The paper presents a procedure for the comparison of various technologies for the production of hydrogen from coal based on First and Second Law Analysis. All known technologies listed in publicly available literature are analyzed based on calculations of the energetic and exergetic analysis of the whole process as well as the sub processes. Energy and exergy losses associated with generation of syngas from coal, separation of hydrogen from COx as well as exergetic loss of emissions are presented. The optimal conditions for each process by minimizing these losses are presented. Results from a flexible lab scale modular experimental bench are presented as experimental verification of the trends in efficiency improvements and for the verification of the theoretical comparisons. Based on the results, the most energy efficient process for a given hydrogen purity is suggested along with the optimal conditions for operation.