Lead by Keurig, the coffee pod revolutionized how we make coffee. It’s fast, it’s simple, and damn if it’s not good when you’re in a hurry! In this article, we’re going to look at how expensive K-Cups are compared to other brewing methods, how much plastic they use, and what you can do to cut your costs!

How Expensive are K-Cups?

To compare different methods apples-to-apples, or should we say, beans-to-beans — we’re going to make a couple of assumptions. Let’s say you drink one cup of coffee, every day, for a year.

Maybe you drink coffee more frequently? Maybe your office has coffee, so you only pay for your coffee on weekends? These calculations are all relative, so just note how your habits compare to our assumptions!

Let’s say you buy the Green Mountain 40 pack every month or so.

If you haven’t tried it, you actually should! I found a couple of flavors in here that I ended up really liking.

So, at $20 per pack (or $0.50 per pod), that means that you’re spending about $180 per year. That may not sound like a lot, but remember to multiply this by the number of cups you drink a day, the number of coffee drinkers in your household, or both!

Let’s not forget the cost of the Keurig or other pod brewer that you purchased! It really depends on the model, but we’ll assume you went with the less expensive Keurig K-Classic Coffee Maker. That means you spent an additional $80 for your coffee maker.

So, How Does That Compare To Other Brewing Methods?

Drip Coffee

Let’s look at how much brewing drip coffee will cost you per year. Now, this is really dependent on beans that you’re brewing. Let’s assume you’re buying the 20oz bag of Starbucks French Dark Roast. That makes about 50 cups of coffee, or about $0.16 per cup.

Let’s say you bought a decent Hamilton Beach coffee maker, that means you spent an additional $35 on your coffee maker.

In total, you spent around $60 per year on coffee, saving you just over $150 per year on coffee alone! If you have a household of 3 or 4 coffee drinkers, that really starts to add up!

Starbucks (or another coffee shop)

Let’s say you went and bought a cup of coffee every day from Starbucks. I mean really, who doesn’t like their seasonal drinks?

To be conservative, let’s say you spend $4 per drink. Let’s be honest, that’s probably a little low considering any tips and all those taxes you’re paying! Over a year, that mean’s you’re spending right around $1,500 on coffee!

Wait, Let’s Summarize That Quickly

If you’re using K-Cups every day, you’d spend right around $260 in the first year.

If you’re brewing drip coffee, you’d spend right around $100 in the first year.

If you’re going to Starbucks every day, you’d spend right around $1,500 in the first year.

So, I Can Save a Little Bit of Money by Brewing Drip, What Else?

First off, saving $150 per year isn’t something to sneeze at! But it is way more convenient to pop in a K-Cup than dealing with loose coffee grounds.

But wait, have you considered how much plastic is going to waste when you use K-Cups?

According to the Green Mountain website, K-Cups (and most other pods) contain about 4 grams of plastic. Over the course of a year, that means about three and a quarter pounds of plastic are going to waste!

And in case you’re thinking you can just recycle them, think again! With all of the grounds in the pod and the type of plastic pods are made from, recycle plants won’t be able to recycle them!

So, What Can I Do?

We get that K-Cups and other pods are easy. That’s the point! But here are a couple of thoughts that can help you keep plastics out of landfills and money in your pockets!

Save Some Money

Methods like drip, siphon, and french press (check out our guides on those, they’re great) save you money in every single cup! Whether or not you pocket that money or use it on more expensive beans, that’s a win!

If you’re looking for some beans to splurge on, be sure to check out the geisha!

Save The Environment

Three pounds of plastic may not sound like a lot, but everything adds up over time! By using reusable or paper filters, you can compost the grounds instead of throwing them away!

If you really like K-Cups, check out reusable pods! They take a little bit more time, but it makes pod brewing cheaper, more versatile, and better for the planet!

Before You Go!

Hopefully you found this helpful! We try to bring helpful information and a bit of analysis to educate you on the wonderful world of coffee! Our efforts here are fueled by you and a healthy dose of coffee. Feel free to check out our other articles, guides, lists, and more!