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The 13 Best Bean-to-Cup, Espresso and Pod Coffee Machines
The perfect cup of coffee is possible – even at home
Please raise your hand if you’ve ever watched your local barista make a cup of the good stuff circa 8am and thought, “how the hell do I make coffee this good without actually having to leave my kitchen?”. Well, stellar news for all of us with casual bean obsession — these coffee machines make drinks that can rival your favourite city spots.
If you’re new to the elite coffee machine game, don’t stress. Whether you’re a seasoned bean blend pro, or you’re upgrading from your old faithful French press, we’ve tried and tested the best models out there so you can find the right one to fit your style, space and caffeinated needs.
From sleek speed numbers to iconic Italian machines with the ability to give even the professionals the tingles, these are the best models money can buy.
Also, you can put your hand down now. Let’s talk coffee machines.
Which coffee machines make the best coffee?
Bean-to-cup machines
Spoiler alert: the quality of a coffee’s taste is all about freshness. Unlike pod and espresso coffee machines, bean-to-cup models extract coffee straight from the source —the beans— to create the freshest beverage possible. They tend to be the priciest models out there but have a sip and you’ll see why.
Investing in a bean-to-cup machine also means you can make exactly the kind of brew your coffee snob heart desires. With the press of a button or the swipe of an LCD screen, you can request everything from an Americano to a flat white and then sit back and let the integrated bean grinder do its thing. You can also tweak the size, strength and aroma to match your taste and get involved in a variety of creative blends, tailoring your cup to strong and bitter dark blends or fruit-meet-chocolate Columbian options. Basically, don’t be surprised if you start returning from holidays with bags of local whole beans.
Espresso machines
Espresso machines can be a bit of a faff but also offer that rich, fresh flavour. They take grounds, which you need to scoop into the filter basket and tamp down yourself, getting the quantity and pressure just right before extraction begins. We'd reassuringly say "no pressure" but take that literally and your coffee will taste vile. These coffee makers often feature a steam wand for foaming milk to your desired heat and texture — aka the fun bit.
Pod machines
Ah, the pod machine. These kings of convenience are made for those with hectic schedules and what you gain on time you tend to lose in the way of flavour. These days though, you can get winning pods from brands including Nespresso, Lavazza and even some independent coffee spots have gotten in on the pod action. Pod machines usually come with a built-in automatic milk frother for making cappuccinos and lattes, too. Just don’t expect your brew to hit the heady caffeinated heights of a bean-to-cup or espresso machine made coffee.
How we test coffee machines
Martyrs that we are, Esquire’s testing team sipped hundreds of coffees from market-leading bean-to-cup, espresso and pod models. We pulled espressos, whipped up cappuccinos and more with each machine, judging its performance, consistency, efficiency and, of course, the end result. Only those that continually produced high quality drinks earned a spot on our roundup.
If the coffee machine had a milk frother or steam wand (as most modern models do) we also put this to the test, making sure it could bring milk and non-dairy alternatives to a hot, stable and velvety foam.
Blossom is our Senior Homes Tester. Passionate about finding the best home products and appliances for our readers, she has tested everything from blenders to pizza ovens. Blossom enjoys delving into the intricacies of products and refining testing protocols for hundreds of items. Innovative items like robot vacuum cleaners and wine coolers are among her favourite tests to date, and her most notable accomplishment is toasting 360 slices of bread in a determined bid to find the best toaster. In her free time, Blossom openly admits to being a music geek and indulges her creative side through crocheting, baking, singing and writing.
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