The three kinds of coffee subscription
1. National marketplaces
A marketplace sells coffee from many independent roasters through one account. Trade Coffee is one well known example. It lists more than 500 coffees from small roasters around the country, uses a quiz to match you to coffees, and says each order is roasted to order by a partner roaster and shipped within 48 hours of roasting. Its subscriptions default to every two weeks, and you can adjust the frequency, move a delivery date or pause from your account.
Good fit if: you enjoy trying different roasters and want one place to manage it. Trade off: coffee ships from wherever each roaster is, so transit time to New Jersey varies from bag to bag.
2. National coffee clubs and big roaster subscriptions
A coffee club curates the selection for you. Atlas Coffee Club, for example, sends a coffee from a different country each month in a 12 oz bag, with a postcard and notes about where it came from. Its help center says orders default to one every four weeks, and you can change the frequency in your account. Many large national roasters also run their own subscriptions directly from their websites, which work the same way: one roaster, a set schedule, coffee shipped from their roastery.
Good fit if: you like a bit of discovery and do not want to choose each time. Trade off: a 12 oz bag on a monthly schedule is often not enough for a household that drinks coffee every day, and the coffee changes whether or not you loved the last one.
3. Local New Jersey roasters' own subscriptions
Many independent New Jersey roasters sell subscriptions directly from their own websites. Plans usually let you choose a coffee or take the roaster's pick, and set how often it arrives. If you already have a favorite local shop, ask whether they ship.
Good fit if: you want a shorter trip from roaster to door and like being able to walk into the shop. Trade off: the selection is limited to one roaster's coffees, and plans, bag sizes and policies vary widely, so read each one's terms.
Five things to compare before you subscribe
| What to compare | What to look for | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Freshness and roast date visibility | A roast date printed on every bag, not only an expiration date | Most specialty coffee is at its peak within a few weeks of roasting. A visible date lets you check for yourself. |
| Shipping time to New Jersey | Where the coffee ships from, which carrier, and when it ships after roasting | Every day in transit is a day off the freshness window. A bag crossing the country spends longer on a truck than one sent from inside the state. |
| Bag size and household fit | Bag size (12 oz and 1 lb are common) and how many bags per delivery | Too little and you run out mid month. Too much and the last bag goes stale. |
| Flexibility | Easy skip, pause, frequency changes and cancellation from your account | Vacations, guests and habits change. A plan you cannot adjust becomes a pile of bags. |
| Local support | Who roasts the coffee and where your money goes | Some people want variety from across the country. Others would rather back a New Jersey business. Both are fair choices. |
Matching a plan to your household
The most common subscription mistake is ordering the wrong amount. A quick way to estimate it is to work out how much ground coffee a cup takes. At a 1:16 ratio, a 12 oz mug (about 355 g of water) uses about 22 g of coffee.
- One person, one mug a day: about 660 g a month, which is a little under 1.5 lb.
- Two people, one mug each a day: about 1,320 g a month, or close to 3 lb.
- Two people, two mugs each a day: about 2,640 g a month, or close to 6 lb.
A 12 oz bag holds about 340 g and a 1 lb bag about 454 g. So a single 12 oz bag a month suits a light drinker, while a two person household that drinks coffee daily usually needs several pounds. Our guide to how much coffee you need each month goes deeper.
Then decide on grind. Whole bean stays fresh longer and lets you grind for any brewer. Ground coffee is convenient if you do not own a grinder, as long as the grind matches your brewer: coarse for a French press, medium for a drip machine.
Where Monmouth fits, honestly
We are a New Jersey coffee subscription too, so here is how we compare, without the sales pitch. Monmouth delivers monthly in 1 lb bags, whole bean or ground for French press or a regular coffee machine, with New Jersey shipping included. The Regular is two 1 lb bags a month and The Enthusiast is four. Our medium, bold and espresso blend directions are still in development.
What we are not: a marketplace with hundreds of coffees, a club that sends a new country each month, or a cafe you can visit. We only ship within New Jersey, and we are pre-launch, so today you can join the waitlist but not place an order. If variety or single origins matter most to you, a marketplace or club will suit you better. If you want a straightforward monthly supply of full pound bags sized for a household that drinks coffee every day, we may be a good fit once we launch.
Whichever you choose, try it for two or three deliveries before you judge it, and adjust the bag count or frequency once you know how fast your household really goes through coffee.