Tejal Somvanshi
Hook
Seven in ten recent coffee machine buyers say they are making more coffee at home than before, according to a Canstar survey of 680 people who recently purchased a machine. The research also found that 72% of those buyers still visit a café for coffee, and that 21% said saving on café visits was the main reason they bought a machine in the first place.
Core Facts
Canstar’s survey of 680 recent coffee machine buyers found 71% of respondents reporting they now make more coffee at home. Of those surveyed, 72% still buy café coffee, and 21% said their main reason for buying a machine was to save on café spending. Canstar’s data also showed the average machine spend among buyers: $578 for bean or ground coffee machines and $296 for pod machines. Independent September coverage from Consultancy.com.au identified café visits as one of several small discretionary purchases Australians are cutting back on, consistent with broader cost-of-living data.
Consequence
The Canstar data shows the shift is practical rather than absolute: the majority of recent machine buyers still visit cafés, but spend less on them. Buying a machine to save on café visits is an investment calculation — the upfront cost needs to be weighed against the café spending it replaces. The 21% of buyers who cited savings as their main reason for the purchase had already done that maths.
Is Making Coffee at Home Cheaper?
Whether home brewing saves money depends on the equipment purchased. A pod machine carries lower upfront cost and simpler operation; a bean-to-cup espresso machine requires more investment. In both cases, the per-serve home cost will generally come in below a café purchase, though the time to recover the machine’s purchase price will vary by type and how often it is used.
The Canstar survey covers recent coffee machine buyers. The findings — that most still visit cafés but are doing so less — align with broader data showing Australians reducing small discretionary outlays as cost-of-living pressure continues.
Closure
The Canstar survey covers recent coffee machine buyers, not the general Australian population. If Canstar or another research house publishes a broader consumer-spending survey on café habits, this article will be updated with the latest figures.
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