A cup of coffee in the morning is not just about the caffeine (though that’s certainly important). It’s the ritual that starts the day. There’s the whir of beans grinding, the toasted smell as it brews—even waiting for your finished cup is a part of the fun. It’s time to start creeping toward wakefulness like the sun peeking over the horizon in an old-timey Folgers commercial—all fuzzy and warm and full of promise. Unless that is, you’re out of coffee. Then it’s dull, gray, and cold.
One of the best ways to avoid running out of beans is a coffee subscription. You choose how many times a month (or week, if you drink a lot of coffee) you’d like fresh-roast coffee beans delivered straight to your home, sign up, and never have to worry about running out of coffee again. Over the years I’ve tested dozens of coffee subscription services. Here I’ve broken them down into two major categories: coffee roasters and coffee retailers. Which is which? Read on!
Be sure to check our other coffee buying guides, including the Best Espresso Machines, Best Cold-Brew Coffee Makers, Best Latte and Cappuccino Machines, and Best Coffee Grinders.
Updated June 2024: We’ve added Stone Creek Coffee and reordered the list.
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Photograph: Matusajdos/Getty Images
Roasters vs. Retailers
There are two kinds of coffee subscription providers: roasters and retailers. There are pros and cons to both, and I’ve laid them out below.
Roasters are cafés, coffee roasteries, and small-batch producers who buy the raw beans from farmers and roast them to perfection. By buying from a roaster, you’re directly supporting the people who make your favorite coffees; there’s no middleman between you and your coffee. The downside is you won’t have as broad a selection available. Roasters sell only their own coffee, but that sometimes means special blends and single origins are available from a roaster that you can’t get from a retailer.
Retailers are coffee subscription providers who buy their beans from roasters then ship them to you. That means they will often have a much broader selection of coffees available (from multiple brands) to ship to your doorstep. The downside is that since you’re not buying directly from a roaster, some of that money goes to the retailer, and not all retailers will have access to every blend and roast a particular brand offers.
There’s no wrong way to go; they provide different services. Think of it like buying coffee from your favorite café versus buying coffee at a supermarket. It just depends on what you’re looking for. Our top roasters and retailers are at the top, followed by our top picks by region, and the rest are a mix of roasters and retailers in no particular order.