If you’re anything like me, one of the toughest parts of your monthly budget is caused by a small but potent culprit: the irresistible urge for a great cup of coffee.
As someone who’s loved coffee since before high school and is now old enough to cringe at admitting that, I understand the tension between keeping a coffee budget and repeatedly busting it for a barista-made pick-me-up whenever the craving hits.
Here’s the reality. While a specialty cup cost three or four dollars not long ago, it’s often pushing five dollars or more these days. And coffee costs are climbing.
Factor in add-ons like flavor shots, alternative milks and other extras, and you can easily be handed an $8 drink — which is what I shelled out last week at a neighborhood spot my friends and I jokingly (and with some bitterness) refer to as the “ten-dollar latte place.” With tip, it gets uncomfortably close.
So how do you stop wasting hard-earned money on café drinks? Learn to craft them at home, and make them even better — for a fraction of the price. Below is my guide to recreating those “ten-dollar lattes” at home for roughly a third of what you’d spend. Yes, really.
How Much Can You Save Brewing Coffee at Home?
A surprising amount. Skip buying costly lattes 47 times and you’ll have enough to buy a $330 plane ticket. I did the calculations because I’m a bit of a nerd and because I’m committed to fighting the ten-dollar latte habit.
Using this Brown Sugar Oat Milk Latte recipe, which uses pricier items like cinnamon and vanilla extract, my homemade versions — made with oat milk and quality espresso beans — still only cost around $2.70 per cup.
If you skip milk substitutes and fancy syrups, you can brew drinks for a little over $1 per cup, assuming a gallon of regular milk at $4.17 and roughly 18 grams of coffee from a 12-ounce, $16 bag of beans. Buy cheaper beans or drink it black and the price drops even further.
Yes, you could always trim costs by cutting corners. But the goal here isn’t sacrificing taste — it’s making delicious, café-level coffee at home for far less, because if the homemade version isn’t as good as the purchased one, you won’t choose it.
Ready for my top tips from one coffee snob to another? Let’s get into it.
Tip 1: Invest in Quality Beans
If you want to reduce trips to your regular café, it’s worth spending a bit on good beans. The choice between a cheap grocery blend and a $10 latte is obvious — you know which one wins.
Great coffee starts with great beans. No amount of milk or flavoring will hide stale pre-ground coffee. Whole beans preserve flavor much longer than ground coffee, which turns stale quickly. Even if you balk at paying $16 for a bag from your favorite shop, commit to whole beans from the grocery store. Many stores stock tasty beans from local or national roasters, and some even offer grinders you can use so you don’t need to buy one.
Any café that sells beans should be able to grind them for you to the right specification (espresso, French press, pour over, etc.). You can also order coffee online and get freshly roasted beans delivered — handy if your favorite roaster is a long drive away and you already have a grinder. One of my current favorites for online coffee is Pennsylvania-based Happy Mug.
Tip 2: Acquire Some Coffee Equipment
Saving money isn’t about buying every gadget, but if you want café-quality drinks at home, a few tools help a lot.
If an espresso machine is out of reach, try a Moka pot (~$32). It brews strong dark coffee that stands alone or mixes beautifully with milk for a rich latte.
For iced coffee, this cold brew bottle (~$33) is a reliable and affordable option once you dial in the coffee-to-water ratio to your taste.
For hot milk-based drinks, a milk frother is a worthwhile buy. Heat milk in the microwave or on the stove and use a handheld frother like the Zulay (~$15) to get great foam and it’s easier to clean than some pricier, bulky frothers.
Consider a Nespresso machine if you value convenience. I used to avoid them until spending time in France where I appreciated how easily they make frothy dairy-free or decaf options. The company offers pod recycling. The espresso profile may not suit everyone, so try cups at a Nespresso boutique before buying a machine.
If you prefer black coffee, a pour-over or French press is ideal. Pour-overs are great for single gourmet cups and make you feel like a pro. A French press is better if multiple people drink coffee and uses beans efficiently; opt for a metal model to avoid broken glass and for durability.
Tip 3: Make Things From Scratch When You Can
Once you have good beans and basic tools, you can create many coffee drinks well at home. Aim to make as much from scratch as practical. What I mean is: if a recipe calls for pumpkin spice, buy a bottle of real pumpkin spice like you’d use in baking. It can save money and tastes better than many artificial mixes.
Try using real canned pumpkin, homemade vanilla extract or a DIY mocha sauce. The idea is to make things yourself while keeping them convenient enough that you’ll actually choose the homemade option over driving through.
Flavored syrups are also simple to make at home. I made a lavender syrup last summer for my cold brew and enjoyed it even more than the $10 café version. Making your own syrup lets you control sweetness — I prefer drinks less cloying but still bursting with flavor.
Tip 4: Keep Some Quality Store-Bought Options
Even though I advocate for homemade, there are days I’m not in a DIY mood. Fortunately, grocery stores now carry some very good coffee products that cost far less than buying drinks out. Balance convenience and savings by stocking a few premade items.
Some of my current go-tos:
- Starbucks Blonde Roast Cold Brew (black, unsweetened)
- Stok Cold Brew (unsweetened, yellow label)
- Califa Oat Milk Creamer
- Silk Almond Milk Flavored Creamers
I prefer oat milk in coffee — it’s creamier than almond and easier on my stomach than soy — but try different options to see what you like. If dairy isn’t an issue, whole milk can be a simple and tasty choice.
Tip 5: Run the Numbers
I could go on about coffee for pages, but here’s the key: if you want to save money, do the math. Track how much you spend on your favorite café cup and calculate what it costs to make at home.
Think long-term: skipping a certain number of drinks can add up to paying off debt, building an emergency fund or affording a dream trip.
The Final Sip
Let’s be real: you and I aren’t going to stop buying those $10 lattes altogether. But we can drastically reduce how often we buy them. You might start paying attention to the little tricks your barista uses — a pinch of cinnamon, a particular pour technique — and bring that knowledge home to make a satisfying, café-grade drink that costs roughly a third as much.
Contributor Maya Ellison writes about personal finance, lifestyle, and home living. She frequently contributes to Savinly.
