New York, NY–April 29, 2025–Dutch Bros (NYSE:BROS) outperformed rival coffee chains Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) and Dunkin’ in an AI-powered analysis of customer feedback completed by Chatmeter, the multi-location customer intelligence platform. 

Chatmeter analyzed more than 300,000 customer reviews using its new AI-powered competitive analysis tool, Pulse Ai: Competitive Intelligence, to identify the strengths and weaknesses of the three biggest coffee chains and rank them in several categories. Chatmeter’s Competitive Intelligence, available this spring, will enable every multi-location brand to understand their competitive positioning, with the ability to filter by city, state and region to identify competitive opportunities. 

“Our clients told us they needed better real-time understanding of how they compare to competitors, according to their customers,” said John Mazur, CEO of Chatmeter. “Instead of relying on high-level market research, multi-location brands can now hear directly from their customers, and their competitors’ customers, on what they need to do to win more market share.”

In Chatmeter’s analysis, Dutch Bros came out on top in every category, including customer service, in-store experience, value, drinks, lattes, iced coffee, cold brew and frozen beverages. While Starbucks and Dunkin’ dominate the United States market with 17,000 and 9,700 locations, respectively, Dutch Bros has emerged as a formidable competitor with plans to double its footprint to over 2,000 stores by 2029.

Customers loved Dutch Bros for the friendly service provided by its “broistas” and its wide variety of unique and customizable drinks, the report found. Starbucks and Dunkin’ faced criticism for rude, slow customer service and inconsistent drink quality. Starbucks saw the biggest decline in sentiment toward its customer service in 2024 (6.2%) compared to 2023, while Dunkin’ saw a slight improvement (0.5%). 

Operational issues may threaten Dutch Bros’ ascent. The analysis found the chain’s drive-thrus can be a major choke point, with customers complaining of excessive wait times and disorganized order-taking. Dutch Bros saw a decline in consumer sentiment toward its customer service of about 2.5% in 2024. 

Nearly half of consumers (45%) said they had to cut back on their coffee shop spending in the past year, a Chatmeter survey found. And customers questioned the value they got for their money at all three chains in written reviews, citing high prices, watery drinks and dissatisfying customer service. A common complaint was that drinks were not full or had too much ice. While Dutch Bros was seen as offering the best value by its customers, sentiment around value declined for all three brands–6.3% for Starbucks, 4.3% for Dunkin’ and 2.6% for Dutch Bros. 

Consumers ranked affordability the top factor for choosing a coffee shop (25%), followed by quality of food and beverage (17%), convenience (8%), friendly service (8%) and quick service (7%). The median price they would pay for a medium cup of coffee was $4. Over one-third (36%) visited a coffee shop in the past year to treat or reward themselves, while 23% did so to socialize and 15% to use the wifi or get work done. 

However, many reported the experience didn’t meet expectations, with nearly a quarter reporting that the drink they wanted was out of stock (23%) or that a coffee shop got their order wrong (22%). 

“As impending tariffs threaten to inflate prices, coffee shops must prove their value to consumers,” said Mazur. “In an environment where you can’t compete on price, being able to pinpoint the right customer experience investments to position yourself competitively is essential. AI now allows you to do this across all your locations, at scale.”

To read the full competitive analysis of Dutch Bros, Starbucks and Dunkin’, download Chatmeter’s Coffee Wars report here.