French press is a quick, foolproof, and enjoyable method for getting a cup of coffee in front of you. It may not be as quick as a pod machine, but the ease of using the best French press is irresistible. Plus, in our opinion, a French press makes better coffee than many more finicky coffee making methods.
We tested 17 models in order to find the best French press for every coffee drinker. All of the French presses passed our tests, but the best were easy to clean and brewed impeccable coffee. Our top pick is the Bodum Chambord, an elegantly designed brewer with a tight seal between the stainless steel plunger and glass carafe walls. If you want to upgrade your coffee set-up, the Fellow Clara French Press brews rich coffee in a vacuum-insulated, shatter-proof carafe and comes in matte black with a black or walnut handle.
Check out all the best coffee makers we've tested for more great options.
Our top picks for the best French presses
Best overall: Bodum Chambord - See at Amazon
Best budget: Bodum Brazil - See at Amazon
Best upgrade: Fellow Clara French Press - See at Amazon
Best travel: Espro P1 - See at Amazon
Best overall: Bodum Chambord
The Bodum Chambord is as timeless as French presses get. It's unfussy and operates smoothly, and replacement parts (screens, braces, etc.) are affordable and easily attainable.
- Classic design
- Affordable
- Easy to use and clean
- Glass beaker is fragile
- Low heat retention
There's probably no French press more widely recommended than the Bodum Chambord, and it's what you'll find on most countertops in both coffee shops and home kitchens. It's also what our friends at Brooklyn Roasting Company exclusively use in their testing lab.
The Chambord's borosilicate glass is good at withstanding heat, but doesn't do much in the way of retaining it (at least not compared to the double-walled, vacuum-sealed stainless steel of our investment pick, the Espro P7). Heat retention doesn't matter that much in the world of the best French presses, though; if you're not going to drink the coffee right away you should pour it into a carafe so it doesn't sit in the grounds and become bitter.
While some French presses we tested had plungers that left gaps around the edges, the Chambord's was tightly sealed. That being said, a small amount of fine particles did get through — to completely eliminate any speck of grit you'll have to invest in a press with a micro-filter, like the Espro P7.
Cleaning most French presses is not an task, but we found that plunging soapy hot water through the strainer and checking for stray grounds did the trick, and the Chambord certainly wasn't among the more difficult French presses to clean. Again, a French press with a micro-filter, which doesn't have as many crevices in which to catch grounds, will be easier to wash.
If you tend to use finer grounds, or if you use a grinder that doesn't churn out uniform grounds (as is the case with most blade grinders) you might want to look to a press with a finer filter so that you don't end up with as much fine particulate in your brew.
Can you spend more on a French press? Of course, but the uptick in quality will be fairly marginal. Can you spend less? Yes, but only a little — there is a slightly cheaper version Bodum makes called the Brazil, which is the Chambord with the steel trap swapped for plastic. We recommend the Brazil for budget-minded folks (and those who have a penchant for breaking things).
Otherwise, the Chambord is the right price point for most people, and replacement parts are affordable and easy to find. And, when you do drop and break it, picking up a new one (or a new beaker, at least) won't cost too much, nor will a filter.
Like most other French presses, the Bodum Chambord comes with a one-year limited warranty.
Read our full Bodum Chambord French press review to learn more.
Best budget: Bodum Brazil
The Bodum Brazil 12-ounce French Press makes exactly one cup of smooth and bold coffee. Made of BPA-free plastic, the press is durable and easy to clean.
- Simple and smooth operation
- Durable
- Easy to find replacement parts
- Doesn't retain heat well
\While you won't get the elegance of the Chambord in Bodum's economy model — the Brazil's plastic beaker is held in place with a black plastic frame, as opposed to borosilicate glass in gleaming steel — you will get the same exact coffee. That's because both models contain identical filtering mechanisms.
I personally have owned several Brazils and Chambords over the past decade, and I've found that they produce the same brew. Like with the Chambord, you'll find a few stray grounds here and there, but that's standard unless your French press has a micro-filter.
Again, if you're working with a blade grinder or a cheaper burr grinder that doesn't churn out the most consistent grounds, a French press with a finer filter might be in order to keep any significant amount of particulate, and maybe even thick sludge, from working its way into your coffee. That is unless you like it that way; if so, you're not alone (see Turkish coffee or cowboy coffee).
Replacing the Brazil's filter (18-ounce or 32-ounce) is the same as replacing the Chambord's since they're identical and won't sting too much. The glass beaker is also easy to replace, although doing so may cost the same as or even more than buying a whole new press, depending on which size you're after.
Best upgrade: Fellow Clara French Press
Higgins shared that when he has time in the mornings, brewing a cup of coffee in a Fellow Clara French Press is his go-to.
- Very little particulate ends up in coffee
- Shatterproof and insulated
- Comes with a spatula for stirring and cleaning
- Expensive for a simple brewer
- Only comes in one size
The Clara French Press from Fellow is not a classic glass and steel affair: it's vacuum-insulated and has a nonstick interior. This makes it more durable without the flimsy look of plastic and, thanks to the temperature insulation, you never have to worry again about grazing your knuckles against a carafe full of steaming coffee.
The 24-ounce capacity wasn't quite enough for my household of two, but small batches are part of the bargain with French presses. For me, a full Clara French Press brews two-and-a-half mugs of coffee.
The Clara brewed my favorite coffee of all the best French presses I tested. The plunger moves smoothly with limited resistance and no gaps between the filter and carafe. Coffee made with coarse grounds was robust but smooth, with very little fine particulate present at the bottom of the mug. Using finer grounds resulted in more fine particulate, but that's a common issue among French presses and it was not bad enough from the Clara to ruin the whole mug. The carafe is easy to clean — I didn't have any issues with grounds getting caught in the filter.
The press came with a small wooden spatula to stir the grounds at the beginning of brewing, but it also comes in handy to scoop out the spent grounds for cleanup. Any long handled spoon could do the same thing, but the rectangular shape of the Clara's spatula head allows it to get into the corners of the carafe, ensuring that all the grounds are scraped and stirred.
The Clara is sleek and modern-looking with a well-designed, sturdy handle. You can choose between an all-black model and black with wood accents (for a higher price), both of which would look great living on your countertop.
Another contender for this category is the Yield Ceramic French Press. Its modern design is a stylish take on the classic French press with four color options and a cylindrical copper pull. This thick-walled ceramic press makes a bold yet smooth cup of coffee, but the handle is a bit narrow and the lid knocks around a bit when you pour. — Andrea Wawrzyn, freelance kitchen writer
Best travel: Espro P1
Brew your coffee on the go with the Espro Travel Coffee Press, the travel mug with a French press built in.
- Lets you brew coffee on the go
- Little to no sediment seeps through filter
- Can make pour-over coffee
- French press makes it hard to add milk or sugar to coffee straight into the mug
- Doesn't entirely stop brewing
Travel French presses are great for folks that roll out of bed and dash right out the door, and those who like to make sure they can produce a good cup of coffee just about anywhere.
We tested a handful of other travel options and while they all work perfectly well, the Espro P1 has a narrow, streamlined shape and a perfectly sealing filter and lid. Some sediment usually gets through most filters, but not the Espro's.
Cleaning the P1 is every bit as easy as cleaning the P7. Because there are no coils holding a filter and plate in place, all you have to do is scrub the filter itself, and unlike many of the other options we considered, it's dishwasher-safe (so long as it's placed on the top rack).
The real shortcoming of this, and every travel French press for that matter, is that if you don't drink it quickly enough, your coffee is going to over-brew, and it will eventually get bitter. You can certainly find travel French presses a quarter of the price of the P1, but they won't work as well and they're probably not going to be leakproof, which counts for a lot.
If you're looking to travel further afield than a commute, we like Coletti's Boulder Camping French Press. It is arguably the heaviest-duty French press we've tested. It has a large, welded-on handle, an ultra-tight silicone seal (which is great for keeping your coffee hot at camp), and keeps grounds out of your cup with the best of them. We highly recommend it for people who are extra rough on things.
What to look for in a French press
Filter: The most important decision when shopping for the best French press comes down to the filter on the plunger. The finer the filter, the fewer grounds you'll find in the bottom of your cup, and the less bitter your coffee will be (in this regard, the best coffee grinder will help you out, too). Basic filters do the job for most people, but micro- and double-filters keep most of the fine particles out and the intended flavors unadulterated.
Material: Somewhat less important is the material of your French press. Plastic is light, cheap, and doesn't tend to shatter when it falls from the counter. Glass lasts longer and doesn't degrade over time in the way plastic does, but that's all provided that you don't drop it. Stainless steel French presses retain heat better, but tend to be more expensive.
How we tested French presses
Before selecting French presses to test, we spoke to Sum Ngai of Coffee Project NY, Jordan Rosenaker of Atlas Coffee Club, and Jim Munson, CEO of Brooklyn Roasting Company to learn what their favorite presses were and what the most critical components of a French press are.
"When I choose a French press, it's all down to how easy it is to clean and if the grinds will be properly filtered when I push down the filter," said Coffee Project NY co-founder Sum Ngai.
Ease of use: We checked to see if each French press's plunger worked smoothly, and noted whether or not there were gaps between the presses' filters and beakers. We also paid attention to the size and placement of the handle size; a poorly-designed handle could leave your knuckles grazing hot glass.
Ability to handle different sizes of coffee grounds: We filled each press three times with 54 grams of coarse grinds and water at 200° Fahrenheit. We used a Kruve sieve to measure the grinds to ensure accuracy and consistency: 1150 micrometers, 1220 micrometers, and 1280 micrometers. We gave each pot a quick stir and let it steep for four to five minutes (four minutes for finer grounds, five minutes for coarser grounds) before evaluating the coffee.
Amount of sludge left behind: While we kept an eye out for residual fine particulate and sludge after decanting each pot into a Kruve carafe, the amount found in each batch was almost identical, save for the finer (600-1000 micrometer) grounds, which left more fine particulate matter in all but our stainless steel pick, the ESPRO P7.
Effort to clean: We aggressively washed each strainer, although we found them all to be fairly sturdy. As mentioned earlier, the P7's filter was the easiest to clean and coffee grounds didn't get stuck in its ultra-fine mesh.
French press vs. pour-over coffee
The difference between French press and pour-over coffee comes down to pressure and grind size.
Brewing French press coffee involves steeping coarsely ground beans (usually around 1,200 micrometers) much like tea, and then pushing the solution through a filter to stop the brewing process. This pressure results in agitation and creates a bit of foam.
Pour-over coffee uses less coarse grounds (roughly 900 micrometers, but it really depends on your taste), and while there is some steeping that occurs within the filter, the process employs gravity rather than applied pressure. It's a much more delicate brew, and a great way to drink finer and lighter-roast coffees (but again, it all comes down to taste).
How to clean a French press
Coffee pots of all types are breeding grounds for mold spores and bacteria, so it's important to clean them regularly. However, French presses — typically consisting of a plate, a spiral, and a layer of mesh — can be tricky to clean, and coffee grounds get stuck inside them easily. Here's the cleaning method we find the most effective:
- Fill the basin or carafe of your French press with hot, soapy water (regular dish soap works here).
- Plunge the plunger back and forth to create a froth. This will generally get out most of the grounds.
- You can go and pick out any stray grounds, but that might be a bit much for most people, and plunging the hot soapy water takes care of any mold or bacteria anyway.
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