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I’ve historically been a gear gal, nerding out over the best espresso machines, high-tech rice cookers, and sous vide machines. But since I began working as a chef, my tastes have taken a more austere turn. Mostly, I daydream about elegant and functional knives. Now and then I find myself scrolling through a restaurant kitchen retailer at night, checking out the industrial-size, bare-bones stockpots. I considered asking for a never-ending supply of $1 kitchen towels in my Christmas stocking.
For the most part I've been completely won over by the no-frills equipment of a professional kitchen. The single exception to this: the espresso machine. Sure, it's possible to make a good—great!—cup of coffee with plenty of humble at-home brewing processes. Consider a simple French press or pour-over, a stovetop moka pot or the nimble AeroPress, so lightweight Chris Morocco brings it on vacation. We even have high-quality drip coffee makers that we'd recommend.
And yet I love all the shiny clunkiness of an espresso machine. The satisfying click of the portafilter, the roar of the steam wand, the crunch of the coffee grinder. Most of all, I love the piping hot double shot of espresso each morning, complete with a foamy, golden crema—and even more, the weekend cappuccino, topped with a little cloud of frothed oat milk.
Yes, there’s plenty of easier ways to brew coffee at home, and making great espresso is an expensive, time-consuming process with a learning curve. But if you’re regularly ducking out for americanos or macchiatos and your gear-loving self is itching to commit to a home espresso machine, why deprive yourself? If you're ready to invest in one of these fine pieces of equipment, these are the six best espresso machines to consider:
Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine
Join me in adoring the Breville Bambino Plus. It's the best espresso machine at its price point, in my book. It's semi-automatic, which means the machine uses a pump to get the pressure right in your shot, making it easy enough for beginners, but it still requires you to tamp your own shot and actually push the brew button. About half an hour of manual-reading (or video-watching, for my fellow manual-averse people) and a few practice shots and you’ll be on your way to coffee shop-quality espresso. After playing around to figure out the right grind size, each shot I pulled was rich and flavorful, and I found that the machine had very few quirks.
It’s also speedy. One of the biggest reasons an espresso machine takes dedication each morning is the timing of all the little steps. Some machines need to be constantly refilled; luckily, this one has a roomy water reservoir. Others take ages for the heating mechanism to switch from espresso making to milk steaming. Not the Bambino Plus and its ThermoJet heater. Even though it has a cost-and-space saving single boiler, it’s ready to pull a shot about three seconds after you turn it on, and the steam wand revs in the same amount of time. If you prefer milky espresso drinks like lattes, you can even set the steam wand to an automatic setting and skip that extra minute of foamy fiddling.
With the Bambino Plus, brewing espresso is hard to mess up, so it’s safe for houseguests and roommates. The steam wand auto purges the last drops of milk lest someone in your household “forget” to clean it. The drip tray even has a handy light up feature, reminding you when it’s time to empty it. The machine, its two included portafilters, milk jug, and tamper are all sturdily made. The best espresso machine is the one you’re going to use, day in and out—and for most people, that’s the Bambino Plus.
One note—this machine doesn’t come with a built-in grinder, which is a plus for those who have already invested in a conical burr grinder and could use the counter space. (Expect to make way for something slightly smaller than a stand mixer.) And if you don’t already own a burr grinder? Get one.
Breville Barista Touch Espresso Machine
If counterspace and price tags are less of a concern, consider this Breville upgrade with all the bells are whistles. The Breville Barista Touch is the semi-automatic pick for spacious suburban kitchens. It’s five inches wider and three inches longer than the Bambino Plus and does include that conical burr grinder, along with a hot water dispenser for americanos.
At first glance, you might think that touch screens are a bit like...cheating? And they kind of are. Unlike similarly sized Breville models, the Barista Touch really does boast all the ease of the Bambino, with the same quick heating transition from espresso to steam wand, plus the same clever drip tray.
Beyond the grinder though, the eight included coffee “formulas” (americano, cappuccino, flat white, etc. etc.) make this machine special. It’s ideal for an office or a big family, as you can save the coffee drink preferences of different people. Plus, that touch screen functionality–which allows for grind size, milk texture and temperature, and coffee strength customization–means even beginners can walk away with a cappuccino.
Other small improvements include an automatic steam wand, which allows you to attend to breakfast while the milk frother does its thing.
Jura Z10 Automatic Espresso Machine
If those two Breville machines still seem daunting to you I have good news: It can get easier. If that's what you want look to super-automatic machines. My first espresso maker was a Jura—and to be honest, it made such consistently good coffee that it outperformed the Bambino Plus for the first few weeks, while I was still learning the espresso ropes. A fully automatic coffee machine measures, grinds, and tamps the beans, and pulls the shot too. Some machines also froth milk. All you need to do is fill the removable water tank and replenish the coffee beans, and the Jura will make you the coffee drink of your choice at the push of a button. It's about as involved as popping a pod into a Nespresso machine—there is no grinding beans and moving them to a portafilter or tamping down a puck involved. There's nothing wrong with that—and if you prefer the ease of use of an automatic espresso machine and can stand the price tag, I do recommend the Jura—but it is less FUN.
The high-end Jura Z10 offers up than 30 coffee specialties, including eight cold brew varieties. The machine has a cold extraction process which is able to bypass heating and simply push cold water through coarse coffee grounds at high pressure, resulting in options for cold brew cortado, cold brew espresso, cold brew macchiato, and more.
Then, on the more difficult end of the spectrum are the more advanced manual espresso machines, which require a solid amount of know-how. If you’re basically a barista, Laura Perry, co-founder of Luna Coffee (which, incidentally, offers an excellent coffee subscriptions), recommends the Decent DE1. “It’s not cheap, but the Decent DE1 is awesome for a few reasons,” she says. “It’s got incredible temperature control at the group head (a rarity for home machines), and there’s a tablet to graph and deploy shot profiles.” Take all the information that built-in coffee iPad gives you and go check out the Decent Espresso chat room, “which means lots of support as you embark on your espresso nerd quest,” says Perry. This is a pro pick, and there’s no arguing with the performance of this high-quality machine. But, for the home barista who wants to pull a shot without reading about PID and pressure gauge on coffee Reddits, I’d rec swinging for a machine with a gentler learning curve.
Diletta, which sounds and looks like it might be a heritage Italian brand, is actually the in-house line of Seattle Coffee Gear, a long-time leader in the specialty coffee retail universe. SCG designs the Diletta machines based upon the buying trends and feedback of its customers, which probably accounts for the uniquely thoughtful features.
These Diletta Mio machines, built in Milan, come in all stainless steel as you might expect, but it’s also available in matte white and matte black, both of which hide smudgy fingerprints, and limited edition evergreen. The machine has a 2-liter water tank that slides out the side, which means you don’t have to shimmy your machine forward to refill if it’s below a low-hanging cabinet. It’s not technically a dual boiler machine (dual boilers tend to be quite a bit more expensive) but you’re able to brew and steam at the same time, a rarity at this price point and particularly useful to anyone who is regularly making lattes for a crowd (or even two).
The one notable downside to this machine is that it has a very low cup clearance—just below three inches. You’ll likely need to use espresso cups, or, if you prefer an americano, latte, or cappuccino, you’ll have to find some short, stout mugs to accommodate.
If you're in the market for a classic, go for an Italian machine like the Rancilio Silvia. “Rancilio specialized in commercial machines, and this type of machine was made as a sample to send as a gift to their distributors,” explains Suyog Mody, co-founder of Boston-based coffee subscription company Driftaway. “It ended up becoming so popular that they decided to release it on the consumer market.” The Silvia still boasts commercial construction, so expect it to last and last. Mody loves that it’s low-profile and quieter than most home machines—plus the customer support is silky smooth.
Like the Bambino, investing in a good conical burr grinder to go alongside the Rancilio Silvia is key. Also like the Bambino, there are two filter baskets included, one for single shots and one for double. The price difference here really comes down to longevity—this is a commercial-grade machine with stainless steel, brass, and copper parts that are all easily replaceable or upgradable. It’s undoubtedly more finicky than the Breville (some people find the lack of a PID system, which regulates pressure and temperature, annoying) but, this could easily be a ten or fifteen year machine with a little care.
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