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Summary

A TikToker Just Shared The Ultimate Starbucks Hack & People Are 'Shook To Their Core'

"I may regret doing this, but..."

A TikToker explaining the Starbucks hack in her video. Right: People holding their Starbucks drinks.

A TikToker explaining the Starbucks hack in her video. Right: People holding their Starbucks drinks.

Senior Writer

If you're an avid coffee drinker then you may want to test out a new Starbucks hack that will get you a fancy beverage for less money.

TikToker Lyell shared the Starbucks hack she uses to basically get hot beverages for free and it has blown up online with people thanking her for the advice.

"I think it's time that I stop gatekeeping this," Lyell said at the start of the video. "This is THE Starbucks hack, like to the point that the barista today said that she had never seen anyone use this before and that it's really smart."

In the video which now has over 7.7 million views, the TikToker walks viewers through the steps on the mobile ordering app.

In order to make a latte, she selects "hot coffees" and adds "cafe misto," which is a drink that has half coffee and half steamed milk.

Lyell chooses which milk she wants, adds two shots of espresso and then adds two pumps of the syrup she desires.

"You can add literally f*cking anything you want, you can add a million things if you want," she said.

@lyellgirl

Just dont let corporate find out 🤫 #coffee #starbucks #starbuckshack #freecoffee #viral

She then shows her drink order which comes to a total of $7.72.

However, after she decides to use 50 stars the total drops to $0.

"It counts as a hot coffee so it was only 50 stars. You just got that sh*t for free. You're welcome!" she says at the end of the video.

If she were to order it as a regular latte, which is what she ended up turning the cafe misto into anyway, it would have cost 150 stars.

People flooded the comments section of the video expressing that they were blown away by the hack.

"I AM SHOOK TO MY CORE," one person exclaimed.

One person who says they are a student said they were appreciative about how much money they will save with the tip.

"As a broke nursing student who has 6:30 a.m. clinicals, this hack has been my life saver this winter," they wrote.

It looks like even Starbucks employees love this hack, with one writing, "As a Starbucks barista this is BEAUTIFUL, so very smart, keep it up."

Others said they were worried that Starbucks corporate would see the video and shut it down.

"I’m so afraid they are going to shut this down now that it’s on here! It’s my favorite secret!! I’m trying to use my stars up before it’s too late," one viewer commented.

However, someone who said they work at Starbucks said "people do this all the time" and "it’s not going to ruin anything."

Other followers shared their own hack on how to get extra stars.

"YOU GET 25 STARS EVERY TIME YOU BRING A REUSABLE CUP. You're welcome," one person said.

Another TikToker recommended ordering drinks in the app rather than in person.

"If you order it in person for some reason it will be more. I have to order it in the app to get it free for (50)," they wrote.

If you're in the mood for something more festive like a peppermint mocha, Lyell also has a hack for how to make that work.

She says to just go to the Starbucks app and look up what's in your favorite holiday drink. Then go back to the "cafe misto" option and customize it to include everything that would be in your holiday drink of choice.

@lyellgirl

Replying to @onaames #greenscreenvideo join in class, join in 🥹☕️ #starbucks #starbuckshack #coffee #viral #freecoffee #peppermintmocha

As for how to accumulate more stars, Lyell has a video for how she does it.

The TikToker says she takes advantage of double-star days on the Starbucks app, reloads a Starbucks gift card which gets you 2 stars for every dollar spent and also plays the Starbucks For Life game which will get you bonus stars for playing a game.

With all these great Starbucks tips, we may have to go try it out for ourselves!

Did you try to "hack" your Starbucks order?


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  • Senior Writer

    Asymina Kantorowicz (she/her) was a Senior Writer for Narcity Media. She has worked at Yahoo Canada, CTV News Vancouver Island, CTV News Channel, and CHCH News. Over the past eight years, she took on various newsroom roles and helped produce award-winning newscasts. Loving the fast-paced environment of any newsroom, she helped cover stories like the 2016 royal visit to Victoria, the 2019 B.C. manhunt, and provincial elections. She had an MA in journalism and a BA in media from Western University. She moved from Toronto to Victoria a few years ago and loved being close to the ocean.

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