Among all the best coffee machines, bean to cup coffee machines makes the best replacements for barista-quality coffee, saving you money in the long term. A Modern Kitchen has made sure to find you the best bean-to-cup coffee machine.
If you're considering how to choose a coffee machine, you're a short step away from enjoying your favourite style of coffee from the comfort of your own home. If you are an avid coffee drinker and want to recreate that perfect cup of joe without leaving the house, here are some of the best bean-to-cup coffee machines for your kitchen and what you should consider before you buy.
Consider what type of coffee is your favourite. If you prefer an easy espresso, there's no point in buying a machine with plenty of luxurious and additional features - bean to cup or even a filter coffee machine may better suit your taste. However, if you prefer cappuccinos or lattes, a milk steam wand would be pretty handy.
Best Bean-To-Cup Coffee Machine At A Glance:
• Best luxury bean to cup coffee machine: Sage The Oracle™ Touch – View on Sage
• Best budget bean to cup coffee machine: De'Longhi Magnifica Automatic Bean-to-Cup Coffee Machine – View on Amazon UK
• Best bean to cup coffee machine for bean variety: Melitta CI TOUCH F630-102 Compact Bean-to-Cup Coffee Machine – View on Amazon UK
Different types of coffee need varying grind levels to get the correct intensity, flavour and brew. So if you prefer a weaker or stronger cup of coffee, it's important that your machine has adjustable grind settings. Scroll to the FAQs for more brew-how, and get to know your beans better.
Best Bean-To-Cup Coffee Machine 2023
Best luxury bean to cup coffee machine
www.sageappliances.com
If you want to splurge on a bean to cup coffee machine, the Sage The Oracle™ Touch is the one to do it. With this product, you'll feel as if you have your own personal barista, it has an excellent build quality with a premium feel to it. We also love the LCD touchscreen, it's super user-friendly and intuitive to use.
Customer review: "Purchased the Oracle Touch after owning the Duo Temp Pro for a couple of years. I eventually decided to upgrade after watching reviews on Youtube, love it. Very simple setup and use from the included instructions and the built-in tutorials on the screen. Lots of excellent features are available via the touch screen, or you can also use features manually if you want finer control. Integrated grinder and auto tamping is fantastic and simple to use. Drink selection is also simple and can also be customised with your own settings under your favourite icon on the screen.
Steam wand auto purge is an excellent feature as well. A massive water storage tank at the rear that can be filled via a flap on the top saves you from having to pull out the machine to refill it. Pull out the large drip tray and twist the knob and the machine glides around the worktop on wheels, making for easy cleaning. I was thinking of getting the Oracle, but now I'm glad I got the Touch. Once the grinder is dialled in, it makes consistently good coffee every time. Well worth the money in my opinion."
Pros
- Water storage tank easily accessible
- Easy to clean
- Consistent coffee quality
Cons
- Need enough worktop space
Best budget bean to cup coffee machine
If you're in the market for a new bean-to-cup coffee machine, but you don't want to stretch your budget, we highly recommend the De'Longhi Magnifica Automatic Bean to Cup Coffee Machine. It's super easy to use, and it creates an excellent cup of coffee, so you can enjoy an expertly brewed cup with your own fair hands. This bean-to-cup coffee machine is incredibly popular on Amazon, so don't take our word for it, take one of the hundreds of glowing reviews.
Customer review: "The machine itself is easy to set up. Make sure it is switched on at the back and the steam knob is set to the 'off' position. Read the instructions carefully although most of the factory settings are good enough to start with. I have used a few types of beans although I keep on coming back to Lavazza Qualita Rossa Coffee Beans 1kg. Espresso is nice. I make cappuccinos for my son with it. The transition from coffee to steam is seamless but from steam to coffee takes many minutes. Make sure you brew your shot of espresso BEFORE you froth your milk. Otherwise, the frothed milk would go cold/ flat while you wait for the coffee to be brewed."
Pros
- Height adjustable spout for larger cups
- Affordable for high performance
- Slim design
Cons
- Can scratch easily
Best bean to cup coffee machine for bean variety
This sleek Melitta CI TOUCH F630-102 Compact Bean to Cup Coffee Machine is super versatile and handy as you can put two different types of coffee beans in and select the one you'd prefer while making the coffee. It additionally froths milk quite well, so if you love your cappuccinos or lattes, this is a great pick.
Customer review: "I've had the Melitta CI touch coffee machine for three days now and I feel I know the machine well enough to review. Day one was all about the first cleaning and initial first run through all the recipes. Was wired to the moon after all the coffee I drank on the first day. The second day I tinkered with my recipes, it was only then I realised how good the machine really was. I was able to make the Latte Macchiato (which was only OK on the first go) exactly like a Costa Latte. Today, all I had to do was go to the machine, press two buttons and I had my latte in less than two minutes. I'm so glad I spent that extra few pounds to make sure I got the quality I was looking for."
Pros
- Great for strong coffee
- Regular self-cleaning
- Fairly quiet
- Compact
Cons
- Settings need to be programmed
Best slimline bean-to-cup coffee machine
If your kitchen already has Smeg products and you're loyal to the brand, then this Smeg BCC02 Bean To Cup Coffee Machine is a no-brainer to add to your collection. Even if you don't own a Smeg product, this bean-to-cup machine is a great mid-range appliance which includes features like a sophisticated thermo-block heating system to allow faster switch-on times and precise water temperature control for brewing, steam and hot water.
Customer review: "I have used many different bean-to-cup machines over the years and the last few went on to Nespresso. Decided to go back to b2c. After looking around for some time I came across this Smeg one. One of the smaller beans to cup about, modern clean looking well it is Smeg. I read the reviews and the one thing I do agree with is to read the instructions FIRST. I now have mine set just the way I want it, single espresso double espresso and 150cl. The machine heats up quickly so no hanging around, flushes each time it goes on and automatically off. Worth the money and I have tried a few beans from Waitrose and think I will stick to their house blend. Good all around."
Read our full SMEG BCC02 Bean To Cup Coffee Machine Review
Pros
- Stylish and compact
- Quick change between making coffee and steam
- Removable drip tray
Cons
- Bean container needs replenishing often, and sensor light can be temperamental
Best bean to cup coffee machine for personalised drinks
www.sageappliances.com
One of the best things about going for a coffee break is getting to order different types of coffee we can't usually do at home, whether it's an extra strong latte or a frothy cappuccino. Act like your own barista as this Sage, The Barista Touch™, will do it all for you. The touchscreen display has a pre-programmed coffee menu where you can easily adjust the strength, milk texture and temperature to suit your taste, and it will save up to six personalised coffees.
Customer review: "I feel like a professional Barista and I love it. This machine is so fantastic. It's a very stylish appliance and fits in really well with my appliances. There are lots of amazing parts of this machine but my favourite has to be the screen where you can choose which coffee you want to make. It's very easy to use and it is easy to clean as well, the grate at the bottom catches all of the overspill and accidents which is really cool especially when you are practising.
"It's really awesome to be able to froth the milk up so easily and I am slowly able to do some designs in my coffee. It makes it so much more enjoyable to make my coffee now. I can't wait for more family and friends to come round, not only will they be super impressed at the machine, they will love to try my lovely new coffee-making skills."
Pros
- Easy to set up
- Works with both pre-ground and coffee beans
- Overspill tray
Cons
- Steam wand needs regular descaling if in a hard water area
Best bean to cup coffee machine for small kitchens
If you love americanos or black coffee, this De'Longhi Dinamica, Fully Automatic Bean to Cup Coffee Machine may just be the one for you. Drinks can be fully customised in terms of aroma, temperature and volume thanks to the "my menu feature". The grinder can additionally be manually adjusted so you can get a finer or a coarser grind.
Customer review: "It took me some time to finally decide to purchase this machine, partly because of the sheer number of machines out there and also because I couldn't find many reviews for this specific machine. So after some comparison work, I jumped in. So glad I did, great machine, makes fantastic Expresso, Long, Regular Coffee, Late and Cappuccino. I have programmed it to extract specific sizes of Coffee and Expresso for my own cups/preferences.
"Also it warns you when it's due to be cleaned and takes you through the whole process. I purchased the water filters and descaler and have used them with no issue. Afterwards, I poured the descaling/water solution that had passed through the machine into my kettle and it cleaned that a treat as well. You won't be disappointed with this machine, you will however consume too much coffee as a result, because they taste so good."
Pros
- Slim and compact
- Great for black coffee drinkers
- Consistently good brew
Cons
- Rinse and clean cycle is long
OUR VERDICT: What is the best bean-to-cup coffee machine?
When it comes to affordability, but still plenty of functions to deliver a perfect cup of coffee every day, A Modern Kitchen recommends the De'Longhi Magnifica Automatic Bean to Cup Coffee Machine. Just breaking the £300 mark, the De'Longhi coffee machine has an average of 47,000 reviews on Amazon, with 76 per cent five out of five stars.
If you have a bigger budget, the best luxury coffee machine option would be Sage The Barista Touch, with the ability to add up to six personalised drinks with strength and taste to your liking, it's like waking up in the morning and arriving in your own coffee shop, only it's in your kitchen.
FAQs
Why buy a bean-to-cup machine?
For those who love espresso but don't want to save some money instead of buying it from a café every day, with one of these machines, you can truly make a professional, barista-style cup of coffee - it just takes a little bit of practice. Bean-to-cup machines are also more eco-friendly as you won't have to buy new pods every couple of days, as the beans are ground exactly for each cup, so the coffee taste fresh and aromatic. TOP TIP: You can even recycle the coffee grounds on your compost heap.
Is drinking coffee healthy?
We can't deny that for some, coffee is an essential part of our lives and daily routine. It helps us feel more awake, be more productive and stay alert throughout the day. There are also plenty of health benefits too. BBC Good Food says it may "help you live longer, it can boost your metabolism, and it may support your brain function". It's important to note that according to the NHS, pregnant woman should limit their caffeine consumption to "200mg per day".
Are bean-to-cup machines worth it?
If you're an avid coffee drinker, then it is certainly with considering the one-off investment. These machines give you barista-quality coffee on a daily basis, and after the initial cost, it will effectively save you money as you won't be paying for your daily coffee or pod refills. There are even budget coffee machine options that can still deliver a good cup.
Natalie Corner is the Commercial Content Editor across the Specialist Portfolio for Bauer Media. She specialises in all things coffee and tea related for A Modern Kitchen. When she's not hopped up on caffeine she's testing the latest space-saving hacks to organise her small kitchen.