NEW YORK — Could you sum up your entire lifestyle based on what you drink in the morning? A new survey took a look at the personalities of Americans based on their choice of coffee or matcha (tea) in the morning. Do you fit in with your drink order crowd?
The poll of 2,000 U.S. adults, split between 1,000 coffee drinkers and 1,000 tea drinkers, found that if you are a matcha drinker, you are more likely to wake up early (54%), you prefer outdoor activities (26%), you’re ambivert (a balance of introvert and extrovert) (46%), and you describe yourself as “adventurous” (29%).
Conversely, more than half of coffee drinkers prefer to sleep in later (53%), prefer indoor activities like watching movies (38%), and are more likely to be introverts (42%).
Commissioned by Califia Farms and conducted by OnePoll, the survey finds four in five (81%) from both groups exercise on a regular basis — though matcha drinkers tend to work out more frequently than their coffee-drinking counterparts (four times per week, compared to three). Of those who exercise on a regular basis, early-rising matcha drinkers were most likely to break a sweat in the morning hours (42%), while coffee drinkers prefer to wait until the afternoon (39%).
When it comes to astrology, matcha drinkers are more likely to be fire signs, such as Aries, Leo, and Sagittarius (27%), or water signs, such as Cancer, Scorpio, and Pisces (26%). Meanwhile, earth signs, like Taurus, Virgo, and Capricorn, and air signs, like Libra, Aquarius, and Gemini, were more likely to drink coffee (27%).
Despite several differences between tea and coffee drinkers, both enjoy being their own baristas, with almost three-quarters (74%) of coffee drinkers and two-thirds (66%) of matcha drinkers preparing their beverages at home. Coffee drinkers were also found to take slightly less time making their drinks. It took the average coffee drinker four minutes to make a cup, compared to matcha drinkers, who took five minutes.
While matcha drinkers spent more time preparing their morning beverage, they reported spending less time overall getting ready for the day. That includes showering, bathing, and brushing teeth (27 minutes vs. 30 minutes for coffee drinkers).
“There are no wrong answers in a study like this, and it’s fun to see the differences in the way people approach their day,” says Suzanne Ginestro, chief marketing officer at Califia Farms, in a statement.
Both coffee and matcha drinkers agreed it’s important to them that they stay on top of new and upcoming trends, but tea drinkers were much more “in tune” with what’s trending on social media (62% compared to 47% of coffee drinkers). Matcha drinkers might be the more socially savvy of the two, but they are also the bigger bookworms, reading about six books per year for fun versus only about four for coffee drinkers.
Both coffee and matcha drinkers like hanging out with friends and family on the weekends (34%), playing video games (13%), and enjoying “massive” breakfasts (7%). They both spend between $5 and $10 per week or $260 to $520 per year on their preferred beverage.
Survey methodology:
This random double-opt-in survey of 2,000 Americans, split between 1,000 who drink coffee and 1,000 who drink matcha was commissioned by Califia Farms between Feb. 12 and Feb. 26, 2024. It was conducted by market research company OnePoll, whose team members are members of the Market Research Society and have corporate membership to the American Association for Public Opinion Research (AAPOR) and the European Society for Opinion and Marketing Research (ESOMAR).
