Starbucks rolls out mobile ordering to all US locations

"Let the spice flow."

For the last several months, Starbucks has been gradually rolling out the ability for customers to order drinks or food with the company's smartphone app — and skip waiting in line during the morning rush. And now mobile ordering is ready for a nationwide audience; today, Starbucks is rolling out the feature to each of its company-owned US locations. Using the Starbucks app for iOS or Android, you can now order a Pumpkin Spice Latte or anything else on the coffee maker's menu, choose your preferred additives, and pay from right within the app.

Starbucks will give you an estimate for when the drink will be ready, and you can pick it up without waiting in line with everyone else stuck ordering the old fashioned way. Starbucks says mobile ordering has hooked customers in Portland and other test cities across the US. Today's expansion is about bringing that convenience to everyone — including huge Starbucks markets like New York City and San Francisco.

The Starbucks app will automatically pull in the store nearest you for quick ordering, and it'll even warn you if you somehow choose a store that's 20 or 30 minutes away when there's another that's closer; preparation for most drinks tops out at 5 to 10 minutes. Presumably that estimate might climb during peak hours, but Starbucks insists that the addition of mobile ordering doesn't slow down the workflow of its baristas. Smartphone orders just get added to the queue like any other in-store request. It's also yet another way for the company to drive consumers to its loyalty program and Starbucks card. Mobile payments are available for both Android and iOS with updates coming to both apps today.