Methodology
Lightyear Coffee broadly tracks over 1,000 small, independent specialty roasters located across the U.S. From this larger collection, we maintain more detailed information on a subset of 250 roasters.
The information on the 250-roaster subset is updated quarterly in accordance with the methodology below, and is used in our Coffee Index, Roaster Landscape matrix, and other original content.
Process
We review each roaster’s online single origin offerings and other content, extracting publicly available information on price, origin selection, and other variables.
We repeat the same process every quarter to ensure consistency and comparability.
If any roaster in our sample ceases to operate in between our data extractions, prior to the subsequent quarterly update we willl replace it with a randomly-selected roaster.
Inclusion Rules
To be included in the 250-roaster dataset, each roaster must:
- Roast in-house under its own brand
- Roast and sell whole-bean coffee nation-wide through an online shop (brick and mortar cafes are not necessary)
- Be independently owned in the U.S.
- Consistently sell single origins
What We Track
For each coffee, we collect:
- Origin country
- Processing method
- Roast level
- Bag size
- One-time purchase price (pre-tax, pre-shipping cost)
- Tasting notes
- Certifications
Categorization
While we record the specific processing method a roaster provides, for simplicity we group them together as follows:
- Natural
- Washed
- Honey (includes red, black, yellow, etc)
- Wet-hulled
- Experimental (includes various anaerobic methods, co-fermentations, and more)
- Other (includes monsooned)
Certifications are deemed legitimate if the roaster provides the seal of the certification in the coffee description, or references the coffee being “certified”. We do not count language such as “organically grown” or “fairly traded” as indications of the actual Organic or Fair Trade certification, respectively.
We record the following certifications:
- Organic
- Fair Trade
- Smithsonian Bird Friendly
- Regenerative Organic Certified
- Rainforest Alliance
- Direct Trade (technically not a certification)
Exclusions
The following are excluded from our data collection:
- Blends
- Instant coffees
- Cold brews
- Barrel-aged options
- Pods
- Sample packs
- Coffees only sold in bulk bags
- Sold out coffees
Roaster Inquiries
Questions about our methodology or how your information appears on this site?
Please Contact Us.