Starbucks Is The Cheapest Option For A Specific Category Of Drinks
If a good cup of coffee is one of your favorite indulgences, we're right there with you. Whether enjoyed black, combined with steamed milk for a latte or cappuccino, or infused with pumpkin spice, coffee is one of the world's favorite beverages, with the chilly nations of Finland, Norway, and Iceland leading the world in its consumption (via World Population Review). In America, where we also love a good cuppa: Coffee is more popular than bottled water, soft drinks, or tea (via Statista) — and a good amount of the stuff is sourced on-the-go from beloved java joints such as Starbucks, Dunkin', and Caribou Coffee.
In spite of the troubled economic times we're living through — hello, rampant inflation – people still love to treat themselves to pricy coffee shop drinks such as flat whites and Aeropress brews. According to a recent U.S. survey, 14.4% of respondents admitted to spending more than $40 per month at a coffee shop or chain — quite a lot of money at more than $480 annually. Even though we all know that making coffee at home is cheaper than buying it — saving you up to $1200 per year, according to Bustle — we still frequent our favorite coffee chains to indulge in luxury that's more modest and accessible than a fancy car or an impulse vacation.
If you, too, treasure your store-bought sources of caffeine, you might want to know which popular drink category is actually fairly affordable at Starbucks locations across the country.
Medium and large Frappuccinos are cheaper at Starbucks than Dunkin' or Caribou
Who doesn't love to sip a cold, blended Frappuccino on a hot day (or, basically, on any type of day)? These blended, iced, sugary coffee drinks are pretty much — let's be honest here — a milkshake that goes by another name, and are absolutely loaded with fat, sugar, and calories (via Insider). That being said, they're also delicious and there's a reason why the icy drinks are such a popular choice at inventor Starbucks — as well at competitors Dunkin' and Caribou, where they're called, respectively, Frozen Coffees and Caribou Coolers (via CNET).
If Frappuccinos or their cousins are your standard coffee shop order, you're going to want to make the switch to Starbucks if you haven't already. As reported by CNET, plain, coffee-flavored medium and large Frapps are the cheapest at Starbucks as compared to the same-sized drinks at Dunkin' and Caribou, running you $3.95 and $4.45, respectively, at 'bucks, whereas they're $3.99 and $4.99 at Dunkin' and $4.69 and $4.99 at Caribou. At Starbucks, then, a daily medium Frappuccino habit will cost you a steep $987.50 year — which is still a fair amount less than what you'd spend per year on a similar drink at Dunkin' ($997.50) or Caribou ($1,173), per CNET.
So the next time the craving for something sweet, cold, and caffeinated hits, head to your local Starbucks to satisfy it — at a reasonable price.