I Tested 20 Bags of Grocery Store Coffee. These Are the 5 Best Beans to Brew

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Buying coffee at the grocery store can become monotonous when there are only so many brands on the shelf. In an effort to explore both new and familiar styles, I tried over 15 coffee options available at national grocery chains and local stores. If you want to pick up a solid coffee option at your local grocery store, read on for my top selections -- and the roasts to avoid.

I Tested 20 Bags of Grocery Store Coffee. These Are the 5 Best Beans to Brew
Five best grocery store coffees
Café Bustelo Espresso Ground Coffee
Stumptown Holler Mountain organic blend
Whole Foods Market Organic Early Bird Blend
Dunkin Original Blend
Illy Classico
Honorable mention
Five coffees to avoid

As a former barista-turned-coffee writer, I've sampled a multitude of excellent and disappointing coffee bought from major retailers such as Whole Foods, Trader Joe's, Walmart and Target. I've also tried regional rosters and specialty blends, some of which couldn't stand up to canned coffee brands.

After previously testing more than 40 K-Cups to find the best pods for those with a Keurig, I've turned my attention to more traditional bagged beans and grounds.

Here are five coffee blends I recommend buying straight from the shelf, and five you might want to avoid.

Five best grocery store coffees

Café Bustelo is a mainstay on grocery store shelves for a reason. The ground coffee I tested maintained a robust yet smooth flavor, thanks in part to its "best buy" date, which allowed for another 21 months of shelf life. Its flexibility, dark roast and affordability are hard to beat in a ground coffee straight from the shelf. Seeing that Café Bustelo is a deep espresso roast, I wasn't surprised to find some bitterness and acidity in a couple of my less precise brews.

The Cuban-inspired coffee, founded in New York City by a Spanish immigrant, has the mystique of an imported product. This branding might explain why it was a couple of dollars more expensive than other canned coffees at my local grocery store. Whatever the reason, the investment paid off compared to the slightly cheaper canned coffees I tried.

Stumptown Holler Mountain organic coffee offers a distinct and robust flavor, characterized by a pleasant acidity and a lingering caramel finish. The whole beans I tried maintained strong flavor even seven months past the roast date. Listing a roast date shows the brand stands by its product -- bonus points for transparency.

This coffee also has notable body that allows for versatility, claiming it can be used for both drip coffee or espresso preparation. Holler Mountain remains light enough to be appealing to a broad demographic. It possesses a well-balanced mouthfeel, ending with a slight acidic kick. Plus, with widespread availability in grocery stores such as Whole Foods, it should be an easy find. If you see it, I'd say bring it home.

The Whole Foods Early Bird Blend's profile includes notes of cocoa, with a mellow flavor that falls into the medium roast category. Upon opening the bag, I was pleased by the beans' rich aroma and oily appearance, even though the "best by" date was only three months away. Once or twice, I found a hint of bitterness that's unbecoming of a medium roast. Still, I found it easy to drink black thanks to a hint of warm cocoa.

I appreciated that the more my coffee cooled, the more the roast mellowed out. Whole Foods Organic Early Bird Blend will likely satisfy anyone who wants a comforting and uncomplicated cup of coffee to rouse them awake.

Another bonus is its lineup of certifications: Fair Trade Certified, USDA Organic and the intriguing Smithsonian Bird Friendly certification. Similar to the Trader Joe's coffee I tried, the Whole Foods-branded bags likely have a high turnover rate due to their affordability and the reliability of the store's brand. This volume makes it easier to avoid stale beans that have been sitting on the shelf for too long.

The Dunkin Original Blend maintained an unexpected nutty flavor and full mouthfeel for a ground coffee with eight months remaining until its "best by" date -- and one that was likely roasted many months earlier. The instructions are 1.5 tablespoons of coffee per 6 ounces of water, which resulted in a balanced and smooth cup.

Unlike other roasts that tasted bitter or flat, the Dunkin Original blend is one that I didn't mind drinking black, thanks to its medium roast and mild flavor. When cooled, sips offered a bit of sweetness as a final note. I get why there are so many loyalists: It reminds me of a classic diner coffee in the best way.

I was taken aback when the Drunkin 12-ounce bag cost as much as the Stumptown and Groundwork bags at my local grocery store. Lesson learned: Compare prices at different retailers when possible.

Illy Classico presents an interesting packaging choice: a metal pull-top reminiscent of canned meat, distinguishing it from the usual plastic-sealed domestic canned coffees. The can provides no preparation guidance for the beans. While the beans smelled fresh when first opened, the aroma is less rich and slightly more sour than the whole-bean options from Trader Joe's and Whole Foods.

In the first cup, brewed at a ratio of 2 tablespoons to 6 ounces of water, the Illy coffee offered unusual floral notes and a bright complexity that evolved into a nutty, sweet finish. The online product description (found via a QR code on the can) cited citrus and jasmine, though that complexity ultimately faded with subsequent brews. A pleasant caramel flavor became more prominent as the coffee cooled.

A second tasting, prepared with 1.5 tablespoons to 6 ounces of water, resulted in a mellower, more balanced cup, showcasing classic nutty flavors. Illy Classico offers an alternative to the heavier, diner coffee blends found in grocery stores.

Trader Joe's Joe Medium Roast

trader joe's coffee bag lies next to dish of beans

Upon opening the Trader Joe's Joe coffee, the whole beans smelled fresh and rich, with dark, oily beans visible. It was the freshness I expected, given the store's high volume and practice of keeping stock fresh. However, the recommended ratio of 2 tablespoons of beans per 6 ounces of water resulted in some bitterness.

The medium roast is a straightforward cup of coffee with a somewhat sweet finish. The medium body, though, is thinner than Whole Foods and Dunkin taste tests. As it cools, the roast opens up, becoming smooth and drinkable as a straight cup of black coffee. While possibly uninspiring to some, it's a safe and drinkable choice. At $7 for 14 ounces, this blend is a great value compared with other grocery store coffees at the time of publication.

1: Intelligentsia House Blend

Intelligentsia is a Chicago-founded roaster that's become a widespread specialty coffee brand in grocery stores coast to coast. At $20 for a 12-ounce bag of whole beans at my local Brooklyn grocery store, Intelligentsia House Blend coffee can be considered an investment. The lack of a "roasted by" date on the bag, however, means freshness is a gamble. This tester ended up with a whisper of flavor with three months left on the "best by" date. It lacked any noticeable tasting notes, potentially due to an overstay in the grocery aisle. The Intelligentsia House Blend bag also lacks any tasting note descriptors or instructions whatsoever on the packaging.

Even with low expectations, the beans still produced a bland cup of coffee, firmly placing it in the "low" category. If you're interested in drinking Intelligentsia coffee, I'd recommend heading to the brand's coffee shops or purchasing a fresh bag straight from the roaster.

What to try instead: Groundwork

For specialty coffee from the grocery store, instead look for brands that include a "roasted by" date, such as Verve or Partners coffee. The closer to the roast date, the better, but because packaging helps protect coffee, it could take three to six months before flavor degradation results in a lackluster brew. Otherwise, Groundwork Organic Bitches Brew was a standout for deep flavor and its notes of dark chocolate and caramel even without a roasted date. It also includes a ratio of coffee to water on the bag for anyone who wants a launching point.

2: Maxwell House House Blend

The first sip of Maxwell House House Blend was bitter, and the progressive sips didn't improve. Like other value-driven blends, this one tastes as if the manufacturer never expected anyone to drink it without copious amounts of cream and sugar. I don't believe you should need to drown out the notes of burnt beans and organic fillers to make it drinkable.

The Maxwell House instructions recommend only 1 tablespoon for 6 ounces of water. Once the Maxwell House started to cool, the flavor was milder and less offensive, but I didn't find it more enticing since any true tasting notes fell flat. I also noticed an acidity that made me nervous about a stomachache. For a household brand, I had hoped for a better showing.

What to try instead: Chock Full O' Nuts Original

Avoid the kind of coffee that makes people say, "bean juice is not for them." If you want an affordable, approachable can of coffee, reach for the original Chock Full O' Nuts for a slightly sweet, mild variety. You could also reach for Lavazza Tierra Organic for a similarly priced medium roast or Café Bustelo for a more robust roast in a familiar canned packaging.

3: Great Value Classic Roast by Walmart

The Great Value Classic Roast brand is a generic offering akin to Folgers, where value and quantity are top priorities. I wanted to test this option since Walmart is one of the largest grocery store chains in the US and a staple at my parents' house. That said, I'd best equate the flavor of this blend with church-basement or airplane coffee. The beans offer a burnt yet bland flavor that begs for extra creamer. Still, the sheer volume is hard to beat at 25.4 ounces per can. When it comes to coffee, I'm a pragmatist, not a purist, so I understand that some of us treat it as fuel rather than a specialty beverage. I'm here to say there's a better way forward.

What to try instead: Whole Foods Early Bird Blend

Anyone looking for value should consider subscribing to Whole Foods Market coffee deliveries for an additional discount and savings on both time and gas. Great Value Classic Roast isn't 100% arabica, so it likely contains cheaper, more caffeinated robusta beans. Another option is Café Bustelo espresso grounds for a rich cup that still packs plenty of kick thanks to its robusta blend.

4: Chock Full o' Nuts French Roast

Chock Full o' Nuts is, for many, an iconic grocery store coffee brand, yet it doesn't have the ubiquity of Folgers or Maxwell House. My taste test revealed a slightly sweet finish and a very mild flavor. I anticipated a more robust cup of coffee; however, that wasn't the case, despite the French Roast descriptor. The "best by" date on the can I purchased had five months remaining. Based on that alone, I can't recommend buying this one if you're expecting something hearty and deep-roasted, as the packaging suggests. The fact that it's still quite drinkable means it's a safer option than some others on this list.

What to try instead: Café Bustelo

If you're looking to try a dark roast, then grab a can of Cafe Bustelo, which I detailed in full in the "best" grocery store coffee list above. It's versatile, smooth and a true dark roast as an espresso blend. Of course, you can also stick with the original Chock Full O' Nuts blend for a sweet yet nutty flavor in a canned grocery store coffee, too.

5: Eight O'Clock Original Blend

The Eight O'Clock Original blend ground coffee was passable, though uninspired. The medium roast shares a certain sweetness with Chock Full O' Nuts but offers a more robust finish. I started with a small, half-batch since the bag recommends 2 to 3 tablespoons of coffee to 12 ounces of water. I then tried a full 2.5:12 oz ratio. The resulting brew was somewhat flat and acidic, with a thin body and a flavor profile that was immediately forgettable after each sip. The "best by" date on the bag was eight months out, suggesting that despite the manufacturer's optimistic shelf-life projection, the quality had not held up.

What to try instead: Lavazza Tierra Organic

For something reasonably priced and available at big-box stores, try Lavazza Tierra Organic coffee. A ratio of 1 tablespoon of coffee to 6 ounces of water provided a robust flavor without bitterness, maintaining a heavier roast profile than the light roast, with full-bodied descriptors noted on the bag. Alternatively, you can rely on Caribou Coffee Daybreak Blend in the Midwest or Peet's Coffee House Blend at most big-box grocery stores.

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