The Best Store-Bought Pumpkin Coffee Isn't By Dunkin' Or Starbucks

Given how popular pumpkin spice lattes are come fall, it only makes sense that grocery stores now carry bottled versions of the fan favorite festive drink. A pumpkin coffee beverage of some sort graces just about every coffee shop's seasonal menu, and now there are even more options to choose from on supermarket shelves. From Target and Walmart to Kroger and Vons, you can find cold brew-based, premixed latte, and even non-dairy pumpkin spice coffees. But just as you have your favorite from a coffee chain, you're bound to have a favorite store-bought pumpkin coffee; it just would take a lot of work to find it by sampling all of the available offerings. 

That's why we tested and ranked 10 store-bought pumpkin coffee brands to figure out which ones you should add to your cart and which ones should stay on the shelf. The absolute best is Chameleon Handcrafted Cold Brew Pumpkin Spiced Pie Coffee. With only two ingredients, organic cold brew and organic natural flavors, this cold brew surprisingly achieves a multi-layered, deep flavor. It's the perfect balance of warming spices and bold coffee; hints of cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg are easy to taste, yet the coffee still comes through strongly. 

A "super concentrate," as the Chameleon brand calls it on the label, it can be served both hot or cold. For example, the brand suggests using 3 ounces of water or milk with 3 ounces of concentrate to achieve the right intensity and caffeine content in a hot cup. Surprisingly, Dunkin's pumpkin spice cold brew concentrate ranked third to last on our list, with both of Starbucks' pumpkin spice offerings, bottled latte and cold brew, coming in second to last and last place, respectively, due to their artificial, soap-like tastes.

Chameleon's Handcrafted Pumpkin Spiced Pie Cold Brew is unsweetened, which leaves the choice and amount of sweetener or creamer up to you; both complement the fall-flavored drink well, but aren't needed to make this cold brew enjoyable. If you do like things on the sweet side, you can use this pumpkin-flavored coffee as a great base and jazz it up to make a cafe-worthy drink at home. Chocolate gives an instant upgrade to any pumpkin spice latte; just mix the cold brew concentrate with 1 part water and 1 part milk, and add a drizzle of chocolate sauce or mocha syrup if you have it on hand. Upouria's Mocha Coffee Syrup is a great go-to!

Or, go the DIY Starbucks Pumpkin Cream Cold Brew route and make your own topper by mixing heavy cream with sweetened condensed milk, vanilla, pumpkin puree, and pumpkin pie spice until it's frothy. You can also pair two number ones and use International Delight's Pumpkin Pie Spice Cold Foam Creamer, which we consider to be the best fall cold foam for your coffee drink available this year. These twists will make your at-home pumpkin spice coffee feel just as indulgent as it would at a coffee shop — and you can feel good knowing you're saving some change at the same time.