This Arkansas Gem Was Just Named The World's Best Coffee Shop Of 2026

How would you choose the best cup of coffee in the world? You'd probably have to ask a lot of different people, right? For the past two years, a group called The World's 100 Best Coffee Shops has been doing exactly that. The organization runs a massive project of ranking thousands of coffee shops, using a pool of expert judges and a sizable audience vote to choose the very best coffee shop out of about 15,000 nominees from around the world.

This year's winners, according to The World's 100 Best Coffee Shops, were announced at CoffeeFest Madrid 2026, a giant coffee convention in Spain. The top spot went to Onyx Coffee Lab, a coffee shop with several locations around Arkansas. Headquartered in Rogers, Arkansas, Onyx occupies a big space in an old building where it also runs a bakery, mezcal bar, and tasting restaurant, alongside a full roastery where it showcases a range of roasts. Expect unique flavor profiles, like Onyx's Rwanda Kanzu Station Natural, which has notes of dried apricot, cantaloupe, agave, and bittersweet chocolate. The win isn't just for the coffee, though — the judges also considered everything from the baristas' experience and consistency to the ambience of the store, making Onyx's win an impressive feat.

The metrics for deciding on the world's best coffee shop are fittingly detailed. The organizers used a judging pool of about 800 coffee experts and held an audience vote as well. The final standings were determined using both groups: The audience vote accounted for 30% of the results, and the expert vote accounted for 70%. After Onyx, second place went to Tim Wendelboe in Oslo, Norway, and third place went to Alquimia Coffee in San Salvador, El Salvador. The U.S. had nine coffee shops in the top 100 spots overall.

Onyx actually came in second place in 2025 during the first year this competition was running. The first place winner in 2025 was Toby's Estate in Sydney, Australia, which dropped down to fifth place in this year's standings (which is still very impressive). A U.S. shop taking home the win is a big deal, since coffee is so popular globally. The country which produces the most coffee is Brazil, and the country which drinks the most coffee in the world is Finland. The United States may not hold either of those superlatives, but there are plenty of quirky cafes around the U.S. worth visiting. And, for at least the next year, it's got the world's reigning coffee shop champion.