I currently have a Keurig one cup brewer and drink about three 8 oz cups of coffee a day. My husband drinks one or two cups daily. I think we are spending somewhere around $75 a month on coffee minimally, which is really too much since we are broke. I am thinking we should switch to a standard coffee maker and brew larger pots in the morning. I won't ask about pricing because I know that depends on the kind of coffee I choose to buy, but it would be easier for me to estimate savings if I knew how many 8 oz cups of coffee I could get from, say, a 12 oz bag of ground coffee? Also, is it cheaper to buy whole bean coffee and grind it myself? If so, how many cups of coffee would I get from a 12 oz bag of whole bean coffee? Or is it roughly the same?
I can only imagine that it would say on the bag of coffee how many cups you will get out of it. Although, that also depends on how strong you brew your coffee.
I'd say that you really have to cut off your budget on coffee. This is not only for financial purposes but also to the risks factors of drinking too much coffee. A cup a day is more than enough especially for people who are prone to stress like typical gradeschool parents.
I still think that if you are near Starbucks...you should go and buy coffee there. There coffee really is the best. Most countries have a Starbucks and I must admit that I still find that their coffee is worth the price....most definitely. If you are not near a Starbucks, certain stores sell it. Starbucks coffee is the best, for sure. That is my simple recommendation.
I've never really been a big coffee drinker. I started drinking about two cups of coffee a day a while back but developed a terrible stomach upset from it. I can cope with maybe one cup every few days but that's it and I only drink it sometimes first thing on a morning to give me a kick before I start training.
I personally think you aren't drinking enough coffee, but I am insensitive to caffine so I'm biased. Okay so I've got a 12 oz bag of Folger's Gourmet ground coffee in my hand. It's chocolate truffle by the way and it smells fantastic! The recommendation is 1 tsp per 6 ounces water. I generally use 6 tsp for a pot making 12 cups and a bag like this generally lasts over 10 pots or 120 cups. So that what 60 tsp in a pack? Would you really drink more then that in a given amount of time?
Yeah you should cut it out altogether. It's a bad habit to get into, especially more than one cup a day! My parents drink it all day every day and I'm always trying to get them to stop this.
I got one of those machines from the supplier because of the industry I work in. They also gave me a year's worth of coffee. First off, it was disgusting. Secondly, if I didn't buy the coffee, I can't even begin to imagine how much it would cost. I see a package costs $10 at a grocery store. So my fiancee and I got rid of it and got a standard coffee maker. She spends $3 a week on a bag of coffee. It don't understand the fascination with these new coffee machines. In the end, I'll take a medium double-double at Tim Horton's once a week then buying a machine at all.
My husband and I drink instant coffee because we don't have a coffee maker. A 7oz jar of instant costs about eight dollars and lasts for a month. You and your husband drink about twice as much as we do, but that's still way cheaper than seventy five dollars.
I never drank coffee. That is how I save. The caffeine is bad for you, it discolors your teeth, and I cannot imagine what two or three cups a day of coffee does to your stomach. I know I sound like everyone's mom, but I like fruit juice, milk and water much better.
Tosaytheleast, supergirl & footballtim, I appreciate your concern for my health. I am well aware that it's not great to drink so much coffee. Please explain to my 5 month old that she needs to sleep better so mommy doesn't need a gallon of coffee every day to help keep her awake. Aside for the stress of having a 5 month old and having some money issues, my life is fairly stress free. I think the 4 years before my little one gets into grade school is enough time for me to get my coffee habit under control. Linky, I love starbucks coffee too. I don't know if I would say its the best, but it is good. I have a gold card so I do get discounts on their coffee, but this really doesn't help with my budget. Esperahol, Ha! Thank you for supporting my coffee habit. Are you drinking 12 cups of coffee a day or are you sharing. If you are drinking it on your own Tosaytheleast, supergirl, and footballtim may have some comments for you. AND for answering my question! I think I'd probably use the whole tsp for the 6 oz since I like my coffee strong, and I usually drink an 8 oz glass. So 60 6 oz teaspoons is 360 oz, which gives me 45 8 oz cups. If I drink 4 cups a day, that would last me about 11 days. So I guess I'd need 36 oz of ground coffee for a month. Even really fancy coffee on Amazon is under $20 for that amount. So it seems I'd have significant savings by switching. Lastly, I am very jealous right now of your chocolate truffle coffee. Andrew320, there are many varieties of kcups. I doubt you've tried all of them. I have had some bad ones as well but many are delicious. The ones at the grocery stores are expensive. You can get them much cheaper if you buy them in bulk and online. I think by your Tim Hortons comment you meant that you'd rather go to Tim's once a week over buying a coffee maker at all. I'm a stay at home mom, so going out to get my coffee with my 5 month old at 4 or 5 am is just not going to happen. Footballtim, since you're dispensing health advice as well, I just wanted to point out that fruit juice is terrible for you. It's pure sugar, which can rot your teeth, among having a variety of other effects on your body. There is almost nothing about juice that is good for you that you wouldn't be better getting by simply eating a fruit. Also, despite what everyone thinks, milk is not good for you either. Check out the China Study. Anyway, I'm really just teasing tosaytheleast, supergirl, and foodballtim. I know you mean well.
I think overall, if you buy a bigger coffeemaker and limit it to brewing only one jug a day you will be significantly lessening the amount of money you are paying each month for coffee. If you are watching your budget, you may also want to look at coffee as a luxury, something you have once in a while. I love coffee, so I know that would not be easy.
I save money on drinking coffee by just making a very small cup each time. I like Nescafe. Hot and black. Using a very small cup, I make my coffee really black and sweet. Then I chase it down with cold water. It tastes very good that way.
I'm a caffeine achiever and coffee keeps me awake and motivated to get a lot done in a day. My ex mother in law used to give me 2 bags of coffee on my birthday and say "Here, your drugs." Anyway, I agree with the posters that said you should buy a normal 12 cup coffeemaker. With a normal coffeemaker, you could buy luxury coffee brands and still not spend $75 a month.
Those Keurig coffee machines are awesome. We had one at work for a while and I was really surprised how fresh the coffee tasted. I was buying the beans and grinding them myself in a burr mill grinder for a while, but it was still expensive. I was probably spending about $100 a month on coffee and water filters for my coffee pot. The only thing I found that would help cut down on the cost was to only brew half pots, because I would never drink a whole pot by myself at any given time - so I was just wasting a lot of it. If you do switch over to a cheaper brand coffee already ground, try making it in an electric percolator coffee pot - not sure what it is, but even off brand coffee comes out good in them.
I like to buy the Dunkin Donuts ground coffee 1 lb bag where I live. The cost is about $9.99 and a whole bag lasts about 2 months, but I only use on the weekends. My husband and I are similar. He drinks a cup, I do 2 cups. To save money you should definitely buy a thermos and a regular coffee pot. Brew a bigger pot and share the coffee. I would estimate that you could get by on using 1-2 pounds of ground coffee a month. (I'm just guessing) That would be a $55 savings. As for places to buy coffee you can buy in bulk at Coscto or buy from your coffee shop. You didn't mention what coffee brand you like but I think regardless getting a regular pot is a great start to saving.
