Best coffee machine brands Best brands overview

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Sharing our expertise

Over the years we’ve tested nearly 100 coffee machines in the Which? lab, to find out which makes the best espresso.

On the way, we’ve developed up a good understanding of what each coffee machine brand does well – and not so well. In this guide, our experts share what they’ve learnt about each of the biggest brands, to help you decide which might best suit you.

Bear in mind that this guide only offers brand overviews, so for full reviews of each of the coffee machines we’ve tested, make sure you check out our individual coffee machine reviews.

Best coffee machine brands

In this guide, you can find out:

  • how many coffee machines Which? has tested for each brand
  • what types of machine are available and how much they cost
  • features to look out for.

And subscribers can also find out:

  • the average score each coffee machine brand gets in Which? tests
  • how many models of each brand have been awarded Best Buy or Don’t Buy status
  • the pros and cons of each brand.

Click on the brand links in the left-hand panel to find out all this information for each of the leading coffee machine brands.

How Which? tests coffee machines

In the Which? lab, we test coffee machines against several different criteria, including ease of use and speed of milk steaming (where applicable).

However, the biggest part of our testing process is the blind taste test, where we ask Giles Hilton, head buyer for Whittards and a member of the Speciality Coffee Association, to act as our expert taster and give his verdict on coffee produced by each of the machines on test.

Giles has a palate that can discern the difference between espressos produced by different machines using the same ground coffee. As well as taste, he also judges the appearance, texture and aroma of each coffee.

Check out our coffee machine reviews for more details on how we test, to see the test results for each individual coffee machine we’ve tested, and to find out which are Best Buys. Or get help deciding what type of coffee machine might suit you in our guide to choosing a coffee machine.

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