Is your kitchen slowly turning into a coffee shop? You're not alone!
As barista-level, affordable coffee equipment becomes ever more available, making coffee at home has become hugely popular – apparently, we're no longer satisfied with spooning instant coffee into a mug!
We're talking proper beans, grinders, milk frothers and syrups, cold foam, and coffee stations that look better than some actual coffee shops.
Recent research suggests a third of consumers are now making more coffee at home as prices rise, while almost half of Gen Z say they learn about coffee and the art of coffee preparation from TikTok.
But here's the interesting part: it isn't only about saving money. Making the coffee has become part of the enjoyment.
Why are more people making coffee at home?
Money certainly has something to do with it. Recent 2026 research cited by Florida State University found that around a third of consumers are making more coffee at home in response to rising prices.
Buy a coffee on the way to work every weekday and even a modest £3.50 drink comes to more than £900 a year! But saving money doesn't entirely explain what's happening.
People aren't simply replacing coffee shop coffee with cheaper coffee at home – rather, they are trying to make better coffee at home.
The rise of the home coffee ritual
Coffee has always been a ritual and for millions of people, making that first coffee is one of the markers that the day has properly begun.
But the home café trend has made the ritual more deliberate, with users enjoying the process of choosing the right beans and grinding them to the perfect coarseness, then preparing the machine, frothing the milk and pouring their perfect coffee.
Do you need an espresso machine to make café-style coffee at home? Absolutely not!
A good home coffee setup doesn't have to involve an expensive espresso machine.
You can make excellent coffee using any of these popular brewing methods:
• Cafetière
• AeroPress
• Pour-over brewer
• Moka pot
• Filter machine
• Bean-to-cup machine
• Traditional espresso machine
They all make coffee differently, but there is no rule saying that one method is the "proper" way to make coffee. In fact, part of the enjoyment comes from discovering which method suits you.
Can you really save money making coffee at home?
Almost certainly. Let's take a very simple example:
A £3.50 coffee purchased five days a week costs £17.50 a week. Over 52 weeks that's £910
And that's only for one coffee per weekday, purchased from a coffee shop.
Naturally, making coffee at home isn't free. You still need coffee, milk, electricity and equipment. But even when using good-quality beans, the cost of a cup made at home is often dramatically lower than buying the equivalent drink from a coffee shop.
Five things you actually need for better coffee at home
-
A coffee bean you love
Don't buy a coffee simply because somebody tells you it's sophisticated.
If you prefer rich, chocolatey coffee, drink that. If you love fruity, lighter roasts, choose those.
Taste beats fashion.
-
Freshly ground beans
Grinding whole beans shortly before brewing helps preserve the aromas that make freshly brewed coffee smell and taste so good. -
Good water
A cup of coffee is mostly water. If your tap water doesn't taste pleasant by itself, try filtered water and see whether you notice the difference. -
Clean equipment
Old coffee oils and residue can make fresh coffee taste surprisingly unpleasant. Regular cleaning is one of the cheapest coffee upgrades available. -
A little experimentation
Change the grind. Try slightly more or less coffee. Experiment with water temperature.
Taste the result and enjoy!