For a map of the unit interval with an indifferent fixed point, we prove an upper bound for the variance of all observables of $n$ variables $K:[0,1]^ntoR$ which are componentwise Lipschitz. The proof is based on coupling and decay of correlation properties of the map. We then give various applications of this inequality to the almost-sure central limit theorem, the kernel density estimation, the empirical measure and the periodogram.