Buying guide · spending less
The cheapest machine on the shelf is often the most expensive way to end up with good espresso, because the number on the box leaves out the grinder, and the grinder is not optional.
Only machines in the budget and mid price bands are eligible here, and the ranking does something the price tag does not: it rewards machines that include a grinder. That is not a thumb on the scale, it is arithmetic. A machine with no grinder cannot make espresso on its own, and the burr grinder you would have to add is a real purchase that the sticker never mentions.
We do not publish live prices anywhere on this site, for a reason we would rather state plainly: Amazon's prices move constantly, and a figure we captured last month is a number that has gone stale. Every machine carries a price band instead, which is a category rather than a quote, and every buy button goes to the live listing where the only price that counts is shown.
The honest summary of this page is that the two genuinely cheap machines in our catalogue are both compromises, and that the best value is one band up, where a grinder comes included and the machine is still making good coffee in five years.
The picks
A burr grinder, PID temperature control and a pressure gauge in one box. Bought separately those three things cost more than this machine does, which is why it still outsells machines launched a decade after it. If your budget can stretch to this band at all, this is the point on the curve where money stops buying convenience and starts buying better coffee.
It has PID temperature control, which is remarkable at this price and the reason it makes more consistent shots than anything else in the budget band. It is still a machine that needs a grinder next to it and a steam wand you have to learn, and within those limits it is the least compromised cheap espresso machine we have reviewed.
A steel body, a full commercial 58 mm portafilter and a parts ecosystem that means this machine gets repaired rather than binned. The purchase price is only half the value argument: people are still using and modifying these a decade in, which makes the cost per year lower than machines that look cheaper today.
The shortlist
| # | Machine | Value | Espresso | Editor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Breville Barista Express Semi-Automatic | 9 | 8 | 7.7 |
| 02 | Breville Barista Express Impress Semi-Automatic | 8 | 8 | 7.7 |
| 03 | Philips 3200 Series LatteGo Super-Automatic | 7 | 6 | 6.7 |
| 04 | Breville Bambino Plus Semi-Automatic | 8 | 7 | 7.5 |
| 05 | De'Longhi Magnifica Evo Super-Automatic | 7 | 6 | 6.7 |
| 06 | De'Longhi La Specialista Arte Evo Semi-Automatic | 7 | 7 | 6.9 |
| 07 | Gaggia Classic Evo Pro Semi-Automatic | 8 | 8 | 7.7 |
| 08 | CASABREWS 3700 Essential Semi-Automatic | 8 | 5 | 6.0 |
How to choose
Before comparing two machines, add the cost of the grinder each one needs. A machine with a decent built-in burr grinder is competing not with the sticker price of a grinderless machine but with that machine plus a real grinder, and a blade grinder does not count: it produces a mix of dust and boulders that will make any espresso machine taste bad. This single adjustment changes the answer for most budget shoppers.
Below a certain price most machines use a simple thermostat that overshoots and undershoots, which is why the same beans and the same grind produce a sour shot one morning and a bitter one the next. PID control keeps the brew temperature in a narrow band, and a budget machine that has it will beat a pricier one that does not, for the thing you actually notice in the cup.
Cheap machines lean on dual-wall baskets that manufacture crema regardless of your grind. Helpful at the start, a ceiling forever. Check whether the machine accepts a standard single-wall basket, because that is the difference between a machine you outgrow in three months and one you can keep improving on.
A plastic housing on a budget machine is a sensible cost saving. A plastic portafilter, a plastic group head or a plastic steam wand is where cheap machines actually fail, because those parts cycle between hot and cold every day. If you can only check one material on the spec sheet, check the portafilter.
The most common budget mistake is not overspending, it is buying something that cannot make the drink you wanted and replacing it within a year. If the honest budget cannot reach a machine that makes espresso you will enjoy, a good manual brewer plus a decent grinder produces genuinely excellent coffee for less, and the grinder carries over when you do buy an espresso machine.
Small and cheap pull in different directions: some of the smallest machines here are mid-band, and some cheap machines are surprisingly bulky once the grinder is beside them. The compact guide filters on measured width and depth instead, which is the better page if the counter is what is limiting you.
FAQ
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