Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. Child-safe in minutes.

Meet the Other Phone.
Child-safe in minutes.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Chat

Join the discussion and chat with other Mumsnetters about everyday life, relationships and parenting.

Original poster

£3.75 for a coffee

127 replies

CoffeePricing · 26/04/2023 09:58

Just a flat white, is this normal? I live I the countryside, mostly WFH now.

I've just come to a local café for a change of scenery, and can't believe how expensive just a cup of coffee is now!

OP posts:
Blamunge · 26/04/2023 10:54

TomatoSandwiches · 26/04/2023 10:42

Buy yourself a bag of beans for £10 - £12 per kg a grinder, cafetiere a good flask and make your own, you can take that anywhere you can walk, probably get a better view as well.

I don’t want to sit outside in the cold though. I want to sit in a coffee shop with my laptop and relax. Really that’s what you’re paying for!

VivX · 26/04/2023 10:58

My "usual" latte with a syrup shot is £4.35 in Costa but £3.30 at my favourite small chain of independents.... it's an occasional treat.

80sMum · 26/04/2023 10:58

I know what you mean! But at least you had "proper coffee".

I went for a walk with a friend last week and we stopped at a pub for a cup of tea. We had a small pot of tea each (ie a teabag in a pot of hot water) and a bag of crisps each. I said I'd pay. They charged me £8.70.

ichundich · 26/04/2023 11:00

dramalynn · 26/04/2023 10:50

But you could look at it as you're not just paying for the teabag and water. There's all the other expenses involved for the business, including service.

Show quote history

Why should I pay a 90% markup for tea, but for coffee it's more like 30-50%? Tea orders are essentially subsidising other items, which as a non-coffee person really annoys me.

Kyse · 26/04/2023 11:01

Takeaway place near me (only has outdoor seating) is £4.80 for a coffee and a fresh donut
Last time they were misshapen so they gave me two burning hot straight off the production and rolled them in cinnamon sugar Grin

BarbaraofSeville · 26/04/2023 11:04

I agree tea is especially poor value, especially as most places put so little effort into it and it doesn't need a fancy machine like coffee does.

It wouldn't be so bad if they made it with freshly boiled water in a tea pot with additional hot water to top it up, instead of just a bag in a cup and often water from the coffee machine that is coffee temperature, not properly boiling for tea.

Maverickess · 26/04/2023 11:04

Blamunge · 26/04/2023 10:17

Yeah but there’s a limit to what people will pay. The business either has to make it work with prices in an acceptable range, or they have to close because nobody will pay what it costs.

Show quote history

That's the issue being faced by many of these businesses though isn't it, the raw costs have increased which increases their prices past the acceptable range so people stop coming, keep the prices within the acceptable range and they don't make enough to cover everything, cut back elsewhere like quality, heat or staff to keep within acceptable range and get ripped a new one for 'shit customer service'.
Few places by me have closed because they can't afford to keep going - and people are moaning about lack of choice 🤷🏼‍♀️

Original poster
CoffeePricing · 26/04/2023 11:10

80sMum · 26/04/2023 10:58

I know what you mean! But at least you had "proper coffee".

I went for a walk with a friend last week and we stopped at a pub for a cup of tea. We had a small pot of tea each (ie a teabag in a pot of hot water) and a bag of crisps each. I said I'd pay. They charged me £8.70.

Oh yes I had this on Sunday too. Offered to pay for cake for me and my friend. 2 slices of bog standard cake - £12.50.

OP posts:
Lcb123 · 26/04/2023 11:11

But it's not just the coffee. It's utility bills, VAT, wages, rent, insurance, business rates, waste disposal....

Halsall · 26/04/2023 11:21

We do a lot of motorway journeys and we’ve stopped paying the insane ramped-up Costa service-station prices. I've got a vacuum flask and I make coffee in my Nespresso machine and take it with us.

Having said that, a flat white in Pret and Caffè Nero are well over £3 now. It’s £3.20 in the nice little local independent near me.

caringcarer · 26/04/2023 11:26

andymary · 26/04/2023 10:13

Sounds like a normal price to me for these days (in the Midlands), especially if it's to sit in.
£3.55 for Regular or £3.90 for a Large at a local independent here.
or £3.65 for Regular Flat White in the local Costa.

I'm also in the Midlands (West) and I have paid £3.95 a few times at a local Costa for the large latee. I guess this is just the price of a coffee now.

dramalynn · 26/04/2023 11:27

"Yeah but I can have coffee for the same price and it’s proper ingredients like milk and syrup and made by a barista, not just a cup of hot water with a teabag plopped on the side."

Tea is less than £2.00 in most of these these chain shops. I only drink green tea, and even when it's loose, good quality, and a proper infuser used, it's still much cheaper than coffee.

I think the markup is fair. I wouldn't expect to sit in a cafe, heated or air conditioned, have my drink made for me by someone else and grumble about £1.75 for a drink, personally.

Though I do agree there's a good markup on teabags. Coffee machines can cost a fortune and are often hired.

dramalynn · 26/04/2023 11:28

I was replying to another poster there also but forgot to tag. Sorry.

caringcarer · 26/04/2023 11:28

FrenchandSaunders · 26/04/2023 10:29

You can get a bottle of wine in Aldi for that!

Grin
CheeseLouisePlease · 26/04/2023 11:31

Tea is £2.75 in my local costa.

Minikievs · 26/04/2023 11:33

I paid 3.10 in a naice coffee shop last week, in a large village centre

Acunningruse · 26/04/2023 11:34

Normal to me, especially to sit in. You are paying for the experience. I get a large cappuccino with oat milk to takeaway from Cafe Nero and this is £4.00. However its reduced to £3.00 using the Meerkat app which gives 25% off.

caringcarer · 26/04/2023 11:36

In Wethersoons you can have unlimited coffee, latte, cappuccino, etc all for £1.15. They must be making a loss on it. On Sundays I take DC to cricket practice for 2 hours. I'm not allowed to stay to watch so go to Wethersoons as very close by and it's warm and dry. I have a meal and unlimited coffee which is about £10 and I noticed the unlimited drinks were only £1.15. I always have 2 lattes and sit near the drink machine and in those 2 hours someone comes and puts 4 litres of milk in twice. It is very popular as it has a big TV with Sport on.

TheExchange · 26/04/2023 11:38

I was in a UK hotel this weekend and a tea was £6.25. I know it’s tight but I asked for a glass of hot water with my £21 burger and chips for one lunch and stuck a camomile tea bag in it.

TheExchange · 26/04/2023 11:38

I should add my own tea bag.

Blamunge · 26/04/2023 11:40

I think we went through a period of regarding barista coffee as an everyday thing because it was affordable and widely available. Now it’s gone back to being an occasional expensive treat like it was 25 years ago. The shrinking market will unfortunately put a lot of places out of business.

It’s also interesting to note that coffee is still dirt cheap in America. By my reckoning a Starbucks coffee costs twice as much in the UK compared to the US. And that’s before you consider all the diners where a coffee with free refills is about £1.

CharlotteDoyle · 26/04/2023 11:40

This is how I justified buying an espresso machine for home. It's still paying for itself, but it's very freeing to no longer be beholden to the high street coffee shops and their constant price increases

Cocolocobaby · 26/04/2023 11:42

Just paid £3.90 for a latte and whilst it was good I was shocked . I’m not mean but it seemed a lot

! Was after an appointment and before work . Madness when you think about it . I used to have coffee out most days but it’s not justifiable to spend around £25 a week on coffee !!

dramalynn · 26/04/2023 11:43

CheeseLouisePlease · 26/04/2023 11:31

Tea is £2.75 in my local costa.

It's actually £2.25 in my Costa (London). I've just looked it up.

cosmiccosmos · 26/04/2023 11:44

The problem for me is that it's getting to a stage where the service is usually poor eg get the order wrong, tables not cleared, no water cups, most recently the one toilet not working, that I will just reduce, not go, cut down my order.

The metrics of coffee shops/restaurants is an issue. There's only so much people will put up with, it's supposed to be nice to go out. I am frequently now coming way knowing I could produce much better stuff at home.