Skip to main content

The 8 best coffee makers

The 8 best coffee makers

/

From our friends at The Strategist, the best coffee makers according to baristas and roasters

Share this story

If you buy something from a Verge link, Vox Media may earn a commission. See our ethics statement.

For all the debate over whether the best coffee comes from a Chemex or a French press or an AeroPress, sometimes you just want to turn on a machine and let it do all the work. We asked 14 coffee experts — baristas, roasters, food-industry professionals, and just plain coffee snobs — what coffee makers out there will give you a good, simple at-home brew without all the fuss. Below are their eight favorite machines for people who think the best part of waking up is having a gadget make their cup.


Best overall coffee maker

Bonavita Connoisseur 8-Cup One-Touch Coffee Maker

According to our research, the Bonavita Connoisseur is respected industry-wide, with four experts recommending the model specifically by name and two others naming Bonavita as generally the best brand of coffee maker. A key feature of the Connoisseur, cited by everyone who recommended it, is the machine’s ability to brew at the proper water temperature. According to Ken Nye, the owner and founder of Ninth Street Espresso, one of the “parameters that most machines don’t achieve is temperature. Very few consistently bring water to that 198-202 degree range,” which he calls the “broadly agreed upon standard.” As Nye puts it, the Connoisseur is made to heat the water to the correct temperature and “maintains that temp throughout the brewing process.” Furthermore, Nye adds, it brews directly into an insulated thermal carafe so you can keep your coffee warm without heating it from below (where you risk burning the coffee).

Another important factor, mentioned by multiple sources, is that it evenly distributes the water over the coffee grounds while brewing. It does this with the help of a showerhead-like spout above the filter basket that “showers all of the coffee evenly so it all brews at the same time,” according to Joanna Larue, general manager at Blue Bottle Park Slope. The machine also has a flat-bottomed brew basket that Nye and George Howell, the owner and founder of George Howell Coffee, both cite as essential to ensuring an even brew. “The flat bottom spreads the grounds out evenly on the bed,” explains Howell, so it’s easier to distribute the water and ensure an “even extraction.” This model might not be as full-featured as some of the other options on this list — or on the market in general — but the experts recommend it over all the others due to its more approachable price point, ease of use, and most of all, its reliability. “It’s consistent from start to finish,” says Howell.

Bonavita Connoisseur 8-Cup One-Touch Coffee Maker /

Best overall coffee maker

$150 at Crate & Barrel

Best high-end coffee maker

Technivorm Moccamaster Coffee Brewer, 40-ounce

Cited by three experts, the Technivorm Moccamaster was the second most-recommended coffee maker. It’s pricey, but the experts who use it said that it’s worth the premium if you want to invest in the best equipment out there. Like the Bonavita Connoisseur, the Moccamaster received high marks on its temperature-control ability and even brewing. One of the areas where it really stands out from the crowd, however, is its quality construction. “You want something that’s well-made and has good temperature control,” says Jim Munson, the founder and president of Brooklyn Roasting Company, who highlights the fact that the Moccamaster is handmade in the Netherlands. Suyog Mody, the founder of Driftaway Coffee, is another fan. He says that while the “brewing mechanics” are similar to those used in less-expensive drip coffee makers, the Moccamaster “is made with better parts and with solid construction. I’ve been using it daily for the past three-plus years with zero issues. It’s just no fuss.” He adds, “And honestly, it looks good on the kitchen counter.” While the design is certainly appealing and the construction quality means it should last for a long time, the experts wouldn’t recommend this coffee maker if it didn’t also… make great coffee. “I taste coffee from all types of brewers, and this one gives a consistently better cup,” says Munson.

Technivorm Moccamaster Coffee Brewer, 40-ounce /

Best high-end coffee maker

$300 at Bed Bath & Beyond

Best dupe for a Moccamaster coffee maker

Motif Essential Pour-Over Coffee Brewer with Thermal Carafe

Mud Coffee co-owner Yasmina Palumbo says this coffee maker from Motif makes a nice alternative to the “better known and much more expensive” Moccamaster. “It heats up water very fast, and its dispersion system soaks the grinds evenly, making a fuller-flavored brew,” she says.

Motif Essential Pour-Over Coffee Brewer with Thermal Carafe /

Best dupe for a Moccamaster coffee maker

$90 at Home Depot

Best programmable coffee maker

Bonavita Programmable Coffee Maker with Thermal Carafe

Many home brewers like having a programmable coffee machine that can be set to turn on automatically at a certain time. If you’re looking for one of those, two of the experts recommend this model, which has the same brewing mechanics as the top pick but comes with a digital clock and timer with the ability to schedule automatic brewing. “It’s a great option for coffee lovers who want to brew at the touch of a button without sacrificing quality,” says Connie Blumhardt of Roast Magazine. Michael Bonavita (no relation to the company), the owner and founder of Goodlife Coffee Company, says this is the machine he uses at home because he loves how simple it is to program.

Bonavita Programmable Coffee Maker with Thermal Carafe /

Best programmable coffee maker

$170 on Amazon

Best coffee maker with built-in grinder

Capresso CoffeeTeam TS with conical burr grinder and thermal carafe

If you want to take the convenience factor beyond programmable timing, you can get a coffee maker with a built-in grinder so you truly have everything you need in one machine. “On mornings when I don’t make a pour-over (weigh out the water, the beans, all that fun stuff), the Capresso drip machine yields the cleanest-tasting cup,” says Kat Odell, the author of Day Drinking. The built-in burr grinder “saves you from having to buy a separate gadget, too,” she adds. (Burr grinders, it should be noted, are also the style favored by every expert we consulted for our roundup on the best coffee grinders.)

Capresso CoffeeTeam TS with conical burr grinder and thermal carafe /

Best coffee maker with built-in grinder

$148 on Amazon

Best coffee maker for a quick brew time

BUNN Velocity Brew 10-Cup Home Brewer

Anyone who can’t start their day without a sip of coffee knows that another important quality to consider is brew time. That’s where this coffee maker excels, according to Bonavita, who describes it as “very fast, consistent, and user-friendly.” He adds that Bunn has a great reputation in the commercial space, and that this model is a “great at-home version” of those higher-volume machines for which the company is known.

BUNN Velocity Brew 10-Cup Home Brewer /

Best coffee maker for a quick brew time

$98 at Wayfair

Best simple coffee maker

Mr. Coffee 12-Cup Coffee Maker

Jamie McCormick, the co-owner of East Village coffee shop Abraço, told us that he prefers to keep things as simple as possible when it comes to coffee machines. “People make a big ‘to do’ over a lot of nothing” when it comes to brewing equipment, he says. Although he admits that he doesn’t quite know why, he thinks a plain old Mr. Coffee is a great choice for any “amateur coffee roaster who wants to flatter their grounds.” Since this doesn’t have a high-tech mechanism for distributing the water evenly like some of the other models on this list, he offers one key tip: Open the machine up while it’s brewing and “stir the grounds. Make sure all the grounds get hydrated.”

Mr. Coffee 12-Cup Coffee Maker /

Best simple coffee maker

$20 at Walmart

Best cold brew coffee maker

OXO Good Grips Cold Brew Coffee Maker

If you’re looking for a cold-brew coffee maker, this one comes recommended by Dennis Ngo, the chef and co-owner of restaurant Di an Di in Greenpoint. “I got hooked on the smoothness and low acidity of cold-brewed coffee,” says Ngo, who, before making his own cold brew, would go out and buy it from the coffee shop Gimme! near his apartment. “It lets me tinker with different beans and concentrations, and produces enough cold brew to last me two weeks at a time. It also stacks compactly for storage, which is an absolute requirement for my tiny New York apartment.”

OXO Good Grips Cold Brew Coffee Maker /

Best cold brew coffee maker

$50 at Bed Bath & Beyond

Vox Media has affiliate partnerships. These do not influence editorial content, though Vox Media may earn commissions for products purchased via affiliate links. For more information, see our ethics policy.