Another year (plus) has passed since I last completed my survey of best prices on K-Cups. I had a little bit of free time this weekend, so I took up a bit of price-shopping and research. Scroll down a bit for the results.
K-Cup Pricing: Some Boundaries
When it comes to my K-Cup pricing surveys, I try to stick with retailers who are widely-known and very accessible. I don’t consider the impact of sales tax on pricing, since if you’re buying online, you ought to be paying your state’s use tax on those purchases since sales tax often isn’t collected.
I omitted Sam’s Club from previous years’ lists because their selection has typically been very limited. This year, however, they’re in, since my local Sam’s Club had three varieties in stock when I visited. (One of which — Green Mountain’s Breakfast Blend — I happen to really enjoy. And yes, at $.50/cup, I picked up a box, as it represented a better price than the Green Mountain Cafe Express club pricing I usually get.)
I include coupon prices for Bed Bath & Beyond because once you get on their mailing list, your mailbox will be perpetually stuffed with BBBY coupons.
Lots of smaller online stores carry K-Cups, but of the ones I’ve seen, their per-cup prices become significantly higher than those below once shipping charges are tacked on. If one could find a free-shipping offer or two, and a desired flavor came on sale … well, who knows. Perhaps deals could be had, in that case.
Best K-Cup Prices
I was surprised to find that pricing hasn’t changed much, if at all, from the 2011 edition. Notably, Target’s prices for K-Cups have dropped by $1/box.
I don’t drink Starbucks K-Cups, but I think their prices have risen. Where I could find them, Starbucks K-Cups boxes were smaller in count (16 K-Cups vs. 18 K-Cups for most others), and roughly $2 more per box ($12.98 to $14.98, depending on retailer) than other varieties.
| 1. | Sam’s Club | $.4998/K-Cup | 2. | Bed Bath & Beyond (w/Coupon for $5 Off of $15 or More) | $.5272/K-Cup |
| 3. | Bed Bath & Beyond (w/Coupon for 20% Off One Item) | $.5329/K-Cup | |
| 4. | Green Mountain (w/Café Express Membership) | $.5621/K-Cup | |
| 5. | Amazon.com (w/Prime and Subscribe & Save) (50ct.) | $.5698/K-Cup | |
| 6. | Wal-Mart (Most Varieties / 18ct.) | $.6100/K-Cup | |
| 7. | Target (Most Varieties / 18ct.) | $.6106/K-Cup | |
| 8. | Amazon.com (w/Prime) (Most Varieties / 24ct.) | $.6379/K-Cup | |
| 9. | Amazon.com (w/Super Saver Shipping) (Most Varieties / 24ct.) | $.6379/K-Cup | |
| 10. | Bed Bath & Beyond (No Coupons) (Most Varieties / 18ct.) | $.6661/K-Cup |
For the curious, the spreadsheet with the underlying data is available here.
