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Best instant coffee: Supermarket gold blends vs Douwe Egberts, Kenco and Nescafé
A quick cup of instant is less faff than ground coffee and is a convenient, cheaper choice. But which one should you go for?
We got together a panel of 68 regular coffee consumers and asked them to sip their way through 12 different instant gold-roast-style coffees. (That's over 800 testing brews.) These included iconic Nescafé, as well as other well-known brands, Douwe Egberts and Kenco. They were pitted against nine supermarket own brands from Asda, Lidl and Sainsbury’s.
Two supermarket coffees impressed our tasters the most, while another supermarket offers an excellent Great Value own-brand option that finds the sweet spot between quality and affordability.
We also reveal which coffee left our taste testers least satisfied. Read on to learn how the big brands fared with the everyday brew.
How we found the best instant coffee
Large tasting panel
We gathered a panel of 68 tasters to sip coffee from 12 different brands.
Blind-tasting
Our tasters weren’t told whether they were drinking Nescafé, Kenco or a cheaper supermarket coffee. And as they didn’t discuss their opinions, they weren’t influenced by other tasters.
What's good about the instant coffee?
Our tasters scored each coffee on what separates a good coffee from a poor one – such as flavour, mouthfeel and aroma.
Rigorous
All our results are checked and analysed by our in-house statistical team for accuracy.
Best instant coffee
M&S and Waitrose were the top-scoring products in our taste test this year, achieving joint first place. Douwe Egberts and Nescafé were just behind, while Kenco also put in a reasonable showing.
Aldi wins our Great Value recommendation, as it was well-liked and much cheaper than the other highly ranked coffees.
Best Buy: M&S Gold Instant Coffee
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Price: £7.25 (200g)
Score: 70%
Sharing top spot with Waitrose, and therefore a Best Buy, this coffee from M&S was enjoyed by our tasters. It scored well for flavour, aroma and appearance.
Nearly two-thirds were happy with the strength of flavour, while close to three-quarters approved bitterness levels.
It won’t be a surprise to learn that M&S's coffee isn’t one of the cheaper options, but it does well ethically, being one of just two coffees on test with the Fairtrade logo.
Available in-store at M&S and Ocado.
Best Buy: Waitrose Gold Roast
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Price: £3.70 (100g)
Score: 70%
In joint top place with M&S was Waitrose’s coffee, so it’s also a Best Buy.
It did well across the board, making a favourable first impression for its appearance and aroma, which was then confirmed with a decent flavour.
Well over half of our tasters found the coffee's strength spot on, and nearly two-thirds enjoyed the bitter twang.
This Waitrose coffee isn’t cheap, but it’s certainly a crowd pleaser.
Available from Waitrose.
Douwe Egberts Pure Gold
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Price: £8 (190g)
Score: 69%
Trailing the top scorers by just a single percentage point was Douwe Egberts Pure Gold.
Its looks, aroma and flavour were all rated highly. Just shy of half said the coffee’s strength was just right, while nearly two-thirds praised its bitter kick.
Price-wise, it's up there with the more costly options, but if it’s your go-to brand, keep an eye out for some supermarkets offering it more cheaply than others.
Available from Amazon, Asda, Co-op, Iceland, Morrisons, Tesco and Waitrose.
Nescafé Gold Blend
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Price: £8.35 (190g)
Score: 69%
The iconic coffee brand was enjoyed by our tasters, missing out on being a Best Buy by just a single percentage point.
Generally, tasters approved of its looks, aroma and flavour.
A little over half said its bitterness was just right, though the remainder were split as to whether it should be a little more or less bitter. Approaching half were happy with the Nescafé flavour, but a third wanted a stronger coffee hit.
Full-price Nescafé isn’t cheap, but it's regularly on offer, so if the big brand is your top choice, stock up when the going’s good.
Available from Amazon, Asda, Co-op, Iceland, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s, Tesco and Waitrose.
Great Value: Aldi Alcafé Gold Roast
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Price: £2.65 (200g)
Score: 68%
It’s not quite up there with the top scorers, but this coffee from Aldi was enjoyed for its looks, aroma and flavour.
Bitterness levels were approved by nearly two-thirds, and flavour by just shy of half of our tasters. A little stronger coffee flavour would’ve boosted its popularity still more.
Aldi’s coffee is much cheaper than all the other high-scoring coffees, so it wins our Great Value award.
Available in-store at Aldi.
Kenco Gold Indulgence
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Price: £8.35 (195g)
Score: 68%
While it wasn’t the most favoured, Kenco’s coffee was still well received by our tasters, with praise for its appearance, aroma and flavour.
A half found the coffee flavour just right, though a touch stronger would’ve suited a third of our tasters. More than half found its bitterness suited them.
It’s another pricey coffee, so it’s worth keeping an eye out for regular offers.
Available from Amazon, Asda, Morrisons, Ocado, Sainsbury’s and Tesco.
How other instant coffees compare
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Co-op’s coffee was enjoyed by our tasters, while Lidl’s was the least favourite.
- Co-op Fairtrade Gold Roast – 67%. A reasonably well-liked brew with good ethical credentials. About half would’ve preferred a stronger coffee flavour. £3.55 for 200g (£1.78 per 100g). Available from Co-op.
- Morrisons Gold Roast – 65%. Not bad, and a cheap option, but dropped marks for flavour, with a third finding it too weak. £2.65 for 200g (£1.33 per 100g). Available from Morrisons.
- Sainsbury’s Gold Roast – 65%. Less than half of our tasters were happy with its flavour, but bitterness levels were more appreciated. £2.85 for 200g (£1.43 per 100g). Available from Sainsbury’s.
- Asda Gold Roast – 64%. A cheap blend that looked and smelled good, but less than half were fans of the flavour or bitterness. £2.65 for 200g (£1.32 per 100g). Available from Asda.
- Ocado Gold Roast – 64%. A half felt this coffee had the right bitterness, but fewer were enamoured with its flavour. £3 for 200g (£1.50 per 100g). Available from Ocado.
- Lidl Bellarom Gold – 61%. The least enjoyed coffee of all, with only just over a third appreciating the flavour. A little under half approved bitterness levels. £2.65 for 200g (£1.33 per 100g). Available from Lidl.
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Full results from our instant coffee test
| Instant coffee | Score | Price per pack | Pack size | Price per 100g |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best Buy: M&S Gold Instant Coffee | 70% | £7.25 | 200g | £3.63 |
| Best Buy: Waitrose Gold Roast | 70% | £3.70 | 100g | £3.70 |
| Douwe Egberts Pure Gold | 69% | £8 | 190g | £4.21 |
| Nescafé Gold Blend | 69% | £8.35 | 190g | £4.39 |
| Great Value: Aldi Alcafé Gold Roast | 68% | £2.65 | 200g | £1.33 |
| Kenco Gold Indulgence | 68% | £8.35 | 195g | £4.28 |
| Co-op Fairtrade Gold Roast | 67% | £3.55 | 200g | £1.78 |
| Morrisons Gold Roast | 65% | £2.65 | 200g | £1.33 |
| Sainsbury’s Gold Roast | 65% | £2.85 | 200g | £1.43 |
| Asda Gold Roast | 64% | £2.65 | 200g | £1.32 |
| Ocado Gold Roast | 64% | £3 | 200g | £1.50 |
| Lidl Bellarom Gold | 61% | £2.65 | 200g | £1.33 |
How we tested instant coffee
Our panel of 68 tasters gathered at our specialist test lab, where over 800 coffees were brewed in our bid to find the best gold-roast instant coffee
All the coffees were blind-tasted, so our tasters had no idea which one was in the cup and therefore no preconceptions about which might be better.
They each had a separate private testing booth, so they couldn't discuss what they were tasting or be influenced by other tasters.
The tasters rated the flavour, aroma, appearance and mouthfeel of each coffee brand and told us what they liked and disliked.
The overall score was based on:
- 50% flavour
- 30% appearance
- 10% aroma
- 10% mouthfeel
Find out more about our editorial independence policy and see behind the scenes of our taste tests to understand more about how we work
Is coffee good for you?
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Coffee, including the caffeine it contains, isn’t generally seen as bad for you.
According to the British Heart Foundation, a moderate amount of tea or coffee, which it considers to be a rather generous four or five cups, shouldn’t be an issue for most people.
It’s known that caffeine increases blood pressure, but this is temporary and less marked in regular caffeine consumers.
People’s sensitivity to caffeine varies, however, so if you find it causes palpitations, jitteriness or other unpleasant symptoms, then decaf may be a better option.
How to choose sustainable coffee
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Coffee that features the Fairtrade International logo has had to meet minimum social and environmental standards, as well as pay a minimum price for the coffee beans. Of the 12 coffees we tested, only the Co-op and M&S meet the Fairtrade requirements.
Asda, Lidl and Ocado have Rainforest Alliance certification, which provides some protection for coffee growers, but is deemed a weaker scheme by Ethical Consumer.
What about decaffeinated instant coffee?
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If you get a coffee craving, but don’t want the caffeine hit, decaf could be the way to go.
The three brands on test, Nescafé, Kenco and Douwe Egberts, plus most of the supermarkets, have an own-brand gold blend decaf.
You shouldn’t need to pay more for decaf, as most brands price-match with their standard caffeinated coffee.
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How many cups of coffee are there in a jar?
The number of brews you’ll get from a jar will depend on how strong you like your coffee and the size of the jar.
Most of the supermarket coffees on test weighed 200g, though the brands weighed less, with Kenco at 195g and Douwe Egberts and Nescafé weighing 190g. Waitrose coffee is sold in a small 100g jar.
The jars that claim a number of cups assume a weak brew. For example, Nescafé says you’ll get 105 cups from 190g (equivalent to 55 per 100g). Asda and Sainsbury's say 111 and 110 cups respectively (which is also 55 per 100g). Kenco quotes a whopping 121 cups from its 195g jar (62 per 100g).
These servings work out to less than 2g of coffee per cup, and many people may prefer their coffee stronger.
Instant coffee types explained
We tested gold roast-style coffee, but the cheapest instant coffee available is generally called ‘rich roast’.
A step up from gold roast, is single-origin instant coffee. This has a more distinctive flavour linked to the area in which the beans were grown.
Micro-ground coffee is a blend of instant and ground coffee. It costs more, but may taste a cut above standard instant coffee.
Coffee bags filled with ground coffee, and used in the same way as tea bags, are another option, though a good deal pricier.
Price and availability checked: January 2025