The World Runson Coffee

Every tourist trap has an escape route.

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The World Runs on Coffee is a hand-drawn world map of independent coffee shops and roasters. Local favorites are safe houses. Big chains, plus any spot the community votes down, are horde magnets, and each one points to a nearby local favorite to try instead.

1287 spots in 686 cities so far. See every city

Run a local favorite that’s on the map? Get your free Safe House badge. Run a specialty coffee shop, café or roastery we’re missing? Get it on the map.

Questions

What is a safe house?

A safe house is a coffee shop or roaster that locals actually go to: an independent local favorite.

What is a horde magnet?

A horde magnet is a big chain that coffee lovers tend to skip, like Starbucks, Dunkin' or the fast-growing drive-thru chains, or any spot the community has voted down. Each one points to a nearby local favorite to try instead.

How does a spot become a horde magnet?

Big chains start out as horde magnets. Any other spot becomes one when visitors vote it down: at least 8 "It was gross" votes, and twice as many gross votes as "Shh" votes. If the "Shh" votes catch back up, it goes back to being a safe house.

What does "Shh. Keep it secret." mean?

It is a thumbs-up vote. It says the spot is good and also lowers its horde risk, which measures how close a local favorite is to being overrun.

What does spilling the beans do?

Spilling the beans shares a spot on social media. Each share raises the spot's horde risk.