Starbucks and Dunkin have always competed for breakfast-loving customers, but the tension increases this time of year as they vie for the tastiest seasonal treats. 

“I like Starbucks a lot more, I just like their drink options better, and I also think of Dunkin as nothing more than a donut shop,” said 7th grader Honor Saxe.

Dunkin is very famous for its wide array of donut choices. Their fall lineup includes the glazed pumpkin cake donut (also available as donut holes) as well as the apple cinnamon donut. They also carry a Pumpkin Muffin with something called “streusel.” 

By far, their oddest fall offering, Maple Sugar Snackin’ Bacon.  Yes, you can get “eight snack-sized slices of bacon tossed in maple sugar seasoning.”

Despite all these treats, the students we spoke to simply preferred Starbucks.

“Dunkin is just not a coffee shop to me; their drinks don’t nearly taste as good as Starbucks’s,” said Sofia Simaan

Dunkin tries to compete directly with Starbucks with their Pumpkin Spice Signature Latte, plus two additional cold coffee beverages, a pumpkin cream cold brew and a “nutty” pumpkin coffee that includes hazelnut.

But Starbucks has a lock on coffee lovers.  Yes, they have the original Pumpkin Spice Latte and Apple Crisp Macchiato — this time around, it’s made with Starbucks oat milk, but they’ve also rolled out new holiday favorites.  The line-up includes: Peppermint Hot Chocolate, Caramel Brulée Latte, Chestnut Praline Latte, Toasted White Chocolate Mocha, Irish Cream Cold Brew, and a non-dairy Iced Sugar Cookie Almond Milk Latte.  Of course, Starbucks wants to sell you a pastry with that coffee, so they do offer a few seasonal treats.

“I recommend the pumpkin scone, it’s really good, and when you try one, you’ll want more,” suggested 7th grader Octavia Oberti.

In addition to the pumpkin scones, they have a Pumpkin Cream Cheese Muffin, Pumpkin and Pepita Loaf, and an Owl Cake Pop. 

One obvious option, according to Sofia, is to mix and match. “I recommend that you get the pumpkin glazed donut from Dunkin and the Pumpkin Spice latte from Starbucks!” she exclaimed.