Ah, nothing’s better than the sweet smell of money leaving my bank account in the morning. A latte, a nitro cold brew, even a regular cold brew; I’m not picky.
Even though I am not the type of person who relies on coffee every morning, there is something nice about walking into a Starbucks and picking up a coffee. Or sitting at a coffee shop to study all day. What’s not so nice is how fast the daily coffee habit adds up.
As someone who tracks their expenses, I am definitely aware of how much my coffee habit costs me. It is definitely my largest discretionary expense, which is why it’s the first thing I cut out when I need to save money.
While I could cut out coffee completely and still be a perfectly functioning human, I take too much pleasure in my morning caffeine to do so. Rather, I just started making my own coffee at home.
I bought an espresso machine and I went from spending $5.30 on a nitro cold brew to $0.98 for a hot latte and $1.11 for an iced latte.
To make the latte I use Peet’s Coffee Espresso Pods. I purchased a pack of 50 for $28.97, which comes out to $0.58 per espresso pod. The milk I use for my lattes, Blue Diamond Almond Breeze Almond Milk, is $3.19. One carton makes eight hot lattes, which comes out to $0.40 per hot latte. I can make six iced lattes per carton, which comes out to $0.53 per iced latte.
The price breakdown for a hot almond milk latte is roughly $0.98 and $1.11 for an iced almond milk latte.
It takes less than two minutes to prepare my lattes. I simply turn on the espresso machine and pour in milk and ice for the iced latte. I use a milk frother for hot lattes, but it doesn’t take any extra effort.
If you want to start saving up for a summer vacation or even your first place a few years down the line, cutting on your daily expenses like coffee is a great way to make progress, fast. Besides, who doesn’t like the feeling of holding a warm cup of coffee at home in the morning and enjoying some much-needed alone time in college? It’s much better than waiting in a Starbucks line, that’s for sure.
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