Best Drip Coffee Maker 2023: Must-Read Buying Tips from Pros

Finding the best drip coffee maker is no easy task. There are literally hundreds to choose from, and each might be the “best” for a different person. That's why Home Grounds tested a bunch of drip coffee makers and wrote this article to simplify your life.

Below, we'll show you exactly how to spot a good brewer from a bad one, teach you which important features to look for, and list our favorite coffee makers this year. Then all that’s left for you to do is to start brewing amazing coffee.

The 11 Best Drip Coffee Makers (2023 Picks)

With all these points in mind, here are the best drip coffee makers for different needs.

image	product	details
Best Overall Best Overall	Technivorm Moccamaster KBT	16.14” x 13” x 6.7” Cone Filter Stainless steel	SEE ON AMAZON
Runner Up Runner Up	Breville Precision Brewer	14” x 9” x 16” Basket and cone filters Brushed stainless steel	SEE ON AMAZON
Budget Pick Budget Pick	Mr. Coffee 12-Cup Coffee Maker	12.3” x 11.76” x 13.8” Basket filter Plastic	SEE ON AMAZON
Best Value Best Value	Cuisinart DCC-3200	7.75” x 9” x 14” Cone filter Stainless-steel & plastic	SEE ON AMAZON
Best For Small Spaces Best For Small Spaces	Black + Decker 5-cup	7.25” x 8.2” x 10.75” Basket filter Plastic	SEE ON AMAZON
Best Large Grind And Brew Best Large Grind And Brew	Cuisinart DGB-800BC	13.1″ x 10″ x 18.1″ Basket filter Stainless steel	SEE ON AMAZON
Coolest Style Coolest Style	Nostalgia RCOF12AQ Retro Brewer	7.75” x 10.25” x 14.25” Basket filter Plastic	SEE ON AMAZON
Most Versatile Most Versatile	Ninja Specialty Coffee Maker	12″ x 8.8″ x 15″ Cone filter Stainless steel	SEE ON AMAZON
Best With Thermal Carafe Best With Thermal Carafe	OXO BREW 9 Cup Coffeemaker	8.3” x 15” x 17.2” Cone filter Stainless steel & plastic	SEE ON AMAZON
Best Dual Brewer Best Dual Brewer	Hamilton Beach 49980A Brewer	10.6” x 12.2” x 13.7” Basket filter Stainless steel & plastic, with glass carafe	see on amazon
Fastest Drip Machine Fastest Drip Machine	Bunn Classic Speed Brew BX	14.3″ x 7.1″ x 13.8″ Basket filter Stainless steel & plastic, with glass carafe	SEE ON AMAZON

1. Technivorm Moccamaster KBT – Best Overall

• Dimensions: 16.14” x 13” x 6.7”

• Filter Style: Cone
• Materials: Stainless steel
• Carafe: Thermal
• Capacity: 10 cups

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The Moccamaster is a beautifully designed drip brewer that you've most likely seen in high-quality 3rd wave coffee shops. That's a statement itself (and this is our favorite drip brewer). It's at the higher end of the price spectrum, but it makes the best damn cup of coffee a drip brewer can possibly make, thanks to its pre-infusion and brewing process. Also, this bad boy is SCAA-approved.

The Moccamaster KBT is one of the best Technivorm coffee makers there is. It’s easy to take apart to clean, and also has a 5-year warranty, so you won’t have to worry about it breaking down on you.

If you just want the best of the best: this is the brewer for you. Read our full review of the Technivorm Moccamaster here.

2. Breville Precision Brewer – Runner Up

• Dimensions: 14” x 9” x 16” 

• Filter style: Basket and Cone
• Material: Brushed stainless steel
• Carafe: Thermal
• Capacity: 12 cups

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Breville’s Precision Brewer is quickly becoming one of the most popular drip coffee makers on the market, and it has proven itself a worthy rival to the more expensive Moccamaster. In fact, if you want a more programmable coffee maker, you might even prefer the Breville to the Technivorm.

As with the Moccamaster, the Precision Brewer is SCAA certified for its ability to make coffee to the highest standard. It uses a PID to deliver precise temperature control throughout the ideal brewing window of 197 to 204 ℉. 

It comes with six preset brewing modes, including Gold Cup mode, which is optimized to SCAA parameters. Or you can customize your brewing by adjusting bloom time, brew temperature and flow rate to perfectly suit the character of your favorite coffee beans.
Impressively, this model is compatible with both conical and flat filter baskets — and comes with one of each. With recent research showing that flat and cone-shaped baskets can highlight different aspects of a coffee’s flavor, it’s a real bonus to have the option of either.

3. Mr. Coffee 12-Cup Coffee Maker – Budget Pick

• Dimensions: 12.3” x 11.76” x 13.8”

• Filter style: Basket
• Material: Plastic
• Carafe: Glass
• Capacity: 12 cups

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If you want a simple and delicious coffee with minimal effort or expense, this basic Mr. Coffee 12-cup coffee maker has got your back. It’s super affordable, easy to use, and delivers a consistently tasty brew, making it both an Amazon’s Choice product and our favorite budget brewer this year.

Mr. Coffee highlights ease of use as the main feature of this machine, and they are right on the money. Set it up, add coffee and water, and get brewing. It’s as simple as that. After brewing, the hot plate will keep the glass carafe warm for up to two hours.

This drip coffee maker isn’t programmable, so you can’t change the brew temperature or have it brew on a timer, but this is by design. It’s simplicity is its selling point. It does, however, have the very handy grab-a-cup auto pause option, so you can sneak that first hit of caffeine even before the brew cycle is complete.

4. Cuisinart DCC-3200 – Best Value

• Dimensions: 7.75” x 9” x 14”

• Filter Style: Cone
• Materials: Stainless steel & plastic
• Carafe: Glass
• Capacity: 12 and 14 cups

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The Cuisinart DCC 3200, available in both 12 and 14 cups versions, has almost all the features you could want (without breaking the bank). It's one of the few that can brew a full carafe within this price range. Plus, it has a sweet feature of hot-plate temperature control, which customers love because it stops you scalding your coffee (and your tongue.)

Where it shines: this coffee maker with timer comes with fully automatic 24-hour programmability, just set it to your desires, and your coffee is handled. Every. Single. Day! It has a self-cleaning feature, a 1-4 cup setting, and auto shutoff. Unfortunately, some people find that making more than 10 cups of coffee pushes the coffee grounds in to your brew. That effectively reduces the capacity from 14 cup to 10, if it does that to you.

If you’re looking for a simple, all-around good drip coffee maker to brew large batches of coffee using hot water at a nearly perfect temperature, the Cuisinart DCC 3200 is the one for you. You can read more about this brewer in our Cuisinart DCC-3200 review here.

5. Black + Decker 5-Cup Coffee Maker – Best for Small Spaces

• Dimensions: 7.25” x 8.2” x 10.75”

• Filter style: Basket
• Material: Plastic
• Carafe: Glass
• Capacity: 5 cups

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There are many excellent reasons to opt for a small coffee maker. Maybe you’re just one person with no need to brew 12 cups at a time. Or you have limited counter space. Maybe you’re searching for a brewer for a dorm room, RV, or office. No matter the reason, this little Black + Decker coffee maker is a fantastic choice. It’s small in stature but big in quality.

Aside from its compact design, this drip coffee maker has a couple of standout features. First of all, it has the same automatic brew pause often found on larger machines, so you can grab a quick cup during brewing. This option is often overlooked in smaller brewers. It also has an illuminated power switch, a small but important addition so you’ll know at a glance if it’s hot or not.

I appreciate that it uses a metal basket filter that doesn’t require a paper insert. Minimizing paper waste is good for the planet and saves you money. Win-win! And don’t worry, after brewing, the filter basket is very easy to remove and clean. But if you need a bigger brewer, this Black and Decker coffee maker is a better choice.

6. Cuisinart DGB-800BC – Best large grind and brew

• Dimensions: 13.1″ x 10″ x 18.1″

• Filter Style: Basket
• Materials: Stainless steel
• Carafe: Thermal
• Capacity: 12-cups

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This gorgeous programmable brewer has plenty of features that will get you excited. The main one being; it grinds your coffee beans automatically right before it brews (super fresh coffee).

However this Cuisinart model is a double-edged sword; you'll need to follow the directions to access the grinder mechanism, and clean it often to keep it in tip-top shape and tasting fresh (although many users say it's easy to clean). The grind-and-brew might be your go-to if you want to save money and counter space on two machines in one.

7. Nostalgia RCOF12AQ Retro – Coolest Style

• Dimensions: 7.75” x 10.25” x 14.25”

• Filter style: Basket
• Material: Plastic
• Carafe: Glass
• Capacity: 12 cups

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If you’re cultivating a retro look in your home, you’re going to love the cool style of this coffee maker. I mean, what else would you expect from the brand Nostalgia? Everything from the baby blue color to the vintage scrawled font screams mid 20th century in the best possible way.

But unlike actual 50 year old coffee makers, this one is also equipped with the convenience of modern day features, just like the popular Smeg coffee maker. It can be programmed to brew on a timer, always a win for those of us who struggle with the early pre-caffeine hours of the day. And it has the always popular brew pause option, so you can grab that first cup as soon as possible without making a mess.

After brewing, the hot plate automatically activates to keep your carafe of precious bean juice warm. Then two hours later, it shuts off, a handy safety feature to avoid burning the carafe dry.

If you’re hyped about the vintage style of this coffee maker, you’ll be happy to hear it’s part of a set, so you can keep the retro theme going throughout your kitchen. Nostalgia also makes a toaster and microwave in the same hip baby blue. We tested this machine and found some pros and cons, read more about it in Home Grounds' Nostalgia coffee maker review.

8. Ninja Specialty Coffee Maker – Most Versatile

• Dimensions: 12″ x 8.8″ x 15″

• Filter Style: Cone
• Materials: Stainless steel
• Carafe: Thermal
• Capacity: 10 cups

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This Ninja gives you a plethora of options. It's a dual coffee maker, which means you can choose between brewing a quick cup of coffee or waiting for a whole pot of coffee to brew. Or maybe you want to tinker with the water amount to come up with a richer or more diluted brew? Or maybe you're bored with a standard black coffee and want to sip on a latte or a vanilla iced mocha for a change?

“You wish is my command” … is what this easy-to-use brewer would say in response. (if coffee makers could talk)

This is not your standard hot and cold coffee maker; it's a Ninja brewer that can do anything for you when it comes to coffee (almost anything; but not espresso, and not cold brew coffee). In terms of versatility, the Ninja Specialty wins. Now go off and make a new exciting coffee with a few touches of a button – because you can.

Just remember, while it can make iced coffee, it cant make cold brew coffee – and there's a big difference. You'll still need a cold brew maker separate to this.

9. OXO BREW 9-Cup Coffeemaker – Best with Thermal Carafe

• Dimensions: 8.3” x 15” x 17.2”

• Filter Style: Cone
• Materials: Stainless steel & plastic
• Carafe: Thermal
• Capacity: 9-cups

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The OXO Brew drip coffee maker imitates the manual pour over coffee process for you to brew one clean, tasty, and full bodied carafe of coffee. It is easy-to-use and brews coffee so good that it has been SCAA approved – this is not some made up rating; it's the real deal.

Think of it like this: you have a personal pour-over barista on call to brew you a Chemex on demand. But he won't charge you $8 per cup of coffee or give you attitude for your lack of hipster-ness. Minimalistic style and quality coffee at the touch of a button.

Besides all that good stuff, this OXO 9 cup drip coffee maker is one of the best BPA-free coffee brewers, a BIG plus in our opinion. We took a deeper look into the Barista Brain 9 cup brewer in our full review, which you can read here. The Oxo 8 cup brewer is also a great option.

10. Hamilton Beach 49980A – Best Dual Brewer

• Dimensions: 10.6” x 12.2” x 13.7”

• Filter Style: Basket
• Materials: Stainless steel & plastic
• Carafe: Glass
• Capacity: 12-cups

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The Hamilton Beach gives two options to brew: the large carafe or a travel mug. This means can use it as a single serve or make it brew a large batch of brewed coffee. The carafe side is fitted with your standard coffee filter for drip brewing, and the cup side allows you to brew with pods – however, unlike the Hamiton Beach FlexBrew, it's not compatible with K-cups.

It has a few notable functions that customers won't stop talking about (in a good way).

The program function allows you to set your brewing time up to 24 hours in advance so you can wake up to the smell of coffee. You can also choose the extraction level to alter the taste of your brew whether you like it strong or regular (all via the handy LED digital display).

The Hamilton Beach is a great programmable drip coffee maker for an affordable price. A favorite all rounder. It's a shame it's missing a good thermal coffee pot, but it's still performed quite well as a drip coffee maker when we reviewed it here.

11. Bunn Classic Speed Brew BX – Fastest Drip Machine

• Dimensions: 14.3″ x 7.1″ x 13.8″

• Filter Style: Basket
• Materials: Stainless steel & plastic
• Carafe: Glass
• Capacity: 10 cups

SEE ON AMAZON

The Bunn Speed Brew is one of the fastest coffee makers available (as the name suggests). It will make a full pot of brewed coffee in under 3 minutes. Just add coffee and water, press a button, check your social media and your coffee is ready.

Is the quality of coffee sacrificed for speed? Probably, but not as badly as you'd think. Bunn is known for making great coffee makers (like these), and they haven't cut any corners with the Classic Speed Brew BX. Plus, they're also made in the USA.

The Bunn Speed Brew's internal water reservoir always keeps the water at perfect coffee brewing temperature, and the special spray head works hard to properly soak your grounds and improve the taste. It won't brew amazing coffee, but it's the fastest. If you are busy and rushed in the mornings, this Bunn drip coffee maker may save you precious minutes… to drink more coffee.

Tips for choosing the right brewer

Keep these tips in mind when looking for the right drip coffee maker for your home. It leaves with you the best chance of making the right choice.

Carafe Capacity

Do you only want a single cup of drip coffee in the morning, or do you need multiple? Is it just you who will drink coffee, or do you have a family in need? Figure out how much coffee you need to make at one time, then factor that in to your decision.

In case you didn’t know, the “carafe” is the pot or container the coffee drips down in to. It is better to have a machine with a larger carafe as you don't HAVE to fill it up or consider getting a coffee urn if brew strength isn't an issue. Some drippers will brew into a glass carafe, but ideally yours will be brewing into a thermal coffee pot. We explain this a little more below.

Style of Filter Basket

When buying a drip coffee machine, you’ll encounter two styles of filter basket, either the flat-bottom basket shape or the cone shape. The shape of the filter basket influences what style of paper filter to buy, but that’s not all! 

Coffee nerds have long insisted that the shape of the filter also affects the taste of your coffee, and recent research sponsored by the SCA has proven them right (1). It’s not too surprising when you think about it. Because the shape of the filter changes how water flows through the ground coffee, it impacts the extraction.

If you like bright fruity, floral, and sweet coffees, such as you might find from Ethiopia, then flat-bottom baskets are known to best highlight these flavors. On the other hand, if darker, earthier coffees like those from Sumatra are more your style, a cone filter will be a better match. If you like them all, consider a brewer that comes with both styles of filter, like our Runner Up pick, the Breville Precision Brewer.

Programming Features

Compared to most coffee makers, you can program some drip coffee makers to turn on and off at certain times, remain hot for so long before shutting off, and more. These functions can be handy if you’re the kind of person who likes to wake up to the smell of coffee, or who doesn’t want to be bothered to brew a cup in the morning. You just want the coffee to happen. We get it. We are not all morning people.

Most coffee makers can be programmed to turn on at a certain time. However, some of them brew extremely quickly and don’t need this feature. Determine whether or not you’d like this feature, and put it on your list of wants.

Ability to Pause Mid-Brew (to steal a quick cup)

Some brewers are able to be paused mid-brew, allowing you to pour a cup before it’s finished. If you’re the kind of person who needs their coffee ASAP, you may want to add this to your wish list. We’ve looked at a few that do this.

Me no worky without coffee? You'll need this feature.

Water Filters

Do you have a filter in your kitchen sink? If not, you’re probably making your coffee with less-than-stellar water, which takes away from the flavor. Fear not – some coffeemakers come with a built in water filter inside the water reservoir and that makes your hot cups of coffee taste even better (2).

Keep in mind this comes with the added effort and expense of replacing the filters, so you may or may not want them. And if you already use a water filtration system, you don't need this.

Watch Steven's fun video on brewing better coffee at home:

Common Overlooked (yet important) Factors to Consider

Now lots look at some of the jargon terms that are easy to skip over but are important in making the right choice. Again – let me remind you that we are only looking at drip machines here – not manual coffee makers (e.g. the French press) or Keurig machines.

Hot Plate vs Thermal Carafe

The question here is whether you want energy efficiency/better flavor or a more affordable price tag.

• Glass carafes tend to be cheaper but the hot plate heats the coffee further which over-extracts the oils and makes it taste bitter. Additionally, ​the warming plate has to be continually turned on to stay hot, which uses more energy.
• A thermal (or steel) carafe keeps the coffee at an optimum brewing temperature of 195-205 degrees for 1-2 hours. Some believe hot pot keeps a better coffee flavor. It also saves some energy in the process. However, they tend to be more expensive.
• Gold standard = thermal carafe. If you're serious about brewing amazing tasting drip coffee every day, you need a coffee machine with one of these. Here's a complete list of the best thermal carafe coffee makers.

Do you have a coffee grinder already?

If you prefer freshly ground coffee (and you should) you have two options: Choose a machine with a built in grinder (like one of these) or buy a separate one. While coffee makers with in-built grinders are generally more expensive than brewers without grinders, it might still save you money over buying a separate grinder. Additionally, having both machines in one will save counter space.

But standalone coffee grinders are generally do a better job of grinding, and you can grind for other brew styles. Some coffee drinkers claim having a separate grinder is a must for the best flavor and the best size coffee grounds.

If you’re a stickler for the absolute best, or you want to experiment with other brew styles: buy a separate grinder.

SCAA Certification

The Specialty Coffee Association of America reviews, tests and certifies coffee gear including drip coffee makers (3). When a body like the SCAA has given something the stamp of approval; you know you're looking at coffee makers as rated by industry professionals.

Here's a video explaining a little more:

Oh, would you look at that? We've included a few of them on this list. If you want a more complete list: read our write up of the most exciting SCAA coffee makers.

Something To Keep in mind

We have NOT included:

• Espresso machines – if you want an espresso maker, or anything with a milk frother, read our guide to the best espresso machines here.
• Smaller, portable coffee makers – we cover coffee makers for travelers here. Or if you have a camper van, here is our list of the best RV coffee makers.
• Single-serve coffee makers – you can read about them here.
• Manual coffee brewers –  you'll want to see our french press reviews, or pour over brewer reviews here.
• Iced coffee and cold brewers – we've made a list of those here.
• Ninja hot and cold coffee brewers – these are popular so we did a separate review on them here.
• Cuisinart coffee makers – If you like this reputable brand, here's our list of amazing Cuisinart machines in the market.
• Capresso machines – another reputable home coffee machine brand that we recommend.
• Miele coffee brewers – This brand offers all-around coffee brewers. Here's our list of the best models.
• Smart coffee makers – here are some really smart coffee machines you want to operate using your smartphone.
• Plumbed coffee machines – here are our top picks for the coffee makers with water line.

Want to know which ones are the best for each type of coffee maker? Read our reviews of the best coffee makers and learn more.

The Verdict

With coffee makers, you get what you pay for. So if drinking coffee is a crucial part of your morning, then it’s worth investing in the best. And based on an overwhelming number of votes from coffee shops, consumers, and the SCAA, the best drip coffee maker is the Technivorm Moccamaster.

Sure, it’s a bit more expensive than average, but the value is there. Each one is handmade in the Netherlands and certified by the SCAA to deliver the ultimate cup of coffee, the thermal carafe keeps your coffee hot and delicious, and it comes with an industry-leading 5-year warranty. What’s not to love?!

This article was last updated on February 18, 2023.