Starbucks Vs Caribou: Which Has More Affordable Coffee?

Starbucks and Caribou Coffee are two popular coffeehouse chains offering different overall coffee flavors, pricing, and atmospheres. Starbucks, with over 9,000 stores in the U.S. and 30,000 worldwide, serves bold and robust coffee with profound underlying notes. Caribou Coffee — a smaller chain with only 700 stores — serves a smoother coffee that has a pungent flavor.

Both coffee shops sell a wide variety of beverages (lattes, espressos, and mochas, to name a few), pastries, and food items ranging from breakfast sandwiches to bagels to lunch sandwiches. Starbucks and Caribou seek to provide comfortable surroundings for customers to enjoy their coffee. Although Starbucks is the larger of the two, both chains make selling coffee their prime objective. Customers can purchase ready-to-order beverages or purchase coffee to make and enjoy at home. For those unable to go to a local shop, Starbucks can be purchased in grocery stores, Target, Walmart, and through Amazon. Caribou products are available at select grocery stores, Target, Walmart, Amazon, and some Sam's Club locations.

But what about the price? Who cares about the atmosphere if the coffee is too expensive for the average consumer?

When it comes to affordability, the average shopper wants to get more for their buck. Take a look at the drink sizes available at Caribou Coffee. Beverages come in small (319 grams), medium (456 grams), large (532 grams), and extra-large (576 grams) sizes. By comparison, Starbucks drinks come in short (8 fluid ounces or 227 grams), tall (12 fluid ounces or 340 grams), grande (16 fluid ounces or 454 grams), and venti (20 fluid ounces or 567 grams).

Buying a plain latte (instead of a flavored one) from Caribou will give you more caffeine, less sugar, and fewer calories than a Starbucks drink. A medium-sized latte has 200 calories, 8 grams of total fat, 14 grams of protein, 19 grams of sugar, and 165 milligrams of caffeine. It will also cost you $3.59 per cup.

A 16-ounce Starbucks latte provides more sugar (18 grams) than the slightly larger Caribou version. At Starbucks, that drink weighs in at 190 calories with 7 grams of total fat, 13 grams of protein, and 150 milligrams of caffeine. And, you'll spend $3.65 per cup.

Both coffee chains offer traditional roasted coffee, too. The Starbucks menu lists a featured roast of the day. A 12 ounce (tall) of their dark roast — a full-bodied brew with bold flavor — only has five calories (no cream, milk, or sugar added) and between 235 to 290 milligrams of caffeine. It will run you $1.95. At Caribou, the same menu item is listed as the Dark Roast Coffee of the Day. A small also has five calories and 230 milligrams of caffeine. That cup will only cost $1.69. Naturally, prices may change based on location and area of the country.

Starbucks and Caribou offer rewards programs to customers. With Caribou PERKS, members get a free medium beverage on their first visit to a store. Then, customers earn points for every dollar spent on the app, in store, and on select online purchases. The program includes size upgrades and discounts once a patron reaches a little over $80, or 175 points. The Starbucks Rewards program gifts customers with stars that can be redeemed for free drinks, food, and other items. Twenty-five stars will earn a free customization on a Starbucks drink. The Starbucks program rewards two stars for every dollar spent with the pre-loaded Starbucks app. If you're someone who frequents the coffee shop regularly, you might hit Gold status in no time (spending about $150 in a year).

Despite having fewer locations, Caribou is more affordable overall than Starbucks, especially when it comes to drip coffees and lattes. Starbucks might have the upper hand on certain blended or iced drinks, but Caribou's rewards program piles up perks a little bit faster than Starbucks, with the first free drink reward available at 175 points versus 200 Starbucks stars.