Best coffee in Leeds (expertly researched and picked)

With a grand total of 23 coffee roasters situated in the city, Leeds comes in 4th spot when it comes to cities in the UK with the most independent roasters (the top 3 are London, Glasgow and Manchester).

Read about the best coffee in London here
Read about the best coffee in Glasgow here
Read about the best coffee in Manchester here

Leeds also has an outstanding number of specialty coffee shops with around 106 in the city. So, if you are looking for the best specialty coffee in Leeds, you are going to the right place! We recently featured one of our favourite coffee roasters ever inside our March coffee subscription box, North Star Coffee who are based in Leeds, and felt compelled to write about this city!

Why trust our reviews and coffee picks? At RISE coffee box Ben and Alice travel across the UK looking for the best tasting, independent coffee that meets their ethical and sustainable requirements to feature inside the RISE coffee box subscription. The efforts of RISE hasn't gone unnoticed and RISE has been voted the number one coffee subscription in the UK.

Today we take a look at some of the best coffee in Leeds and why you need to check out some of these independent roasters from this city.

At RISE coffee box subscription we look for high quality coffee beans and we have a 5 step process in selecting our coffees which includes:

We source coffee beans to taste test from across the UK
We hold regular blind cupping sessions to taste test the best coffee
Our in house head roaster gives their views
Our Rise taste test panel of customers tell us what they think
Ben and Alice give the final go ahead and select the coffee for the box

Before we get on to the best whole bean coffee in Leeds, here are a few reasons to visit Leeds other than coffee.

1. Craft beer: From quirky bars to laid back pubs, Leeds is home to nearly 50 independent breweries and you'd need more than a weekend to tick them all off. If you are looking for the perfect pint, as well as coffee, Leeds is the city for you! A few great breweries are Tapped, North Bar and the Duck and Drake

2. The Corn Exchange: Just around the corner from Kirkgate Market is the Victorian Corn Exchange, a stunning 1864 Grade I-listed building bustling with independent boutiques and eateries.

3. Meanwood: Passing through its leafy streets and 19th-century mill workers’ cottages, you could mistake Meanwood for a quaint Yorkshire Dales market town. Nature lovers can hit the vast park, an access point for the seven-mile Meanwood Valley Trail. Drop into Tandem homewares and coffee shop, taste craft beers at Meanwood Brewery’s taproom, and book ahead for the tasting menu at HanaMatsuri, a Michelin-recommended sushi restaurant.

Aside from these three great reasons to visit Leeds, if you’re reading this, you probably want to find out who are the best coffee roasters in Leeds! Below is our top 5 best coffee roasters in Leeds, some of which have featured in our RiSE COFFEE BOX such as North Star coffee and a few we've visited in person. We also recommend a few cafes in Leeds that serve up the best flat whites and coffee.

If you're looking for recommendations for further afield, head over to our blog (here) to read all about coffee roasters across The UK.

1. North Star Coffee

A certified B-corp, North Star was funded by Holly and Alex in 2013 and was the first roastery in Leeds! They are super passionate about coffee and in particular the global supply chain and how they can improve the issues it faces, despite all the odds. This came out of an initial relationship with farmers in Kenya, where they saw first hand the challenges the farmers faced. Today they have a thriving business and 4 cafes! Do check them out if you are ever in the Leeds area.

We featured North Star Coffees single origin Guatemalan coffee. This balanced washed lot is from La Bolsa in the coffee growing region of Huehuetenango in the Western Highlands of Guatemala. La Bolsa stands for ‘handbag’ and is aptly named due to its position nestled between two mountains, which provide a very stable, humid microclimate. This coffee is about as sweet as they come! Beautifully well balanced, it’s such a versatile brew that is suited to both espresso and filter, but we refer to it as a filter without milk. The packaging is also 100% home compostable, which we're thrilled about! Tasting Notes include: Red Apple, Orange, Maple Syrup - how good does that sound, right?

Where can you find North Star coffee:

📍North Star coffee shop: Unit 32 The Blvd, Leeds LS10 1PZ
📍North Star Kiosk: Sovereign Street, Leeds, LS1 4BJ
📍North Star Roastery: Unit 10, 280 Tong Rd, Leeds LS12 3BG

2. Echelon coffee roasters

A place to pop in or cycle too (latter is recommend!). Founded in 2018 in Leeds, Echelon is a micro speciality coffee roaster. We love the mix of African and Central American coffees they are serving up with our personal favourite being their Kenya - AA Kathangariri which retails at £13 per bag and well worth it.

Where to find Echelon coffee:

📍Unit 20, Penraevon Industrial Estate, Leeds LS7 2AW

3. Maude Coffee Roasters

Maude Coffee Roasters are all about good vibes and great coffee. Nestled under the railway lines of Leeds, they aren't not just passionate about roasting top-notch, small-batch specialty coffee - they also care about where our coffee come from and the larger global impact they are making.

We particularly love there zero waste coffee supply.

In an effort to minimise and reduce waste, Maude coffee roasters have begun a reusable tub initiative with some of their local partners, which enables them to fulfil wholesale orders in 10kg refillable tubs reducing the need for unnecessary packaging.

We loved seeing their Bukonzo Dream, Ugandan coffee on their offering. At RISE we are big fans of African coffee and our house coffee is also from Uganda. Give it a try here or if you prefer the experimentation try our coffee subscription RISE coffee box.

These guys also have an in house precision engineering team - which just shows how well they know how to use a roaster!

Where to find Maude coffee roasters:

📍82-83 Railway Street, Leeds, LS9 8HB

maude coffee roasters in Leeds

4. Dark Woods Coffee

The only B-Corp coffee company in Leeds and on this list. At RISE (as of April 2024) we are in the process of applying for our B-Corp status and so know just how hard it is to achieve this. We love Dark Woods Coffee as they are just like us, adventurous. They are a coffee roaster, equipment supplier, barista training school and pop-up cafe, all nestled on the edge of Marsden village, in the West Yorkshire Pennines.

Alongside B-Corp business, they are also a Great Taste Producer with over 80 awards and "all of our coffees are carefully sourced, roasted and packaged by hand, with direct, long term relationships with all of our producer partners." They also give back 2% of all revenue to community projects.

Where to find Dark Woods Coffee:

📍Holme Mills, West Slaithwaite Road, Marsden, HD7 6LS

5. Chipp Coffee Co

Chipp Coffee co was founded by Zach Chipp in 2016 and has become one of the best coffee roasters in Leeds and the North of England! Zach learnt his trade at York Coffee Emporium and moved to Leeds to set up his own roastery.

Zach is so confident of his coffee quality that their company motto is "love your coffee or let us know, we'll make it right!" - this also shows from their 4.9 TrustPiltot score from over 100 reviews.

They have a relatively small selection of well crafted coffee to suit a variety of coffee tastes from medium roasted to dark and a great decaf too! Their decaf is a great taste winner - a Colombian washed coffee called Finca Mustafa.

FAQ: Have a question about coffee in Leeds?

As we take you on a journey of discovery we try to answer a few questions you may have about the coffee in Leeds.

Let's continue below...

What Is the Best Coffee in Leeds?

In our expert opinion, North Star coffee roasters serves up some of the best coffee in Leeds and to the surrounding areas. For us they are the stand out coffee roaster. They featured in our coffee subscription in March 2024 and Ben and Alice were inundated with how much everyone loved their Guatemalan single origin, particularly as a filter.

Where to Buy Coffee Beans in Leeds?

Leeds is home to a large number of specialty coffee roasters and has over 100 coffee shops in which to enjoy an excellent cup of coffee. We have listed our top 5 coffee roasters above but keen to hear from you if we have missed anyone you love. You can buy high quality beans from RISE coffee box. All the roasters above sell online or in local coffee shops around the city.

Is There Coffee Cupping in Leeds?

Many coffee roasters hold cupping sessions with their customers. If you find a coffee roaster you like check out their website or drop them an email to ask. Places like Dark Woods coffee have a number of workshops and training schools. If you are interested in attending a RISE coffee cupping session then drop your email below to hear more.

How Much Does a Coffee Cost in Leeds?

As an average, in 2024 the cost of a coffee in Leeds is: £2.95 which is slightly lower than other parts of the UK.

The cost of a bag of coffee in Leeds varies depending on the quality and type of bean and roast you choose. You can get coffee ranging from £6 to £25+ per bag. Factors like whole bean origin, roasting method (dark or light), and quality play into the cost. At RISE we help you explore some of the best coffee the UK has to offer through our multi roaster discovery here

We would avoid coffee that is less than £9 per 250g as this can be an indication of the quality of over roasted profile.

Conclusion

Leeds is a coffee lovers dream. Each roaster in Leeds really cares about the quality of their coffee, where it has been sourced from and the ethics that go behind it.

At RISE we care about finding the UK's most sustainable, high quality coffee to deliver to your door each month.

We're not just a subscription but a coffee journey to enjoy, if you aren't already a subscriber join us and be part of the best coffee subscription in the UK - as voted for by magazines including GQ, The Independent, and BBC Good Food.