A few years ago I was picking up a coffee for myself and one for a friend. I was having a cappuccino and a ‘brewed coffee’ for him. I noticed that not only was his coffee a lot cheaper than mine but it took no time to make whereas I had to wait in a queue for mine.
It was then that I decided to ditch the cappuccino in favour of cutting my coffee bill in half (it’s not a big bill in any case!). Then, more excitement when I heard that it was possible to save another 2rmb (20p) by taking your own cup. So when I saw the usual man pushing his ‘mug cart’ along Fuxing Lu, I stopped and purchased a ‘second quality’ Starbucks mug for next to nothing.
I washed it out and then headed to my local Starbucks to test it out. I gave them my mug and asked for a small brewed coffee with some milk. What arrived was my massive mug full of steaming coffee for £1.50.
So there you go – my top tip for saving money at Starbucks – change your coffee and take your own cup.