Best Value Coffee Maker For Office, Home & Travel

Choosing the best affordable coffee maker is no different than choosing any other coffee maker, except that you have an upper limit to your budget.

You still want to buy one that suits your lifestyle, your household size, and how you like your coffee.

How Do You Take Your Coffee?

Cheap coffee maker is a pretty broad category, so this list includes a huge variety of coffee maker styles. That might feel overwhelming, but it’s a good thing! There’s a best budget coffee maker to suit every type of coffee lover.

So What Kind Of Coffee Lover Are You?

• If you prefer a Mild-Tasting Coffee with a smooth mouthfeel, one of the automatic drip coffee makers is going to be your cup of tea (or a cup of coffee, I suppose).
• You might like a Small and Strong Shot of Coffee that’s almost more like espresso, the AeroPress or Sowtech coffee makers are going to float your boat.
• If you like a Rich Coffee with a heavy body, the French press is your perfect brewer.

Another thing to consider is how much variety you enjoy in your coffee drinking.

If you like to mix it up a lot, you might want to consider one of the pod-style coffee makers. This way, you can easily try different flavors or even make tea or hot cocoa to suit your mood.

Are You Brewing For A Crowd Or Just You? Best Value Coffee Maker To Buy Today

The number of people you need to serve should play a significant role in helping you choose your ideal cheap coffee maker.

If you need to serve a crowd, it makes sense to opt for a coffee maker with a 10-cup or higher capacity.

This will save you a lot of time and hassle versus making ten consecutive AeroPress or espresso shots. On the other hand, if you mostly brew for just you, a smaller capacity or single-cup coffee maker makes sense.

These little coffee makers are faster, more energy-efficient, and less expensive.

Then there’s the situation where you need both a coffee maker that can serve one as quickly as it can serve 10. In this case, there are two practical choices.

The first option is to consider a single-serve pod-based brewer like a Keurig. These are wildly popular in office settings. Everyone can brew their own K Cup and get exactly the flavor of coffee they want. And pod-style coffee makers are so fast to brew and easy to clean that it’s not an inconvenience to brew many cups of coffee in a row.

The other option is to get a large-capacity automatic brewer that has a mode for small volume brewing. Many drip coffee makers these days have a feature that adjusts the brew cycle when making less than 4 cups of coffee.

Ground Coffee Or Coffee Pods?

We’re dedicated to great coffee, which means we always advise that you buy whole bean coffee and grind it yourself right before brewing.

Preferably with a good- quality burr grinder, or you can opt for a grind and brew coffee maker like these amazing machines instead.

Glass Or Thermal: A Tale Of Two Carafes – Best Value Coffee Maker To Buy Today

Automatic drip coffee makers usually come bundled with a carafe, which can be either glass or thermal. A thermal carafe is essentially a carafe-shaped thermos.

It’s made from double-wall stainless steel with vacuum insulation, so it keeps the coffee hot without relying on an additional heat source .

There are pros and cons for each carafe style, so you should weigh them all when choosing your coffee maker.

1. Price: 

Glass carafes are cheaper than thermal carafes, so it’s actually somewhat rare to find an inexpensive coffee maker that comes standard with a thermal carafe.

2. Durability:

A stainless steel carafe will naturally be far more durable than glass. If you’re in a busy and chaotic household, it might be worth spending more for a carafe that won’t break.

3. Size:

For a given size of the coffee machine, a glass carafe will always have a larger capacity because it doesn’t lose volume to double-wall construction.

4. Coffee Quality:

With a thermal carafe, your coffee will stay hot for hours without a hot plate. This is generally a plus for coffee quality because too much time on a hot plate can add a burnt flavor to your coffee. But if you always drink your brewed coffee right away, this is a non-issue.

5. Energy Efficiency:

Because thermal carafes don’t require a hot plate, you can turn your coffee machine off right after brewing. This should save a little money on your power bill.

Is Portability Important? Best Value Coffee Maker To Buy Today

Maybe you already have an expensive brewer on your kitchen counter, but you’re looking for the best affordable coffee maker to take along when you hit the road.

In that case, you’ll want to prioritize size, weight, and durability. Depending on your travel style, you might also want to consider whether or not you need electricity.

For camping without access to a power outlet, the French press or the AeroPress are perfect. Both are durable enough to get tossed in a pack.

The AeroPress is far lighter, so it’s a better choice for backpacking, while the French press is more suitable for car camping.

If you’re planning on staying in a hotel or bringing your coffee maker to and from the office, any compact brewer will fit the bill.

The K-Mini or Chulux are both small enough to fit in a purse or backpack. And because they use K Cups, you don’t need to worry about bringing ground coffee or measuring spoons.

The Sowtech brewer is also small enough to be easily portable, and its stainless steel construction is plenty durable. Just be cautious with the glass carafe.