Pre-Ground Coffee Vs Whole Beans: What's Cheaper?

Since coffee might be getting more expensive, smart consumers should always look for the best value. While there's no doubt that pre-ground coffee is more convenient, is it more affordable than grinding your own?

Pre-ground coffee tends to be less expensive than coffee sold as whole beans. Unfortunately, one reason for this is that pre-ground coffee often includes cheaper, lower-quality beans. When coffee is ground by the manufacturer, the type and quality of the beans may vary, and fillers are sometimes added. This makes the coffee more affordable — and increases the manufacturer's profit margin — but it can also result in an inferior brew.

When determining whether a pre-made food or drink is a good value, it's important to consider all the costs associated with making it yourself. To grind your own beans, you will need to purchase a grinder — and a high-end burr grinder, for example, can cost hundreds of dollars. You'd have to grind a whole lot of beans to justify that purchase.

It's not just the cost of grinding your own beans that needs to be considered; You also need to factor in the extra time involved. Time is money, as they say, and getting those beans ground just right for the perfect cup can be complicated. (Need proof? Alton Brown's coffee brewing method is an exact science.) Buying pre-ground coffee can take the guesswork out of a task that can not only make or break your morning brew, but potentially make you late for work.

Cost aside, however, grinding your own beans will likely give you a better cup of joe. Coffee starts losing its fresh flavor as soon as it's ground and exposed to oxygen. And there's no way to know how long it's been since that inexpensive bag of coffee saw the grinder.

Now that there will be fewer discounts at Starbucks, it's more important than ever to keep an eye on how your coffee ritual affects your budget. Maybe it's time to start crafting your caffeinated beverages at home to save money. If you really want the most bang for your buck, using pre-ground beans is the way to go.