Americans have changed the way they brew coffee. No more brewing a pot of drip coffee, rather Americans brew one cup at a time. In fact, 27% of Americans own a single serve coffee machine. With the ever popular coffee brands creating single serve brewing machines, such as Keurig®, many Americans find it easier to brew coffee this way even though the cost per cup may be higher compared to brewing a pot of coffee. Coffee houses have jumped on the single serve coffee craze by selling single serve coffee pods with everyone’s favorite flavors. Where there is a demand for a new hot product, new market opportunities develop. Several third-party companies now sell reusable coffee pods that allow customers to refill the pods with their choice of coffee in a matter of seconds. The goal is to compare the cost per brew of the reusable coffee pods versus the disposable coffee pods to determine how much the average American can save per year, if any, on using one product over the other.

1. 38 K-Cups®
Average number of
brews from a 1lb bag
of ground coffee
The cost of reusable vs. disposable coffee pods
Disposable coffee pods
Americans have changed the way they brew coffee. No more brewing a pot of drip coffee, rather Americans brew one
cup at a time. In fact, 27% of Americans own a single serve coffee machine. With the ever popular coffee brands
creating single serve brewing machines, such as Keurig®
, many Americans find it easier to brew coffee this way even
though the cost per cup may be higher compared to brewing a pot of coffee. Coffee houses have jumped on the single
serve coffee craze by selling single serve coffee pods with everyone’s favorite flavors. Where there is a demand for a
new hot product, new market opportunities develop. Several third-party companies now sell reusable coffee pods that
allow customers to refill the pods with their choice of coffee in a matter of seconds.
$0.77Average cost of Starbucks®
House Blend coffee per brew
Reusable coffee pods
$0.31Average cost of Starbucks®
House Blend coffee per brew
The goal is to compare the cost per brew of the reusable coffee pods versus the disposable coffee pods to
determine how much the average American can save per year, if any, on using one product over the other.
The goal
Key stats
The costs
How much can you save?Amount spent
What can be done with the savings?
$11.99
1lb Starbucks®
House
Blend, Ground coffee
$24.95
per 32 count
$36.95
per 48 count
0.42oz
Amount of coffee
in standard K-Cup®
Starbucks®
House Blend Coffee K-Cup®
case
Average amount spent on coffee per year
Disposable vs. reusable coffee pods:
$0.46
148%Disposable
Reusable
$590
$238
S&P’s current
average annual
return
You can invest your annual savings into the stock market as a gift for your newborn child.
$352
12%
Savings per brew
Savings per year
Average cups of coffee
Americans drink per day,
cups per year
2.1
767
2
4 4
4
6
1) U.S. online survey conducted by the National Coffee Association (NCA) from January 9 to January 26, 2015
2) 2015 Zagat third-annual National Coffee Survey
3) The word “brew” defines a single serving of coffee (approximately 0.42 oz of dry ground coffee)
4) Prices of Starbucks®
coffee as of August 28, 2015 on www.starbucks.com
5) Excludes any additional costs such as reusable coffee pods, coffee container, scoop, whole bean coffee grinder, etc.
6) The current average annual return from 1926, the year of the S&P’s inception, through 2011 is 11.69%
7) Investing in securities involves risk and the possible loss of principle
Myself nor Third Stone Marketing are in no way associated with Starbucks, Keurig or any other company mentioned in this infographic. Please note that all opinions expressed in this
infographic are solely opinions and do not reflect the opinions of myself. You should not treat any opinion expressed in this infographic as a specific inducement to make a particular
investment or follow a particular strategy, but only as an expression of opinion. The opinions are based upon information I consider reliable, but I do not warrant its completeness or accuracy,
and it should not be relied upon as such. Myself nor Third Stone Marketing are not under any obligation to update or correct any information provided on this infographic. The statements
and opinions are subject to change without notice.
linkedin.com/in/isaaccamargoisaac@thirdstonemarketing.com thirdstonemarketing.com
5
1
3
Future value if invest
savings into the stock
market for 18 years$19,624
7
Talk about a graduation present!
Savings per
year by
switching to
reusable coffee
pods