The Best Ground Coffee: 10 Options for an Easy Cup

While whole bean coffee offers the freshest flavor, we know it isn’t always the most convenient option. Some mornings, you need to just throw some grounds in the bottom of your cup, add hot water, and hit the road. Plus, for beginner coffee drinkers, ground coffee is an appealing choice as you don’t have to buy fancy — and thus pricey! — brewing equipment like coffee grinders. 

Drinking ground coffee doesn’t mean it has to taste bad or bitter. In fact, you can find great-tasting, high-quality ground coffee from several iconic coffee makers. Here, we rounded up the best ground coffee options. They range from full-bodied dark roasts to airy light roasts so there’s a delicious and easy-to-brew cup of java for everyone.

The 10 Best Ground Coffee Options

Looking for a great cup of ground coffee? You don’t have to head to your local Dunkin Donuts, donut shop, or retail coffee chain. Instead, you can brew a delicious cup of coffee at home with high-quality coffee grounds that taste almost as good as freshly-ground whole bean coffee. Here are some of the best ground coffee options when you want great tasting, but a convenient brew.

1. Death Wish Coffee Company Ground Coffee

Death Wish Coffee Company isn’t for basic brews. Their concoctions are among the strongest coffees you can find. They use both robusta and arabica beans from India and Peru to create ground coffee and whole bean coffee that brews twice as strong as a normal cup. They offer several ground coffee options including an Ethiopian blend, medium roast, and dark roast ground coffee. While these are strong brews, there are no bitter flavors and the consistency is quite smooth. With each sip, you’ll indulge in rich dark chocolate and cherry tasting notes, plus a jolt of caffeine that will super-charge your day.

2. Starbucks Veranda Blend

On the lighter end of the spectrum, we love Starbucks Veranda Blend. This light roast uses beans originating in Latin America to create a mellow flavor with light nutty notes. It’s less robust than some of their other roasts and is a great option for coffee lovers that enjoy lighter flavors as well as beginners that are just wading into the coffee waters.

3. No Fun Jo Inc. Decaf Coffee

No Fun Jo Inc. offers certified organic coffees and original blends. Their coffees consist of medium and dark roasts, so this brand is best suited for individuals that enjoy those types of coffee.

Their decaffeinated coffee is a medium-dark roast made with ground arabica coffee beans. It’s Fair Trade certified and made using the Swiss Water Process that eliminates 99.9% of caffeine. It’s full-bodied and offers complex tasting notes including hints of sweet blueberry and milk chocolate naturally occurring in the coffee beans. Try it out by purchasing the 12-oz bag or fall in love and buy the larger two-pound bag for regular brewing.

4. La Colombe Corsica Darker Roast

La Colombe Corsica Darker Roast is a full-bodied ground coffee made using beans from Brazil, Colombia, Honduras, and Mexico. It’s the perfect option if you enjoy French press coffee thanks to its easy brewing and rich flavor. In addition, you can choose the size of the grinds when ordering to minimize the silt and residue typically associated with French press brews. Each cup offers dark chocolatey and roasty tasting notes in addition to undertones of red wine and a mild smokey flavor. You’ll need to order the grinds from La Colombe’s website (not retailers like Amazon). 

5. Seattle’s Best Coffee Toasted Hazelnut

Seattle’s Best Coffee offers several ground coffee options including a breakfast blend, vanilla blend, and various light to dark roasts. Our favorite from this coffee company is the Toasted Hazelnut. It’s rich, nutty, and mildly sweet with a delicately smooth texture. The coffee company makes the roast without any added sugar — just the natural goodness of toasted hazelnuts. That means it doesn’t have the weird aftertaste that comes along with many flavored coffees. The nutty aroma is sure to awaken your senses and the caffeine doesn’t hurt either!

6. New England Coffee

Looking for another winner in the flavored coffee department? Check out the variety of offerings from New England Coffee. They offer a huge selection of dark roast, single-serve, and seasonal brews for everyone’s taste. Their seasonal offerings include concoctions like coconut almond candy bar, coconut lavender, and pistachio ice cream. For the traditionalists, look to the dark, light, and medium roast options. Among our favorites is the Colombian Supremo. It’s a medium roast with a distinct Colombian flavor.

7. Stone Street Coffee Company Cold Brew Reserve

Love cold brew coffee? Snag a bag of ground Cold Brew Reserve from Stone Street Coffee Company. You can have them grind the beans for you — a coarse grind specifically designed for cold brewing — or order the whole beans if you want to grind them yourself. Stone Street makes the house blend ground coffee using supremo arabica beans from Colombia. It’s kosher and features notes of dark chocolate and nutty undertones. It has low acidity and a smooth, full-bodied flavor.

8. Volcanica Coffee Company Espresso Dark Roast

The Espresso Dark Roast from Volcanica Coffee is one of the best ground coffee options for making espresso. This classic roast features washed oily coffee beans. That means you shouldn’t use them in super-automatic espresso makers. For all other espresso machines, you can order the espresso grinds to enjoy sweet caramel flavors and a spicy aroma. 

9. Eight O’Clock Ground Coffee

Eight O’Clock has been brewing great coffee for more than 100 years. With that much experience, it’s no surprise that this company has some of the best ground coffees. They have flavored options like chocolate mint, French vanilla, and caramel macchiato in addition to several barista blends. Plus, you’ll find unique flavors like the Texas pecan Praline and Vermont maple Bourbon. For a traditional take, we like the Original — their oldest recipe. They make it with 100% arabica beans, a medium roast process, and it features sweet and fruity tasting notes.

10. Kona Coffee and Tea 

What is Kona coffee? It’s a type of coffee cultivated on the Big Island of Hawaii. Kona Coffee and Tea focuses on single origin and single estate coffees including several ground coffee options. Among our favorites is the Malia Ohana, which comes in a 7-ounce bag. The estate-grown coffee is cultivated right on the local farm and is available as whole bean, fine grind, drip grind, and coarse grind coffee. Enjoy the full roast with notes of sweet dried plum, and milk chocolate. There are also subtle hints of raisin and clove to round out the tasting profile.

Be a Basic Brewer With Ground Coffee

When it comes to ground coffee, you don’t have to stick to bitter brews from Folgers Classic or Maxwell House instant coffee canisters (though their classic roast medium roast ground coffees are quite palatable and deserve some recognition). In fact, you can find signature and gourmet ground coffee from a variety of roasters and retailers on this list — including best sellers that are organic and Fair Trade certified. From roast medium ground coffee to blonde roasts and signature blends, there is a ground coffee for any taste on this list.

Looking for more ways to enjoy coffee? Continue browsing our blog at Cup & Bean. You’ll find tips for beginners including a breakdown of the different types of coffee and coffee bean nutrition facts plus fun recipes and new ways to enjoy a cup of Joe.