Best Coffee Makers of 2023

CR’s take: The Calphalon Special Brew BVCLDCG1 is one of the top-rated drip coffee makers in CR’s tests, thanks to its excellent brew performance and convenience ratings. The carafe is fairly easy to use, hold, pour from, and empty. It’s worth noting that it makes up to 10 cups at a time, which is less than many models. But it has no problem brewing a full pot using a filter filled nearly to the top with grounds, a tough test for many coffee makers.

CR’s take: The Cuisinart Coffee on Demand DCC-3000 is a self-serve coffee maker, meaning it forgoes a carafe and allows you to fill a mug straight from its heated reservoir. This machine does well in our tests, and it excels when it comes to brewing performance. Cuisinart self-serve machines have very good predicted reliability, and their owner satisfaction scores in our member surveys are some of the best around. This model comes with a removable reservoir, permanent filter, water filter, cleaning indicator, auto-shutoff, programming, and a small-batch setting.

CR’s take: A traditional drip coffee maker with a modern twist, the Cuisinart DCC-T20 Touchscreen 14-Cup Programmable offers slick touchscreen controls and makes plenty of coffee for a full house, thanks to its 14-cup glass carafe. This model aces our tests for brewing performance and convenience, and was better than most when it comes to handling the carafe. It features programming, auto-shutoff, a cleaning indicator, a permanent filter, a water filter, brew-strength control, and a small-batch setting. It’s a bit pricey, but for the investment, you can count on an all-around great machine.

CR’s take: The unassuming, inexpensive Hamilton Beach 12-Cup Programmable 49465R might be easy to miss, but it can brew a mean cup of joe at a fantastic price. It has all the essentials in a basic black plastic finish. It’s programmable and has auto-shutoff. What’s more, it delivers a superb job in our brewing test and can make a fresh pot in just 10 minutes. This model also performs strongly for convenience and carafe handling in CR’s lab tests.

CR’s take: The Ninja Specialty CM401 is a terrific all-in-one machine capable of brewing hot and iced coffee, lattes, macchiatos, and other specialty brews. In our tests, it receives a top-notch rating for brew performance, and its glass carafe handles with ease. This model is packed with features, including an over-ice brew mode for iced coffee, a built-in milk frother, brew-strength control, and brew-size adjustment for travel mugs to full carafes. It’s also one of the most versatile coffee makers we’ve tested.

CR’s take: If you have shallow countertops, look to the Zojirushi Fresh Brew Plus 12-Cup (EC-YGC120). This coffee maker has its water reservoir next to the carafe rather than behind it, so its depth is about half an inch less than many similar appliances at or near the top of our ratings. Best of all, its brew performance and convenience are both excellent, and according to data from our member surveys, Zojirushi drip coffee makers boast high predicted reliability and owner satisfaction scores. It has auto-shutoff, a removable reservoir, and an indicator that tells you when it’s time to clean it.

CR’s take: The Cuisinart Premium Single-Serve Brewer SS-10 stands out for its digital display and programmability. It allows you to adjust brew strength and temperature, and shuts off automatically. It even comes with a built-in water filter, which can help improve taste if your water quality isn’t great. Generally, Nespresso pod coffee makers score better than Keurig-cup options in our tests, but this Cuisinart is the best-performing K-cup compatible option we’ve found. Plus, it’s especially easy to clean and operate, acing our convenience tests. Cuisinart single-serve coffee makers have only a middling predicted reliability rating in our owner surveys, but people love them, as shown by their high owner satisfaction score.

CR’s take: With its built-in milk frother, the high-scoring Nespresso CitiZ EN267BAE takes single-serve coffee to the next level. It’s great when you’re hosting events, especially because it gets top marks on CR’s tests for both speed and size consistency. It also gets top marks in reliability and owner satisfaction. The machine requires a bit more maintenance due to the milk frother, but if you love your morning latte, it’s a quick and easy way to get your fix.

CR’s take: One of the top-rated single-serve machines, the Nespresso Essenza Mini stands out for speedy brewing and its ability to control the brew volume for different strengths. This compact model is great for the office or anywhere you need to accommodate a variety of tastes. The adjustable drip tray and auto-off function add to its low-maintenance profile. Like other Nespresso models, it requires Nespresso capsules, which the company recycles at no charge.

CR’s take: The Cuisinart Automatic Cold Brew Coffeemaker DCB-10 performs better than automatic models that cost almost twice as much. It does well across all our tests, nabbing strong scores for convenience and ease of cleaning. Most parts are dishwasher-safe, unlike the other models in its class. This coffee maker comes with a glass carafe (not plastic, like some competing models) and brews in 25 to 45 minutes.

CR’s take: The Primula Burke Cold Brew Coffee Maker PBPBK-5101 is the most inexpensive cold-brew model in our ratings—and one of the best, especially when it comes to convenience. It comes with a glass carafe, and most of its parts are dishwasher-safe. It’s the only cold-brew maker we’ve tested that calls for a full 24-hour brew time, but you might find the results worth the wait.