No, you’re not having déjà brew: Picking out a coffee maker is no easy task! There’s a dizzying array of models on the market — from wallet-friendly finds to premium machines — and at the end of the day, a drip coffee maker boils down to some pretty simple technology: A water tank gets heated up, and the water drips (hence the name) onto a filter of ground coffee beans. These automatic coffee makers are pretty hands-off, save for pressing a few buttons to get your brew going.
When buying a drip coffee maker, your budget is likely a deciding factor in which model to buy. Drip coffee makers are available for as low as $10 and can go up to $500 or more.
Before selecting a drip coffee maker, think about features that are important to you. If your mornings (or whenever you drink coffee) tend to be pretty hectic, a machine with an automatic scheduling functionality might make you happy. Some fancier drip coffee makers even work with voice controls to brew your cup on command via Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and the like.
You also want to keep in mind how much coffee you or your household consumes. If too much coffee is never enough, or you have multiple java drinkers in your household, look for coffee makers with specs that offer larger capacities, like 10 cups or more.
Cleaning a coffee machine can be an endeavor, so we also appreciate drip coffee makers that feature self-cleaning modes to save you the trouble (or at least make cleaning your machine less of a pain). Other things to bear in mind are automatic shut-off options, carafe-type machines (thermal carafes are ideal to preserve your coffee’s hot temperature, while glass carafes may make for more fragrant coffee smells), and whether or not the machine works with K-Cups.
How We Chose
A lot of coffee was consumed in the writing of this article; we're pretty sure caffeine has now replaced the blood in our veins. To complete our list, we also tapped coffee pros, read countless customer reviews on drip coffee makers, and scoped out what other trusted sites like The Kitchn and Wirecutter had to say on the matter. Last but not least, we reached out to appliance companies and their reps to get the scoop on the latest and greatest models they’ve released.
It’s hard to argue with nearly 23,000 five-star Amazon reviews. But in case you need more convincing that this coffee maker reigns supreme, allow us to note that this Amazon’s Choice product has brew strength control (choose either regular or bold), churns out hot, perfectly brewed coffee every time, has automatic scheduling to make coffee for you whenever it fits your day, self-cleans, has 1- to 4-cup settings to meet your household’s consumption needs, among others.
Personally, we’re big fans of the Keep Warm temperature setting for those mornings when you aim to get your day started by 8 a.m., but sometimes fall a bit short.
In addition to the intuitive control panel, we’re also grateful for the Brew Pause option, which lets you pour yourself a cup of coffee before a brew cycle wraps up if you just can’t wait for your caffeine fix.
FYI: This coffee maker comes with a reusable gold-tone filter and a charcoal water filter to make sure your cup of coffee excels on the taste front, too.
For bang for your buck, you can’t do better than this Hamilton Beach drip coffee maker that has a front opening for the water reservoir for easy filling, a swing-out brew basket, and an automatic option cleaning cycle reminder.
Smart design means this coffee maker doesn’t take up much precious counter real estate, and nice tech offerings include a programming clock that lets you set the coffee time and strength of your brew, a 2-hour automatic shutoff, and an automatic pause option for serving in a jiffy.
The nonstick warming plate is also perfect for keeping your coffee hot if you aren’t drinking it right away in the morning but like the smell of coffee in your kitchen when you rise.
This high-tech coffee maker that launched last year has Wi-Fi-enabled “voice-to-brew” technology compatible with the SmartHQ app, as well as Alexa and Google Home, to make brewing that morning cuppa a total breeze.
Available in matte white, matte black, and stainless steel, this durable machine delivers barista-worthy mugs of coffee and features a warming plate to keep your coffee hot. We also appreciate the auto-brew feature that lets you program the machine to make your personalized coffee order every day at a specified time.
This number-one new release in coffee maker pots on Amazon is a veritable whiz for caffeine enthusiasts. Released in 2021, the dual coffee maker works with both drip brewing and single-serve pods, one of the only such coffee makers currently on the market.
Boasting a compact single-stack silhouette, the machine also has Brew Sense technology that automatically detects whether you’re using K-Cup pods or if you’ve loaded the filter. If you’re using a K-Cup or reusable pod, you can make a 6-, 8-, or 10-ounce cup.
Attention, Smeg appliance enthusiasts: This chic coffee machine is for you. It melds elements of mid-century modern design with convenient 21st-century features, such as auto-start and aroma control, so you can brew a cup as needed in line with your schedule and in either delicate or intense coffee strength. There’s also the handy option of turning off audible sound if you’re tackling a Zoom meeting while you brew your cup of joe.
This selection comes from James Hyslop of The Coffee Folk, a website devoted to coffeeshop-status coffee brewed from the comfort of home.
“For a long time, the Technivorm Moccamaster has been widely held as the go-to drip coffee maker in the specialty coffee movement. This stunningly simplistic coffee maker excels at making delicious well-extracted coffee,” says Hyslop, adding that without many extra features, all the money you spend goes into the quality of brewing. “This machine now has a reputation for lasting decades if well cared for and is a statement piece in terms of aesthetics,” he adds.
Bonus: It’s available in a dizzying array of colors to fit every kitchen décor theme.
Sleek, sturdy, and powerful, this drip coffee maker is what you would expect from top-notch housewares brand OXO. The elegant machine looks great on any countertop and we love all its thoughtful bells and whistles, from a double-wall thermal carafe to keep your beverage hot to a rainmaker showerhead to evenly distribute water over your coffee grounds. This Amazon’s Choice product has more than 1,000 five-star reviews, to boot.
There’s a lot to love about this wallet-friendly coffee maker. For one thing, the 5-cup carafe features measurement markings so you know just how much java you’re imbibing, and also features a comfy handle for pouring (no drips, either!).We also love that a permanent grounds filter is included, so you don’t need to use paper filters. The slim footprint makes this drip machine ideal for small kitchens and dorm rooms, too.
Perri O. BlumbergPerri is a New York City-born-and-based writer; she holds a bachelor's in psychology from Columbia University and is also a culinary school graduate of the plant-based Natural Gourmet Institute, which is now the Natural Gourmet Center at Institute Of Culinary Education.
This content is created and maintained by a third party, and imported onto this page to help users provide their email addresses. You may be able to find more information about this and similar content at piano.io
