Laird Superfood PERFORM Mushroom Coffee Review: Real Ground Coffee at $0.59 a Cup
In one line
Laird Superfood mushroom coffee (PERFORM) is the cheapest real-coffee option in the category, about $0.59 per cup of organic Peruvian ground coffee with 100 mg caffeine. The four-mushroom fruiting-body blend of lion's mane, chaga, cordyceps and maitake is only about 500 mg total with no per-species breakdown, so it is coffee first and mushrooms a distant second.
- Price
- $20.00 / 34 servings
- Per serving
- $0.59
- Caffeine
- 100 mg
- Mushrooms
- 4 species · 500 mg
- Part used
- fruiting body
- Beta-glucans disclosed
- No
- 3rd-party tested
- Not stated
- Format
- ground, whole bean, pods
What this page covers
- PERFORM medium roast ground, 12 oz bag
- Per-serving cost for ground versus K-Cups
- What the label says about the mushroom blend
What it does not cover
- Laird's DEFEND blend, creamers or decaf PERFORM
- Taste of the dark roast or whole-bean versions
Laird Superfood
Laird Superfood mushroom coffee (PERFORM) is the cheapest real-coffee option in the category, about $0.59 per cup of organic Peruvian ground coffee with 100 mg caffeine. The four-mushroom fruiting-body blend of lion's mane, chaga, cordyceps and maitake is only about 500 mg total with no per-species breakdown, so it is coffee first and mushrooms a distant second.
$20.00 · $0.59/serving · 100 mg caffeine
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What's on the label vs. what the research used
| Mushroom | Label dose / serving | Part used | Dose in named human studies |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lion's Mane | part of 500 mg blend | fruiting body | 1,000–3,000 mg/day |
| Chaga | part of 500 mg blend | fruiting body | No completed human RCTs |
| Cordyceps | part of 500 mg blend | fruiting body | 1,000–4,000 mg/day |
| Maitake | part of 500 mg blend | fruiting body | Extract studies at gram-level doses; no coffee-dose data |
Coffee that happens to have mushrooms in it
Most products in this category are instant powders with coffee as one ingredient among many. Laird Superfood went the other way: PERFORM is a bag of organic medium-roast Peruvian ground coffee with organic mushroom extracts mixed in. You brew it exactly like any other coffee, and at the recommended 10 g per 12 oz cup you get a normal caffeine hit of about 100 mg.
Taste
Because the base is real coffee and the extract load is small, reviewers consistently describe PERFORM as tasting like a standard, slightly nutty medium roast with no detectable mushroom flavour. That is the highest compliment most people pay a mushroom coffee. Laird also packs the bags with an inert-gas flush to slow staling, which matters for a ground product that may sit on a shelf for months. The dark roast and whole-bean versions exist for people who want more body; we have not tasted those.
Price and value
$20 for 12 oz is where this product wins. At 10 g a cup that is around 34 servings, or $0.59 each — less than half the price of RYZE and about a third of Four Sigmatic's instant packets. The 4- and 6-bag bundles shave a little more off. The one exception is the K-Cup line: $15 for a box of 10 is $1.50 per pod, which puts it in the same bracket as the premium instant brands.
Transparency
Laird gives you a blend total (about 500 mg), the four species, and a statement that its extracts are made from fruiting bodies rather than mycelium. It does not give per-species amounts or a beta-glucan percentage. At 500 mg across four mushrooms, an even split is roughly 125 mg each — around 4 to 12% of the 1,000 to 3,000 mg per day used in the lion's mane cognition trials. The mushrooms are a garnish on good coffee, not a dose.
Verdict
The best-value real-coffee option we have found, and the one to buy if you want full-strength coffee with a token mushroom addition. Not the one to buy if the mushrooms are the reason you are shopping.
Laird Superfood
Laird Superfood mushroom coffee (PERFORM) is the cheapest real-coffee option in the category, about $0.59 per cup of organic Peruvian ground coffee with 100 mg caffeine. The four-mushroom fruiting-body blend of lion's mane, chaga, cordyceps and maitake is only about 500 mg total with no per-species breakdown, so it is coffee first and mushrooms a distant second.
$20.00 · $0.59/serving · 100 mg caffeine
We may earn a commission, at no cost to you.
Frequently asked questions
How much caffeine is in Laird Superfood mushroom coffee?
Laird states about 100 mg of caffeine per 10 g serving brewed as a 12 oz cup, or roughly 65 to 70 mg in an 8 oz cup. Unlike most instant mushroom blends, PERFORM is ordinary ground coffee, so you get the caffeine of a regular cup rather than half of one.
How much mushroom is in Laird Superfood PERFORM coffee?
About 500 mg of combined extract per serving from lion's mane, chaga, cordyceps and maitake, made from fruiting bodies according to the brand. Laird does not publish the amount of each species, so you cannot tell how much lion's mane you get. Spread evenly it would be around 125 mg each.
How much does Laird Superfood mushroom coffee cost per cup?
A 12 oz bag is $20 at the one-time price. At the recommended 10 g per cup that is about 34 servings, or $0.59 each — cheaper than any instant mushroom coffee we track. The 10-count K-Cup box is $15, which works out to $1.50 per pod.
Is Laird Superfood mushroom coffee organic?
Yes. The PERFORM line is certified organic and Non-GMO Project verified, and the coffee is high-altitude Peruvian arabica. The mushroom extracts are also listed as organic. Laird does not currently state that it publishes third-party lab results for heavy metals or contaminants.
Sources
- Laird Superfood PERFORM Medium Roast Ground product page — Price, bag size, ~100 mg caffeine per 10 g serving, ~500 mg mushroom blend, fruiting-body statement, organic and Non-GMO claims
- Laird Superfood Functional Mushroom Coffee K-Cups product page — K-Cup price ($15 for 10) and the four-mushroom extract list