Erin Elizabeth
Instant coffee is used to hold the same significance as a fire extinguisher: use in case of emergency.
Savvy hostesses kept a small jar of instant coffee in the cabinet for guests, and campers used these freeze-dried granules in a pinch on cold campground mornings.
While traditional coffee brands like Maxwell House and Folgers make this list of best instant coffee products, a few innovative start-ups are introducing exciting new instant coffee possibilities.
I have taken the time to try many popular instant coffee brands.
Best Instant Coffee
Explore my list of the 13 best instant coffees available today.
Four Sigmatic Instant Mushroom Coffee With Lion’s Mane
When I am looking for brain fuel along with a caffeine boost, Four Sigmatic Instant Mushroom Coffee with Lion’s Mane provides both.
Lion’s Mane is a superfood mushroom delivering important vitamins and nutrients to help you focus and concentrate. Chaga mushroom is also added to this brew.
While this is a coffee product that will give you a jolt, traditional caffeine makes up half of this coffee’s energizing substances.
Organic Rhodiola cultivated from the mountains of Tibet joins the mixture and is called a “golden root.” This combines with organic instant coffee for Four Sigmatic’s distinct productivity drink.
This instant coffee comes in packages of 10 convenient packets, easily added to liquids.
Look for Four Sigmatic Instant Mushroom Coffee with Lion’s Mane at major online retailers.
Café Altura Instant Organic Medium Roast Coffee
Cafe Altura Instant Organic Medium Roast Coffee offers perfect, freeze-dried granules that can be easily stirred into hot water.
This product delivers a convenient and easy way to enjoy Arabica coffee every once in a while.
These freeze-dried granules are shelf stable, organic, fair-trade, and will never expire. One jar makes 60 servings of instant coffee.
If you are looking for a crowd-pleasing instant coffee to have on hand for occasional indulgences or guests like I am, this is a great choice.
Easily find jars of this best instant coffee at big box stores and large online retailers.
Nescafe Taster’s Choice House Blend Instant Coffee
Nescafe remains the most recognizable brand in the realm of instant coffee, enjoying celebrity endorsements like George Clooney.
Nescafe Taster’s Choice House Blend Instant Coffee can be found at grocery stores, online retailers, drugstores, wholesalers, and anywhere else coffee is sold.
Nescafe is sold in glass jars filled with freeze-dried coffee granules. Instant coffee is also a great product to use in the viral social media trend of whipped coffee.
This product delivers reliable Arabica coffee flavor, especially with this house blend option.
These lightly roasted coffee granules are a great choice for people exploring their taste for coffee.
Mount Hagen Organic Freeze Dried Instant Decaf Coffee
Mount Hagen’s Organic Freeze-Dried Instant Decaf Coffee helps people enjoy the robust flavors of coffee without caffeine.
Each serving of this best instant coffee contains less than six to nine milligrams of caffeine.
I appreciate that this brand cares about the beans that become its freeze-dried grains. Mount Hagen beans are organic and fair trade, giving off a mild taste.
These beans are grown by small-scale farmers in high-altitude regions, and earth-friendly practices are followed.
Look for Mount Hagen’s instant coffee at large online retailers and health food stores.
College students, backpackers, and small households enjoy Mount Hagen Organic Freeze-Dried Instant Decaf Coffee.
Waka Coffee Medium Roast Colombian
Elevate your office coffee with Waka Coffee Medium Roast Colombian.
These beans offer a bit stronger flavor than the lighter roasts previously featured on this list.
Waka Coffee is slightly more premium than other brands on this list, with only eight packets included in each package, making between eight to 10 cups of coffee.
Order this product directly from the brand’s website or major online stores.
Coffee lovers rave about the tasty flavor of this instant coffee brand and its convenience.
If you want to splurge on great coffee for your next camping trip, this is a terrific option.
Nescafé Clásico Dark Roast Instant Coffee
Nescafe returns with its iconic, economical option in a deep, velvety flavor. This brand calls itself the world’s best-selling coffee brand.
Nescafe Clasico Dark Roast Instant Coffee helps dark coffee drinkers enjoy the taste they love in a convenient package.
Enjoy this brand in to-go packets, 10.5, 3.5, and 1.7-ounce jars, and even bulk multi-packs anywhere you buy coffee.
In addition to making delicious hot coffee, instant coffee also makes great iced coffee and other cold coffee concoctions.
This dark roast option can even replicate the flavors of my favorite cold brew!
Joe Coffee The Daily Specialty Instant Coffee
Sink into a cup of high-end instant coffee with Joe Coffee The Daily Speciality Instant Coffee.
Sold in small packages of only six packets, this brand is a great option to pack in a carry-on bag for a delicious pick-me-up on your next flight.
Joe Coffee highlights the flavor profiles of its coffee, not only in its whole-bean options for sale but also in its instant coffee.
I can taste that this product offers flavors of milk chocolate, caramel, and the almond-flavored dessert marzipan.
Buy this product directly from the manufacturer’s website or large online retailers.
Mount Hagen Organic Decaffeinated Fair Trade Coffee
Another decaffeinated Mount Hagen brand makes our list of the best instant coffee options available today.
Mount Hagen Organic Decaffeinated Fair Trade Coffee offers everything you love from the clean and trustworthy Mount Hagen brand.
This single-origin brand gives you a complex and robust flavor from farms in Papua New Guinea, Peru, and Honduras. Find Mount Hagen online or at specialty and organic food stores.
Mount Hagen manufactures its best instant coffee in freeze-dried packets. Or check out the brand’s innovative, single-serve instant coffee travel sticks you can easily stir into hot water.
Maxwell House Original Roast Instant Coffee
Coffee devotees looking to switch to instant coffee may find this brand the most welcoming.
Not only is Maxwell House a trusted brand, but this type of instant coffee is also easy to find and available in large quantities.
Original Roast promises a smooth and welcoming flavor, not too light or too dark.
Add Maxwell House Original Roast Instant Coffee to hot water or hot milk for a smooth and satisfying drink.
Maxwell House’s signature flavor has been a part of morning routines for more than 100 years. Choose these freeze-dried granules for a mild, reliable flavor.
Folgers Classic Roast Instant Coffee
Along with other brands on this list, Folgers is one of the titans of the mass-produced coffee industry.
If your exposure to coffee is primarily at diners and other fast food places, Folgers Classic Roast Instant Coffee is a great way to replicate those flavors at home.
This Classic Roast is an example of the best instant coffee for its delicious taste at a very economical price.
In my opinion, Folgers coffee is one of the most famous coffee brands in the world, so this instant coffee is easily found anywhere food is sold, from grocery stores to gas stations.
Starbucks Via Instant Italian Roast Coffee
A Starbucks may be on every corner, and now it can be on your countertop too.
Starbucks Via is this coffee shop brand’s convenient instant coffee variety so you can recreate your favorite Starbucks at home with ease..
Slim to-go packets look similar to Crystal Light sachets and can be easily slipped into hot water or hot milk for a delicious Starbucks drink in a pinch.
Italian Roast provides an option with deep flavors, like dark chocolate and toasted marshmallows.
This roast is described as darker than an Espresso roast but without the smoky flavors of a French Roast.
Skip dubious waiting room coffee and indulge in something that tastes barista-crafted with this best instant coffee.
Alpine Start Dairy-Free Coffee + Creamer Instant Latte
Sometimes black coffee isn’t my speed, so Alpine Start has a solution! Explore this innovative coffee and creamer combination for a complex, instant hot drink.
Alpine Start Dairy-Free Coffee + Creamer Instant Latte uses non-dairy coconut creamer to make these shelf-stable, take-anywhere instant coffeehouse favorites.
Surprise your loved one with an indulgent latte on your next camping trip with this best instant coffee.
Alpine Start products can be found at large online retailers and big box stores. Search for these innovative products at outdoor and recreational stores too, wherever you buy camping and hiking equipment.
Cusa Tea & Coffee Cold Brew
This brand represents the only option certified by the Rainforest Alliance, indicating its environmentally-friendly practices.
Everything from the fruits, herbs, and spices chosen for these teas and coffees to the locations where they are grown adheres to strict green practices.
Cusa’s cold brew stands up to its reputation with a dark and strong flavor profile. Each packet contains a whopping 100 milligrams of caffeine.
Find Cusa’s premium products at large online retailers or order directly from the manufacturer.
One of my favorite perks is that this small business lets you subscribe to this best instant coffee, so you never run out.
Best Instant Coffee
- Four Sigmatic Instant Mushroom Coffee With Lion’s Mane
- Café Altura Instant Organic Medium Roast Coffee
- Nescafe Taster’s Choice House Blend Instant Coffee
- Mount Hagen Organic Freeze Dried Instant Decaf Coffee
- Waka Coffee Medium Roast Colombian
- Nescafé Clásico Dark Roast Instant Coffee
- Joe Coffee The Daily Specialty Instant Coffee
- Mount Hagen Organic Decaffeinated Fair Trade Coffee
- Maxwell House Original Roast Instant Coffee
- Folgers Classic Roast Instant Coffee
- Starbucks Via Instant Italian Roast Coffee
- Alpine Start Dairy-Free Coffee + Creamer Instant Latte
- Cusa Tea & Coffee Cold Brew
Final Thoughts
Instant coffee has come a long way since its origins.
Now coffee lovers of all speeds can enjoy a strong cold brew or smooth decaffeinated products in an instant. These best instant coffee brands offer big flavors in their convenient packages.
Even if you’re not a black coffee fan, there is now an innovative instant coffee product for you. Explore these best instant coffee brands to meet your next favorite cup of coffee.
If you have a pod coffee maker, check out our favorite K-cups as well!
