South Carolina's Best Sit-Down Coffee Shop Is A Cozy Charleston Cafe That Reddit Calls 'Top Tier'

The city of Charleston has dozens of cafes, and you'll find hundreds more across South Carolina. Starbucks alone has seven locations in downtown Charleston, and the city boasts lots of independent places in the middle of town, like Bad Bunnies, Island Provisions, and The Hidden House. The breakout star is Clutch Coffee Bar, a drive-thru enterprise that has quickly spread across the Carolinas. In this gorgeous city that blends a striking European appearance with Southern charm, scoring a cup of joe is a pretty easy task, not to mention espressos, cappuccinos, and elaborate dessert drinks.

But if you're looking for the best cafe in the Palmetto State, many aficionados point to Charleston Coffee Exchange, located about 10 miles northwest of the Peninsula (as its historic downtown is known). This may surprise visitors — is South Carolina's best cafe really tucked into a shopping plaza in the distant neighborhood of West Ashley? Yet fans and experts seem to agree: In a roundup of the best coffee shops in every state, epicurean website Chowhound crowned Charleston Coffee Exchange. Meanwhile, in a 2024 post to the Charleston subreddit, two commenters agreed with this assessment. One remarked: "Charleston Coffee Exchange is definitely a top tier local roaster." The other elaborated: "All the staples plus [Wi-Fi] plus bulk beans from around the world to take home." South Carolina may not be one of 2025's top five coffee destinations in America, but this one spot has earned a devoted following.

Charleston Coffee Exchange first opened in 2006, and just as the Redditor noted, the company roasts its own beans. The cafe sells an astonishing range of coffee bean flavors, including snickerdoodle, southern pecan, and vanilla butter cream, and if you live nearby and feel like sampling them over time, you can join the Exchange's Coffee Club. The owners source coffee from such discerning locations as Costa Rica and Ethiopia, and the store even sells its products in K-Cups for home Keurig machines. The cafe itself isn't huge, but you can readily sit down with company and savor a steaming chai latte, espresso macchiato, or honey latte.

The Exchange stands on a fairly nondescript road, but it's only 15 minutes from Charleston International Airport, and the menu of breakfast sandwiches and baked goods — including bagels and strawberry scones — makes for a nice boost, whether you've just landed or are flying out. Highway 61 is a well-trafficked road out of town, and you can use it to start your journey to Lake Marion, where you'll find a quiet, historic town with affordable living. Wherever you explore in South Carolina's Lowcountry, you can flaunt your new Charleston Coffee Exchange travel mug.