The best instant coffee, ranking

If you like Starbucks coffee: Starbucks Via Instant Colombia Medium Roast Coffee (about $10 for an eight-pack, or $1.25 per serving) was by far the most polarizing cup of coffee we tried. I wrote in my notes, “Its burnt-rubber aroma is so overwhelming—it tastes like coffee that’s been sitting in a glass jug for hours and boiled beyond recognition.” Marguerite simply wrote, “Oof, tart.” And Marilyn noted, “Good acidity, long sweetness, and a nice toasty note at the end. But overall too bitter for my taste.” Because Via Instant contains some real ground coffee, unlike most instant coffees, we also detected some sand or sediment in our cups. However, testers familiar with Starbucks coffee said it tasted just like the real thing and was one of our favorites when I filmed a taste test of instant coffee with a few other Wirecutter staffers in 2019. If you’re a Starbucks coffee fan, you’ll probably like this coffee. We also think it goes well with cream and sugar.