At home, a cup of coffee costs about 27 cents if you buy grocery-store ground coffee at the September 2026 average of $9.33 a pound. Our coffee runs about 33 to 86 cents a cup, depending on the size. At restaurants tracked by Toast, a regular drip coffee had a median price of $3.65 in February 2026. Per-cup figures are our estimates for an 8-ounce cup at standard strength.

So yes, our coffee costs more than the average grocery can, and we would rather say that first. We are a family that roasts one coffee in cast iron in a barn in Cedarburg, Wisconsin. Here is the arithmetic, so you can run it on any coffee, ours included.

The formula

Cost per cup is the price per pound divided by the number of cups a pound makes.

At standard strength, a pound of coffee makes about 35 eight-ounce cups. Standard here is the Specialty Coffee Association's Golden Cup ratio, about 55 grams of coffee per liter of water. Our FAQ says it in kitchen terms, "Start with two tablespoons per six ounces of water," which lands almost exactly on that ratio. Our cups per pound chart covers other cup sizes.

A worked example: a 1 lb bag for $25 is $25 divided by 35, about 71 cents a cup. If a bag is not sold by the pound, convert first: a 12-ounce bag for $12 is $16 a pound, about 46 cents a cup.

Cost per cup, side by side

The government's grocery average, every size we sell and a restaurant cup. Where a row shows two numbers, the first is a one-time order and the second is the subscription price.

Per-cup figures are estimates: price per pound divided by 35, for the coffee alone, before shipping. The grocery figure is the Bureau of Labor Statistics average price for 100% ground roast coffee, all sizes. The restaurant figure is the median price of a cup of regular drip coffee at restaurants on the Toast platform, as served. Jar weights are net: 24.8 ounces whole bean, 30.2 ounces ground.

Bigger is not always cheaper. One-time, the Queen Hoff costs $17.14 a pound and the 2 lb Big Hoff Bag $17.00, a hair less. The King Hoff is clearly lower, and the 20 lb Bulk bag is our lowest price per pound.

What changes your number

Four things besides the price of the bag move your real cost per cup. (Filters and electricity add a little; we leave them out.)

• Strength. Many diners and restaurants brew lighter, at about 64 cups a pound. At that strength a one-time Big Hoff Bag works out to about 27 cents a cup. To compare two coffees fairly, compare them at the same strength.
• Mug size. A 12-ounce mug is a cup and a half by this math: about 40 cents at the grocery average, about 73 cents with a one-time Big Hoff Bag.
• Coffee poured out. Brew 8 cups and drink 5, and each cup you drink costs 60% more. A smaller pot is the easiest savings there is.
• Shipping. Orders of $50 or more ship free by USPS, and every Queen, King and Bulk order clears that on its own. Below $50, shipping adds a few dollars, which on a half-pound bag is roughly 20 to 35 cents a cup (estimate). Two Big Hoff Bags in one order come to $64 one-time ($34, then $30 for the second) and ship free.

A year of coffee

Say you drink two 8-ounce cups a day. That is 730 cups a year, or about 21 pounds of coffee. Here is what it costs three ways, as estimates:

The gap between the grocery average and our 2 lb subscription is about $118 a year, a little over 32 cents a day. The gap between either one and a restaurant cup is more than $2,300.

To keep it honest: the $313 is coffee alone, and a single $30 bag is under the $50 free-shipping line, so each delivery adds a few dollars of shipping. A 2 lb bag lasts about 35 days at two cups a day, so a monthly delivery runs a little ahead; you can skip or pause one through the secure link we email you. Subscriptions come weekly, every 2 weeks or monthly, with a two-delivery minimum (see is a coffee subscription worth it).

If your house drinks four cups a day or more, the King Hoff (7 lb, $105 one-time) costs the same $15 a pound, ships free and lasts about two months at four cups a day.

Is paying more per pound worth it?

Sometimes not, and we mean that. If you take plenty of cream and sugar, or a can from the store tastes fine to you, the grocery average is hard to beat. What changes besides the price is in grocery store coffee vs fresh roasted. If you want decaf or a flavored coffee, we make neither, and another roaster will serve you better.

What the extra buys with ours: 100% Colombian Supremo Arabica (Supremo is Colombia's grade for the largest beans by screen size), roasted medium-dark in cast iron in the German Norwegian style, one roast that releases beans at different points, so each batch holds a spread of roast levels. We roast in small batches on a regular schedule, and it ships within days of roasting in nearly all cases. Customers describe it as smooth, bold and low in acid, and good black; coffee you enjoy black needs no creamer.

Our FAQ puts it this way: "Per cup it costs less than most people expect, and considerably less than a daily drink from a cafe. Try a smaller size first if you want to decide for yourself." The smallest is the Little Hoff, a half pound of ground coffee for $15.

“Super smooth, worth the cost.”
Ryan B, verified buyer, June 2026

“Best deal on quality coffee on the Internet.”
Jerry O, Facebook, April 2026

Near Cedarburg? The cheapest cup of ours is at the barn on Sherman Road, open every day from 9 to 5, where the first cup is on us.

“Family business with friendly atmosphere and fair prices.”
Ted P, Google, August 2026

Cost per cup questions

What does a pot of coffee cost?

Many 12-cup coffee makers count a cup as about 5 ounces, so a full pot is about 60 ounces, or 7.5 eight-ounce cups. At two tablespoons per six ounces of water that takes about 100 grams of coffee, about 0.22 pounds (an estimate): about $2.06 a pot at the grocery average, $3.75 with a one-time Big Hoff Bag and $2.54 with a Bulk subscription. Check what your maker calls a cup; our guide to how much coffee for 12 cups has the chart.

Is whole bean cheaper than ground?

On our bags, no: whole bean and ground cost the same at every bag size, and a pound makes the same number of cups either way. The half-gallon Big Hoff jar is $35 whole bean and $42 ground, and ground coffee packs tighter, so the ground jar holds 30.2 ounces against 24.8 for whole bean. Per pound they come out nearly even, $22.25 ground and $22.58 whole bean.

What is the cheapest way to buy Der Hoffskeller coffee?

The 20 lb Bulk bag on a subscription, at $11.50 a pound (about 33 cents a cup, estimate), or $12.50 one-time. On other sizes, each extra Big Hoff Bag of the same grind in an order is $4 off and each extra Queen or King is $10 off; Bulk has no extra-unit discount. Be honest about your pace, though: twenty pounds is about 700 cups, nearly a year at two cups a day, so Bulk suits a workplace or a big household more than most kitchens. For workplaces, see office coffee without a contract.

Why did coffee get so expensive?

The government's average price for ground coffee rose from $8.13 a pound in June 2025 to a 2026 high of $9.72 in April, and stood at $9.33 in September 2026. Shelf prices follow the price of green coffee, which every roaster buys. We explain the reasons in why coffee is so expensive right now, and our coffee futures tracker shows where green coffee trades today.

Run your own numbers

Take the price per pound, divide by 35, and you have a fair cost per 8-ounce cup for any coffee. Ours lands between the grocery can and the restaurant counter, much closer to the can. If you already know you like it, the Big Hoff Bag is where the price per cup falls below 50 cents. For more on buying, brewing and storing coffee, see our coffee guides.