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Jan 27, 2024

9 Best Coffee and Espresso Makers 2023, Tested by Experts

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No need to choose between coffee or espresso with these combo machines.

Typically, coffee makers and espresso machines are two different appliances. One makes a good old pot of coffee while the other is a specialized machine for pulling espresso shots. But if you're a fan of both styles of coffee and don't want to choose, invest in a combo coffee and espresso maker. They save counter space and, in some cases, save money by allowing you to make a variety of drinks such as regular drip coffee, lattes, Americanos and more instead of going to the coffee shop. For added convenience, some come with built-in coffee grinders, milk frothers, apps to control brewing and more.

For decades, the Good Housekeeping Institute Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab has tested just about every type of coffee maker. Along with testing to find the best drip coffee makers, we test coffee makers with built-in grinders, pour-over coffee makers, single-cup brewers, cold brew coffee makers, French presses, portable coffee makers for camping, and so much more. We also test espresso machines from the super-automatic to capsule machines and everything in between. Over the years, we've tested more than 100 coffee makers and espresso machines, making over 1,000 cups of coffee and espresso shots. The picks below are a combination of top-tested items, machines we've tested in our Lab or at home and tried-and-true editor favorites.

After our picks, keep reading to learn more about how we test coffee and espresso machines and what you should keep in mind as you shop for one. If you're tired of your regular beans and want to try something new, check out our guide to the top coffee subscription boxes.

De’Longhi’s all-in-one coffee and espresso maker has everything you need to make drip coffee, espresso shots, lattes and more. It has a dual heating system to start a pot of coffee and pull a shot of espresso at the same time. There’s no need to buy a separate milk frother since one is built-in to make your favorite coffee house drinks.

This machine packs a lot into one device, and according to one of our testers the footprint is only a little larger than most drip-only machines and about the same size as some espresso makers, so it doesn’t take up too much room on the counter, and you get the function of both machines.

The drip coffee side has a permanent filter that we found easy to change and the coffee brews quickly in about five minutes. The keep warm setting can be set up to 11 hours and 59 minutes, but the default is two hours. We found not only did it keep the coffee warm for 2 hours, it actually made it hotter.

The espresso side is convenient with a removable water reservoir and the portafilter can use pre-ground beans or ESE coffee pods. Our pros liked the tasty coffee and found the espresso side produces a nice, even crema. The only drawback is it's recommended to run a cycle of hot water through the espresso side before pulling a shot, but if you place your mug underneath the portafilter while you do so, the warm water will preheat your mug.

Like most Keurig machines, the K-Cafe Single-Serve is convenient and makes whipping up lattes and cappuccinos very easy. Use any K-cup in the machine and choose the “shot” button option for a fresh espresso-like shot to drink on its own or use as the base of a latte or cappuccino. Even though the espresso didn’t have enough crema for our liking, the preheat time, brew time, coffee temperature and volume were very consistent in our tests.

The built-in milk frother worked well and quickly frothed milk. We found that it works with whole, skim, almond or soy milk. If you prefer iced drinks, there's also a cold froth option. Leftover milk can be stored in the fridge with the lid that comes with the frother. The frother is also dishwasher safe, so it’s easy to clean.

This Philips machine keeps things simple and easy, offering a choice of five popular drinks at the push of a button. Choose from espresso, coffee, cappuccino, latte macchiato or Americano and the machine automatically adds the correct amount of milk or water for your drink. The touchscreen is straightforward, allowing you to choose your drink directly without having to scroll through a ton of complicated options.

It makes coffee from whole beans, ensuring that each grind is fresh. Our testers found the drinks flavorful but light-bodied so this is best for someone that doesn’t like extremely strong coffee drinks. Rather than using a frothing wand, the LatteGo has a frothing chamber that mixes air and milk at high speed and adds it directly into the drink. The frothing container can be removed to store leftover milk in the fridge and it can be put in the dishwasher, making clean up easy.

The Nespresso Vertuo has a unique barcode system that detects the exact capsule type and automatically adjusts for the correct size, temperature, pressure and brew time. Unlike other machines, you don't need two pods to make a double espresso or to add water to make an Americano. Brew options espresso, double espresso, gran lungo, mug and alto.

Every cup of coffee and espresso we made came out hot and well-rounded with excellent crema. The water tank is removable and adjustable in three different positions to maximize counter space with a relatively small footprint. And, if you're worried about the capsule waste, Nespresso will recycle the pods if you send them back to the company.

Not only will this sleek-looking machine display nicely on your countertop, but it can make just about any coffee you want including drip coffee, espresso, cold brew and even nitro-like cold brew, all from the same beans. This machine uses centrifugal force that spins at varying speeds to make each type of coffee unique.

Our experts were impressed with the creamy texture of the nitro-style coffee, saying it mimicked nitro coffee well. Our taste testers were impressed with the flavor of all the coffee options, with one saying it was the best coffee they've ever had. In fact, we loved this machine so much that we gave it a spot in our 2022 Kitchen Gear and Coffee Awards.

The Spinn app walks you through how to make various coffeehouse drinks like Americanos, lungos and doppios. It also shows you how to make coffee drinks with milk such as lattes, cappuccinos and more. Just keep in mind it doesn't froth milk, so you'll need a separate milk frother.

On top of all of these great features, our pros found it easy to use. It has a large easy-to-fill hopper for whole beans and a detachable reservoir to make refilling water a breeze. It's convenient to use with a few button pushes or using the Spinn app, and it easily makes drinks in minutes.

If you’re looking for convenience but don’t want to sacrifice quality, look no further than the De’Longhi Dinamica. This machine does all the brewing and frothing for you, so there’s no need to pull a shot of espresso, then froth the milk and add it to the drink. All you need to do is push a button to select your drink; it doesn’t get much easier.

In our testing, we liked the highly responsive touch screen that offers 16 one-touch or customized coffee drinks like espresso, cappuccino, latte, flat white, iced coffee, regular coffee and more. The machine also has a smart feature that recognizes your preferences and lists your most frequently used drinks first on the display. We found it takes some setup work, but once it's up and running, it’s intuitive to use. Non-coffee drinkers will appreciate the hot milk and hot water options for hot chocolate, tea and more. It can also brew over ice for iced coffee or other iced drinks.

When we taste-tested the drinks, we found the coffee was smooth, round and nicely hot. When it comes to espresso, the crema was thin but creamy. We also liked the cappuccinos and lattes which were silky and delicious. The built-in milk frother is also removable allowing leftover milk to be stored in the fridge and used again later. Clean-up is easy, just note that the machine will rinse itself when it shuts off which means the drip tray will need to be emptied more frequently.

You won’t want to hide the Jura ENA 4 with its sleek design. It’s available in black or white and the control panel is simple with just four buttons and four preprogrammed coffee specialties: espresso, espresso doppio, coffee and coffee doppio. We didn’t find the control panel to be intuitive at first, but once we got the hang of it, we found it was simple to use. It has become one of the go-to machines in our Kitchen Lab for tasty morning brews.

We love that it’s one of the few machines that has a separate chute for ground coffee, so you can make a cup of decaf or opt for a different roast without removing the beans in the hopper. It has a compact design for an automatic machine and its slim profile can fit into a smaller space. It doesn’t come with a built-in milk frother, however. If you would rather have the machine froth milk for you, upgrade to Jura E6, which can be hooked up to the Jura E6 Cool Control that holds the milk for frothing. This innovative container keeps the milk at the correct temperature on your countertop so there's no hassle of putting the leftover milk back into the fridge.

Our experts found this Miele espresso and coffee machine easy to set up and use. It has three bean hoppers, unlike most that only have one, so it can hold a dark roast, a light roast and a decaf, for example — great if you have a large household with varying coffee tastes. It has 22 preset drink settings, from simple coffee to flat whites and more. We tested the espresso, cappuccino and latte settings. The espresso crema was on the thicker side but tasty, the latte had a nice balance of milk to espresso and our tasters said the cappuccino had great flavor.

It also has various brew times for different teas, such as white, green, herbal tea and more. It's able to create two drinks at once, and you can program up to 10 user profiles to customize individual preferences.

We like that the machine automatically cleans itself with a rinse cycle and has a large drip tray to catch the water. However, that does mean more frequent trips to empty the drip tray. We found that if we waited too long to empty the tray, the excess water spilled easily. You won't have to refill the water often since this device boasts a 74-ounce water tank capacity, one of the largest we've tested.

Don't be fooled by the simplicity of this Bialetti Moka Pot. It still makes some of the most flavorful — and strong — coffee. It's no-frills with quick results, all on your stovetop.

One of our staff members raves about her Bialetti Moka Pot, saying it makes the tastiest coffee and saves her $3,500 a year on coffee shop runs. We found it easy to use. Fill the base with water, insert the funnel and scoop in ground coffee. On the stovetop, as the water and steam heat up, the pressure pushes water to the top and over the coffee, and in minutes your coffee is ready. Just be sure to watch it carefully, otherwise, you could end up with burnt coffee. The results produce a strong coffee similar to espresso, so if you like a more traditional coffee you can make it Americano-style by adding hot water.

The Moka Pot is available in several sizes from 1-cup to 12-cup capacities. Every size is relatively compact, making it great for those that don't have a lot of countertop or storage space. Unfortunately, it's hand-wash only, without any soap, but since it's small, it only takes a few minutes to rinse out and only needs a deeper clean every so often.

When we test coffee and espresso machines, we start by researching the best machines sold in stores and online, looking at best-sellers, popular brands and new models.

For drip coffee makers, we use equipment that constantly measures the water temperature throughout the entire cycle. We also take the temperature of the first cup of freshly brewed coffee and record the initial temperature. We also record the temperature at various times throughout a two-hour period to test any keep-warm settings. Ease of use is also assessed for each coffee maker, including how easy it is to program, access the brew basket, read the control panel, fill the water tank and clean. We note if it has a keep warm option and automatic shut-off capabilities. We also look at the clarity and comprehensiveness of the instruction manual.

When it comes to espresso makers, we evaluate them for ease of use, how long it takes to pull a shot, consistency, temperature and noise level. The quality of the crema is also noted. If the machine has a milk frother, we test it with skim, whole and oat milk. Finally, for both coffee and espresso makers, we have a group of taste testers try a fresh cup of coffee or espresso shot and score it on taste.

✔️ Coffee type: When choosing a combination coffee and espresso machine, select the type that best suits your preferences for pre-ground coffee, whole beans or pods. Pre-ground coffee allows you to skip the step of grinding beans but is not as fresh as grinding whole beans right before you brew. Some machines have a grinder built-in, so you can load whole beans to be freshly ground by the cup.

✔️ Manual or automatic: The biggest difference between manual and automatic machines is how much work you'll have to do to produce coffee or espresso. Manual machines require the most work, and you'll be doing many of the steps to make coffee or espresso yourself. On the other end, fully-automatic machines will create a coffeehouse-style drink with a push of a button. There are also in-between machines that automate part of the process. Maybe they grind the beans but don't froth the milk, for example. ✔️ Space: Check that you have enough counter space and clearance underneath cupboards to fit the machine.

✔️ Water tank capacity: Look for a larger water reservoir if you have many household members using the machine or if you want to cut down on refilling. Smaller water tanks take up less space and allow you to change the water more frequently to ensure it's fresh.

Nicole Papantoniou is the Director of the Kitchen Appliances lab where she oversees all testing relating to cooking and drinking equipment, including drip coffee makers. Over the years she's tested numerous coffee makers and continues to road-test different coffee makers daily.

Jamie Kim's first job at Good Housekeeping Institute was testing a variety of consumer products, and one of her first tests was drip coffee makers. Since then she has tested and written about many kitchen-related and cooking tools, especially drip coffee and espresso makers as well as coffee accessories. She has a passion for coffee and has completed rigorous coffee courses from the SCA (Specialty Coffee Association) in coffee brewing, barista skills and sensory tasting.

Jamie Kim is a consumer products expert with over 17 years of experience in areas of product development and manufacturing. She has held leading roles at both mid-size consumer goods companies and one of the most notable and largest apparel brands in the world. Jamie has contributed to several of the GH Institute Labs, including Kitchen Appliances, Media and Tech, Textiles and Home Appliances. In her free time she enjoys cooking, traveling, and working out.

Nicole (she/her) is the director of the Good Housekeeping Institute's Kitchen Appliances and Innovation Lab, where she has overseen content and testing related to kitchen and cooking appliances, tools and gear since 2019. She’s an experienced product tester and recipe creator, trained in classic culinary arts and culinary nutrition. She has worked in test kitchens for small kitchen appliance brands and national magazines, including Family Circle and Ladies’ Home Journal.

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the footprint is only a little larger than most drip-only machines Use any K-cup in the machine and choose the “shot” button option for a fresh espresso-like shot to drink on its own or use as the base of a latte or cappuccino.The touchscreen is straightforward, allowing you to choose your drink directly without having to scroll through a ton of complicated options. Every cup of coffee and espresso we made came out hot and well-rounded with excellent crema. Our taste testers were impressed with the flavor of all the coffee options, with one saying it was the best coffee they've ever had. The machine also has a smart feature that recognizes your preferences and lists your most frequently used drinks first on the display. It has become one of the go-to machines in our Kitchen Lab for tasty morning brews. It has three bean hoppers, unlike most that only have one, so it can hold a dark roast, a light roast and a decaf, for example program up to 10 user profiles✔️ Coffee type: ✔️✔️ Manual or automatic: ✔️Space:✔️ Water tank capacity:✔️
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