Luckin Coffee vs. Starbucks: what brand is better?

Many people who enjoy coffee are torn between choosing stores offering take-out and sit-in options. I have been buying coffee since I started living alone. Sometimes, all I want is to get out of my house and go and enjoy my favorite coffee beverage at a lovely cafe.

Ever since I started visiting Starbucks, I have been a repeat customer. I created this post to help you find out how Starbucks and Luckin coffee differ. By the end of it, you will also learn which brand is better.

What are the differences between Luckin Coffee Vs. Starbucks?

Features	Luckin Coffee	Starbucks
Ambience	Since most of its stores are takeaway kitchens, it does not provide the best ambience	Its stores are more welcoming since they have comfortable seats, are spacious, and include warm lighting.
Location	5,671 kiosks in china	33,833 stores in 84 countries
Menu	Coffee, juice, milk, light meals	Coffee, tea, smoothies, snacks, lunch items
Price Range	Cheaper	More expensive
Beverage sizes	One standard beverage size	Has five beverage size
Environmental consciousness	Uses environmentally friendly technology	Established the Grounds for Your Garden initiative

Luckin Coffee Vs. Starbucks – How they compare.

Ambience

Starbucks offers a lovely ambience in its stores. It provides enough couches that its customers can occupy. This company maintains a cafe-style approach in its stores.

On the other hand, most Luckin coffee emphasizes delivery service. Since most of its stores are takeaway kitchens, there is not much of an ambience that customers can enjoy. Luckin coffee stores do not offer a lot of seats that can accommodate many people.

Starbucks, therefore, wins since it offers a better ambience than Luckin Coffee.

Location

Luckin coffee does not cover an extensive area. This coffee house operates in China, and it has around 5671 kiosks. Starbucks has over 33,8000 stores in more than 80 countries.

Starbucks, therefore, wins since it operates in more locations than Luckin coffee.

Menu

Luckin coffee mainly focuses on offering coffee beverages and tea. You can also buy juice and milk from this coffee house. On the other hand, Starbucks offers different types of coffee beans and diverse coffee drinks, smoothies, tea beverages, and lunch items.

Though both Starbucks and Luckin coffee offer some similar items, Starbucks wins since its menu is more extensive.

Price Range

People working with a low budget often choose Luckin coffee since it has more affordable drinks. It also offers discounts and coupons. Though Starbucks is expensive, it offers better quality coffee than Luckin Coffee.

In terms of price, Lucking coffee wins since it is cheaper than Starbucks.

Beverage Sizes

Luckin coffee offers drinks in only one standard cup size. On the other hand, Starbucks has five cup sizes that you can pick from.

Starbucks, therefore, wins since it offers more beverage sizes.

Environmental Consciousness

Since Luckin coffee collaborated with LDC, it has been using environmentally friendly technology for coffee roasting and cleaning. This coffee house focuses on smoke elimination. Starbucks is also environmentally conscious since it established the Grounds for your Garden. This aims at giving leftover coffee grounds to those who request them for composting.

These two coffee houses, therefore, draw into this category since they are more environmentally conscious.

Luckin Coffee Vs. Starbucks – A Comparison Overview

Luckin Coffee Overview

Charles Zhengyao and Jenny Qian founded Luckin Coffee in October 2017. The first shops were opened in 2018 in Shanghai and Beijing. By 2018, it already had 1300 stores. Today, it has about 5671 kiosks. Though the coffee house is famous in China, it does not serve any other countries.

Luckin Coffee specializes in offering different types of beverages, including juice, milk, coffee, light meals, and snacks such as sandwiches and salads. In 2018, this company came up with a brand strategy called Any Moment, which was aimed at offering different types of Luckin Coffee shops.

These include fancy flagship stores, large, medium-sized, and small stores. One thing that has made Luckin Coffee popular in China is its collaboration with different brands. Though this company stores, it encourages customers to order drinks through its app and pay for their items online. Jinyi Guo is the CEO and chairman of Luckin Coffee.

Starbucks Overview

This coffee house has been operating for decades. It was established in 1971 in the streets of Seattle in a market known as Pike Place. The first Starbucks store sold freshly roasted coffee beans to customers. The Starbucks founders were Zev Siegl, Gordo Bwoke, and Jerry Baldwin.

A few years after its establishment, Howard Schultz joined the company and started making some changes to Starbucks. Today, Howard serves the position of Interim CEO of the company.

It did not take long for Starbucks to start expanding to different regions such as Canada, New York, and California. Today, this coffee house has around 33,833 stores in 84 countries.

Though this company started by selling coffee beans, it has been expanding its menu. It now offers numerous coffee drinks, tea, smoothies, baked items, and merchandise. This company stands out among other coffee houses due to its commitment to offering high-quality coffee.

Final Verdict: So, Which is Better? – Luckin Coffee Vs. Starbucks

Starbucks is better than Luckin coffee. This is because it offers high-quality coffee made from Arabica beans, shows off the ingredients it uses in drinks, offers a good offline and online experience to its customers, and has more experience selling coffee. This company also positions itself strategically in numerous locations so that you don’t struggle to find it.

Though Luckin Coffee has more affordable drinks, its lack of sizes and lack of ambiance make it a bit disappointing. The company has been investigated for fraud after claims of falsified financial data were reported. I choose Starbucks as the clear winner.

FAQ SECTION

Is there a big difference between Luckin Coffee and Starbucks?

Yes. Starbucks operates globally, while Luckin coffee operates only in China.

Is Luckin Coffee more popular than Starbucks?

No. Starbucks is more popular than Luckin Coffee since it operates globally.

Is Luckin Coffee bigger than Starbucks?

No. Starbucks is bigger since it operates in over 84 countries, while Luckin coffee operates only in China.