The Best Coffee For Keurig Machines

Are you trying to find the best coffee for Keurig? This article explores what to look for and how to make the best k cups choice for your Keurig brewer.

Best coffee for Keurig machines
Read on to know the best coffee for Keurig machines

The rise of single-serve brewing machines has taken the world by surprise. Keurig brewers are gaining more and more popularity among people who don’t want to make a full pot of coffee –but who also may find some other single-serve brewing methods to be too much effort. But when it comes to your Keurig, how do you find the best coffee?

The best coffee for Keurig machines balances price and quality, and once you know what to look out for, you can enjoy a great cup of coffee every time you load up your machine. Read on to find out more!

What Makes Keurig Coffee Great?

keurig-coffee-maker
Keurig machine allows you to make many cups of coffee in a short period

When the first single-serve brewers started coming out, many looked at the innovation as a solution in search of a problem–but their increasing popularity indicates that many people want the ability to make a cup of coffee at a time.

So in addition to the convenience of being able to make just enough coffee without having to brew a whole pot, the Keurig machine also means that you can make five different cups of coffee (or, depending on preferences, coffee, and tea, or hot chocolate) for five different people, in a short period of time and all on the same machine.

There are some drawbacks, of course: while there’s less chance of wasting coffee, there is the increased waste of the single-serve K cups, and sometimes some issues of being able to clean the machine thoroughly.

Fortunately, there are ways to address both of these issues. But what about finding the best coffee k cups or pods for your machine? There are a few factors to consider.

How To Choose Coffee For Keurig

coffee beans
Coffee options for Keurig machines vary in price points

When choosing coffee for your Keurig, there are a few things to keep in mind compared to buying coffee for other brewing methods. For example, K cups are a more expensive option than bags of coffee beans or ground coffee. Still, the popularity of Keurig machines does mean that options exist at a variety of price points. 

You should also consider to what degree variety is important to you. For example, several brands offer a variety of packs with multiple regions and roasts, alongside packs of single blends or even single-origin coffees in pods. 

Of course, you should also consider overall quality and what the resulting coffee will be like. While price isn’t necessarily a predictor of quality (for example, many store-brand products are actually produced by premium brands), you want to ensure that the quality of both the coffee and the k cups you buy is high–and that the cups will be compatible with your machine. You may also be interested in our guide on the best coffee for Jura machines.

The Best Coffee For Keurig Machines

I tend to find that the best coffee pods for Keurig machines tend to keep things simple. Of course, there are premium brands that make an excellent k cup, but overall what I want from my Keurig is a relatively simple cup of coffee. Here are my favorites:

The Original Donut Shop Coffee Pods: This is one of my go-to choices for Keurig because it’s very simple, balanced, and satisfying. The Original Donut Shop is a solid medium roast blend: bold enough to be satisfying, with light acidity and enough sweetness to drink black. The cups are recyclable, which is definitely a plus in my book.

The Original Donut Shop Keurig Single-Serve K-Cup Pods
$33.83 ($0.47 / Count)
  • Keurig Single-Serve K-Cup Pods
  • Regular Medium Roast Coffee
  • 72 Count
  • Medium Roast
  • Certified Orthodox Union Kosher
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03/08/2024 05:45 am GMT

The price is very reasonable, with bulk-buying options and ready availability across multiple stores, including, of course, Amazon. As a starting point for Keurig brewing, it’s one of my very favorites.

Starbucks Black Coffee Variety Pack: Starbucks is a more premium brand, so this option is more expensive than some others. However, it’s worth the price: 60 k cups across 6 of Starbucks’ signature roasts, including Pike Place, Caffè Verona, Breakfast Blend, Sumatra, and House Blend.

Starbucks K-Cup Coffee Pods Medium & Dark Roast
$55.09
  • Medium & Dark Roast
  • Variety Pack for Keurig Brewers
  • 100% Arabica
  • 6 boxes (60 pods total)
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03/07/2024 06:44 pm GMT

There aren’t any light roasts, but the selections span several dark and medium roast options, which help you choose the tastes you like. I’m partial to the Pike Place roast for Keurig, but each of the recyclable k cups has something to offer, and of course, the coffee is the high quality you’d expect from Starbucks. 

Peet’s Coffee Major Dickason’s Blend K Cups: While the price point on these is somewhat higher than other brands, it’s still very reasonable overall. And of course, I’m a fan of Major Dickason’s Blend in general, so this was an easy sell for me.

Peet's Coffee Dark Roast K-Cup Pods
$20.35 ($0.64 / Count)
  • Dark Roast K-Cup Pods for Keurig Brewers
  • Major Dickason's Blend
  • 32 Count (1 Box of 32 K-Cup Pods)
  • 100% Arabica Coffee
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03/06/2024 02:20 pm GMT

I was surprised that it translates as well as it does to k cup proportions because I have found that some darker roasts tend to lose a little magic in the k cup format. The cups are recyclable and are compatible across all Keurig brewers.

Author

  • Savannah McClelland

    Savannah is a coffee lover who took her appreciation of the brew to the next level starting in college, becoming a barista before combining her love of writing with her affection for a good brew. She has written for several publications including Cracked.com and TopTenz, and also works as a ghostwriter. Find Savannah on LinkedIn.