Buying for a coffee lover is harder than it looks. They already own the mug with the coffee joke on it. They probably have opinions about grind size. And the gadget aisle is full of things that end up at the back of a cupboard by February.

We roast every week in Hursley, Hampshire, and serve coffee across the counter every day. So this guide is built the way we'd shop for our own friends: start with what they actually drink, then think about kit. Everything below is on our shop, at today's price, and UK delivery is free on orders over £25.

First, find out how they brew

The most useful thing you can learn is how they make coffee at home. A cafetière, a V60, an espresso machine and a bean-to-cup each want something different, especially if you're buying ground coffee. If you can't ask without spoiling the surprise, whole beans are the safe bet for anyone who owns a grinder.

Under £15: a bag of properly fresh coffee

The best coffee gift is often just very good coffee. A lot of supermarket coffee was roasted weeks or months before it reaches the shelf. Ours is roasted weekly, and you can taste the difference.

Casa OHCO House Blend, from £10 for 250g. Brazil, Ethiopia and Colombia in one all-day blend. It's the one we'd give someone whose taste we don't know yet.
Kenya Rung'eto Kiangoi AA, from £9.95. A single origin for the friend who drinks filter and likes their coffee lively.
Mexico Mountain Water Decaf, from £10. Decaffeinated using water, so it suits anyone cutting back without giving up flavour.

One tip: buy coffee within a couple of weeks of giving it, so it's opened at its best. Our guide to storing coffee beans explains why.

£15 to £60: something special, or a first brewer

Our Innovation Microlots come from the Forest Collective in Huila, Colombia. They are small lots with experimental processing, and the kind of coffee most people never get to try at home. Two different bags make a tasting flight. Each is from £11.95:

Not sure why the processing matters? Our processing explainer covers it in five minutes.

For someone who wants to start brewing properly:

Hario V60 Coffee Dripper Set, £9, plus V60 filter papers at £7.50. Add a 250g bag and it's a complete pour-over starter kit that also clears free delivery.
Hario V60 Ceramic Dripper, £36, in matte black, indigo, pink or turquoise. The same brewer, made to sit on the counter.
AeroPress Clear, £55, in four colours. Light, quick, forgiving, and it travels well.
Hario Switch, £60. A V60 with a valve, so it brews by immersion or pour-over. It's very hard to get a bad cup from it.

£60 to £250: upgrades they'll use every day

If they already brew at home, kit that makes every morning better is the gift that gets used.

Hario Kabuto grinder, £99. Freshly ground coffee is the biggest single upgrade most home brewers can make.
Felicita Arc scale, £170. Waterproof, with a built-in timer. Weighing coffee and water is how you make the same good cup twice.
Hario Lyra kettle, £220, in black or white. A gooseneck spout gives the slow, steady pour that pour-over needs.
Comandante C40 MK4, £249. The hand grinder plenty of baristas carry. Built to last for years.

The big one

Sage Dual Boiler, on offer right now. Two boilers mean you can pull a shot and steam milk at the same time, with precise temperature control. It's the step up for anyone serious about espresso at home.
xBloom Studio, £599. It grinds, weighs and pours for you, with 48mm conical burrs and a built-in scale accurate to 0.1g. A careful hand pour every morning, without doing the careful bit.

Or give them a morning out

If they're in Hampshire, bring them to the café in Hursley, near Winchester. There's plenty of free parking, and they can taste the coffee before choosing a bag to take home. Here's how to find us.

And one for you

Buying for yourself while you're here? The OHCO Coffee Club takes 15% off every bag. Choose every two weeks, monthly or every six weeks, and pause, skip or cancel any time.

Stuck choosing? Message us with what they drink and how they brew, and we'll point you to the right bag.