Top 10 Drip Coffee Makers (Nov. 2022): Reviews & Buyers Guide

This decade has been the decade of a lot of things, including popularized social media outlets, new retro pants, and live videos of people wearing funny masks. But these things evolved and changed from something already established, much like the drip coffee maker. We have been enjoying coffee in many different ways here in the USA since the last century, some of which were borrowed from other countries. Mochas, espressos, Frappuccinos, cappuccinos, iced coffee, the straight black coffee, you just name it.

What makes coffee the go-to morning and energizing drink of the past hundred plus years is that it has been able to evolve with consumer needs. Back when only standard coffee pots were made, you’d often be sitting around a table with the whole family. Today, many of us don’t live like that and if we made full pots they’d most certainly go to waste.

Now, the awesome thing about drip coffee makers is that they vary over several brands and designs that have many different features. Some just think of the standard single serve coffee makers but we’ve gone far past that. Two cups, one cup, even twelve cups! All based upon your specific needs for the day.

There are even more complicated and specific features and capabilities that you can go with which can provide some consumer confusion for those of you who aren’t sure what to buy yet. To assist in your search, we’re going to provide you a list of the best drip coffee makers currently available on the market!

Why Should You Trust Us to Get the Best Drip Coffee Maker?

Over the last several years that we’ve been working on this website, we’ve compiled a list of around forty different drip coffee makers for our list. Out of the initial forty, twenty-one made it though the testing process which was an incredibly thorough and involved using each coffee makers features for an extended period of time to test both quality and durability.

We spent dozens of hours in online research beforehand and all of us used these machines as a community to truly test their effectiveness. It’s this kind of hard work and dedication that other websites lack at times. Sure, they’ll test out certain products briefly but then jump to wild conclusions as a result.

We aim to build a strong level of trust centered around the truth and our reasoning for said truth. Transparency is key when it comes to what we do and our aim is to get you the best drip coffee maker (filtered or filter-less) of 2017.

Keep all of this in mind as we move forward with this article. Our aim is to not promote any specific brand or product but to rather promote what we think you will like best based on our testing process. Far too many companies will create a weak test with minimal information and act as though that’s enough.

It’s not enough though, and we want you to know that our top rated automatic coffee machines are the best possible choices based on what was tested and what we believe is important when ranking the best coffee maker. But, before we get into all of that, you might be asking yourself…

Why Should You Get a Drip Coffee Maker?

There are several reasons why you should get the best drip coffee maker. The first and possibly most important reason is that they are very simple to use. A press of a button and you’re done in most cases! Another good reason to buy a drip coffee maker is that they’re generally pretty affordable. That’s not to say they don’t get pricey; they range from low, to mid, to high end products that are hundreds of dollars.

Still, if you know what you’re looking for, you can get the best drip coffee maker out there with great features without paying too much. Speaking of features, most drip coffee makers have programmable settings and various other aspects that make them even more convenient. So, ease of use, affordability, and awesome features are the reasons why you should be getting a drip coffee maker.

What Should You Consider to Get the Best Drip Coffee Maker?

Budget

Price is an important factor to consider when purchasing the best automatic coffee pot for you. As stated above, prices can range from low to high but even the low-cost options generally have the necessary features that still allow for the convenience that you expect with a quality product.

Size

This seems like a silly statement and you might be thinking “does size really matter if it works well?”. Well depending on your counter-space, size can be a very important factor. For instance, if you have minimal space but buy a huge drip coffee maker that you have no room for then you may have to leave it on the floor which kind of defeats the purpose, doesn’t it.

Brewing capacity

Do you live alone or are you part of a larger family? Do you entertain guests often? Are you a coffee-holic? Or, are you just an occasional consumer? The answers to each of these questions will help determine the brewing capacity that you will need for your particular coffee maker.

You might want to brew one cup in the evenings for that extra boost after work but you may also want several cups in the morning for you, your significant other, and your brother-in-law who happens to be crashing on your couch. These are all matters of brewing capacity and if you think you may ever need a large amount then you should go with a machine with higher capacity.

Filter

Yes, unless it’s instant coffee you will need to have some sort of filter. But, if you prefer to have an easier morning (and to be more environmentally conscientious in the process) then you may want to purchase a coffee maker with a built-in filter that just needs to be rinsed out.

Ease of use

What good is in the drip coffee maker for you if you haven’t the slightest clue how to operate it? For the technologically disinclined, easy-to-operate coffee makers are a much better option, which is an important factor to consider before making a purchase.

Cleaning

How easy a coffee maker is to clean can also be a make it or break it feature that you should keep an eye out for. Filter-less coffee machines are generally easier to clean. A pot with a narrow opening may provide difficulty in cleaning, and the exterior finish on some machines can collect fingerprints and smears easily. If this matters to you, prioritize this factor in your decision. Some machines even have self-cleaning.

Features

Programmable settings, different sizing options (coffee cup size to travel mug size), and automatic shutdown are all different features that coffee makers can have. In addition to these, there are other features that you may want to keep an eye out for depending on what you’re looking for. Some even have strong-brew buttons to get the most out of your grounds.

Things to Remember in Your Search for the Best Drip Coffee Maker

It’s important to keep in mind if this is a vital factor for you, that not every coffee maker has a program function. Be sure to check out the specs before purchasing a drip coffee maker and be sure you know what you want in terms of features.

If you’re expecting a coffee maker to just turn off then you’ll be in for a rude awakening on some models. Some have auto-shutoff but not all. Though there’s not really much of a chance of a coffee maker burning down your house it will certainly waste energy and burn any remaining coffee that’s been made.

This is an obvious one but one that I needed to mention just in case; if the filter is the wrong size then you can experience some spillage and/or sediment in your morning cup of Joe so be sure to get the correct size and type of filter.

Very few coffee makers have batteries. If you’re depending on its programming to turn your coffee pot on in the morning and the power goes out, you’re going to be disappointed. This is a minor inconvenience but one that still needs to be considered.

How We Picked and Tested

Using over thirty drip coffee makers in a span of four years, we have carefully studied the history of coffee culture in Oceania and painstakingly compiled a difficult but useful list. After countless prior considerations (okay not countless, but a lot!), we’ve tested and picked the very best products we encountered. Each of the products on our lists has its own pros and cons which we will detail in the reviews.

We tested each of the products for around two months to ascertain the very best drip coffee maker. They were used here on site by everyone on a daily basis so as to determine quality, performance, and durability.

We also considered how much each coffee maker costs, how well constructed each product was, how users felt along with how we felt, and how easy and effective the programming of the coffee makers was.

We also checked for specialty features that some users may find convenient, whether or not a coffee maker has a brew strength control, and whether or not it was easy for us to use. Keep all of this in mind as we continue with our review.

Our Top Ten Product List

In addition to the forthcoming review, keep in mind that we have a research report attached that you can view to see how we judged each product. We don’t like to hide our research and believe that you can benefit from it if you need to look further before buying.

The only thing that we ask before viewing our report is to just Like one of our social media pages listed below. That’s a small thing to be able to review the fruits of our labor that took two months of work and even longer to compile!

Our top pick: Cuisinart DCC-3200 Programmable Coffee Maker, 14 Cup

Number 1 Pick

product

Cuisinart DCC-3200 14-Cup

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Best Balance of Technology, Budget and Accessibility

The all-around best drip coffee maker with its 80 oz reservoir capacity, 5 options in cup size, charcoal filter for pure water, ice cold coffee option, different brew settings, automatic shut-off, plus a host of other features.

Why is this our top pick?

Well simply put, it is an amazing automatic coffee maker outfitted with the best balance of technology, budget, and accessibility. All in all, this is the single most impressive coffee maker that we tested which is why it holds our top place.

  1. It looks aesthetically pleasing with a sleek design (we used the silver finish) and is a great addition to any contemporary kitchen.
  2. This coffee maker is affordable, coming in at under $100 but still having features that are often seen on more expensive products.
  3. This coffee pot is well rated by virtually everyone who has purchased it. It consistently receives positive reviews, in fact it has the most positive reviews out of all of the coffee makers we tested.
  4. Speed – This machine can deliver a delicious hot (or cold) cup of coffee in under a minute.

Detailed Review

Cuisinart DCC-3200 is the textbook champion of coffee makers. It is a beautiful looking piece of equipment that really lit up our kitchen and made some of the best darn coffee we’ve ever had. We tried over 21 other coffee makers but this one really impressed on just about every front. But to get the best of it, you should first know how to make every type of coffee.

Value: Coming in at under a hundred dollars, this is a relatively affordable model which is especially true when you consider all of the features it comes with.

Performance- We used this coffee maker on a daily basis for around two months and never had any issues with its performance. It always made a great cup of coffee in under a minute and its programmable settings all worked as advertised.

Ease of use- With a wonderfully innovative LED screen and automatic shut off feature, this coffee maker was one of the easiest to use and it came with a detailed manual in case you weren’t familiar with coffee makers at all.

Features- removable 80oz reservoir, drip-tray is removable, 5 options in cup size plus an iced coffee option, pure water from charcoal filter, automatic shutdown, controls for temperature and brew-strength, and a back-lit LCD screen on a timer.

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Pros
  • 60 second coffee available
  • Back-lit LCD screen for ease of use
  • water-filtering system that uses charcoal
  • automatic shut-uff
  • different brew settings
  • works for icy drinks as well

Cons
  • not cheap
  • Drip-tray might loosen sometimes
  • side location of power-switch can be inconvenient

This is a must buy for anyone who wants the whole package. It has a low cost, is easy to operate, and is very effective at making great coffee. Considering the tests and user reviews, this is the all-around best drip coffee maker that you can purchase.

Runner-up pick: Mr. Coffee Optimal Brew PSTX91, 10-Cup Thermal Coffee Maker

Next in Line

product

Mr. Coffee Optimal Brew PSTX91

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Great Choice with Great Features

This machine has some great features like a self-cleaning button, optimal brewing temperature, grab-a-cup system, 24-hour programming, and a charcoal filter for added purity – all at an affordable cost.

Why is it Our Runner-up Pick?

This coffee maker from the renowned brand Mr. Coffee is still rated a great choice and only just falls behind our top pick. It has some great features, such as a self-cleaning button, optimal brewing temperature, and is programmable up to 24hours in advance.

It also received great reviews, but not nearly as many as our top pick. This automatic coffee machine is also an affordable model that sports exemplary performance at this price range.

Detailed Review

If not for how thoroughly impressive our top pick is, this one would be the one at the top of our list. This coffee maker is one that was hard for us to put in that number spot, but it still is an excellent choice for anyone looking to have a great coffee maker.

Value

It has a price of under $100 which is what we considered as an affordable price range. For the features that come with it, this makes it an awesome value.

Performance

Much like our top pick, this coffee maker was consistently used and was consistently great at making coffee. The self-clean button also works very well which adds an extra level of convenience.

Ease of use

This one is still a pretty user-friendly model but not quite as user friendly as our top pick. It has the self-cleaning option listed above as well as a stainless-steel build to clean it easily.

Features

This has a self-cleaning system and a grab-a-cup system which allows for someone to pause brewing to grab a cup and then continue. It also has an LED screen, programmable settings, a charcoal water filter for added purity, and a sleek design.

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Pros
  • Cost is affordable
  • Charcoal water filter for purity
  • Brewing temperature control
  • 24-hour programming
  • Gold tinted water filter (if that’s your thing)
Cons
  • Is not as well rated as our top pick
  • Some users complain about inconsistent brewing

While not quite the very best drip coffee maker we tested, this is still one solid piece of equipment that definitely goes the extra mile in terms of quality.

2nd Runner-up pick: Cuisinart Brew Central DCC-1200, 12 Cup

Runner Up

product

Cuisinart Brew Central DCC-1200 Coffee Maker

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All the Standard Features Plus Some

This machine has some great features like a self-cleaning button, optimal brewing temperature, grab-a-cup system, 24-hour programming, and a charcoal filter for added purity – all at an affordable cost.

Why is it our 2nd runner-up Pick?

This 12 cup coffeemaker is highly rated and ranks just behind our top pick and first runner up. There are some great modern features, including adjustable heater plate, 24-hour advance brew start and programmable auto shutoff. With this mixture of great features and some excellent reviews, we only placed this as our 2nd runner up as the price tag is a little higher.

This coffee maker has all the standard features here. Pour while brewing, wake to coffee, hot plate, 12-cups, and glass carafe. The next tier of features are also all here: Adjustable time and temp for hot plate, self-clean, 1-4 cup option, and charcoal-based water-filter.

Detailed Review

I like that there are so many colors to choose from. The brushed stainless is always popular, but I like red. I buy everything for my kitchen in red, black, or chrome/stainless, but prefer red. Diner décor you know.

This Cuisinart does make great coffee. It keeps it the temperature I like for up to four hours if that’s what I want. I enjoy this coffee maker, I really do. However, it’s not unanimous.

This model has had a lot of complaints. Specifically, there’s a switch, rather than a button, to turn the power on and off. This switch has had issues literally for years, but they’re still not all fixed and has caused multiple consumers to have rated it poorly. This is kind of a big deal since you need to turn the machine on. If it won’t turn on, it’s worthless.

There are also some complaints about the seals, not just on this model but on a variety of Cuisinart products. These seals can fail in different places causing different issues like foggy display, low output, or even a gigantic mess on your counter-top because all the water came out the bottom. Not good.

This is not my experience mind you. These are some experiences of other users, who have had a lot more time (usually a year or more) for these issues to occur. None of this means they occur frequently though. They say no news is good news because people complain about bad things, they don’t go tell everyone about a product being good. I know I have never left a review on a merchant site unless it was a bad one, I’m far from the only person that thinks this way.

So, don’t put too much weight on negative reviews for any product unless it is overwhelming. If you see a bad one or two and the same number of good, I’m sure there are at least 5 times as many happy customers proportionately that simply didn’t feel like passing it on. I write reviews all the time and I’m guilty when it’s my own shopping.

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Pros
  • selection of colors
  • self-clean
  • fully programmable
Cons
  • some bad customer experiences over longer periods of time.

Our budget pick: Mr. Coffee 4-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker

Wallet Friendly

product

Mr. Coffee 4-Cup Programmable

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Best Choice for the Budget Conscious

For a price point of around $25, this coffee maker features an on-off indicator light, a digital display, cold storage system, and it can be programmable. It’s good value for money for those who are looking for a great coffee maker.

Why is it Our Budget Pick?

Some people place streamlined features and pretty looks as the most important aspects of a coffee maker. Some argue that price is the most important factor and the lower the price the better the deal. Well, for the latter we have a budget pick. This product is essentially the best, cheap coffee maker we tested.

This automatic coffee maker is a great product with some awesome features at an extra affordable price, thus why we rated it our Budget Pick.

Detailed Review

Value

This is the most important factor when considering a budget pick and boy it does take the cake! At a price point of around $25, this coffee maker proves that good things still come at cheap price ranges.

Performance

This held up very well, especially considering its price point. Some of the testers were initially skeptical because they thought the price was an indicator that it was cheaply made. Yet, it worked as advertised and never showed any wear or tear from consistent use.

Convenience

This model is fairly simple so it ends up being generally user friendly. This being said, it also doesn’t have as many features as the more expensive models that can make coffee makers even more convenient.

Features

Even though it is missing some features that our more expensive pics have, this product has great features uncommon in this range. On/Off indicator light, cold storage system, digital display, pause, and program-ability are some features included in this model.

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Pros
  • Around $25
  • Features uncommon at this price
  • Digital display
  • Removable filter for easy cleaning
Cons
  • Plastic
  • Missing some features some people may prefer

Our advanced pick: Cuisinart DGB-900BC Grind & Brew Automatic Coffee Maker

Hi-Tech Pick

product

Cuisinart DGB-900BC Grind & Brew

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More Technical Specs for the Tech Savvy

This high end machine from Cuisinart features an auto shut-off after brewing, triple insulation on the thermal carafe.

Why is it Our Advanced Pick?

For those of you who enjoy some more technical specs with your drip coffee maker, we have listed our advanced pick. This one has all of the features that the ones above have as well as some other features that make this product stand out. This is a fairly expensive model but has the most features which sets it up as one of the best coffee makers that we encountered.

All in all, this is an amazing product that streamlines coffee-making into a technological art form. For consumers looking for the most features, this product is the best drip coffee maker choice for you!

Detailed Review

Budget

From a popular brand like Cuisinart, this is the most expensive of the coffee maker on the list so it may be out of reach for those of you who have a limited amount to spend on a coffee maker.

Performance

This being a higher-end product, this works as you would expect it to; very well to be exact. It’s many features never faltered and it always worked how it was supposed to.

Convenience

For those who are familiar with all of the features and how they work, this can be an amazing coffee maker. Yet, it does have a learning curve that can make it difficult to master, especially if you’re not technologically inclined.

Features

The most important top-rated features involved in this product are as follows; automatic shut off after brewing, thermal carafe with triple insulation, brew strength control, gold tone filter, charcoal water filter, and BPA free makes it a first-choice product for anyone. It also has a coffee bean grinder installed in the coffee maker itself which makes for an interesting added feature for you coffee connoisseurs who prefer to grind the coffee yourself.

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Pros
  • Several Features
  • Coffee bean grinder
  • BPA free
  • Charcoal water filter
Cons
  • A bit Pricy

List of 5 Other Drip Coffee Makers We Reviewed

No 6: Cuisinart Brew Central 12-cup Programmable Coffee Maker DCC-2650 Review

Bang for Buck

product

Cuisinart Brew Central 12-cup DCC-2650

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High-end Features at an Affordable Cost

This great machine can be yours without breaking the bank. Some of its impressive features are 1-4 cup option, flexible warmer temperatures, and variable keep-warm times. It’s highly flexible like that.

Think I’ve died and gone to Heaven. This machine has all the high-end features, without the high-end price. I’m so accustomed to the same old same old. Coffee makers shut off after 2 hours. Period. They use the same brewing strategy no matter how much water you put in to turn to coffee. And, the warming plate is either on or off. Never again!

This coffee maker changes all that, and it’s about time. Now, I can brew a smaller amount and still have it come out right. The 1-4cup setting allows me to optimize for just myself as well as when doing a whole pot when I have company over.

And when I’m going to take a while to drink it, I can set the warmer to keep the coffee at the ideal temperature and flavor for the time I’m going to need it. If I’m leaving for work in an hour, I don’t need the warmer to stay on for 2. When I’m slowly working my way through a whole pot, I’m going to need more like four hours of keep-warm time. This machine lets me adjust it.

Not only does it let me adjust the duration of the warmer’s function, but it also allows me to set it for different temperatures. Some prefer their coffee extra hot, others like to be able to drink it, not just sip it, right out of the pot, and others yet need to use that four-hour warmer setting and don’t want burnt taste at the end, so a low temp is best. Again, this unit lets me adjust that.

Now, some consumer feedback on this machine has been less than positive about its craftsmanship (some leaks reported), but I’ve encountered no issues, nor have many other users. There is a possibility the packaging isn’t ideal to protect in shipping so perhaps that’s the problem. If you encounter an issue, use the RMA for the site you bought it from, it’s why they exist.

All in all, this highly flexible coffee maker is a great buy. Coming in between 60 and 70 bucks, it’s easy to get all the features you don’t see on the slightly cheaper models, without breaking the bank. On a scale of 1 to 10, I rated it an 8.

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Pros
  • Flexible warmer temperatures
  • Variable keep-warm times
  • Setting for optimized small batches
Cons
  • some reports of leakage, but could be linked to packaging for shipment

No 7: OXO On Barista Brain 9-cup Coffee-Maker Review

Automatic Pick

product

OXO On Barista Brain 9-cup Coffee-Maker

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Best Computerized Coffee Maker

The OXO features a microprocessor-controlled brew cycle and a rainmaker water dispensing system, both of which work to produce uniform saturation and full flavor extraction.

You certainly get what you pay for here. This is far from a cheap coffee-maker, and you can taste the difference. There are yet more expensive ones out there mind you, and I doubt their coffee tastes any better. It’d be pretty difficult to improve on the taste using any sort of automatic coffee maker. One of the best drip coffee makers I’ve ever tried.

The reason for the difference in taste, and of course in price, is that it is computerized. Fully autonomous mind you just push one button or another, but computerized none-the-less. What this computer does is to attempt to mimic the manually made coffee of high-end coffee houses where water is slowly and evenly poured over the grounds.

Yes, you could go with several other varieties that also try to mimic that method. Percolators for instance do so via a percolator tube, filter basket, and a filter lid with small holes spread out to evenly moisten the coffee. Percolators aren’t entirely successful in the perfect brew due to the addition of heat to force the water up the tube to start with.

There’s also of course the french press which hastens the “pour-over” method via pressure, and several other automatic pots attempting to mimic as well. None of these are perfect, and you will realize this if you really know the difference between french press and drip coffee.

You know those special shower-heads so it’s like raining in the bathroom? Yeah, there’s one of those over the grounds in this thing too. Then to avoid the whole burning and scorching of hot-plates you get a thermal carafe to keep it hot after brewing.

All these features are great and accomplish their goals, but sometimes I think they might be going overboard. I’m sure there are much easier ways to still automatically make poured-over coffee, without the expense or intricacies in this. All in all though, fantastic coffee if you’ve got the 200 bucks.
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Pros
  • No scorched coffee on warmer
  • no grounds in the reservoir
  • amazing coffee flavor
  • can brew small or large batches
Cons
  • expensive
  • too many parts can go wrong
  • only 9 cups

No 8: Cuisinart DCC-1150BK 10-Cup Classic Thermal Programmable Coffee Maker Review

Emergency Pick

product

Cuisinart DCC-1150BK 10-Cup Classic

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Best Coffee Machine with Battery Backup

A unique feature is the battery backup that helps to save settings and restarts automatically in the event of a power interruption. This comes in handy in areas prone to power interruption.

This high-ish price (still under a hundred) coffee maker has some really great features. However let me state right off the top that I, like many other consumers, have much annoyance at the carafe when it’s time to pour. It’s always been a pet-peeve of mine when things made to pour, don’t. A spout should not dribble everywhere. Usually pouring faster helps but not with this.

That said, the features as I said are awesome. First you have the 1-4cup setting. This setting isn’t just for making small batches of coffee. It also makes your regular pots of coffee hotter. The reason for this is that to do a smaller batch the water has to be hotter to get the right result, and the brewer brews however much water you put in, not just up to 4 cups.

I also really like that it has a battery back-up. Granted, it’s only a minute, but that minute comes in quite handy. Living in the country, we have a lot of power-flickers during inclement weather so we put a lot of things on a UPS (uninterruptible power supply) but they’re not cheap. They’re also not safe around water so not going near a coffee maker. This battery saves settings and restarts after power is back (not continue brewing on battery-power)

And last but not least, I’m happy this has a self-cleaning process. Coffee makers are notoriously hard to clean aside from their carafes so this is a god-send. This unit also has thermal carafe, 24hr programming, warmer, and it beeps when done, but those are all pretty common features. Less than $70, this would be great, with a different pot.

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Pros
  • battery back-up
  • self-cleaning
  • 1-4cup brew function
Cons
  • carafe dribbles too much
  • higher than average price

No 9: Braun Brew Sense Drip Coffee Maker KF7150 Review

Aesthetic Pick

product

Braun KF7150BK Brew Sense Drip Coffee Maker

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Beautifully Designed with Great Features

The Braun boasts of a 1-4 cup option and brew strength selector, a self-cleaning option, adjustable hot plate temperature and timer, plus a large-type bright display that’s great for night brewing.

Simply beautiful. To me, this is exactly what all drip coffee makers should be. It’s twice what I usually pay for a machine, but I am cheap. Less than $80 it definitely beats out similarly priced units, cheaper ones, and some hundred-plus dollar units. The epitome of features I personally look for. There’s also the self-cleaning, which I don’t actively seek but I do greatly enjoy.

The option to brew 1-4 cups without flavor compromise. This small-pot option can be used on bigger batches as well if you like really hot coffee. On that note, this baby also has my favorite feature on any machine: brew-strength. What this does is one of two things. Either you get stronger coffee from your regular pot, or, you use less grounds to make a regular pot and save money.

Then we have the programming. This one doesn’t just have the basic option to have your coffee brewed when you wake up, it also lets you adjust the duration and temperature of the warming plate. This has many benefits. When keeping coffee warm for say 4 hours, you want a lower temp or you get burnt coffee. If only using for an hour might want hot, or you just like hot.

Cone-shaped filter and a coffee scoop. Okay, so the scoop isn’t necessary but it is nice to have rather than whatever is around. (We usually use a half cup measuring cup heaped up twice. I think it’s half cup at least) But the cone filter, that’s a great aspect. See, a cone acts similar to the way pour-over coffee works, or a plain funnel. Focusing the coffee and the water in one place produces a nicer flavor and is more efficient on coffee (save money again.)

Note: There’s a thermal-carafe version of these available, but from what I can tell the carafe is the ONLY difference, except the fifty dollar price hike. I prefer glass.

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Pros
  • Cone filter
  • 1-4 cup option and Brew Strength selector
  • Self-cleaning
  • Adjustable hot plate temp and duration
  • Large-Type bright display. Visible at night or without glasses
Cons
  • A bit expensive

No 10: Bonavite 8-cup Carafe Coffee Brewer BV1900TS Review

Exceptional Pick

product

Bonavita BV1900TS 8-Cup Carafe Coffee Brewer

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Makes a Fantastic Cup of Coffee

This creates flavorful coffee by heating water to the ideal brewing point of coffee. It also boasts of a one-touch brew operation with auto-off, optional pre-infusion mode, and a durable carafe.

Let me start by saying YES! This machine makes an absolutely fantastic cup of coffee. The flavor is up there with machines costing two or three times as much, and along-side the “better” brewing methods as well. The price does show it, for around $140.

Moving on, there’s a reason why the coffee tastes so great. This machine creates and explicitly uses water at very specific temperatures, in the 5-15 degree below boiling range. Most automatic coffee makers are 10-30 degrees further below that. This temperature is I guess scientifically backed as the ideal brewing point for coffee.

It then takes that ideal-temperature water, and it spreads it out wide over the coffee grounds, which are also spread out wide, so the most grounds get wet at the same time and for the same duration, rather than the middle getting soaked non-stop and the sides only when it starts to get backed-up (like typical machines.)

After that, the beautiful wonderful coffee comes out into the thermal carafe (there is a glass carafe option though, somewhere.) This is where the one issue besides price comes in. This thermal carafe…isn’t really all that thermal. The coffee doesn’t stay HOT all that long in it, though it does stay warm. Warm coffee isn’t really ideal though, so let’s go for hot. I bet the glass carafe plus warmer work just fine.

In conclusion my recommendation is to get this machine, if you can afford it, but get the glass carafe, or find a different thermal to replace this one. There are some recommendations for this on the Amazon page for it in the reviews. The coffee is fantastic, the features are simple to use and work well. Just don’t use the carafe except to pour.

Check Customer Reviews on Amazon!

Pros
  • Exceptional Flavor
  • Special feature to optimize fresh-ground
  • Extremely simple to use
Cons
  • Thermal carafe doesn’t keep coffee hot long

A List of Other Products We Tested

Care and Maintenance

So, you’ve gotten the best drip coffee maker having the right pot size or single serving system, with all the right reasons to buy such type of coffee machine. Now that you’ve made that purchase, you can just keep brewing some coffee without any compromise in the flavor, right? Wrong! Care and maintenance is an important factor most forget about. To get the most out of your coffee maker, you need to continuously upkeep your machine. Below I will list some of the best ways to do so.

  1. Clean the filters- Whether you are dealing with the standard paper filters, the built-in filters, or k-cup filters, it is always best to clean and/or change them consistently. Not only will flavor be compromised by improper filtration but it can also effect some aspects of your health i.e. the cholesterol issue listed above.
  2. Clean the carafe regularly- The carafe is just a fancy word for the coffee pot/pitcher. It can get nasty which is why it is best to clean it regularly as well. Bacteria can build-up from prolonged usage, and a dirty carafe can also affect the taste.
  3. Descale regularly- You can descale a coffee maker by filling the water reservoir with a solution of equal parts water and white vinegar. Brew this concoction halfway, shut off the machine, and leave it for 30 minutes. Then be sure to rinse and repeat as necessary.
  4. Brew water only for two cycles- This step is a simple maintenance option that you can use in addition to the others above. I would recommend that you brew water for two cycles in your machine about once a week.

Looking Forward

Like I mentioned when I first started this, coffee makers have evolved over time to make them more complex and convenient for consumers. This includes in a technological sense. The more advanced that technology gets, the cheaper coffee makers with certain features will get. Here are some features that make coffee brewing easier and more user friendly than ever.

  1. Wi-Fi connection- For those of us lucky enough to have a coffee maker as fancy as this, you can set up a wi-fi connection and control it from your phone. Who needs something like that? Well, if you have your coffee maker programmed for one cup every morning but your mother-in-law is staying and is a coffee lover too, you can change it from the comfort of your own room, at the library, or even at work. Talk about convenient!
  2. Alexa integration- Alexa has been making waves ever since it was created and for good reason; not only can it make your life easier by utilizing simple voice activation but it also makes you feel like you’re a part of a cool sci-fi show. Some coffee makers are integrated with Alexa, resulting in a convenient experience for the consumer and settings/features that can all be controlled by voice.
  3. Adjustable settings via app- Much like the wi-fi connection listed above, some coffee makers can be controlled via an app in iOS or android phones that allow you to control programming and settings.
  4. Progress alerts- This is a nifty little convenience some advanced coffee makers have that allow you to know the progress of your morning energy. “Half-way done” or “your coffee is now finished” are all examples of progress alerts, which you can of course adjust in your settings.
  5. Intelligent alerts- If you’re anything like me, then you might have a tendency to procrastinate and/or be forgetful; I do both which can be a dangerous combination. Enough about me though, let’s talk about how that can be fixed! With intelligent alerts on your coffee maker, you can be notified when it needs to be cleaned, descaled, etc. It will even continue to notify you daily until it’s done, so you have no excuse for not doing it.

Wrapping it up

As it is plain to see, coffee makers vary a great deal from one another. From the budget choices to the advanced options to the best all-around option, coffee makers have several different and specific features that cater to their individual coffee drinking needs. Hopefully with the information we have provided for you, you can make the best decision and enjoy all the rewards of drinking coffee.

Which option best suits you? Are you a tech savvy advanced coffee maker person or a coffee enthusiast on a budget? Let us know what decision you make and what you think of our picks. Also, be sure to like one of our social media pages to get access to our in-depth report for even more information to help you make this decision.

Check All The Discounted Coffee Makers!