Not going to lie: It’s taking pretty much all of my willpower not to take valuable time out of my work day to run to Starbucks and grab one of their new Valentine’s Day beverages. Or all of them. Really, I’m not picky — they each sound delightful, and I would love to fill my day with Molten Chocolate deliciousness. But how much does a Starbucks Molten Chocolate Latte cost? Or a Molten Chocolate Frappuccino, or a Molten Hot Chocolate, for that matter? What would it set me back, were I to go buy and consume all three of them? I checked in with Starbucks about these terribly pressing questions — and, as is the case with… well, pretty much everything, the exact prices will vary according to the market you’re in. But hey, I have some estimates for you, so at least you’ll have a rough idea of what these glorious treats will cost you.
According to a Starbucks spokesperson, any standard Tall beverage that’s part of the Molten Chocolate Trio — a Tall being 12 fl. oz. — will range between $3.25 and $4.45. More specifically, it breaks down as follows:
- Tall Molten Chocolate Latte: $4.25 to $4.45
- Tall Molten Chocolate Frappuccino: $4.25 to $4.45
- Tall Molten Hot Chocolate: $3.25 to $3.45
This is where that whole “varying according to the market” thing comes in: Depending on where you’re nabbing your tasty treats from, how much you shell out for them might be on the higher or lower end of those ranges.
What do I mean by that? Well...
Let's take a look at an example.
Like many people who live in the Washington, DC area, I reside outside of DC proper; for me, that’s Virginia, although Maryland is also a popular choice for folks around here. I look at living in the parts of Virginia and Maryland that directly surround DC as being analogous with living in Brooklyn or one of the other outer boroughs in New York — they have easy access to the hustle and bustle of downtown, but things aren’t quite as manic and you can usually get a little more bang for your rent buck.
The cost of living in the areas surrounding a major city is always a little higher than it is when you get further out — but it’s not usually quite as bad as it is when you live in a major city itself. Such is the case with Virginia and DC, which we can see clearly in each location's coffee prices.
Sometime last year, I discovered a delightful site called Fast Food Menu Prices. As you might expect, it details the prices for various fast food and fast casual joints around the country — but even more useful than just a general menu with suggested prices is the fact that it includes specific information for each state in the United States, allowing you to see how costs fluctuate based on the market you’re in. According to Fast Food Menu Prices (at the time of this writing, which is about 9:30 in the morning on Tuesday, Feb. 9, 2016), the average price of a Tall Starbucks Latte in Virginia is $3.45 — but when you go into DC proper, it jumps to $3.95.
This is why I will always advocate living slightly outside of any major city, rather than directly inside of one.
In any event, though, no matter how much they cost, you’ve still only got a limited time to grab one (or all) of the Molten Chocolate beverages — until Sunday, Feb. 14, to be exact. So go! Drink up! And happy Valentine’s Day!
Images: Starbucks; ReactionGIFS; Giphy
