Verified Coffee Data: Which Espresso Machine to Buy

Find the right espresso machine for your kitchen

For most people, get the Ninja Luxe Café Premier: great lattes and cappuccinos with almost nothing to learn. If you want to learn to make espresso by hand, get the Breville Barista Express.

We pull together the maker’s own numbers, what named reviewers found, what owners complain about, and today’s Amazon price, and we link every fact.

Best for most people

Ninja Luxe Café Premier (ES601)

Grinder, scale and hands-free milk built in.

See it on Amazon$499.99 at Amazon · as of Oct 9, 1:09 PM PT

Best if you want to learn

Breville Barista Express

Grinder built in. You steam the milk yourself.

See it on Amazon$499.95 at Amazon · as of Oct 9, 1:09 PM PT

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Start here

The best espresso machine under $500
For most people, the Ninja Luxe Café: great lattes and cappuccinos with almost nothing to learn. The Breville Barista Express if you want to learn to make espresso by hand.
Ninja Luxe Café or Barista Express?
Same price. One does the work for you, the other teaches you.
Bambino Plus or Barista Express?
Between these two Brevilles, the Barista Express, unless you want the milk done for you.
Own a Barista Express? What to buy first
A scale and a 53.3 mm tamper, then the rest.
How to descale a Barista Express
Breville's steps, and what the solid and flashing lights mean.
What size tamper fits your machine?
Breville: 53.3 mm, not 54. Gaggia: 58. De'Longhi: 51.

Why trust this

We don’t run our own lab tests, and we don’t pretend to. Every figure links to where it came from, and Amazon pays us the same percentage on every machine we cover. Here’s how we check.