuccino was available for barely even a week in 2017, from April 19-25, at select Starbucks locations in the US and Canada. It was made with ice, milk, pink powder, sour blue powder, crème frappuccino syrup, mango syrup, and blue drizzle. And although clips from 2017 have resurfaced to reveal that some Starbucks customers who got to try the frap found it absolutely disgusting, people in 2026 are still thirsty to get their hands on it.
Drinking a Unicorn frap in 2026
Creator Blair Scott shared a clip of herself drinking the Unicorn frap on Jan. 13, 2026, that went viral with 4.3 million views on TikTok. The video’s onscreen text read, “What?? How does she have a Unicorn Frappuccino in 2026?” Commenters suspected she made the drink at home and brought it to Starbucks to get the shot.
@iamblairscott 2016 kids, are you here????????? #starbucks #2016 #usa???????? ♬ suono originale - Jr Stit
Drinking a Unicorn frap in 2017
Gabby Frost shared a clip of her reaction to tasting the frap back in 2017. She took a sip and pushed the drink away, “Ew, it’s fucking nasty.” Frost added onscreen text to her post from Jan. 8, 2026: “apparently the unicorn frap is coming back so here’s your sign to not waste money on it because it tastes like ????????????.”
@asliceofgabaghoul extended cut of ewwww ???? that’s f*ing nasty ???? so glad i bought this using the dining dollars my university forced me to buy a plan for and not real money #unicornfrappuccino #unicornfrappe #unicornfrap #unicorn #starbucks ♬ original sound - Gabby Frost
“I gotta try it ????????????”
TikTok user @miamimax shared an edit of nostalgic clips on Jan. 5, 2026, that showed people enjoying the Unicorn frap in 2017, along with onscreen text that read, “the world is healing… in February.” The TikTok creator wrote, “Idc if it taste bad I gotta try it ????????????.”
@miamimax Idc if it taste bad I gotta try it ???????????? #unicornfrappuccino #2016 #nostalgia #starbucks #youtubers ♬ The Night Is Still Young - Nicki Minaj
The rumor could just be a fairytale
Unfortunately, the Unicorn Frappuccino’s rumored return appears so far to be unfounded. Reddit users on r/Starbucks denied reports of a 2026 comeback, including a Starbucks worker of six years.
People on the thread blamed rumors on misunderstandings circulated about the permanent return of raspberry syrup to the coffee chain’s stores.
Here’s a recipe in case you desperately need to try the viral mango-flavored blended drink with sweet pink and sour blue powder topping.
The Daily Dot has reached out to Starbucks for more information and will update this story if the rumors are indeed true.
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