The best espresso machine 2024: outstanding espresso makers tested by experts
The best espresso machine can set you up for the day with a super-smooth hit of concentrated caffeine, without you even having to leave the house.
There are all sorts of options out there if you’re looking for the best coffee machine, but for many people an espresso maker is the only way to go. Whether you’re looking for a fully manual machine requiring maximum barista skills, or a more beginner-friendly option with helpful automation, we’re here to help you find your perfect match. If you’ just want to push a button for your espresso, however, you’d probably do better with one of the best Nespresso machines.
On this page we’ve picked out 10 the best espresso machines from big names including De’Longhi, Gaggia and Breville, as well as a few picks from brands you might not know, with options for most budgets. Each one has been tested extensively by one of our expert reviewers, and we’ll alert you to both their good and bad points as well as directing you to the best prices online. Each machine has its own strengths and weaknesses, but they’re all capable of making really good espresso.
The quick list
Below is our quick guide to the best espresso machines around. Use it to narrow down your options, then either hop down to the more in-depth entry, or head straight to a retailer to buy.
1. Breville the Barista Touch Impress
Best espresso machine overall
This incredible automatic coffee machine makes it easy for anyone to make café-quality espresso with no experience, thanks to automated grinding, dosing, tamping and milk frothing. We spent two months testing it, and were thoroughly impressed by the quality and consistency of its creations, which rival those than an experienced user could get from a fully manual machine. For us, it’s the best espresso machine you can buy today.
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2. De’Longhi Dedica Style EC685
Best budget espresso machine
This smart little manual espresso machine offers an impressive set of features for coffee lovers, at a very reasonable price. During testing we were impressed by its ability to handle both freshly ground coffee and pods, providing a low-mess option. The inclusion of a steam wand is rare for a budget espresso machine, and the pump can generate enough pressure to create silky micro foam.
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3. Seattle Coffee Gear Diletta Bello+
Best manual espresso machine
If you’re happy wielding a steam wand and portafilter, this barista-quality unit is the best espresso machine for you. Its build quality is second to none, and our tester reported that it turned her morning coffee-making routine into a luxurious, meditative experience. She was also surprised by how easy it was to use, and with a little practice she was able to pull perfectly extracted shots every time. The biggest drawback is that it’s only available in the US.
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Best automatic espresso machine
Smeg’s latest espresso machine handles the whole coffee-making process for you, from measuring and grinding the beans to frothing milk. During testing we found it a pleasure to use each morning, and a cinch to keep clean, making it a great option if you want consistently tasty, well extracted espresso drinks with minimal hassle. It looks stunning as well, thanks to Smeg’s signature Italian design.
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Best small espresso machine
Pressed for space? The Breville Bambino Plus is an extremely compact espresso machine. While it’s small in size, it’s big on features, and our reviewer was very impressed by both its manual and automatic brewing functions: “It took 21 seconds to brew a shot of espresso, and the coffee was wonderfully smooth, with a fantastic thick crema on the top.”
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Best espresso machine for beginners
This is the espresso maker I have at home, and it’s refreshingly simple to use if you’re looking for your first manual machine. Although it only has a single boiler, it generates enough pressure for well brewed coffee and perfectly steamed milk (dairy or plant-based). A fun way to get into espresso, it gives you full control over every part of the process so you can fine-tune your technique to suit your personal tastes.
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Meet the experts
Cat has been a tech journalist for 15 years. Already a fan of all things caffeinated, she has taken barista classes with a professional coffee roaster to make sure she can bring you the best advice on choosing a great home espresso machine.
The best espresso machine 2024
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The best espresso machine overall
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Buy it if
✅ You want great value: Very few fully espresso machines offer this many features for such a reasonable price.
✅ You value simplicity: This machine handles all the trickiest parts of brewing consistently great espresso for you.
Don’t buy it if
❌ You’re comfortable with a manual machine: If you don’t need automation, you can get a top-quality manual espresso machine for a fraction of the price.
❌ You regularly use plant-based milk: The AutoMilQ system worked best with dairy milk during our tests.
There’s a bit of an expectation when it comes to espresso machines that if you want the absolute best results, you need to learn the ways of the barista. However the Breville The Barista Touch Impress (sold in the UK as the Sage The Barista Touch Impress) is one mighty exception to this rule, and right now we think it’s the best espresso machine you can get.
It’s one of Breville’s most advanced espresso machines, guiding you through all the most difficult aspects of using a manual coffee machine. It combines features from our previous top pick, the Barista Express Impress, such as the compact integrated grinder, assisted tamping and auto-dosing, with the Barista Touch’s touchscreen and automatic milk frothing, to make a brilliantly user-friendly (and surprisingly compact) expresso machine that gives incredible results every time.
Our reviewer spent two months testing the Barista Touch Impress and came away suitably, well, impressed. For novices it’ll automatically take care of the entire process as well as enabling you to save your favorite settings for instant access, while those with barista skills will fined it easy to take more control of the process to achieve better results – you may find it harder than you’d expect to beat the Barista Touch Impress’s own output, though.
Read our full Breville The Barista Touch Impress review
The best budget espresso machine
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Buy it if
✅ You’re short of counter space: Measuring just 5.9in / 14.9cm wide, this is the ideal espresso machine for smaller kitchens.
✅ You’re on a budget: This is one of the most affordable espresso machines we’ve tested, but it doesn’t skimp on features or performance. The inclusion of a steam wand is particularly impressive.
Don’t buy it if
❌ You want a built-in bean grinder: Bean-to-cup espresso machines are expensive, so we’d suggest buying a separate grinder.
❌ You want pre-programmed settings: This machine gives you a few options (such as temperature), but the rest comes down to your technique.
Let’s say that what you want from the best espresso machine is the ability to experiment with tamping the coffee and dispensing the water, but you’re on a tight budget. In that case, the De’Longhi Dedica Style is one of this category’s more affordable espresso machines.
The Dedica Style is simple to use. It takes ESE pods or ground coffee, which means you can use it to make decaf coffee. On test, it created an intense espresso with a stable crema. It can brew two single espressos simultaneously, but placing two cups under the spout on such a compact machine proved tricky.
We were disappointed that the machine couldn’t make espresso straight after steaming milk. So if you’re planning to make several coffees with milk, you’ll need to brew all of the espressos before starting on the milk-based drinks. We also experienced some dripping after we poured espresso.
Read our full De’Longhi Dedica Style EC685 review
The best manual espresso machine
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Buy it if
✅ You want a slower morning routine: Making coffee with this machine is a thoughtful, meditative experience.
✅ You have the money: This is a premium espresso machine, with a price tag to match.
Don’t buy it if
❌ You’re in a hurry: During testing we found this machine’s boiler relatively slow to reach temperatures.
❌ You’re not in the US: Sadly this excellent espresso machine isn’t available internationally.
The Seattle Coffee Gear Diletta Bello+ is a new winner of our best manual espresso maker recommendation. It’s expensive, which is why we don’t recommend it for everybody, but it’s very impressive.
An upgraded version of the original Diletta Bello, it includes extra features like a shot timer so you can check that your espresso isn’t under- or over-extracted, a programmable pre-infusion mode, and an eco-mode for faster heating. This last point is particularly welcome, because the original machine took quite a long time to get up to temperature.
During testing, we found that the Diletta Bello+ turned espresso-making into a meditative experience, and with practice we were able to create consistently rich and smooth espresso. The steam wand is particularly well designed too, and able to create smooth microfoam from dairy and non-dairy milks (including oat milk, which is notoriously tricky).
The Seattle Coffee Gear Diletta Bello+ is only available in the US at the time of writing. If you’re somewhere else, we’d recommend instead the Sage the Barista Touch Impress, which is top in this guide.
Read our full Seattle Coffee Gear Diletta Bello+ review
The best automatic espresso machine
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Buy it if
✅ You value ease of use: This fully automatic espresso machine couldn’t be easier to use – just load up your beans, water, and milk, then press a button.
✅ You make several coffees daily: This espresso machine is a big investment, so you’ll need to use it frequently to justify the price.
Don’t buy it if
❌ Coffee-making is your hobby: If you want the tactile experience of making coffee, you can find a superb manual machine that will suit you better for much less cash.
❌ You mostly use plant based milk: The BCC13’s auto milk system is designed with dairy in mind, and doesn’t work so well with alternatives.
The Smeg BCC13 is a compact bean-to-cup espresso machine that handles every part of the process for you, from measuring and grinding the beans to frothing milk for cappuccinos and lattes. Just fill the water tank, add your beans to the hopper, and select your preferred drink using the set of buttons on top of the sleek chassis. You might need to refer to the manual the first few times, since each button can deliver two different drinks and the icons aren’t immediately self-explanatory, but that’s a pretty minor complaint.
Once that’s done, the BCC13 will set about brewing tasty, well extracted coffee that’s impressively consistent. The auto milk frother produces creamy, sweet microfoam when used with dairy milk, though (as Smeg itself warns you) it’s not so great at handling plant-based alternatives.
The whole machine is finished to a very high standard, and is a cinch to keep fresh. There are no awkward nooks and crannies where grounds can get stuck, and the one-minute quick clean cycle keeps things hygienic between full cleanings.
Read our full Smeg BCC13 review
The best small espresso machine
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Buy it if
✅ You enjoy lattes and cappuccinos: The Bambino’s steam wand is superb, particularly for a compact machine.
✅ You don’t want to spend ages cleaning: This machine purges its own steam wand automatically, which is a nice touch.
Don’t buy it if
❌ You want to use coffee pods: If you want to choose between grounds and pods, the De’Longhi Dedica Style EC685 is a better pick.
❌ You want to pull two shots at once: We found it tricky to put two espresso cups under the spout.
If you’re tight on space, then the Breville Bambino Plus offers similar features to the Gaggia Classic above but with a more compact footprint and a slightly more affordable price tag. On test, we found the Breville Bambino Plus – known as the Sage Bambino Plus in the UK – heated up in just three seconds, and took just 21 seconds to deliver a cup of espresso with body and a thick crema. Milk frothing was nice and easy too, with a choice of three temperature and three milk textures, and the metal steam wand was a classy touch.
If you prefer you can instead texturize your milk manually, and however you do things the Bambino Plus will automatically purge the steam wand by pumping water through it once you’re finished. This isn’t a machine for complete beginners – you’ll need to familiarize yourself with the art of choosing the right filter basket and ground coffee, as well as tamping the coffee down and trimming excess grounds – but once you learn its ways you’ll find it to be an impressive and capable espresso maker.
Read our full Breville Bambino Plus review
The best espresso machine for beginners
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Buy it if
✅ You want the barista experience: This compact machine is fully manual, so you’re in charge.
✅ You regularly make coffee drinks with milk: The Gaggia Classic has an excellent steam wand, and with a little practice you can foam dairy or plant milk to perfection.
Don’t buy it if
❌ You’re on a budget: There are cheaper manual espresso machines around – you’re paying extra here for build quality and style.
❌ You want an all-in-one espresso machine: The Gaggia Classic doesn’t have a grinder, so you’ll need a separate one.
The Gaggia Classic was our #1 espresso maker in 2021 and 2022 but it has since been knocked off its perch to make way for new machines. Whilst we do still think that it is one of the best espresso machines it is a little older than some of the others that we now feature in this guide. But it’s still a great choice.
Gaggia says it will produce a shot of coffee with a thick crema without experimenting with the coffee grind size, making it ideal for those who want to learn how to use an espresso machine before attempting to play barista. It also offers complete manual control over how much water is dispensed, allowing you to create the volume of coffee you want.
On test, we were impressed that the coffee was rich and intense. With all three filters, it had a stable crema that reformed when we sprinkled sugar on top. The built-in steam wand ensures you can make milk-based coffee drinks too.
Read our full Gaggia Classic review
How to choose an espresso machine
Espresso machines are some of the best coffee makers. They come in all shapes and sizes, including some of the best bean-to-cup coffee machines, and the best espresso makers help you achieve barista-quality results. They often include their own integrated bean grinder for your convenience but do bear in mind that that extra equipment adds bulk and often increases the price as well. If you’re looking for something fast, cheap and that doesn’t need a lot of counter space you might prefer a single-serve or pod coffee machine.
If espresso is definitely for you, the first decision is to choose whether you want an espresso machine that offers manual control over dispensing water or a device that takes on that work for you; the latter is probably better for those new to playing barista.
Next, consider if you want a machine that you can use with ground coffee, single-serve pods, or a mixture of the two. Coffee pods are less messy than using ground coffee. They can be handy if you occasionally want to make decaf coffee using the machine – but they don’t produce the thick, rich crema you get with freshly ground coffee.
If you regularly make espresso for two or more people, look for a coffee machine with a double spot on the tray that can fill two separate cups simultaneously. And if you like longer coffee drinks with milk, such as cappuccinos and lattes, choose an espresso machine with a built-in steam wand or factor in the cost of a standalone milk frother.
Finally, take note of the size of the espresso maker to see if you have sufficient room for it on your kitchen countertop – or, if you plan to store it away in a cupboard, consider its weight to see that you’ll be able to lift it easily.
If you’re on a budget, take a look at our guide to the best cheap coffee maker deals, too.
How we tested these espresso machines
We take testing espresso machines seriously and put each device through its paces to see if it can live up to its promises. We assess the quality of espresso produced by each machine, analyzing the flavor of the final drink; we look for a rich, intense shot of coffee that doesn’t taste bitter or burnt, along with a thick, stable crema that reforms after the sugar has been sprinkled on it.
The temperature of the espresso is also measured, checking for consistency from one cup to another, and we assess the noise level of the machine. If it has a built-in steam wand, we evaluate its ability to texturize both dairy and plant-based milk, looking for tiny bubbles that create a rich, smooth texture. Again, we assess whether its noise level is acceptable.
We also evaluate how easy an espresso machine is to set up and use, whether it offers enough manual control for those who want to take on the barista role, plus how much space it will take up on your kitchen counter. Finally, we consider if the water tank is removable for easy refills and how the machine looks.
Espresso machine FAQs
How do I make an espresso?
Espresso is made by passing water at high pressure through compacted ground coffee.
However, a set ‘recipe’, which usually refers to a ratio and brewing duration, is generally given by the roaster (the brands that roast and blend coffee beans). The most common recipe is 1:2 in 25 to 35 seconds, effectively turning each gram of ground coffee into 2g of liquid espresso in that period.
How compacted the ground coffee is will affect how quickly or slowly the espresso brews. If the coffee is too tightly packed, it will take longer to brew and be too strong; loosely compacted coffee means it will be dispensed too quickly and subsequently weak. Prefer a cappuccino, latte, or a flat white? Find out how to make your favorite coffee in our article.
If you’d like expert advice on making coffee-shop-worthy drinks at home, we have some great tips and tricks for you – and while you’re at it, check out our guide to the game-changing coffee maker trick that will ensure you never drink bitter espresso again.
How is an espresso machine different from a coffee machine?
An espresso machine differs from other coffee machines because it uses pressurized hot water passed through a disc of compacted coffee grounds called a puck. It’s possible to adjust the volume of water passed through the grounds and how tightly packed the coffee is to change the strength of the hot drink brewed.
Single-serve coffee machines, or pod coffee machines as they’re sometimes known, still use pressurized hot water, but the coffee is contained in a capsule or pod. The coffee machine punctures the capsule several times to allow the water to flow through the coffee ground to brew the drink. However, while some single-serve coffee machines let you adjust how much water is used to create different volumes of coffee, it’s impossible to tweak how compacted the grounds are.
Finally, drip coffee makers pass hot water through compacted coffee grounds. As a result, it’s not at the same pressure as when using an espresso machine, and there’s no set volume of water used. Instead, the brewing takes place until the water tank runs dry or the coffee maker is switched off. This creates a more traditional filter coffee rather than espresso.
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