I Tasted 17 Instant Coffees and Found Many That Were Genuinely Great

Instant coffee has a bad reputation–and not undeservedly. Born out of convenience, instant coffee's been disappointing palates since the early 1900s. Why? Well, for a long time, the only roasting companies that offered instant coffee were the largest ones, which have poor reputations for fair labor practices and underwhelming coffee quality. To make instant coffee even more profitable, these companies extracted everything from the roasted coffee during brewing—including the bitter, dry, and astringent flavors good brewing practices avoid. Finally, this over-extracted brewed coffee was rapidly freeze-dried, which made it taste stale.

These days, specialty coffee companies approach instant coffee differently. Instead of over-extracting the ground coffee, they brew to highlight the fruit acids, sugars, and caramelized sugars that make coffee complex and sweet. The freeze-drying is then done slowly to preserve flavors. And because instant coffee has already been brewed before being freeze-dried, it can dissolve in cold water just as easily as hot water, making it convenient for iced preparations, as well as hotel mornings, hiking trips, airplanes, and even afternoon coffee breaks. 

To find out which of these new-school instant coffees tastes the best, I tried 17 options from various producers.

The Winners, at a Glance

The Best Instant Coffee

Intelligentsia Instant Coffee House Blend

View on Amazon $28 at Walmart $12 at Intelligentsia.com

Well-balanced and sweet, Intelligentsia’s House Blend had a clean finish with flavors reminiscent of caramel sauce, brown sugar, and pear. It’s a well-rounded option for most coffee drinkers. 

The Best Instant Coffee Blend

Ruby Coffee Roasters Instant Creamery Blend

View on Rubycoffeeroasters.com

Full-bodied and round, Creamery was the most balanced blend I tasted with flavors that reminded me of real milk chocolate, caramel, and red apple. I particularly liked this blend with milk added.

Another Great Instant Coffee Blend

Verve Coffee Roasters Street Level Instant Coffee

$17 at Amazon $14 at Walmart $16 at REI

Bright and fruity but still balanced, I liked how much this option tasted like fresh brewed coffee. Think: brown sugar and tangerine, with a lighter body.

The Best Light-Roast Instant Coffee Blend

Tandem Coffee Roasters Time & Temperature Instant Coffee

View on Tandemcoffee.com

A lighter blend, Time & Temperature had bright flavors that tasted like honey, berries, and tropical fruit. It was also extremely refreshing as an iced coffee. 

The Best Single Origin Instant Coffee

Swift Coffee Ethiopia Agaro Instant Coffee

View on Swiftcoffee.com

Light and silky, Ethiopia Agaro from Swift tasted like black cherry and fruit salad, and had a floral, orange blossom note—perfect for people who love light roasts and delicate flavors. 

The Best Instant Espresso

Intelligentsia Instant Espresso Black Cat Classic

View on Intelligentsia.com

Black Cat tasted great as an instant espresso shot with a lot of dark chocolate and red apple. It translated really well to an iced latte too, tasting sweet, caramelly, and well-balanced. 

The Best Instant Decaf Coffee

Swift Coffee Decaf Colombia Instant Coffee

View on Swiftcoffee.com

For decaf drinkers, I thought Swift’s Decaf Colombia had a velvety body and nice fruit notes, like red grape and cherry. It also had a clean finish and was well-balanced.

The Tests

• Double-Blind Taste Test, Part One: I assigned each coffee a number, wrote that number on the bottom of a glass, shuffled them all, and then assigned each glass a number. I added eight ounces of hot water to each glass, stirred to mix, and then let them cool until 120ºF before tasting and noting each coffee’s sweetness, body, aftertaste, balance, and flavor. 
• Double-Blind Taste Test, Part Two: I then sent the coffees from round one to a wider panel of Serious Eats staffers to conduct their own double-blind taste test, and factored everyone’s results to name winners in each category. 
• Espresso Preparation Test (Espresso Blends-Only): I brewed each instant espresso according to its instructions and tasted it on its own for sweetness, body, aftertaste, balance, and flavor. I then prepared an iced latte with each instant espresso and noted its flavor and how well it dissolved into cold milk.

What We Learned

There Were a Lot of Good Instant Coffees, But Very Few Processors 

I was pleasantly surprised by the number of instant coffees I thought were great, but even more shocked that Swift Coffee processed nine of the 17 instant coffees I tasted. Swift operates as an instant coffee processor that develops instant versions for other coffee roasters, but they recently launched their own in-house brand of instant coffee as well.  While Black & White Coffee Roasters and Bindle Coffee Roasters do their own freeze-drying (you can even watch a video about Black & White’s process), larger specialty coffee roasters like Intelligentsia rely on Swift to transform their coffee into powder. In fact, all six of our favorite instant coffees (including options from Ruby Coffee Roasters,  Tandem Coffee Roasters, and Swift’s own in-house brand) were processed by Swift. Coffees like Chamberlain Coffee Wildcat Instant Sticks and Waka Instant Coffee Colombia fared poorly in our taste tests and didn’t list a processor, but it’s not clear if their rough flavors come from the coffee itself or its processing.

Even High-End Instant Coffee Had a Long Shelf Life

Because instant coffee is already brewed, it has a much longer shelf life than your standard bag of coffee. Freshly roasted coffee is usually best within the first two weeks of roasting (which you can read more about here), but even high-end instant coffee, like Ruby’s Creamery Blend, has a best-by date of January 2025. While I hope it doesn’t take you two years to get through five packets, it’s good knowing that you can keep a box or two around for future travel plans or emergencies without worrying about it going stale.

The Packets Were Different Sizes, and Varied by Brand

Though packets contained between three to five grams of instant coffee crystals, most suggested using a standard eight ounces of water. There wasn’t a distinct difference in brew strength during our taste tests, which suggests that the coffees themselves were brewed at different concentrations before freeze-drying. Brands like Joe Coffee The Daily Instant Coffee and Verve Coffee Roasters Street Level Instant Coffee that use Swift as their processor recommend five grams of instant coffee for eight to 10 ounces of water, while Swift’s own in-house label suggests 10 ounces of water for its 4.5-gram packets. It’s hard to know why these recipes vary, but it’s safe to say that every packet is a single serving.

Every Packet Dissolved Quickly in Water

The number one requirement for any instant coffee is that it dissolves quickly in hot or cold water, and every option we tested passed with flying colors. However, making instant espresso did require a bit more stirring with only one-and-a-half ounces of water (compared to the eight ounces we used for brewed coffee), and we also had to stir a bit more to get the instant espresso powder to dissolve in cold milk. 

Flavor Quality Was All Over the Map

While most instant coffees we tasted were pleasantly drinkable with at least some sweetness, there were also a few stinkers in the bunch. Starbucks Via Blonde Roast Veranda Blend was flat and lacked complexity, but Chamberlain Coffee Wildcat Instant Sticks and Waka Instant Coffee Colombia were downright terrible. It was a disappointing result since those were the lowest-cost options, but it does show that not all instant coffee is passable. 

The Criteria: What to Look for in an Instant Coffee

Great instant coffee should dissolve quickly, have a long shelf life, and taste sweet and balanced. There are a lot of great styles of instant coffee, so whether you prefer brighter coffees, sweeter coffees, or full-bodied coffees, you’ll be able to find one you like.

Our Favorite Instant Coffees

The Best Instant Coffee

Intelligentsia Instant Coffee House Blend

View on Amazon $28 at Walmart $12 at Intelligentsia.com

What we liked: Intelligentsia’s House Blend was a well-rounded coffee. It was sweet, balanced, and had flavors that reminded me of brown sugar, caramel, and pear. It was a top pick in our taste tests.

What we didn’t like: Some people noted it had a slightly drier finish than other coffees.

Key Specs

• Number of packets per box: 5
• Amount per packet: 4.5 grams
• Best by date listed: Yes
• Roast level: Medium
• Coffee style: Blend
• Instant processor: Swift Coffee

The Best Instant Coffee Blend

Ruby Coffee Roasters Instant Creamery Blend

View on Rubycoffeeroasters.com

What we liked: Ruby’s Creamery was another favorite in our blind taste tests. It was described as full-bodied, balanced, and with sweet flavors like milk chocolate, caramel, and red apple. Since it had deeper, rich flavors, it held up well to the addition of milk.

What we didn’t like: Though it was well-balanced and clean, some people thought the flavors weren’t super exciting.

Key Specs

• Number of packets per box: 6
• Amount per packet: 5 grams
• Best by date listed: Yes
• Roast level: Medium
• Coffee style: Blend
• Instant processor: Swift Coffee

Another Great Instant Coffee Blend

Verve Coffee Roasters Street Level Instant Coffee

$17 at Amazon $14 at Walmart $16 at REI

What we liked: Street Level scored well amongst all the tasters with a fruit-forward flavor profile that tasted like grape, tangerine, and brown sugar without being too bright or tart. It had a lighter body, and people also liked how much it tasted like fresh-brewed coffee. 

What we didn’t like: It was a little too fruit-forward for some tasters, and others wished it had more body.

Key Specs

• Number of packets per box: 6
• Amount per packet: 5 grams
• Best by date listed: Yes
• Roast level: Medium-Light
• Coffee style: Blend
• Instant processor: Swift Coffee

The Best Light-Roast Instant Coffee Blend

Tandem Coffee Roasters Time & Temperature Instant Coffee

View on Tandemcoffee.com

What we liked: Bright, fruity, and light-bodied, Time & Temperature was a favorite amongst tasters who liked light-roasted coffees. It had notes of honey, berries, and tropical fruit, and it was refreshing as an iced coffee. 

What we didn’t like: Its fruitiness might be off-putting to some who are looking for bigger, rounder flavors.

Key Specs

• Number of packets per box: 6
• Amount per packet: 5 grams
• Best by date listed: No
• Roast level: Medium-light
• Coffee style: Blend
• Instant processor: Swift Coffee

The Best Single Origin Instant Coffee

Swift Coffee Ethiopia Agaro Instant Coffee

View on Swiftcoffee.com

What we liked: For people who love complex, dynamic, and delicate flavors, Swift’s Ethiopia Agaro was bright, fruity, floral, and sweet. I thought it tasted like black cherry and tropical fruits, and enjoyed how silky and light the body was. 

What we didn’t like: Its fruity and floral flavor profile was off-putting to some, and its lighter body didn’t pair well with milk.

Key Specs

• Number of packets per box: 6
• Amount per packet: 4.5 grams
• Best by date listed: Yes
• Roast level: Medium-light
• Coffee style: Single origin
• Instant processor: Swift Coffee (in-house)

The Best Instant Espresso

Intelligentsia Instant Espresso Black Cat Classic

View on Intelligentsia.com

What we liked: As an instant espresso shot, Black Cat tasted like cherries and dark chocolate with a syrupy body. In an iced latte, it was caramel-y and sweet and paired nicely with milk. It was overall a very nice instant espresso option and ideal for people who like milk-based coffee drinks but don’t want to learn how to make espresso at home. 

What we didn’t like: There was a lingering tartness when tasting it on its own, but some people enjoyed that.

Key Specs

• Number of packets per box: 5
• Amount per packet: 4.5 grams
• Best by date listed: Yes
• Roast level: Medium-dark
• Coffee style: Espresso blend
• Instant processor: Swift Coffee

The Best Instant Decaf Coffee

Swift Coffee Decaf Colombia Instant Coffee

View on Swiftcoffee.com

What we liked: For people who like the idea of a quick afternoon pick-me-up without the pick-me-up, Swift’s instant decaf was a sweet well-rounded option with some red grape and cherry flavors.

What we didn’t like: You could taste a slightly stale decaf flavor that was off-putting.

Key Specs

• Number of packets per box: 6
• Amount per packet: 4.5 grams
• Best by date listed: Yes
• Roast level: Medium
• Coffee style: Decaf single origin
• Instant processor: Swift Coffee (in-house)

The Competition

Also Good

• Black & White Jorge Raul Rivera Honey: I really, really liked this bright and fruity offering from Black & White, but Black & White doesn't have a consistent instant coffee lineup. They do all of their freeze-drying in-house, which lets them do limited runs of their single-origin offerings (and makes it harder for us to recommend specific ones before they sell out). I suggest checking out their rotating lineup if you like brighter and lighter coffees.
• Swift Coffee Mainstay Blend Instant Coffee: I enjoyed the red grape and caramel flavors of this blend and thought it was well-balanced with a clean finish. 
• Bindle Coffee Space Coffee Sidekick Espresso: As an espresso, it was bright and sweet. In an iced latte, it tasted like honey and graham crackers. I thought it was a nice instant espresso, though it might be too light-bodied for some. 
• Blue Bottle Craft Instant Espresso: On its own, this coffee was a little roasty and bitter. In an iced latte, it tasted like dark chocolate milk and was overall pleasant. We wouldn’t recommend this instant espresso on its own, but if you like dark roasts and milk-based drinks, this could be a great option. 

Not Recommended

• Starbucks Via Blonde Roast Veranda Blend: Overall this coffee was flat and didn’t show the dynamic qualities of our winners. 
• Bindle Coffee Space Coffee Colombia: I thought this coffee tasted a little grassy and hollow and lacked sweetness. 
• Joe Coffee The Daily Instant Coffee: This coffee was a bit acrid, and I wanted more sweetness out of it. 
• Chamberlain Coffee Wildcat Instant Sticks: I thought this coffee tasted like hot rubber and legumes, and was harsh, thin, bitter, and had a lingering unpleasant aftertaste.
• Waka Instant Coffee Colombia: This coffee was extraordinarily bitter and tasted like burnt wood. It lacked sweetness altogether and tasted hollow and dry. 

FAQs

What’s the difference between instant coffee and regular coffee?

Instant coffee is coffee that’s been brewed and freeze-dried into a powder. Because it has already been brewed, it can dissolve in both hot water and cold water and be ready to drink in seconds. Regular coffee needs to be ground and brewed with hot water in order to extract the flavors. 

Why does instant coffee taste worse than regular brewed coffee?

Instant coffee is a coffee that’s been brewed and then freeze dried into a powder. Because it’s already been brewed, there’s always a slight chance that some stale flavors can creep in. Traditional instant coffee, however, is usually made from low-grade roasted coffee that’s been over-extracted and freeze-dried too quickly. This can lead to harsh flavors across the board. 

What’s different about specialty instant coffee?

High-end instant coffee is made from specialty coffee beans that are brewed to exact ratios and then slowly freeze-dried to preserve flavor. It tastes better than traditional instant coffee because it starts with higher quality roasted coffee, is brewed to a better standard, and is freeze-dried slowly to preserve flavors.

Why We're the Experts

• Jesse Raub was the commerce writer for Serious Eats. He spent 15-plus years in the specialty coffee industry and as a barista and coffee trainer.
• For this review, Jesse taste-tested 17 instant coffees.