When you need a caffeine fix without paying a hefty price tag, the best budget coffee makers are your answer. We were determined to prove that affordable coffee makers can still produce great results, whether you're moving out on your own or just prefer saving your money for quality beans.
After testing a dozen models across various price points, our coffee experts were genuinely impressed by the value options available. The Braun BrewSense 12-Cup Programmable Coffee Maker earned our top spot thanks to its whisper-quiet operation and superb brewing quality. The Beautiful by Drew Barrymore 14-Cup Coffee Maker is the best bet for those prioritizing value and capacity. It offers stylish digital controls while brewing 14 cups in the time it takes most models to brew 12.
Some of the best cheap coffee makers aren't drip pots. Check out our guides to the best French press and pour-over coffee makers for more cost-effective solutions. If you're an aspiring home barista, the best budget espresso machines are a great place to start.
Learn more about how we test kitchen products at Business Insider Reviews.
Top picks for the best budget coffee makers
Best overall: Braun BrewSense 12 Cup Programmable Coffee Maker – See at Amazon
Best under $60: Beautiful by Drew Barrymore 14-Cup Programmable Drip Coffee Maker – See at Walmart
Best under $100: KitchenAid 12-Cup Drip Showerhead Coffee Maker– See at Amazon
Best programmable: Ninja 12 Cup Programmable Coffee Maker – See at Walmart
Best multi-use: Hamilton Beach FlexBrew Trio – See at Amazon
Best overall
The Braun BrewSense 12 cup coffee maker brews a standard or bold pot of coffee in under 14 minutes and is near silent.
- Consistent brewing
- Marked difference between standard and bold brew settings
- Small batch option
- Adjustable keep warm setting to prevent spoiling coffee flavor
- Stainless steel model is more expensive
- Does not come with extra charcoal filters
The Braun BrewSense Coffee Maker brews consistently good coffee at a great price point, making it the best budget coffee maker we tested and earning a top spot in our guide to the best coffee makers. The 12-cup coffee maker runs quietly on both the standard and bold settings, producing a full pot in 14 minutes. Our reporters found that the coffee brewed on the standard setting has a well-rounded flavor without being too light, and the bold brew will satisfy those who love a more robust cup.
The carafe is glass with a flip-top lid and rests on a heat plate that we found effectively keeps brewed coffee warm. While the default setting automatically shuts off the coffee maker after two hours, you can set it to stay on and keep the pot warm for up to five hours. For those of us who hate the taste of reheated coffee, you can even adjust the keep-warm temperature to ensure it doesn't affect the coffee's flavor.
The Braun offers the option to brew a full pot and a one- to four-cup setting for a smaller batch. While brewing, you can snag a cup of coffee before the cycle is completely finished, or you can set the 24-hour programming option ahead of time to wake up to a full, fresh pot.
The coffee maker comes with a reusable cone filter, along with a charcoal water filter insert and a cleaning cycle function to keep your coffee maker in tip-top shape. You can use the machine without the charcoal filter, or you can purchase replacements online.
Check out our full Braun BrewSense review.
Best under $60
The Beautiful by Drew Barrymore 14 cup coffee maker is a stylish option for brewing plenty of coffee with the ability to keep a fresh pot warm for up to four hours.
- Gourmet brew setting that lands between standard and bold
- Multiple color options
- Brews up to 14 cups
- Takes up a lot of counter space
Drew Barrymore launched a collection of home and kitchen appliances, and this 14-cup coffee maker stands out in the lineup. (We also rank the Beautiful Air Fryer as the best air fryer for tight budgets.) The Beautiful coffee maker has a water-resistant digital touchscreen instead of buttons. The touchscreen was very responsive, but in the bleary morning hours, I missed the security of the physical buttons. The coffee maker comes in six different colors so you can match your kitchen.
The Beautiful has a larger capacity than many of the other best budget coffee makers we tested, holding up to 14 cups. The standard brew cycle takes less than 12 minutes to complete, and it also has a one- to four-cup small batch setting. The programmable coffee maker can be set 24 hours ahead of time, I found the standard setting brewed a delicious pot of coffee without it being too light. A special feature of this coffee maker is the gourmet brew setting, which makes a pot of coffee with great flavor balanced between its standard and bold settings.
Once coffee has been brewed, it is effectively kept warm on a heating plate for up to four hours with an auto shut-off. I found no change in flavor after keeping a standard brewed pot of coffee hot for two hours.
The coffee maker comes with a reusable cone filter along with a charcoal water filter, which helps remove chlorine residue in water to extend the lifespan of a coffee maker. The water filter lasts for two months before needing to be replaced, and the coffee maker will still run without it. The coffee maker has a clean function and a glass carafe that is dishwasher safe.
Best under $100
With a spiral showerhead design, two brew settings, and a removable water reservoir with a handle, the KitchenAid 12 cup coffee maker utilizes a clever design to produce a well-rounded cup of coffee on a budget.
- Quick brewing time
- Spiral showerhead evenly saturates grounds for better extraction
- Two sets of function buttons for flexibility in placing the machine
- Standard brew strength may be too light for some
KitchenAid has a reputation for making the best stand mixers, but it also makes a quality coffee maker at a reasonable price. The KitchenAid 12-Cup Drip Showerhead Coffee Maker has the option to brew a full pot of 12 cups at regular or bold strength, each in less than 12 minutes. Once brewed, coffee is kept warm on the heat plate for two hours before automatically shutting off.
The coffee maker is designed with the function buttons on the side and an additional brew button on the front. Having both options meant I could access the controls no matter where I placed the coffee maker on my counter. The KitchenAid has a removable water reservoir with a handle in the back and uses a gold-tone, reusable filter.
The removable water reservoir is incredibly convenient, but it's crucial to ensure it is firmly set in place on this coffee maker to avoid any leakage of water while brewing. The water comes out through a spiral showerhead with 29 holes, covering a large surface area of the grounds. Many budget coffee makers don't have this design, but many of the best drip coffee makers do to ensure proper extraction of the grounds. I found the coffee brewed on the standard setting to be light, yet flavorful, with a significant increase on the strong brew setting in how robust and strong it was.
Best programmable
The Ninja 12 cup coffee maker is a user-friendly machine with simple-to-operate programming buttons, two brew settings, and even a small batch function.
- User-friendly programming settings
- Pause function for grabbing a cup mid-cycle
- Standard and rich brews
- Slower brew cycle
Most coffee makers are programmable with options to set the brewing time up to 24 hours ahead. While testing, I found the Ninja 12 Cup coffee maker to be the most user-friendly when it comes to programming.
The coffee maker has a removable water reservoir that is simple to remove, fill, and put back in place. The Ninja has a classic or rich brewing option to brew a full pot of coffee in under 15 minutes, or you can choose the small batch setting for one to four cups. When you can't wait for the entire cycle to run, the pause function allows you to grab a cup in the middle of brewing. On the classic setting, I found that the flavor of the coffee was well balanced, with a significant difference noticed in how robust it was using the rich setting.
Programming the Ninja to start brewing at a specific time is simple with large, easy-to-read hour and minute buttons. Once the time is set, all you have to do is press the delay brew button. Compared to other coffee makers I tested, I found programming the Ninja coffee maker to be simple and quick. In addition to basic programming settings, the warming plate can also be programmed to keep coffee warm for up to four hours and I did not find this affected the flavor of the brew. The coffee maker's removable pieces are dishwasher-safe, and it has a function for easy cleaning.
Best multi-use
The Hamilton Beach Flex Brew Trio is the ultimate machine for the household that needs options: It can brew a full 12-cup pot of coffee, or you can brew a single cup with either grounds or a pod.
- Multiple brewing options
- K-Cup compatible
- Single-serve brews in under two minutes
- Bulky
- Standard brew setting may be too light for some
- No clean setting
The Hamilton Beach FlexBrew Trio is the ultimate coffee maker for those who want a variety of options on a budget. Not only can you brew a full 12-cup pot of coffee, but you can also simultaneously use the single-serve or pod setting.
The coffee maker is flat-bottomed and requires a paper filter if you don't get the gold filter model. It takes about 20 minutes to brew a full pot, which is longer than our other top picks. The standard brew setting produces a fairly light coffee, while the bold brew is a pot of coffee we found to be incredibly strong and almost acidic. The heating plate keeps a pot warm for two hours before automatically shutting off, but we suggest you avoid leaving a bold brew pot to sit. Already acidic coffee can taste burnt when left on a heating plate.
The single-serve side has its own small water reservoir along with a mini filter for grounds and a pod holder. You can use the single-serve function to choose from five different cup sizes (six to 14 ounces), or use the best K-cup style pods to brew a single cup. The single-serve side brews in under two minutes.
While flexibility may be a helpful option for some households, it's important to note that this coffee maker takes up a large amount of counter space. It does not have a clean function, and while removable parts are dishwasher safe, we found it tricky to clean any section that wasn't removable. If you have a bigger budget, the Ninja Dualbrew Pro is slightly smaller and has a fold-out frother.
What to look for in a budget coffee maker
| Factor | What to consider | Our tips |
| Features |
| Adjustable warming plate times and temperatures prevent coffee from becoming bitter while sitting in the pot. |
| Size |
| Budget does not always mean small: check your measurements and consider single-serve coffee makers for extra-tight spaces. |
| Material |
| Glass is more affordable and fragile, while thermal carafes are durable and pricey. |
How we test coffee makers
We tested the best budget coffee makers to make sure that purchasing the best budget coffee maker doesn't mean buying a product that's cheaply built.
Setup and ease of use: I unboxed and set up each coffee maker according to the manufacturer's instructions. I noted how many parts were necessary to assemble, or whether the coffee maker was a plug-and-play machine. I considered the type of filter, whether it was a flat base that required a paper coffee filter or a reusable cone filter. I also assessed each coffee maker based on how intuitive it was to use the setting buttons.
Brewing: I timed each coffee maker to see how long it took to brew a full pot on the standard brew setting. I also noted the amount of evaporation during the brewing process and whether there were any issues with grounds getting into the brewed coffee. After that, I used the programming functions for a second test and then the bold or strong setting on each coffee maker that had one.
Temperature retention: I checked the temperature of each full pot of coffee on the standard setting with a meat thermometer. Two hours later, I checked the temperature again to see if there was a drop in temperature to assess how well the warming plate or thermal carafe kept the coffee hot once brewed.
Cleaning: Each coffee maker was evaluated on how simple it is to clean before brewing a new batch. I also tested any coffee makers that claimed to have dishwasher-safe parts, along with noting if there was a separate cleaning function.
Budget coffee maker FAQs
How much should I spend on a good coffee maker?
The amount that you're willing to spend on a coffee maker is entirely up to you. It depends on how particular you are about the flavor of your coffee, how often you drink coffee, and if you want any specific functions, like delayed brewing or small batch options. A good rule of thumb is the cheaper the coffee maker, the more simple it will be. Check out our guide to the best coffee makers for a wider range of style and price points.
Is it better to use a coffee filter?
Depending on its design, a coffee maker may come with a reusable cone filter, or require a paper coffee filter if it has a flat bottom basket. A cone filter allows microscopic granules of coffee to get through the holes, ultimately making the coffee a bit cloudier and introducing more oil. Using a paper coffee filter comes down to the design of your coffee maker, whether it's necessary or not, along with your personal taste preferences. Coffee makers that have reusable filters can still be used with a paper filter.
How much coffee should I use to brew a pot of coffee?
Each cup increment on a coffee maker is actually six ounces. If you want to make coffee according to the manufacturer's instructions, most coffee makers suggest about one tablespoon per six ounces of water. If you prefer a stronger cup, increase the amount of grounds you put in per cups of water.
You can purchase logo and accolade licensing to this story here.
Disclosure: Written and researched by the Insider Reviews team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we may get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our partners. We may receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at reviews@businessinsider.com.
