I’m sorry to break it to you, but you’re probably an addict. You are dependent on something and cannot go a day without consuming it. But, don’t be depresso, since 83% of Americans cannot go a day without drinking coffee either.
It’s really early and you need that cup of coffee or a warm chai tea latte to get you through your day. Maybe it’s 5 o’clock, (there’s a happy hour for coffee too) and you need that vanilla Frappucino or watermelon Coolata. Once you’ve decided which drink will satiate your needs, the hardest part approaches, Starbucks or Dunkin’ Donuts? This is the biggest debate since Hillary and Trump, but unfortunately, not as entertaining!
These two chain stores dominate the coffee industry with 11,563 Starbuck locations and over 8,000 Dunkin Donut locations in the U.S. itself. But, let’s find out which coffee chain America likes a “latte.”
As any coffee drinker knows, Starbucks and Dunkin’ coffee do not taste the same. Personally, I prefer Dunkin’ coffee over Starbucks coffee, since Dunkin’ is much sweeter, even though many believe Starbucks to taste more legitimate. This is not a coincidence!
Prior to 2015, Dunkin Donut’s did not have as much caffeine in their coffee products as Starbucks. In fact, a small cup of Dunkin’s coffee contained 132mg of caffeine where as a tall (small) Starbuck’s coffee contains 260mg caffeine. Therefore, in 2015 Dunkin’ reformulated their brewed coffee to a higher caffeinated version, with a small containing 215mg of caffeine. But in 2016 they reverted back to their original levels and small coffee contains 150mg caffeine.
Also, in the past, Dunkin’ used less ground coffee to make their brewed coffee. Their espresso-based drinks don’t follow the standard shot amounts like other coffee chain brands do. A double shot should have double the amount of caffeine as a single shot, but Dunkin’ doesn’t use double the amount of espresso ground coffee to make their double shot, which is why there is less caffeine and less of that bitter coffee taste.
I know which coffee I would choose if were staying up late to study for finals, but this is about America, not me.
It is no surprise that Starbucks has a plethora of drinks. This will blow your mind, more than the fact that there is a secret menu! Starbucks spokeswoman Lisa Passe one said, “If you take all of our core beverages, multiply them by the modifiers and the customization options, you get more than 87,000 combinations.”
If you’re young or old, warm, or cold, you can find something to drink there. Starbucks also gets you excited for the new seasons with their extremely creative seasonal drinks. Why buy a pumpkin, when you can splurge on pumpkin spice lattes and peppermint mochas?
But, Dunkin’ does prove that quality over quantity does exist. For, Dunkin’ falls behind with only 40 drinks, but they are definitely just as good. For instance, Dunkin’ just launched its new Oreo hot chocolate. Any sentence with both Oreo and chocolate is a definite crowd pleaser.
However, there is one defining factor that differentiates Starbucks from Dunkin’. Starbucks takes the time to write each customer’s name on his/her beverage. To be honest, this is the most entertaining part of my experience. Seeing the face of my mother when her cup says, “Fillys” instead of “Phyllis” honestly makes my dad and apparently is done on purpose. Check out this video for the “real” reason Starbucks’ baristas have been spelling your name wrong.
Mattie is my cousin, but who’s complaining?
In addition, the prices of a Starbucks’ small, or should I say tall, and a Dunkin’s small are different. Dunkin’s small hot coffee, which is 10 oz. sells for $1.59 whereas a Starbucks’ small hot 12 oz. of coffee sells for $1.89. The prices ultimately even out since if you do the math (yes, there was math involved in the making of this article), Dunkin would sell a 12 oz. coffee for $1.90 and Starbucks would sell a 10 oz. coffee for $1.57.
Here we have it. Two dominating chain coffee stores that are so similar. But, in order to determine which global chain store America runs on, I looked at each of the store’s yearly revenue from 2015.
Drum roll please!
I found that America Runs on Starbucks! Not so catchy, I know, but we might have to start getting used to it!
Starbucks generated $464.9 million whereas Dunkin’ Donuts only raked in $25.6 million. If you’re bitter about these results, just add some sugar and milk and you’ll be fine!