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By
Bryan Huynh
Key Takeaways
If you're an avid coffee drinker, you likely pay close attention to where your coffee comes from. Usually, the best coffee comes from a single farm, also known as "single origin." While blends can be enjoyable, they often use subpar beans in their roasts to cut down on costs. Plus, since the coffee is blended, it's easier to mask the lower-quality ingredients.
Fortunately, you don't even have to do a lot of homework to find the best single-origin coffee. Instead, you can just sign up for a coffee club and get the best results. We've compiled a list of the top five coffee clubs specializing in single-origin coffee beans.
If you already brew your coffee at home, you may wonder whether signing up for a club is worth the effort. Thankfully, there are some tangible advantages of joining one of these clubs, such as:
Although we've curated the top five options, there are many more coffee subscriptions available, so you can compare features and benefits between as many clubs as you want. Here are the factors we believe are the most important to consider when making a final decision.
A big reason why people make coffee at home is to save money. While coffee from the local shop can taste amazing, the price adds up quickly, especially when you want high-quality single-origin beans. Fortunately, ordering from a coffee club is much more affordable, but not all clubs are as cost-efficient as others.
For example, Atlas is probably the cheapest coffee club, while Amazing Clubs is the most expensive. However, if you like to buy coffee in bulk, you can spend even more at Driftaway or Peace Coffee. Overall, just make sure you're getting the right value for what you pay.
Part of the fun of joining a coffee club is discovering new flavors and beans you wouldn't try otherwise. However, while these clubs work hard to curate each bag to meet your preferences, not all beans are as delicious or enjoyable. Also, if you receive a bag that you really like, you should be able to order more of it.
Unfortunately, some clubs (like Atlas or Amazing Clubs) only curate your coffee. This means you can't pick what's in your order, and you have to find and buy a particular batch elsewhere if you want more of it. Only Driftaway and Peace Coffee allow you to choose your next shipment and buy more than just one or two bags.
As we mentioned, coffee blends can sometimes use low-quality beans to save money. So, if you're serious about getting single-origin coffee, you want to sign up for a club that offers full transparency about where your beans originate. While each of these clubs offers more information about your shipment, only Driftaway goes above and beyond. With Driftaway Coffee, you learn more about the farm and the people working it. This way, you can feel better about helping people across the globe with each purchase.
When you sign up for a coffee club, you have to choose the frequency of your shipments. But what if you want to take a break for a while or cancel your subscription? For that, you need excellent customer service. The best coffee clubs are those with multiple methods of communication, such as phone, email, and live chat. Clubs like Atlas and Driftaway also have FAQs and forums, so you can find answers to your questions without having to chat with a representative.
Atlas is probably the most well-known coffee subscription around, and its popularity has sparked the coffee club revolution. There's also a benefit to being the biggest brand in the industry—affordability. Because Atlas has so many subscribers, it can afford to sell each bag at just $9 each. So, you can save money and discover new single-origin coffee along the way.
Another selling point of Atlas is that they offer coffee pods along with grounds and whole beans. So, if you have a coffee pod machine, you can still discover new flavors from different corners of the globe.
Overall, Atlas only curates your coffee based on your list of preferences. While you can update those preferences to get different types of beans (i.e., medium vs. dark roasts), you can't pick individual bags. So, if you like something you receive, you have to find it elsewhere to buy more of it.
Pros
Cons
Because single-origin coffee is the primary reason to sign up for one of these clubs, you want to join something with full transparency. Driftaway is better than most because it offers a complete breakdown of each farm that produces the coffee in your order. So, you can find out more about the farmers and how they grow and harvest your beans.
Another thing that sets Driftaway apart from the competition is that you can start your service with the Explorer Box. This box gives you a sampling of five different flavors, and you can explore them on your own or with a coffee-tasting expert. During your expert session, you can ask questions and learn more about the intricacies of tasting different coffee varieties. So, if you want to expand your palate, we recommend signing up for this option.
Once you know the kind of coffee you like, you can get a curated shipment or choose your own variety. Driftaway features a collection of beans and farms each month, and you can pick the ones you like or let Driftaway pick for you. Best of all, you can buy up to five pounds of coffee at a time, allowing you to stock up before the selection changes.
Pros
Cons
While other coffee clubs source their beans from farms globally, Bean Box works with domestic roasters instead. This way, you can support US-based companies while also helping farms from different coffee-producing countries.
Bean Box curates your shipment, and each bag is the same size (12 ounces). So, if you want more coffee than that, you’ll have to buy from the roaster directly. However, because each roaster is in the US, it’s relatively easy to track them down and place an order.
One thing that sets Bean Box apart from other coffee subscriptions is that you can earn cash back. This way, you can save more money over time, especially when you pre-pay for shipments (i.e., six or 12 months in advance).
Pros
Cons
Amazing Clubs is a website dedicated to “X of the Month” club subscriptions. So, you can join the “Coffee of the Month” and get a curated bag of Arabica beans shipped to your door. However, unlike other coffee clubs, Amazing Clubs doesn’t offer as much transparency.
While each bag is single-origin, you don’t learn more about the farm or roaster. Instead, you just choose whether you want whole beans or coffee grounds, and Amazing Clubs handles the rest.
Overall, this club is ideal for a simple, hassle-free experience. It allows you to discover new flavors, and you can pause or cancel whenever you like.
Pros
Cons
Peace Coffee isn’t a traditional coffee club in that it doesn’t source beans or grounds from different companies. Instead, it’s a coffee roaster that sources and roasts its own beans in-house. Then, you can set up a regular subscription service to get the coffee you like delivered to your door.
The great thing about Peace Coffee is that you can choose your bags, your shipment frequency, and the size of each bag. Or, if you want a hands-off approach, you can let Peace pick the varieties for you. Overall, you get complete control over your shipment.
Another element we like about Peace Coffee is that the company offers rotating seasonal flavors. So, if you want something new and exciting, you can choose the seasonal batch and discover beans that aren’t part of the regular rotation.
Pros
Cons
As you can see, getting single-origin coffee delivered to your door is much easier and more affordable than you might think. Thanks to these coffee clubs, you can travel around the world, one cup at a time. Best of all, your purchases can help farmers and smaller companies keep growing and roasting the best coffee possible. Bottoms up!
Bryan Huynh
Product Tester & Writer
Bryan Huynh is a determined Product Tester & Writer. Being a coffee addict, it is only right that he mainly tests and reviews different coffee from around the world and coffee subscription services.
Bryan Huynh is a determined Product Tester & Writer. Being a coffee addict, it is only right that he mainly tests and reviews different coffee from around the world and coffee subscription services.
Edited by:
Bryan Huynh
•
Product Tester & Writer
