When it comes to handmade vs. shop-bought coffee, one of the most common topics of discussion is how much money you’ll save by making coffee at home rather than purchasing a cup of coffee at a store.

But is it really that easy? What about the flavor? What about convenience?

Here’s the coffee math.

Overview

I’m just as guilty as everyone else.

On my way to work every morning, I use my Starbucks phone app to preorder my favorite coffee. Nothing rivals a grande two-pump vanilla soy latte when it comes to awakening the senses and kicking your day into high gear.

It also sets you back $5.51 each and every day.

It’s not outrageously expensive for something I genuinely appreciate; in fact, it’s part of our philosophy. You don’t have to short-change your enjoyment of life in order to save.

On the other hand, the annual cost of drinking a cup of Starbucks (or Seattle’s Best, Peet’s, Coffee Bean and Tea Leaf, etc.) every day isn’t cheap.

So, how about making your own coffee at home? Is it worthwhile?

Before we get there, let’s address the main issue that most individuals have while making this decision.

Why is homemade coffee inferior to store-bought coffee?

Why Doesn’t My Home-Brewed Coffee Taste as Good?

It’s the Machine

Sorry, Mr. Coffee, but a $20 coffee maker just cannot compete with the technology used by your neighborhood barista.

These machines cost thousands of dollars and must be serviced on a regular basis to ensure maximum flavor quality.

This isn’t to imply that price always equals excellence, but the engineering and design warrant it in this situation; your 8-cup machine lacks the technology of a true brewer.

And what about espresso? Forget about it. You won’t receive the pressure or temperature control that a high-end machine provides.

Takeaway: Purchase a high-end unit. The initial costs may be higher, but you can easily recover them within the first year.

The Breville BES870XL Barista Express Espresso Machine is what I’ve been using.

It strikes me as the ideal balance of performance and price. It is more expensive than the ordinary machine, although it is not as expensive as other high-end espresso machines.

Whole Beans vs. Ground Coffee

By far, the most popular option is ground coffee.

Ground coffee is made from whole coffee beans and is ground and packed at the manufacturer before being put on grocery store shelves.

While you are more inclined to prefer ground coffee since it is more convenient, you are sacrificing freshness and quality in exchange.

Whole beans, on the other hand, are sold whole, with the buyer responsible for grinding the beans.

Whole beans are often ground just a few moments before brewing, resulting in a more nuanced and fresh-tasting coffee than ground coffee.

Takeaway: For the best flavor, buy whole-bean coffee and grind it right before making coffee.

Personally, I enjoy Trader Joe’s French Roast 100% Arabica Coffee, particularly their Dark Roast, Strong & Rich.

It’s a rich, complex, and full-bodied dark blend. It’s ideal for making espresso or lattes, but that’s just my opinion.

Making Coffee Is a Skill That Must Be Learned

I have another confession to make.

When I first acquired the coffee machine, I was terrible at pulling my own espresso shot for at least a week or two, and it wasn’t due to a lack of reading instructions as a novice.

I simply couldn’t grind the right amount of coffee or tamp my coffee grinds at the proper pressure.

Whatever you think of the barista’s craft, the folks who work in coffee shops are trained professionals who prepare hundreds of coffee beverages every day.

You can’t expect to be perfect on the first day.

There will be a learning curve, but once you get it right, oh man, is it satisfying!

Takeaway: Practice makes perfect. It will take time to become proficient in this skill, as with any other.

The Coffee Math

Now that we’ve cleared things up, let’s perform some serious math and compare the prices of store-bought coffee vs. homemade coffee.

These numbers are based on my own experience. Some readers may get comparable results, while others may get values that differ somewhat from mine.

And that’s fine. The goal is to learn through observation and experience.

Here’s the coffee math:

Coffee Shop Coffee

I mentioned in the opening of this post that my go-to drink is Starbucks’ grande extra-hot two-pump vanilla soy latte.

Each cup costs $5.51.

On average, I drink roughly a cup a day, for a total of 7 cups per week.

7 cups per week is 365 cups per year (1 cup multiplied by 365 days).

A year’s worth of Starbucks coffee costs $2,011.15 – not prohibitively expensive, but still a significant sum.

Home Brewed Coffee

Aside from the coffee equipment I recommended, I’ll need the following to replicate my Starbucks drink as nearly as possible:

• Trader Joe’s French Roast 100% Arabica Coffee (26 oz or 48 cups) = $14.99
• Trader Joe’s Organic Unsweetened Almond Beverage (32 fl oz or 4 servings) = $1.99
• Trader Joe’s Turbinado Raw Cane Sugar (1 Lb 8 Oz. or 170 servings) = $10.95

A can of Trader Joe’s French Roast 100% Arabica whole-bean coffee is 26 ounces. You need .54 ounces of ground coffee to produce a medium-sized cup.

We can now calculate how many cups are in a can of coffee beans by dividing 26 oz by .54 oz. The result is 48 cups.

With all of the necessary information, we can compute the total cost per cup of each ingredient by dividing the product’s cost by the number of servings:

• Trader Joe’s French Roast 100% Arabica Coffee = $0.31
• Trader Joe’s Organic Unsweetened Almond Beverage = $0.63
• Trader Joe’s Turbinado Raw Cane Sugar = $0.06

The total cost of a cup of homemade coffee is $1.00, which is about 82% less than the comparable Starbucks cup.

A year’s worth of homemade coffee costs $365.00 in total.

When compared to Starbucks, brewing coffee at home saves you $1,646.15 each year!

A Parting Word from Jerome…

When I advocate preparing coffee at home with the machine I use, the initial reaction is shock.

The price of the espresso machine is greater than they anticipated, but when you run the numbers, you can readily see that you can return the cost of the machine within the first year (and then some).

It’s a long-term investment that pays out handsomely.

If you’re considering making coffee at home instead of going to a coffee shop, hopefully, this post will be helpful.

Has anyone made the switch (particularly since many of us work from home)? Is what I mentioned mostly correct? Disagree?

Please let me know in the comments area.