The short answer
One kilogram of coffee beans makes about 50 cafe-style coffees at a standard 20g double shot, or around 110 single shots at the 9g dose most automatic office machines use. Once you allow for normal grinder waste, plan on roughly 45 to 50 double-shot drinks per kilo in a cafe and around 100 in an office.
The formula
Yield comes down to one number: how many grams go into each shot.
1,000g divided by dose in grams = cups per kilogram
Then take off 5 to 10 percent for waste. That covers purging the grinder each morning, dialling in a new bag, spilled grounds and the odd remade drink. A well-run bar sits at the lower end. A busy bar with several staff on the grinder sits at the upper end.
Cups per kilo at common doses
| Dose | Typical use | Cups per 1kg (no waste) | Cups per 1kg (after ~8% waste) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 7g | Single shot, smaller automatic machines | 142 | About 130 |
| 9g | Standard automatic bean to cup setting | 111 | About 100 |
| 14g | Lighter double shot | 71 | About 66 |
| 18g | Double shot, many NZ cafes | 55 | About 51 |
| 20g | Double shot, common cafe standard | 50 | About 46 |
| 22g | Stronger double, larger cups | 45 | About 42 |
Most New Zealand cafes pull a double shot as standard for a flat white, latte or long black, so the 18g to 22g rows are the ones that matter for hospitality. Offices running automatic machines usually sit in the 7g to 10g range per cup.
What changes the number
1. Dose
Dose is the biggest lever by a long way. Moving a cafe from 18g to 22g per double cuts yield from 55 to 45 cups per kilo, which is roughly one in five drinks. Settle on a dose, write it down, and weigh it rather than eyeballing it.
2. Drink size and extra shots
Milk does not change coffee use, but cup size often does. A large latte with an extra shot uses half as much coffee again as a regular flat white. If a third of your orders are large with an extra shot, your real yield per kilo drops noticeably.
3. Waste
Purging the first grind of the day, dialling in each new bag, and grounds left in the doser or chute all add up. Single-dosing and grinding on demand keep waste down. So does training: our barista training and cafe support covers dosing and grinder setup as part of a supply arrangement.
4. Machine type
Automatic bean to cup machines grind a fixed, programmable dose for each drink, so yield is predictable and waste is low. Traditional espresso machines depend on the barista, which means more variation from shift to shift.
5. Beans versus ground
A kilogram of ground coffee contains the same amount of coffee as a kilogram of beans, so the theoretical yield is identical. Pre-ground coffee goes stale faster once opened, though, and stale coffee tends to get over-dosed to compensate. For anything above home volume, whole beans ground fresh are the better buy.
How much coffee do you need each week?
Turn your daily cup count into a weekly order with this calculation:
Cups per day x days open x dose in grams, divided by 1,000 = kg per week
Then add about 10 percent for waste and a small buffer. A few worked examples:
- Small cafe, 150 coffees a day, seven days, 20g doubles: 21kg, so order around 23kg a week
- Busy cafe, 300 coffees a day, seven days, 20g doubles: 42kg, so order around 46kg a week
- Office of 20 staff, two cups each a day, five days, 9g per cup: 1.8kg, so order around 2kg a week
- Household of two, two flat whites each a day at 18g: around 500g a week, so a 1kg bag lasts roughly a fortnight
Buy in quantities you will get through within a few weeks of opening. Beans lose aroma steadily once the bag is open, and our guide on how to store coffee beans covers how to slow that down.
What it means for cost per cup
Once you know your yield, cost per cup is simple: divide the price of a kilo by the number of cups it makes.
A 1kg bag at $50 makes about 50 cafe doubles at 20g, which is roughly $1.00 of coffee per cup. In an office machine at 9g, the same bag makes about 110 cups, or around 45c per cup.
Compare prices per kilo, not per bag, and compare at your own dose. A cheaper bean that needs a heavier dose to taste right can end up costing more per cup. Browse our coffee beans by the kilo to work out your own figure.
Why yield matters for wholesale supply
For a cafe or office, weekly kilograms are what drive the commercial terms. At sufficient volume, the coffee machine can be funded through your coffee order rather than a separate rental payment, and in some cases placed on free loan. Our guide to commercial coffee machine rental costs explains how that works.
Knowing your kilos per week before you talk to a coffee supplier gives you a much more accurate quote, and makes it easier to compare offers on the same basis.
Frequently asked questions
How many coffees do you get from 1kg of beans?
About 50 at a 20g cafe double shot, or around 110 at the 9g dose used by most automatic machines. Allow 5 to 10 percent less for real-world waste.
How many grams of coffee are in a flat white?
A flat white is made with a double shot, which in most New Zealand cafes uses 18g to 22g of ground coffee.
How long does 1kg of coffee last?
For two people having two coffees each a day, around two weeks. For an office of 20 on an automatic machine, around three working days.
How much coffee does a cafe use per week?
A cafe serving 150 coffees a day, seven days a week, at 20g doubles uses around 21kg to 23kg a week once waste is included.
Does ground coffee give the same yield as beans?
Yes, by weight the yield is the same. Ground coffee stales faster after opening, so it suits lower volumes where a bag is used up quickly.
Work out your weekly volume
Tell us your daily cup count and the drinks you serve, and we will work out your weekly kilograms and the supply and machine options that suit them. Talk to us about coffee supply, or call 0800 377 737, Monday to Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm.
