As coffee prices soar, is it time to invest in an at-home machine?

The price of barista-prepared coffee is increasing at the quickest rate in more than a decade.

A standard flat white now costs at least $5.50, prompting some to ponder: Is it worthwhile to purchase a coffee machine so I can make my own at home?

We ran the numbers to determine how much money you save per cup of coffee and how quickly a coffee machine pays for itself.

For this analysis, we considered two options: a fully manual Breville machine and a less expensive Nespresso model that still allows the user to prepare a milky coffee.

The Breville costs $1099.99, while the Nespresso model costs $379.99.

That is the initial investment, but you must also purchase the coffee beans and milk, both of which are increasing in price.

If you consume one medium coffee per day, you will consume a 200-gram pack of beans every two weeks.

Let’s support the local economy by purchasing a small bag of Havana Coffee beans from Countdown for $9.60.

The next item is milk. We will assume you desire cow’s milk. If you prefer soy milk, you will save a bit, whereas if you prefer oat milk, you will spend a bit more.

A litre of milk (Anchor) costs $3.02 and will yield approximately four cups of coffee.

If you use beans, you will spend 68 cents on coffee and 76 cents on milk per cup of coffee, totaling $1.44 per cup of coffee.

Capsules cost $9.20 for ten, which means that each coffee will cost you 92 cents, plus 76 cents for milk, for a total of $1.68 per coffee.

Depending on your preference, you save between $4.06 and $3.82 per cup of coffee if you purchase small milk bottles and small quantities of coffee beans or capsules.

If you’re willing to buy in bulk, you’ll save more per cup.

Even with these savings, if you consume one cup of coffee per day, you save just over $121 per month if you use beans and just over $114 per month if you use pods.

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