Our test included ground coffee from Taylors plus eight supermarkets, including Asda, Lidl, Sainsbury's and Tesco.
We found you can save on your morning brew without compromising on taste, as our top-scorer from Aldi is also great value.
Read on to find out how all the coffees compare, and what tasters thought of your nearest supermarket's offering.
Eat well, live better and stay healthy: Best ground coffeeAldi’s coffee came top overall, and it’s also one of the cheapest options on test. Morrisons and Tesco ground coffee were also well-liked, tying for second place.
Best Buy & Great Value: Aldi Alcafé House Blend Roast & Ground Coffee – 73%
£2.19 for 227g (97p per 100g)
Aldi’s coffee was our tasters’ favourite and did well across the board. It looked good and had an enticing aroma, well-balanced flavour and a pleasant mouthfeel.
Aldi’s coffee is a winner on two counts: as well as coming top of the leader board, it’s also cheap enough to bag our Great Value logo.
Morrisons Anytime Ground Coffee – 71%
£2.99 for 227g (£1.32 per 100g)
Morrisons was just a couple of percentage points behind Aldi's Best Buy ground coffee.
Its aroma, mouthfeel and appearance received good marks from our tasting panel.
Opinions were split on whether it was a little too bitter tasting, but overall it’s a good all-round coffee - especially if you favour coffee with a slight kick.
Tesco House Roast & Ground Coffee – 71%
£2.80 for 227g (£1.23 per 100g)
Looking and smelling good, Tesco’s coffee was also well-liked for its smooth mouthfeel.
Nearly half were happy with the flavour, although 30% wanted a stronger taste.
Find out which ones will keep your drink warmest for longestHow ground coffee from Taylors, Lidl and the rest compare
When it came to the rest of the coffees, it was a close-run thing. M&S and Waitrose both got a respectable 70% overall, while others scored lower with tasters more divided over strength of flavour and bitterness levels.
M&S House Blend Ground Coffee – 70%.£3.10 per 227g (£1.37 per 100g). Available from M&S (in-store only) and .Waitrose Essential Mountain Blend Ground Coffee – 70%. £2.75 for 227g (£1.22 per 100g). Available from .Asda House Blend Roast & Ground Coffee – 69%. £2.09 for 227g (92p per 100g). Available from .Taylors of Harrogate Lazy Sunday Ground Coffee – 68%. £7.50 for 454g (£1.65 per 100g). Available from , and .Lidl Bellarom House Blend Ground Coffee – 67%.£1.89 per 227g (83p per 100g). Available from .Sainsbury’s Fairtrade House Blend Original Coffee – 66%. £2.80 for 227g (£1.23 per 100g). Available from . - see which bottles are worth buyingCoffee strength and roast levels
All the coffee in our test had a strength rating of three. This is an indication of the level of roast the beans have been subjected to, rather than how much caffeine it contains.
Unfortunately there isn't a consistent scale for coffee strength, so one brand's three won't necessarily be the same strength as another brand. A brand may have a one to six scale, for example, while another has a 10-point system.
Use the descriptions on-pack to guide you. Medium roast coffees are lighter and smoother compared with coffees that describe themselves as continental or Italian-style, which tend to be a darker roast.
How sustainable is coffee?
The coffee sector doesn’t have a great reputation when it comes to sustainability. It has been associated with deforestation, biodiversity loss and detrimental effects on indigenous communities.
All the coffees in our test display either the Fairtrade International logo or Rainforest Alliance certification on their packaging.
To use the Fairtrade symbol, brands must pay a minimum price for the coffee as well as meeting certain social and environmental standards.
M&S, Sainsbury’s and Waitrose display the Fairtrade symbol. Asda, Aldi, Lidl, Morrisons, Taylors and Tesco feature the Rainforest Alliance logo.
- see which supermarket makes the tastiest cupWhat's the best way to store coffee?
It's understandable if you're confused on this one - a scan of the coffee packs in our taste test reveals conflicting advice on how best to store it.
Asda, for example, recommends putting it in the fridge and consuming within two weeks, or storing it in the freezer for up to six months.
Aldi says to put it in an airtight container or fridge and use within two weeks. Tesco states its coffee can be kept for two weeks in the fridge or four weeks in the freezer.
Coffee expert Giles Hilton told us it's best to avoid the fridge and freezer altogether, as the moisture can cause the coffee to absorb other smells and dampen the flavour.
He recommends storing coffee in an airtight container in a cool, dark place, away from direct sunlight. This will help to prevent the flavourful essential oils from evaporating.
If you do want to opt for the fridge or freezer, making sure the container you use is well-sealed should help to minimise any moisture-related issues.
Cutting down on dairy? Find outHow we tested ground coffee
The ground coffee was rated in January 2024 by a large panel of consumers who regularly buy and consume ground coffee. The make-up of the panel broadly represents the demographic profile of adults in the UK.
Each brand of coffee was assessed by 71 people. The panellists rated the flavour, aroma, mouthfeel and appearance of each brand of coffee and told us what they liked and disliked about each one.
The taste test was blind, so the panellists didn’t know which brand they were trying. The order in which they tasted the coffee was fully rotated to avoid any bias. Each panellist had a private booth, so they couldn’t discuss what they were tasting or be influenced by others.
The overall score was based on:
These weightings are based on how consumers rank the importance of different attributes of coffee.
Can coffee packs be recycled?
Price and availability correct as of 16 February 2024
source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/best-ground-coffee-aFAnd0B64FqX