Coffee Lovers’ Bliss
Seeking the perfect latte, espresso shot, or cup of coffee? Discover the best coffee, espresso machines, and must-have coffee-making accessories.
Updated August 27, 2022
The Best Automatic Coffee & Espresso Drink Machine
Jura E8 – Automatic Coffee Machine
The Swiss made Jura is packed with modern tech to make you barista-quality specialty coffees while minimizing drink-making time and machine maintenance hassle. For starters, there’s its trademarked acronym P.E.P.® (Pulse Extraction Process), which optimize coffee bean extraction time, creating coffee house grade specialty coffees — your espresso, your ristretto. It’s “Fine Foam Technology” (and one-touch button) produces cloud-light milk foam for your cappuccino or latte macchiato. A six-level Aroma G3 grinder is built in, as are programmed options and a manual descaler.
The Best Espresso Machines — Manual, Semi-automatic
Semi-automatic espresso machines make the best latte drinks and espresso shots. They also require some skills. Got at-home-barista game?
Best Espresso Machine Under $750 — Breville BES870XL Barista Express
Great for beginners and experienced baristas alike, Breville’s Barista Express is programmable and includes both pressurized and non-pressurized baskets. The machine also includes the standard steam wand found on commercial machines. PID temperature control delivers water at precisely the right temperature, adjustable in 2 degree Celsius increments. For an even extraction and balanced espresso flavor, pre-infuses ground coffee with low, steady water pressure before extraction. This gently expands the grinds before stepping up to high pressure.
Integrated precision conical burr grinder delivers the perfect amount of freshly ground coffee directly into the portafilter.
- 15 bar Italian pump
- Complete volumetric control preset, manual override, or pre-programmable volumes
- Built-in pressure gauge
- Includes single & dual wall filter baskets, coffee scoop, stainless steel jug, cleaning tools (includes cleaning disc and tablets)
Best Classic Espresso Machine under $2000 — Breville Dual Boiler Espresso Machine BES920XL
Commercial features and performance in a kitchen-friendly footprint. Dual stainless steel boilers and dual Italian pumps enable you to extract your shot at the right temperature and optimal flavor while steaming your milk to cafe quality.
The boiler for the espresso shot is PID temperature controlled for precise heat. The over-Pressure Valve (OPV) limits extraction pressure—this low-pressure pre-infusion soaks the grinds, allowing water to pass evenly through the coffee during the high pressure (9 bar) extraction process, delivered via the Breville BES920XL’s 15 bar Italian pump.
The Best Manual Coffee Makers
The Best French Press — Bodum Chambord French Press
Manual brewing makes for stronger, thicker coffee. A French Press manually brews coffee through “pressing.” It’s simple to use, it’s portable, and it delivers a flavor-rich, strong coffee. Essential oils remain in the brew instead of boiling away or being filtered out. Some diehard coffee drinkers swear by it.
Bodum’s Chambord French press is both sleek and easy to use. It’s a traditional French press with a glass beaker and a single filter plunger. This means you’ll get full-bodied coffee and a product that’s easy to use and clean. And its glass shell enables you to watch your coffee brew. Some coffee aficionados enjoy the fine sediment and oils left behind in its single mesh filter. Manufactured in Portugal and dishwasher safe.
- $29.99 – $49.99
- Sizes: 12oz, 17oz, 34oz, 51oz
Unlike the manual French Press method of making coffee, pour-over coffee makers require a paper filter. The filter helps keep grit out of your coffee and highlights subtler tasting notes. The pour-over process is deceptively simple—you’ll likely need a special goose-neck kettle to help control the speed and flow of hot water over the beans.
The Best Pour-Over for entertaining and for groups — Chemex
The Chemex is aesthetically pleasing, and the large version is great for entertaining. Its carafe and filter designs have changed little since 1941—no reason to mess with success! The Chemex is a system made up of an hourglass-shaped carafe and large, extra-thick paper filters. The thicker filter helps create incredibly smooth cups of coffee. (Tip: pre-soak the filter before coffee brewing.) The carafes range in size from 3 cups to 13 cups. Made in Massachusetts, the Chemex is dishwasher safe and the only pour-over option well suited to large groups. Ranges from $39 to $114.
Highly customizable, ultra-portable, manual Coffee Maker — Aeropress
In a class of its own, a unique beast putting function ahead of form, the beloved Aeropress is the platypus of coffee makers. It’s similar to the French press in how it’s used—you immerse coffee grounds and then press out the coffee—but, unlike the French press, the Aeropress uses a filter—a custom paper or metal filter. The filter eliminates grit and sediment. This hybrid makes not only a highly customizable cup of coffee, but espresso too. It even facilitates a highly customized espresso pull—and does it without any special grinds.
It works quickly, and it’s compact, light, portable, and easy to clean. Bonus: it’s relatively inexpensive. There’s really not much to dislike aside from that infomercial plastic look (as we said, truly the duckbilled mammal of coffee makers). Thankfully, we know beauty is skin deep and easy to hide in one’s drawer or travel pack.
The Best Coffee Subscription Services
Best coffee subscription for gifts and a unique experience — Atlas Coffee Club
“Travel the world one cup at a time” is Atlas Coffee Club’s mantra. They curate single-origin micro-lot coffees globally, from Costa Rica, Tanzania, Kenya, Colombia, Ethiopia, and beyond. Roasted fresh to order and delivered to your home monthly or every two weeks, their packing includes a regional postcard, brewing tips, and tasting notes. Pick from a half bag (6oz), full-bag (12oz), or two bags (24oz).
Best coffee subscription for customization and breadth of offering — Trade
Get fresh beans delivered to your doorstep on your schedule. Trade taps over 50 roasters from across the U.S. to offer 450 currated coffees. They guide both coffee-making freshmen and coffee connoisseurs through a simple survey to unearth preferences and your coffee experience level. Beans ship directly from the roaster within just 24 hours of roasting. Bag price ranges from $14.75 to $22 and shipping is free. You’ll be matched to one of two subscription tiers based on your survey preference. Ethically sourced and Trade prides itself on being a “champion of small roasters.”
Essential Coffee/Espresso Making Accessories
Best Electric Burr Coffee Grinder under $200 — Baratza Encore Conical Burr Coffee Grinder
Forty levels of grind settings—great for the thickly ground beans for French presses all the way down to those fine grounds for espressos. The Baratza brand is the go-to burr grinder for many baristas and coffee experts. Baratza’s Encore is a popular model for a quality burr grinder at a consumer price. The consistency of its grind is excellent, it offers a wide grind range, it’s easy to use, and it looks sleek. The hopper holds eight ounces of whole beans.
Nespresso Aeroccino3 Milk Frother
Simple one-button prep of hot or cold milk froth for your cappuccino, Latte Macchiato, or personalize coffeehouse concoction. Stylish, non-stick surface. Compact size deliving up to 4 fl oz of milk froth or 8 fl oz of hot milk. Auto shuts off when done.
The Best Kettle – Fellow Stagg EKG Electric Kettle, 0.9L
Functionality aside, this kettle is beautiful. It’s a minimalist’s dream with its sleek lines, matte finish, balanced yet asymmetric appearance. On the functional side, it has variable temperature control from and a built-in brew stopwatch. Comes in matte black, all white, polished chrome, and warm pink with a maple wood handle.
The Best entry-level Coffee Scale — Hario V60 Drip Scale
You may know Hario for its iconic heatproof glass coffee-ware; Hario’s scale boasts the same precision of design: accurate to 0.1 g, it’s ideal for honing in on the perfect ground-to-water ratio. The scale includes a timer. It’s battery-operated, so there’s no cord to manage and it’s easy to store. It automatically shuts off after 5 minutes. Comes in black and stainless steel.
The Best Manual Burr Grinder for the price — Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill – “Skerton Pro”
The Hario Skerton Pro is the latest version of the classic Hario Skerton grinder. It now makes even more consistent grinds. With a 100g ground capacity, it also has a larger grounds receptacle than most manual grinders.
Since 1921, Japanese glassmaker Hario has been creating heatproof glass. Their coffee equipment is both beautiful and functional, in this case grinding the espresso slowly. For heavy espresso drinkers, consider a specialized espresso grinder.