8 Best Espresso Machines for Robust, Smooth Shots (2025)

Pair this machine with the right beans and you’ll have everything you need to create the perfect cup of espresso each and every morning—and speaking of beans, you can buy pre-ground coffee beans, of course, but to get the freshest, tastiest coffee, you’re best off grinding at home. Pair the Breville Bambino Plus with a Baratza machine like the beloved Sette 30: a well-made, durable burr grinder.

Most Precise Espresso Machine

Breville Barista Express Impress Espresso Machine

This is the at-home espresso maker of all at-home espresso makers. We love the earth-tone colorways available, like dark navy blue and grayish-white sea salt, to make this coffee maker a standout accessory in your kitchen. It has full barista-grade capabilities so you can create a gourmet latte without having to drop $7 at a trendy coffeeshop. “Though the display gadgets might look complicated, it’s not much harder to operate than a regular drip coffee maker,” Joseph says. The intelligent dosing feature automatically calculates and adjusts the amount of ground coffee based on your last grind and tamp, and the precision measurement feature autocorrects your next setup, so you don’t have to do the guesswork of manually measuring your grounds.

Best Affordable Espresso Machine

Nespresso Vertuo Lattissima Coffee & Espresso Maker

The Nespresso Vertuo Lattissima can brew a variety of sizes, including espresso, double espresso, gran lungo, mug, XL (12 ounces), and an 18-ounce carafe. In addition to one-touch coffee and espresso brewing, the user-friendly machine has three different one-touch buttons for making cappuccino, latte macchiato, and hot foam. Regarding the Vertuo Lattissima’s capacity, it has a 54-ounce water tank, 15-ounce milk jug, and the used capsule compartment can hold 10 small capsules or six large ones.

Luckily, for having such generous containers, the machine doesn’t take up much space, and the matte black and glossy design looks stylish on any countertop (though it’s also available in white). The machine only uses Nespresso Vertuo capsules, but this line of capsules is extensive and includes blends such as roasted hazelnut, sweet vanilla, golden caramel, and rich chocolate.

Best Touch Screen Machine

Breville Barista Touch Espresso Machine

The Bambino’s upgrade, the Barista Touch, is a big step up in price, but it comes with a grinder and has a more extensive interface for those looking for a more advanced home espresso machine. The touch screen, though fairly advanced in what it lets you do (like saving eight different coffee settings, so each person in your household can cue up their favorite espresso drinks), is fairly intuitive. No need to spend hours deciphering YouTube tutorials, a quick browse of the Breville manual is all you need to start grinding, pulling, and frothing with ease.

Best Pod Machine

Nespresso Essenza Mini Coffee & Espresso Machine

If you’re willing to forgo traditional espresso for the ease and cost efficiency of a pod machine, the Nespresso Essenza Mini is an excellent choice that consistently yields great espresso. This baby is also compact: The dimensions are relatively compact—just about 13 inches high and 8 inches wide—but the removable water tank holds 20.3 ounces, so you won’t be refilling after every cup. You’ll get the basics like smooth espresso and lungo, but don’t expect anything frivolous that requires a milk frother, you’ll have to buy this accessory separately. A frothing wand and a small stovetop milk pot are an alternative. Both are considerably easier to clean, and the milk pot can be used to froth milk and serve as a butter or sauce warmer as well.

Best Stovetop Espresso Machine

Amazon

The aluminum Bialetti moka pot has been around since 1933 and it is more than likely you’ve seen it in many a kitchen before. It uses steam to create a rich, deeply flavored, concentrated cup of coffee or espresso. A Bialetti is also a cinch to use and can brew three espresso cups. Just fill the central compartment with grounds and the bottom compartment with water. Then, wait a few minutes as the pot reverse-brews your coffee grounds, pushing coffee up into the top chamber. Just be sure to pour into another vessel (a mug or, if you’ve made more than one cup, a waiting thermos) as soon as the process is complete to avoid the dreaded burned taste moka pot coffee can take on when it lingers on the stove or in the pot too long.

Best Travel Espresso Machine

AeroPress Original All-in-One French Coffee Press

If you usually drink French press at home and have been toying with an entry-level espresso machine, try the AeroPress as an intermediate step. You’ll be hooked on the smoothness of the coffee, as you totally bypass the acidity French press develops from a long brewing process.