Our promise
We support indie roasters and the small producers who grow their coffee. No chains. No commodity coffee. No pay-to-rank lists. Ever. Placement and ranking are never bought, and “Verified” is an editorial status only — never auto-granted by a claim or a subscription.
The three checks
Independent & roasting
We confirm the operator owns the roastery and roasts their own beans. Chains, white-label resellers, and pure cafés don't qualify.
Editorial pick
Rankings are made by hand, not algorithm — drawn from specialty-community signals, head-to-head taste comparisons, and review consistency.
Refreshed continually
Lists and profiles are reviewed and re-published as scenes shift, and every page shows a visible date so you can judge freshness.
Where the data comes from
Roaster locations begin from public business registries and OpenStreetMap. What each roaster sells — origins, varieties, process, tasting notes — is read from the roaster's own published catalogue. Editorial profiles are written from public sources and the roaster's own materials, each carrying its citations.
How we keep reviews honest
Customer quotes on PremiumRoast are real Google reviews, shown with the reviewer's name and attributed “via Google.” They are never written by us and never paid. Our own writing is editorial — we do not claim to have personally visited or tasted at every café. When we publish a city guide, the lived voice belongs to the real reviewers we quote.
Frequently asked
- How are PremiumRoast's lists made?
- Rankings are editorial picks made by hand, not by algorithm. We draw on specialty-community signals, head-to-head comparisons, each roaster's own catalogue, and review consistency. Lists are versioned and re-published as scenes shift.
- Is placement on PremiumRoast paid?
- No. Placement, ranking, and 'Verified' status are never bought and never auto-granted by a claim or subscription. We don't run pay-to-rank lists, and we don't list commodity chains or white-label resellers.
- What qualifies a business for the directory?
- The operator must own the roastery and roast their own beans. Commodity chains, white-label resellers, and pure cafés that don't roast don't qualify (pure cafés appear only in the separate independent coffee-shop directory).
- Where does PremiumRoast's data come from?
- Roaster locations begin from public business registries and OpenStreetMap. What each roaster sells (origins, varieties, process, tasting notes) is read from the roaster's own published catalogue. Editorial profiles are written from public sources and the roaster's own materials, each with citations.
- Are the customer reviews on PremiumRoast real?
- Yes. Customer quotes are real Google reviews, shown with the reviewer's name and attributed 'via Google' — never written by us and never paid. PremiumRoast's own writing is editorial: we do not claim to have personally visited or tasted at every café.
- How often is the atlas updated?
- Lists and profiles are reviewed and re-published as the specialty scene shifts. Each page carries a visible 'Last reviewed' or 'Updated' date so you can see how fresh it is.
- Can I cite or reuse PremiumRoast's data?
- Yes — our original research reports under /research are free to cite under CC BY 4.0. When citing, name PremiumRoast.Coffee and link the specific list, report, or profile.
Want the raw numbers? Read our original research — free to cite under CC BY 4.0.