How much coffee does an office use? Calculate the company's coffee consumption

How many kilos of coffee should a company actually order?

It depends especially on:

• number of employees
• number of cups per employee
• the coffee machine's dosage
• number of working days
• coffee for clients and guests
• potential coffee waste.

An office with 10 employees can, for example, use about 5–6 kg of coffee beans per month if each employee drinks an average of three cups a day, the machine uses approximately 9 grams of coffee per cup, and there are 20 working days.

However, this is only a planning example.

The best method is to calculate your own expected consumption and then adjust after the first deliveries.

Quick calculation of coffee consumption

For a fully automatic coffee machine, you can use this formula:

Number of employees × cups per day × grams of coffee per cup × working days ÷ 1,000 = kg of coffee per month

Example:

20 employees
× 3 cups per day
× 9 g of coffee
× 20 working days

=

10.8 kg of coffee per month

If you also have many meetings, clients, or guests, you should add a little extra.

How much coffee per employee?

There isn't one number of cups that fits every workplace.

Some employees don't drink coffee at all.

Others drink several cups throughout the workday.

Therefore, it is better to work with multiple scenarios.

A practical planning basis could be:

Low consumption: 2 cups per employee per working day

Medium consumption: 3 cups per employee per working day

High consumption: 4 cups per employee per working day

After the first month, you can replace the estimate with your actual consumption.

Coffee consumption with a fully automatic coffee machine

Fully automatic coffee machines can use different amounts of coffee beans per cup depending on:

• machine model
• selected coffee strength
• beverage
• programming
• portion size.

In the calculations below, we use 9 grams of coffee beans per cup as a practical planning example.

The table accounts for 20 working days per month.

The table is an estimate.

If your machine, for example, uses 12 grams of coffee per cup instead of 9 grams, the consumption will be about one-third higher.

How much coffee for 5 employees?

A small office with 5 employees will, according to our example, use approximately:

2 cups per day: 1.8 kg per month

3 cups per day: 2.7 kg per month

4 cups per day: 3.6 kg per month

A good starting point could therefore be around 2–3 kg per month if coffee consumption is moderate.

It is better to order a bit conservatively the first time and adjust according to actual consumption.

How much coffee for 10 employees?

With 10 employees, the calculation is:

10 employees × 3 cups × 9 g × 20 days

=

5.4 kg per month

An office with approximately 10 employees and normal coffee consumption can therefore start with around 5–6 kg of coffee per month.

If you have many client meetings or guests, the need may be higher.

How much coffee for 20 employees?

With 20 employees and three cups a day:

20 × 3 × 9 g × 20

=

10.8 kg of coffee per month

Here, around 11–12 kg could therefore be a realistic first estimate.

After that, the quantity is adjusted based on how quickly the coffee is actually used.

How much coffee for 50 employees?

With 50 employees:

2 cups per day: 18 kg per month

3 cups per day: 27 kg per month

4 cups per day: 36 kg per month

At this size workplace, even small changes in coffee consumption begin to have a major impact.

Just one extra cup per employee per day equals, in this example, about:

9 kg of extra coffee per month.

Therefore, it is worth tracking actual consumption.

How much coffee for 100 employees?

With 100 employees, the difference becomes even greater.

With our 9 g example:

2 cups per day: 36 kg per month

3 cups per day: 54 kg per month

4 cups per day: 72 kg per month

At larger workplaces, you should therefore not just guess based on the number of employees.

Please record actual consumption over a few weeks.

Then orders can be adjusted far more accurately.

How to find the machine's actual coffee dosage

The precise dosage is worth knowing.

Fully automatic machines can change the amount of coffee beans based on strength settings and drink type.

If the manufacturer provides grams per brew, you can use this directly in the calculation.

Example:

The machine uses 11 g per cup.

20 employees drink 3 cups a day.

There are 20 working days.

20 × 3 × 11 × 20

=

13,200 grams

=

13.2 kg of coffee per month.

That is significantly more than our 10.8 kg example with 9 grams.

The dosage therefore has a major impact.

How to measure consumption without knowing the machine's dosage

If you already have the coffee machine, there is an even easier method.

1. Start with a known quantity

Fill, for example:

5 kg of coffee beans

into the machine over a period.

2. Note the date

Write down when you started.

3. Record how long the coffee lasts

If 5 kg lasts, for example, 10 working days, the company uses approximately:

0.5 kg per working day.

4. Scale up to a month

0.5 kg × 20 working days

=

10 kg per month.

After a few weeks, this method is usually more accurate than any general industry estimate.

Remember clients, meetings, and guests

Employees are not necessarily the only ones drinking the coffee.

Also consider:

• client meetings
• conferences
• course participants
• visitors
• suppliers
• internal meetings
• events.

An office with 20 employees and many daily client meetings can therefore use more coffee than an office with 30 employees and almost no visitors.

Should you add a buffer?

It can be a good idea.

If your calculated consumption, for example, is:

10.8 kg per month

a first practical stock could be around:

11–12 kg.

This leaves a little room for variation in consumption.

But also avoid buying unnecessarily large quantities just to have coffee in stock.

At Brændeholm Risteri, companies can order as needed without being tied to the same fixed quantity every month.

See our corporate coffee for businesses.

How much filter coffee does an office use?

With filter coffee, it makes more sense to calculate based on liters than on number of cups.

A good starting point is:

60 grams of coffee per liter of water.

That gives:

The calculation again uses 20 working days per month.

If the workplace, for example, brews:

10 liters of filter coffee per day

you will need about:

12 kg of coffee per month.

How much coffee for a pot of filter coffee?

At 60 grams per liter, the dosage is:

If you brew many pots per day, it is easy to calculate the monthly consumption based on how many liters are actually brewed.

If you want to improve the brewing itself, you can use our guide to filter coffee.

Fully automatic machine or filter coffee – which uses more coffee?

It depends on the setup.

A fully automatic machine doses coffee per drink.

Filter coffee is dosed per liter.

If an employee drinks a large filter coffee of 250 ml with a ratio of 60 g/L, it mathematically corresponds to about:

15 g of coffee.

A fully automatic machine might use about 8–12 g for a smaller black coffee or espresso-based drink.

But the cup sizes are different.

Therefore, it makes no sense to say that one solution always uses less coffee.

The decisive factor is:

how much coffee the company actually serves.

Coffee waste can make a big difference

With filter coffee, a whole pot is often brewed at a time.

If it is not drunk, the rest can end up as waste.

This can make real coffee consumption higher than the employees' actual number of cups.

A fully automatic machine usually brews one portion at a time and can therefore reduce this type of waste.

On the other hand, employees can more easily get several small cups throughout the day.

Both systems should therefore be evaluated based on the specific workplace.

Measure coffee waste for a week

If you use filter coffee and experience a lot of waste, you can do a simple measurement.

For one week, record:

• how many liters are brewed
• how much is drunk
• how much is poured out.

If you, for example, brew 10 liters per day, but on average pour out 2 liters, you might be able to reduce the brew amount or brew smaller pots more often.

This saves both coffee and money.

How often should the company order coffee?

It depends on consumption and storage space.

A company that uses 3 kg per month does not need the same delivery schedule as a company that uses 30 kg.

A practical principle is:

order enough for the next realistic consumption period – not several months' worth of stock for no reason.

Coffee is a product that changes over time.

Therefore, ongoing deliveries can be more appropriate than buying very large quantities at once.

At Brændeholm Risteri, you can order office coffee as needed and adjust the quantity along the way.

250 g, 500 g, or 1 kg bags for the office?

In a workplace with regular consumption, larger bags will often be more practical.

If you use several kilos per month, the 1 kg format is typically easier to handle than many small bags.

Smaller bags, on the other hand, can be relevant if:

• consumption is very low
• you want to compare several coffees
• different departments use different coffee.

Choose packaging size based on how quickly the opened coffee is used.

How do you store coffee in the workplace?

Store coffee beans:

• dry
• away from direct sunlight
• away from strong heat sources
• in closed packaging.

Avoid opening many bags at the same time if they are only to be used much later.

For example, if you have 12 kg of coffee in stock, it is better to leave most bags closed and only open the quantity currently being used.

Which coffee should the company choose?

Once you know the quantity, the next question is the taste.

In a workplace, one coffee often has to work for many different people.

Therefore, a balanced medium roast is often a good place to start.

If employees prefer stronger coffee, a darker roast may be more appropriate.

For fully automatic machines and espresso-based drinks, an espresso blend can also be relevant.

On our Office Coffee page you will find various coffees for the workplace.

Coffee for a fully automatic coffee machine

A fully automatic machine typically requires whole coffee beans.

Here it is important to choose a coffee that:

• functions stably in the machine
• suits the employees' taste
• works for the drinks the machine makes.

If the machine makes black coffee, cappuccino, and caffe latte, a coffee with good body can be an advantage so that the coffee taste is still clear through the milk.

Coffee for filter machines in the office

For filter coffee, a balanced medium-roasted coffee will often be a broad starting point.

Start with:

60 grams of coffee per liter of water.

Then adjust to taste.

If the coffee tastes too thin, you should not automatically choose darker coffee.

Also check:

• dosage
• grind size
• coffee machine
• water.

How much does coffee cost per employee?

This can be calculated when you know:

• price per kg of coffee
• grams per cup
• cups per employee.

Example:

If a cup uses 9 grams of coffee, you theoretically get about:

111 cups per kg

before any potential waste is taken into account.

The price per cup of coffee from the beans alone is therefore:

price per kg ÷ approximately 111 cups.

If, for example, the coffee costs 200 DKK per kg:

200 ÷ 111

=

approximately 1.80 DKK for coffee per cup.

This is only the raw material price for the coffee beans.

Milk, machine, service, electricity, cleaning, and other costs are not included.

Use the company's actual figures

The best calculation is not necessarily the most advanced.

Start with an estimate.

Order coffee.

Then measure the actual consumption.

After a month, you will know much more precisely:

• number of kilos per month
• consumption per employee
• variation between weeks
• need for extra coffee for meetings
• appropriate ordering interval.

After this, the company's coffee purchases can be adjusted continuously.

Get help calculating your needs

If you don't know how much coffee to start with, we are happy to help.

Tell us:

• how many employees you are
• which coffee machine you use
• approximately how many cups are drunk
• whether you also serve coffee to customers and guests
• what type of coffee you prefer.

Then we can help with a realistic starting point.

See our office coffee and coffee for businesses, or contact Brændeholm Risteri for advice.

Frequently asked questions about coffee consumption at the office

How much coffee does an employee use per month?

If an employee drinks three cups of coffee per working day, the machine uses 9 grams per cup, and there are 20 working days, that corresponds to approximately 540 grams of coffee per month.

How much coffee do 10 employees use?

With three cups per person, 9 grams of coffee per cup, and 20 working days, the consumption will be approximately 5.4 kg per month.

How much coffee do 20 employees use?

Using the same assumptions, approximately 10.8 kg per month.

How much coffee do 50 employees use?

With three cups, 9 grams per cup, and 20 working days, approximately 27 kg per month.

How much coffee do 100 employees use?

Using the same example, approximately 54 kg per month.

How many cups of coffee do you get from 1 kg of coffee beans?

If the machine uses 9 grams per cup, 1 kg theoretically corresponds to about 111 cups. If the machine uses more or less coffee, the number will change.

How much coffee is used for 1 liter of filter coffee?

60 grams of coffee per liter of water is a good starting point.

How many kilos of coffee should we order?

First, calculate the expected monthly consumption. Optionally add a small buffer for customers, guests, and variations, and then adjust based on actual consumption.

Must all companies have a fixed coffee contract?

No. At Brændeholm Risteri, companies can order office coffee as needed without a long-term binding contract.

Can Brændeholm Risteri help calculate consumption?

Yes. Tell us the number of employees, machine type, and approximate number of cups, and we will help with a starting estimate.