A multi-country citizen-science study on what makes us enjoy a cup of coffee

Journal article

Many coffee preferences are known, but studies that comprehensively integrate simultaneous contributions to coffee enjoyment are lacking. An online citizen-science questionnaire designed to identify those factors associated with momentary coffee liking, surveying demographics, extrinsic/intrinsic qualities, and coffee-related habits, is presented (N = 2987; 5 continents; 7 languages; 11 countries; 77 nationalities). The results indicate a higher liking for coffee consumed black, during spring, in the morning, on Wednesdays, and from ceramic cups. Higher-priced coffee is appreciated significantly more, and liking-consumption quantity appears best-optimised at 4–5 cups/day. Several key characteristics for coffee-dislike are evident: waking-up late, drinking from a cup with a lid on, at noon during autumn, with cream, and, potentially implying a possible coping mechanism for bitterness-disliking, adding sugar to coffee. These results constitute the first multi-country cross-context integration of momentary coffee liking and provide an empirical foundation for context-sensitive models linking sensory/behavioural/temporal factors in beverage preference research.

Authors: Juravle, G; Diaconașu, DE; Andrei, A-M; Reinoso-Carvalho, F; D’Alfonso, S

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Nature Research
• Journal: npj Science of Food
• Publication date: 2026-04-22
• DOI: 10.1038/s41538-026-00832-5
• EISSN: 2396-8370
• ISSN: 2396-8370
• Language: English
• Keywords: Coffee shop; Preference; Foundation (evidence); Empirical research; Coping (psychology)