Best Coffee Gear Under $50

This Bella 14755 drip coffee maker may have a modest price, but in our tests it definitely has some bragging rights: It earns an Excellent rating for convenience—it's easy to use and clean—and receives solid marks across the board for its brewing performance.

Like the Bella above, this programmable Black+Decker CM4000S is a steal of a deal for its price: It's incredibly easy to use and scores a Very Good for brew performance. It also features brew-strength controls, allowing you to adjust for different tastes. One minor issue: The reservoir markings are a bit difficult to see—a potential problem if you tend to brew your first pot when you’re only half awake.

The 12-cup Capresso SG220 is a great choice, especially for those seeking something very easy to clean and operate. It’s a simple machine with a large capacity, and CR's testers rate it Excellent for convenience. It also does well in terms of brew performance, so you won’t be disappointed with its java. Though it lacks small-batch settings, it includes brew-strength controls and basic features, such as a drip-stop.

A great value, this inexpensive drip coffee maker beat dozens of pricier models in CR’s battery of tests. Brew performance earns an Excellent rating, and it can be programmed to have piping hot fresh coffee ready in the morning.

For more options, CR members can check out our full ratings for drip coffee makers.

The Asobu Insulated Portable Brewer KB900 is more expensive than most of the other manual models in our tests, but it's a superior performer. It offers superb convenience and is the only model in our ratings with a Very Good rating for taste. The Asobu isn't dishwasher-safe, but it has a stainless steel insulated carafe (rare for a manual model) and brews in 12 to 24 hours, depending on how strong you want your coffee.

The Primula Burke Cold Brew Coffee Maker PBPBK-5101 is the most inexpensive cold-brew coffee maker in our ratings—and it’s one of the best. It receives an Excellent rating for convenience. This Primula comes with a glass carafe, and most of its parts are dishwasher-safe. It’s the only model that calls for a full 24-hour brew time, but you might find the results to be worth the wait.

For more options, CR members can check out our full ratings for cold-brew coffee makers.

This AmazonBasics kettle is made of stainless steel and is one of the least expensive kettles in our tests. It’s small, though, holding just 4 cups of water—the least of the kettles we test. It's among the fastest to bring our testing standard of 4 cups of water to a boil, clocking in at just under 4 minutes and earning a Very Good rating in our time-to-boil tests. This kettle is the hardest to clean of the models in our ratings, however. The warranty lasts one year.

The 5-cup Bella is the only ceramic kettle in our ratings and weighs 4 pounds when empty, significantly more than some we tested. It takes almost 5 ½ minutes to bring 4 cups of water to a boil, among the slowest tested. And it doesn’t keep boiled water warm as long as some. That said, it may provide more counter appeal for some—and it can get the job done if you're not in a hurry.

This 7-cup Hamilton Beach glass electric kettle is one the easiest to clean of the models we tested, garnering an Excellent rating in CR’s cleaning test. It brings 4 cups of water to a boil in 4 minutes (which is about average), but keeps it warm for only 38 minutes (which is on the short side).

The 7-cup Secura Original electric kettle is plastic on the outside, stainless steel on the inside, and almost 11 inches high. It’s the only model to snag an Excellent rating in our time-to-cool tests: It keeps 4 cups of boiled water warm for 75 minutes, longer than any of the other kettles. The warranty lasts two years.

For more options, CR members can check out our full ratings for electric kettles.