The Most Overpriced Drink At 7 Coffee Chains

It's hard to imagine a world without coffee. After all, according to research, it's the most consumed daily drink among American adults, followed by bottled water (via National Coffee Association). A small-batch chain like Stumptown Coffee Roasters, for example, can charge nearly $9 for a cold brew, not just because it uses special coffee beans, but because it knows people will buy it anyway. Across America's caffeinated landscape, prices have increased 30% in a single year, per Business Insider. Coffee chains started raising prices in response to the introduction of massive tariffs on coffee imports from Vietnam, Colombia, and Brazil, which collectively account for 60% of the U.S. coffee supply. 

With tariffs squeezing every penny from citizens' pockets, saving a few dollars here and there is now more important than ever. To help you save bucks on your everyday coffee consumption, I decided to spotlight the most overpriced drink at seven coffee chains. Each of the chains included have either a national or large regional presence. I made sure to check for prices in cities where coffee costs more, compared the average costs of menu items at different chains, and also looked for pricing inconsistencies. At the very least, you should know which menu items don't offer as much boost for your buck as they should.

The prices at Dutch Bros Coffee are slightly higher when compared to other chains, with most falling between the $5 to $7 range. In Los Angeles, a medium iced Hazelnut Latte costs the same as a large Hazelnut Cold Brew. Lattes usually cost a bit more than cold brews, but in many cases, coffee chains price them around the same. Caribou Coffee and The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, which are more expensive on average, are two examples. That said, though there are more expensive drinks on the menu, after doing the math, I found that the large Iced Americano takes the cake as the most overpriced drink at Dutch Bros.

A large Iced Americano is priced at $4.85, and it costs nearly $1.50 more than the small option at Dutch Bros in Los Angeles. When compared to other drinks, this is a huge price discrepancy between the cup sizes. The only menu items with a similar difference include a standard Americano — the difference is around $1.20 — and a flavored cold brew where the difference is $1.10. For most other items on the menu, the price gap between cup sizes falls somewhere between 80 cents and $1. Hence, I chose a large-size Iced Americano because there is no reasoning for such a price discrepancy as it only features black coffee and water.

The average cost of a small coffee drink at Dunkin' in Los Angeles falls around $4.50, with the most expensive items landing around $7. As such, it was initially challenging to determine the most overpriced item by looking at the Dunkin' menu exclusively. But, I dug up something interesting when comparing the prices against other chains. Dunkin' prices a macchiato noticeably higher than most of its other same-category drinks, such as an Americano or cappuccino, while other chains generally price them the same. 

For example, at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf in Anaheim, California, a small macchiato is around $0.20 less than a small Americano and almost $2 less than a small cappuccino. This distinction is worth pointing out because The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf is a more expensive chain, with some coffee drinks costing over $1 more on average. The bigger takeaway is that Dunkin' charges $5.69 for a medium macchiato, which is approximately $3 more than the price of a double shot of espresso with milk, which costs a little under $3. Since a macchiato is mostly composed of espresso with a splash of milk, which Dunkin' offers as a free add-on, this is definitely an instance of overpricing. 

A caffè breve is a type of coffee consisting of a shot of espresso blended with steamed half-and-half instead of milk. Foam is reserved and added on top. For the chains on this list that offer this dessert-like American invention, it typically appears on the menu as a substitute or an add on. Caribou Coffee, however, offers it as a separate menu item. In Minneapolis, a small breve option from Caribou Coffee costs almost $6, while a large one inches towards $7.

Compared to the menu's average coffee drink price, it's not only more expensive than other standard drinks — in some cases up to $3 more — but it's as expensive as specialty drinks that include some truly creative elements. Granted, adding half-and-half does typically cost more than milk at most chains. However, you can add steamed half-and-half to your drink for $1.50 at Peets Coffee or get it for free at The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf. So even if Caribou Coffee accurately prices its breve slightly more than its milk drinks, it's still considerably higher than the average chain, especially when a double shot of espresso at The Coffee Bean, which is generally considered a pricier coffee chain, costs only $3.95. So, when you combine the fact that the more expensive Coffee Bean sells double shots for almost $2 less, and offers steamed half-and-half for free, Caribou's breve is easily the most overpriced drink on its menu.

The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf doesn't shy away from expressing its commitment to quality. The company only uses the top 1% of Arabica beans, sourced from East Africa, Latin America, and the Pacific, which it roasts in small batches in its home state of California. The chain says it follows a strict no-shortcuts ethos, but there's one overpriced coffee drink on its menu that may contradict that statement. The beverage in question is the Vanilla Ice Blended drink, which is made with coffee extract instead of real coffee beans. 

While coffee extract is commonly used in the coffee world, and there are certainly quality versions, a drink made with extract shouldn't cost so much more than ones brewed from real coffee beans. A small-size Vanilla Ice Blended drink, retailing around $6, is actually one of the most expensive small-size items on the menu. In fact, it costs just as much as a large-size Iced Latte. When combined with the use of extracts, this makes it the most overpriced coffee option.

Canada's iconic Tim Hortons is one of the more affordable coffee chains on this list, with drinks costing around $3 on average. It may seem counterintuitive to highlight the most overpriced menu item at a reasonably priced chain, but after taking a closer look, I couldn't ignore one glaring inconsistency, which is the price difference between a small size Americano and a large one at certain locations in New York City. Like a simple espresso or a cappuccino, an Americano is a standard coffee drink, but when comparing the price differences among cup sizes for all three, the Americano glaringly stands out as the chain charges nearly twice as much.

A small cappuccino in one Staten Island shop is around $3.50, and a large is a little less than a dollar more. A small Americano, however, is a little over $3, with a large one costing around $5. Americanos are typically priced similar to other standard coffee drinks at most chains, and in some cases, like at Dunkin', it even costs less. Now, to be fair, prices vary from one location to another. At one shop in Jamaica, Queens, for example, a small Americano is around $5, and even if you don't think the price difference among cup sizes is that egregious, I think you'll agree that paying around $5 for a small Americano might be.

Stumptown Coffee Roasters is known for its premium coffee, and that reputation is followed by some of the priciest coffee drinks of any chain. An average cost of a standard coffee drink such as latte or macchiato at one of the chain's hometown locations in Portland, Oregon is around $5, with some costing a bit less and others a bit more. Seasonal beverages go beyond $8, though. However, there is one particular drink that stood out from the rest: mocha.

At over $7 for a 12-ounce cup, which is the smallest size offered, you're looking at spending a pretty penny, especially if you want to size up to a 16-ounce for $0.50, or add a double shot of espresso for $2. Any other additions will further raise the price. 

Stumptown's mocha is around $2 more than other standard coffee drinks, and a large one is $2.50 more. To be fair, Stumptown makes the chocolate sauce in-house from Woodblock Chocolate, a local company known for its small-batch artisanal chocolate, so that may help justify the extra cost. But, from the consumer perspective, does it justify potentially spending nearly $10 for a single cup of mocha?

At Peet's Coffee in Marina Del Rey, California, which is considered part of Los Angeles, you can expect to spend around $4 for standards like an espresso or Americano, almost $5 for a cappuccino and mocha, and over $7 for a specialty drink like vanilla latte with ice. Of all the items on the menu, though, the one I'd like to highlight is the overpriced espresso. It costs $3.10 for a single shot, which jumps to $4-plus for a double, then over $5 for a triple, and around $6 for a quad.

With those prices, you're paying more than you would at most chains, with the exception of The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf and Stumptown Coffee Roasters. To be fair, though, the former is generally considered more expensive, so the price difference makes sense. Besides that, most coffee chains typically charge less than $3, and in some cases, even less than $2. An espresso shot from Starbucks in Los Angeles, which sells drinks within a similar price range, is just under $3, while a quad is a little over $4. Even if Peets is a tad pricier than most, when espresso can cost 50% more than what you'd pay at similar coffee chains, it can be labeled as overpriced.

To determine the most overpriced drink at seven coffee chains, I first compiled a list of major nationwide and regionally widespread coffee chains. For chains concentrated on the West Coast, I focused primarily on those based in or around Los Angeles, and for the East Coast, I chose New York City. Then, I chose other cities for regional chains without a major presence in LA or NYC. I then noted the cost of cold brews, lattes, and standard espresso drinks, such as Americano, black coffee, cappuccino, macchiato, cortado, flat white, and a breve. 

I also took into consideration the iced variety of each drink and the cost of add-ons. To pinpoint overpriced drinks, I used the average cost of menu items at each chain as a basis for comparison, and in cases where I was unable to spot overpricing, I compared certain items against their price at other chains. That approach allowed me to spot pricing inconsistencies, which is how I made my selections.