Let’s address the elephant in the room. Coffee can be (and almost always is) snobby. I don’t like it. The tag line of this blog is “No matter your situation… Coffee is for everybody…“. It only makes sense to talk about the best Walmart coffee brands since the giant retailer is in almost every town and city you can think of.
On that note, I’d like to take a deep dive look at the best coffee brands at Walmart. Walmart isn’t always associated with high-brow coffee like Nespresso or Dutch Bros, but I think you’ll be surprised how far this large retailer has come in its coffee brand offerings.
Best Cold Brew at Walmart – Javy Coffee Cold Brew Concentrate
Cold brew is here to stay. If you’re looking for a great at home option for making cold brew, I would like to introduce you to Javy Coffee Cold Brew Concentrate. Javy is a 30x concentrate cold brew “syrup,” making it the best cold brew at Walmart.
What makes Javy different from other brew options is a couple of things. First off, it’s a shelf stable that is good in your pantry for up to 6 months until you open it. Once opened, Javy is good for 6 weeks in your fridge.
The 2nd reason Javy is the best cold brew at Walmart is that it’s not bitter. Most of the ready-to-drink and cold brew concentrates are bitter and sour. These flavors should be red flags of improperly brewed coffee. I’m looking for a cold brew that is low on acid and has a smooth mouthfeel.
Javy’s 100% arabica beans are slow roasted then brewed into a concentrate that makes a crisp, nuanced cold brew. Just add 1-2 teaspoons to water or a dairy of your choice, and you have a glass of fresh cold brew. Javy makes a killer hot coffee as well.
I like to mix it directly with almond milk vanilla creamer and some ice cubes, and I’ve got my favorite coffee in under 5 minutes.
There are about 30 servings per bottle, making Javy a price performer. Javy is under $25.00 a bottle making each serving around 83 cents a glass.
The other advantage with Javy is that its mess free. Making cold brew at home is messy and takes at least 18 hours. Javy is an excellent option for those cold brew lovers wanting to avoid mess, waiting time, and bitter coffee. You can buy Javy at Walmart with free shipping.
Best Walmart Budget Coffee – Community Coffee, Signature Blend
I grew up with Community coffee
. It was a staple coffee at both my grandparents’ homes. I even thought coffee was called community until I was like 11. Community Coffee makes some damn fine coffee, and it’s always affordable. Community Coffee’s Signature Blend is my choice for Walmart’s best budget-friendly coffee.
The blend of 100% arabica beans is roasted to dark roast, gaming for a rich and smooth cup of coffee. Community Coffee might be the best budget brand of coffee out there.
The blend has notes of chocolate and caramel that are featured in any good dark roast. I especially like this coffee in a French press method. It performs so well in this brewing process.
Another win with this budget friendly roast is that it comes in whole bean. It’s surprisingly hard to find more cost efficient coffee in the whole bean format. The advantage of having whole bean coffee in your pantry is that you can grind your coffee on an as-needed basis and use it for various brewing methods.
I find that Community Coffee makes some of the best beans that are consistently quality roasted and fresh. The company also has direct trade partnerships with its growers. If you haven’t tried this brand before, you’re going to be amazed.
A 12 oz bag of whole bean signature blend will cost about $6.00. That comes out to about 18 cents a cup. We all know that making coffee at home is always cheaper, but 18 cents a cup is pretty stellar for a great coffee.
You can buy a bag of Community Coffee’s signature blend coffee at Walmart. Check out the other roasts Community makes too. They’re well known for their Louisiana style coffee with chicory.
Best Overall Coffee at Walmart – Cuvée Coffee Emporium House Blend
Can you have too many house blends? I don’t think so. The Cuvée Coffee Emporium House Blend is the best overall coffee at Walmart. House blends are usually a good litmus test of a roaster is any good at their trade. This house blend is an excellent example of the coffee offered by Cuvée.
The Emporium House blend is incredibly approachable and will be enjoyed by almost all taste palates. The expertly blended beans are roasted to a medium level that sings with almost all brewing methods. The blend is made up of Bourbon, Pacas, Caturra, Pache & Catuai varieties of arabica beans.
You’ll notice notes of lemon and caramel with a pleasant spice finish. This crowd pleasing roast will be one of your go to coffees. I find if I have friends over or am hosting a big family meal, this one is always a hit.
This coffee does best in pour over or drip application for a couple of reasons:
- A medium roast does well in a pour over brew because it’s going to coax out the delicate lemon notes in its brewing process.
- Drip coffee is the best way to make a quality pot of coffee for a crowd.
Cuvée is an independent roaster based in Austin, Texas. (I should disclose that this is my hometown, I might be biased.) They pride themselves on their direct trade relationships with their growers that they’ve been fostering since 1998. The roaster offers an inside view of their transparent sourcing practices and the freshness of their coffee on their website.
The freshness of the beans from Cuvée is always a plus with this brand. The bottom of every bag has the roast date so you can be confident that you’re receiving a consistently quality product. You can buy a bag of whole bean Cuvée Coffee Emporium House Blend at Walmart with free shipping.
Best Medium Roast Coffee at Walmart – Chameleon Organic Whole Bean Medium Roast
A good medium roast coffee will be a workhorse for your pantry. It does well in various brewing methods and will please most coffee drinkers. Chameleon Organic Whole Bean Coffee is Walmart’s best medium roast coffee in its offerings.
I found Chameleon when I was still living in Austin. They had a booth at the farmer’s market, and I have follow3ed them since. This Guatemalan medium roast coffee has notes of soft chocolate accented by citrus flavors. I especially like this coffee as an iced coffee application because of the interesting flavor profile. It’s also excellent in a traditional drip brewer too.
The beans are certified organic and sustainably sourced. The farmers grow the coffee in the high elevations of Huehuetenango, Guatemala. Knowing that this coffee tastes fantastic, organic, and sustainably sourced, one would think it’s going to be ab budget buster, right?
Nope. Chameleon organic medium roast coffee (whole bean) is under $10.00 for 9 oz. It’s one of the more expensive coffee on this list, but this is an excellent buy for your money considering the quality.
You can buy a bag of Chameleon Organic Whole Bean Medium Roast coffee at Walmart for curbside pick up or shipped to your door.
Best Light Roast Coffee at Walmart – Stone Street Coffee Ethiopian Yirgacheffe
Light roast coffee has been on the back burner for a long time with mainstream coffee. Starbucks has opened up pathways for this fairer roast with its blonde roast and blonde espresso drinks. I adore a quality light roast coffee. Lighter roasts tend to be more floral and acidic, but that shouldn’t deter you from adding a lighter roast to your coffee repertoire.
Stone Street’s Ethiopian Yirgacheffe light roast is a beautiful coffee with which to start your light roast journey.
Let’s start with what a light roast means. The cliff notes version is that any bean can be highly roasted, resulting in a floral, crisper cup of coffee. In short, the beans are roasted either at a lower temperature or for a shorter amount of time, sometimes both.
Ethiopian Yirgacheffe coffee is some of the most famous coffee in the world. Some consider Ethiopia as the birthplace of the coffee plant, and this region of Africa has been at the coffee game for a while, to say the least.
When you combine these prized beans with a more gentle roast, you get a beautiful, unique cup of coffee that is something a bit different than most American coffee drinkers are used to. This unique roast has made it one of the prized “special” coffees that I bring out when I want something delicate and different.
I always make sure I have a suitable airtight container to store this whole bean coffee in because I don’t drink it regularly. Lighter roasts coffees have more moisture content because of the lighter roast and tend to go stale sooner than darker roasts.
You can buy a pound of the whole bean Stone Street Ethiopian Yirgacheffe Light Roast for around $15.00 at Walmart for delivery in most places. Let me know if you can find it on the shelves of your local store.
Best Dark Roast Coffee at Walmart – Kicking Horse Kick Ass Dark Roast
Kicking Horse is an excellent coffee roaster that brings its artisanal roasting approach to this large scale retailer. The Kick Ass Dark roast is dark and smoky and will satisfy darker roast coffee lovers.
The whole beans a sourced from Indonesia and South America and roasted in the Canadian Rockies. All Kicking Horse’s beans are 100% arabica, certified organic, and fair trade. If you’re looking for a killer dark roast that also is roasted by a company that is privately owned and cares about the environment as well as its growers, then Kicking Horse’s Kick Ass dark roast whole bean coffee is for you.
This coffee does well in most applications, including drip makers and espresso makers. You can buy this dark roast coffee from Kicking Horse Coffee Roasters at Walmart for under $20.00.
Best Decaf Coffee at Walmart – Allegro Organic Decaf Bel Canto Espresso Roast
Allegro is a trusted coffee brand owned by Whole Foods Market but sold a private brand through other retailers. Allegro sells the best decaf coffee at Walmart. This decaf espresso roast coffee is organically grown, non-GMO, and the beans are certified Fair Trade.
One of the biggest complaints I’ve heard from decade coffee drinkers is that it never has the full flavor of caffeinated coffee. A lot of coffee’s flavor compounds are lost in the water decaffeination process, and that’s truly unfortunate. No one wants a muddly, dull-tasting cup of coffee (caffeinated or not).
Allegro’s decaf Bel Canto espresso roast is not only ethically produced, but it’s a full flavor decaf coffee. The whole beans are sourced from across the Americas and are sure not to disappoint.
I keep a bag of this coffee in my cupboard for the decaf lovers in my life. (Make sure to keep it in an airtight container in its whole bean form to ensure freshness) Everyone that has had a cup of this exceptional coffee has been floored by the full flavor of the dark roast.
At Walmart, you can buy a 12 oz bag of Allegro Organic Decaf Bel Canto Espresso Roast coffee.
Best Ground Coffee at Walmart – Illy Classico Ground Medium Roast
I’ve written previously about my top 10 best Italian coffees
, and Illy Clasico is on the list. I like this preground medium Italian roast coffee for a variety of reasons. The main reason for choosing the Illy Classico ground medium roast as the best ground coffee at Walmart is that it’s consistently a great coffee.
The medium roast coffee is sold in a metal tin with a surprisingly great airtight seal, which is always a plus for preground coffee. Because this is a preground coffee specific for drip coffee makers, I would suggest sticking to a traditional drip method for brewing this coffee to get the best flavor.
Illy is one of the more famous and better known Italian coffee brands. This makes this coffee brand a good starter coffee and an old stand by if I’m having a dinner party and know I will we need to brew a large pot of coffee on the fly.
You can buy Illy Classico Ground Medium Roast at Walmart for store pick up or home delivery.
Best Flavored Coffee at Walmart – Bones Coffee S’morey Time
I’m going to say it. I don’t particularly like flavored coffee. I find it a little too saccharine-sweet for my tastes most of the time. One of my sisters loves flavored coffee. The last time I was over at her house, she had S’morey Time by Bones Coffee, and I was impressed. I’ve chosen this coffee as the best flavored coffee at Walmart.
This coffee is vegan and keto-friendly, which is surprisingly hard to find in flavored coffees because of the added sugars and flavoring agents, but not with Bones Coffee. Not only are their Brazilian 100% Arabica beans ethically sourced, but their flavored coffees don’t have any added sugars.
The low acid roast is s’mores flavored but not so much it’s overpowering. I enjoyed it with oat milk coffee creamer, and it left me reminiscing family camping trips to Big Bend when I was little. I liked it so much that I bought a bag and now keep it on hand for when I want something different from my traditional coffee roasts.
You can buy Bones Coffee S’morey Time at Walmart to try for yourself. I think you’ll enjoy it. Let me know what your thoughts are in the comments below.
Best Instant Coffee at Walmart – Waka Coffee Instant Light Roast Coffee
Waka Coffee has made it its mission to revive the instant coffee trend by producing instant coffee that tastes like the gourmet coffee that modern coffee palates expect. Their newest roast of coffee is a light roast and doesn’t disappoint.
What I like about this instant coffee (besides the fact tastes excellent) is that it’s packaged in single serve portions to make throwing it in your work bag, purse, or camping pack so easy. All you need to enjoy this expertly crafted coffee is 8-10 oz of water and a cup. The water can be cold or hot. That’s pretty convenient in my book.
Waka coffee uses a unique freeze drying process that preserves the delicate flavors of their single origin arabica beans. A big turn-off for most coffee drinkers is that instant coffee tastes like garbage. Give Waka Coffee a chance to change your mind.
You can buy Waka Coffee Light Roast Single Serving Coffee at Walmart for home delivery or store pick up. I promise it’ll change your opinion of instant coffee.
Conclusion
Who knew Walmart had such a wide variety of coffee options?
I hope you have added some of these brands to your next Walmart trip. I’d love to hear what your favorite coffee brand(s) are at Walmart. Let’s talk about it in the comment below.
Walmart customer- Can no longer find 8 olock coffee and no one can tell me why.