In order to select the best coffee makers under $100, I tested 8 different models and found the Hamilton Beach 2-Way 12 Cup Programmable Drip Coffee Maker & Single Serve Machine to be the best overall. Its versatility, offering both a standard 12-cup carafe and a single-serve setting, played a significant role in this determination.
Making good coffee is always one of our top priorities. Everyone should be able to make great coffee at home if they want to. While more expensive coffee makers can have advantages, there are plenty of fantastic options in the under $100 price range.
When it comes to our top pick, the Hamilton Beach 12-cup coffee maker offers a lot of advantages. Being able to make a single-serve cup of coffee is great for coffee lovers who want a quick top-up, while the larger carafe makes serving coffee for more than one just as convenient. The durable and easy maintenance design of this coffee maker also makes that versatility easier.
Of course, everyone is looking for something a little different in their coffee. Different coffee makers can offer different advantages, and that’s important. For example, a standard coffee maker probably isn’t the best pick for someone who loves espresso. Someone who wants to cold-brew occasionally is going to need a different design as well.
Here are our recommendations for the best coffee makers under $100, and why you might want to get each one! We’ve also included a coffee maker buying guide so you can find the most important features for your coffee maker at the end of the review.
8 Top Picks for the Best Coffee Makers under $100 at a Glance
- Best Overall: Hamilton Beach 2-Way 12 Cup Programmable Drip Coffee Maker & Single Serve Machine
- Best Program and Go, Coffee Maker: Ninja CE251 Programmable Brewer
- Best Temp Control Coffee Maker: Cuisinart DCC-3200BKSP1 Perfectemp, 14 Cup Progammable
- Best Compact Coffee Maker: Elite Gourmet EHC113M Personal Single-Serve Compact Coffee Maker
- Best For Cappuccino: Mr. Coffee Espresso and Cappuccino Machine, Single Serve Coffee Maker
- Best For K-Cups: Keurig K-Mini Single-Serve Coffee Maker
- Best Portable Coffee Maker: WACACO Minipresso NS2 Portable Espresso Machine
- Best French Press: Cafe Du Chateau The Original Glass French Press Coffee Maker
Our 8 Best Coffee Makers Under $100 Reviewed
Here are some of the best coffee makers you can get for under $100. There are a lot of different things that go into making a great coffee maker, so we’ve tried to choose a range of options that work well for different needs and making different kinds of coffee.
1 Hamilton Beach 2-Way 12 Cup Programmable Drip Coffee Maker & Single Serve Machine
One of the reasons that the Hamilton Beach 2-way 12 cup coffee maker made our best overall rating is because this coffee maker is one of the most versatile options in the under $100 range.
The option of making a single-serve cup of coffee when you’re only making enough for one helps make this coffee maker a little more convenient. But for larger families, multiple coffee drinkers, or when you want to make coffee with friends, the larger 12-cup coffee carafe is a fantastic addition.
The programming settings on this coffee maker also go a long way toward a better cup of coffee. You can put more water than you need in the reservoir, and the coffee maker will take what it needs as it needs it. You can program automatic brewing up to 24 hours ahead.
A brew mode selector also lets you choose how strong you want your coffee to taste. However, this setting works best when you also change from medium to fine-ground coffee.
Lastly, an auto-off feature helps prevent overheating and burning your coffee by turning off the heating element after 2 hours.
Pros
- Automatic shutoff helps prevent overheating and burning your coffee.
- Choose exactly how much coffee you want to make in each brew cycle.
- A large water reservoir helps save time.
- Schedule coffee brewing times up to 24 hours in advance.
Cons
- Coffee filter can occasionally overflow and backwash grounds into the water reservoir.
- This coffee maker might be a little too tall to fit under kitchen cabinets.
2 Ninja CE251 Programmable Brewer
If you’re someone who has busy mornings and wants to be able to just program your coffee maker and not have to think about it until the coffee is brewed and ready, this might be the coffee maker under $100 for you.
You can choose your brew strength when you want to brew your coffee, and also how much to brew (1-4 cups or 12), in the brew settings.
The clean setting also helps to descale your coffee maker so you can always count on the best-tasting coffee and get consistent performance from this coffee maker.
Lastly, brew scheduling means that you can tell this coffee maker when you want your coffee without having to think about it too much in the morning. If you’re someone who struggles with making coffee when you’re tired and under-caffeinated, this feature is for you.
As a note, this coffee maker has gone through some recent design updates, so it’s performing a good bit better than earlier versions, and a lot of the known problems have been resolved.
Pros
- Removable metal mesh filter avoids the need for disposable paper filters.
- Pre-schedule your coffee whenever you want to.
- Option of large or small batches, customize how much you need.
- Pre-saturates the grounds for better coffee flavor.
Cons
- The mesh filter can leak fine coffee grounds into the carafe. But medium and coarse ground should be fine.
3 Cuisinart DCC-3200BKSP1 Perfectemp, 14 Cup Programmable
If you are looking for an affordable coffee maker that ensures the best possible coffee taste in your mug, this is a good option.
The additional charcoal filter for your water does need to be changed occasionally but helps to remove any impurities that can alter the taste of your coffee.
Options like controlling the temperature of the coffee in the carafe also give you more control over the finished taste of your coffee. Hotter coffee tends to get bitter, but coffee that’s too cold might taste stale or too thick.
The gold-tone reusable mesh filter is another good option for controlling coffee taste. The filter does a good job of keeping coffee grounds out of the carafe, while the coating that gives the filter its color helps prevent metal taste getting into the coffee.
Pros
- Temperature control gives you the power to control the taste of your coffee and set a drinkable heat.
- Pre-schedule your coffee brewing.
- Choose between larger and smaller batches of coffee.
- Set the Auto-off setting for anywhere between 0-4 hours after brewing.
- Clean function keeps your coffee maker working well.
Cons
- You have to replace the charcoal filter occasionally, otherwise, it stops working and starts putting filtered impurities back into your water.
4 Elite Gourmet EHC113M Personal Single-Serve Compact Coffee Maker
Not having enough kitchen counter space is a common problem these days. Large coffee makers might be more standard, but smaller versions like this one are better in a lot of apartments and condos. It can also be a good option for singles and people who want to save their counter space for other kitchen appliances.
Of course, the smaller size does mean that this coffee maker can’t make the larger batches you can get with some of the other coffee makers we’ve already discussed.
This coffee maker is a good all-in-one option if you’re making coffee on the go before you head into work in the morning. The 14 oz travel mug that comes with this coffee maker is perfectly sized to fit in the coffee maker and helps keep coffee warm for hours.
The reusable filter included with this coffee maker is starting to be more of a standard feature, but it’s still nice to see a reusable option with a smaller coffee maker like this one.
If you’re worried about how your coffee maker will look on the kitchen counter, this maker is available in 3 different colors. That way you can make sure your kitchen looks as good as your coffee tastes!
Pros
- Easy to use.
- Fast brewing means that your coffee is ready to go quicker.
- Included travel mug makes it so you can make your coffee and drink it in the same container.
- Travel mug is well insulated.
- Choose the right color for your interior design plans.
- Perfect for singles and anyone who prefers to brew coffee one mug at a time.
Cons
- Only comes with one travel mug, so this isn’t really a coffee maker for more than one person.
- No auto-shutoff. If you leave the coffee maker on all day, it will stay on all day.
5 Mr. Coffee Espresso and Cappuccino Machine, Single Serve Coffee Maker
Cappuccino is one of the most popular coffee drinks you can get. But to make a cappuccino at home used to be cost-prohibitive for a lot of people. Espresso makers and milk steamers were expensive, and having them was a luxury or a sign that the owner really prioritized their coffee.
Fortunately, with this cappuccino maker for under $100, you can make cappuccinos at home on your own. The system is easy to use, and the combination of both a milk frother and a steam wand make it so you can get that rich, fresh from the café, cappuccino texture whenever you want it.
The 20 oz capacity is a little more limited than some of the other coffee makers one our list, but a good cappuccino can really only be made one at a time anyway.
The steam-brewing system makes full-bodied and delicious espresso.
Better yet, the frothing wand is fully removable to make cleaning easier.
Pros
- One of the most affordable espresso makers you can get.
- Steam espresso brewing system produces high-quality espresso.
- An all-in-one design means that you don't need any other tools to make a great cappuccino.
- Espresso flavor is good enough to drink on its own.
- Easy to clean and maintain system.
Cons
- Designed to work specifically for the included measuring cup. Doesn’t work as well with a different amount of grounds.
- Milk frother is a little louder than competitors.
6 Keurig K-Mini Single Serve Coffee Maker
K-cups, both the disposable and the reusable kind, are some of the most popular ways for people to make coffee. The pre-measured K-cup and intensity of the flavor is fantastic, and this is one of the fastest and easiest ways to make coffee.
This design is compact, small enough for even the most cramped apartment kitchens, and also comes in a range of different colors to help match your interior design.
It can make up to 12 fluid oz of coffee at a time. That’s a little smaller than some of the other coffee makers we have, even the single-serve coffee makers, but it’s a reasonable serving size.
Plus, the speed of making coffee with this model means that you can make several cups of coffee relatively quickly, without having to worry about long wait times between each round.
The biggest drawback of this system is that you do need to read the instruction booklet with this coffee maker since it’s easy to accidentally tweak your coffee in a way that doesn’t work with this coffee maker.
But, assuming you don’t mind following the coffee-making instructions closely, you should be good to go after you read the instruction manual.
Pros
- Easy to use, once you’ve read the instruction manual.
- Perfect size for a smaller apartment, or one cup-a-day singles.
- Fast brewing time makes it possible to brew several servings quickly.
- Choose the amount of coffee you want to brew by filling the mug you want with water.
Cons
- If you don’t read the instructions, it’s easy to overfill your mug.
- Supposed to work with non-coffee K-pods, but often leaves a residue in the pod without fully brewing your drink.
7 WACACO Minipresso NS2 Portable Espresso Machine
If you’re a frequent traveler you probably already know that finding a good cup of coffee on the road can be a lot more challenging than you’d expect.
While you can rely on coffee chains to some extent, there are still regional differences in the taste of the coffee, the menu, and the kinds of brew available. Plus, hotel coffee and other sources are more hit or miss.
Having your own portable coffee maker gets rid of those problems and makes it a lot easier to have great coffee even when you’re traveling.
Better yet, since this is an espresso machine, you can make great espresso on the go.
It is a little limited since this coffee maker is designed to work with Nespresso capsules (similar to K-pods). But, for most travelers, that’s not a big deal since Nespresso capsules are available in most areas, and traveling with a couple in your bags doesn’t take up a lot of space.
Plus, since this espresso maker is 30% smaller than the previous generation portable coffee maker, it’s a fantastic option for people who like to travel light, but that does mean that can’t handle making a larger serving of coffee.
Pros
- Small and compact for travel.
- Works with Nespresso pods to make fantastic and consistent espresso.
- Lighter and more ergonomic design for easy use.
- Cool touch design thanks to the double wall that insulates and keeps all the heat inside the espresso maker.
- Environmentally friendly and designed with 30% biomass materials.
Cons
- Very small design means that this isn’t going to make a full serving of coffee. Instead, you can make several servings of espresso if you want a full serving of coffee.
8 Cafe Du Chateau The Original Glass French Press Coffee Maker
While a lot of people prefer electric coffee makers, there is something classic and delicious about coffee made in a French Press.
French Press coffee makers also give you a lot of customization power over your coffee, from how strong you want to make your coffee, to the brew time. They can also give you a fuller and more robust coffee flavor, making the kind of coffee you drink really show up in the cup.
They’re also a good choice for people who want to be able to cold-brew coffee occasionally, or who also want to make tea and other hot beverages without needing a different appliance to make it.
This French Press has the advantage of 4 layers of filtration to make sure even the finest ground coffee is easy to use in your French Press. The glass container also makes it easy to see the color of your coffee, which can tell you a lot about how strong your coffee is. The easy press design is simple to use and doesn’t take a lot of strength to push down.
The filter plunger is also easy to disassemble, which makes it easier to fully clean the entire French Press. The 34 oz design is about average for a French Press, but lets you make a couple of servings of coffee at a time.
You can even turn your French Press into a good cold-brew coffee maker, and can even brew your coffee overnight in the fridge so that it’s ready to drink in the morning!
Pros
- Works for hot and cold coffee.
- Big enough to make a couple of servings at a time.
- Works for other hot and cold drinks as well.
- Easy to clean filter design.
- 4 layers of filters to keep all of the coffee grounds out of your mug.
- Stainless steel construction resists staining.
Cons
- You need to have a separate kettle for hot water brewing.
- Much smaller than a 12-cup coffee maker, so may not be as suitable for entertaining.
Buying Guide: The Most Important Features To Consider In A Coffee Maker Under $100
Now that you’ve seen some of the best coffee makers you can get under $100, let’s talk about the things that make a coffee maker great and the preferences you and your household might have that could make a difference in which coffee maker will work for you.
How Big Is Your Coffee-Drinking Household?
Nothing is worse in the morning than needing your cup of coffee and having to wait for someone else to finish making theirs.
If you have a lot of coffee drinkers in your household, it’s a good idea to have a coffee maker big enough to serve everyone at least one mug of coffee in the morning. Or, you might want to have more than one French Press or another strategy to make sure there is plenty of coffee to go around, without having to wait.
Glass Or Metal Carafe
Glass coffee carafes are some of the most common, but they can also be a lot more fragile than metal versions. At the same time, they’re cheaper, it’s easier to see when the carafe needs to be cleaned, and you can visually look to see whether your coffee is brewed properly.
That’s important because a lot of coffee makers start brewing coffee weaker when they are starting to fail.
Metal carafes are a lot more durable, which can make them better for younger coffee drinkers, or people who have hand tremors, or just aren’t fully awake before they have their coffee. Metal carafes are also much more insulating, which means that you don’t need to continue heating your coffee to keep it warm.
Both styles have their own pros and cons, but it’s worth considering which kind of carafe you want in your home.
What Does Your Coffee Maker Brew With?
There are coffee makers that also grind the coffee, or that prefer a specific coffee grounds texture (coarse, medium, or fine), in order to make the best coffee.
That’s an important part because using the wrong type of grounds or beans can make it more likely that coffee grounds will get into your mug.
If you prefer a specific grind, line fine ground for more robust coffee, or coarse for a slightly less intense flavor, you should look for a coffee maker specifically designed to work with that kind of coffee.
Single-Serve Or Multi-Cup?
We’ve already talked about the importance of having enough coffee makers for all the coffee drinkers in your household, but it’s also worth thinking about the taste of single-serve coffee vs. multi-cup coffee.
Making your coffee in a single-serving machine can give you a lot more control over the finished flavor of the coffee, which is important for true coffee lovers.
Single-serve coffee can also often be made a lot stronger than multi-cup coffee.
So, depending on your coffee goals, you might want to look for a single-serve coffee maker or a combination coffee maker that can do both.
Programmable Or Fully Manual?
Pre-programmable coffee makers are a good option for people who like to keep things organized, don’t have a lot of time in the morning, or just don’t trust themselves to make coffee without having their coffee first.
Programmable coffee makers do tend to be a bit more expensive than manual coffee makers with otherwise similar features.
However, if you’re trusting a programmable coffee maker to work the way you want it to, it’s easy to accidentally hit the wrong button or schedule the coffee for the wrong time.
Manual coffee makers might not be as convenient, but there’s less that can go wrong.
Do You Want An Auto Off Feature?
Auto-off features are getting more and more common because they help avoid overheating your coffee and burning it. They also help prevent damage to the coffee maker or carafe if it’s accidentally running on empty.
However, coffee makers with an auto-off might not be as good for people who want to have hot coffee all day long. If you work from home and need coffee all the time, or are buying a coffee maker for a business setting, you might not want the coffee maker to time out on its own.
Electric Coffee Maker Or French Press?
There are a lot of advantages to both of these styles of coffee makers. Electric coffee makers are more automated. Add water and coffee, and let it do its thing.
That does, inherently, mean that your coffee is less customizable with an electric coffee maker. Electric coffee makers also only make hot coffee, you can’t make cold brew in this style of coffee maker.
French Presses can make hot and cold coffee both, giving you a ton of control over the strength of the coffee, brewing time and temperature, and other details.
They’re also a good option for people who also like to brew loose-leaf teas.
But, a French Press does take a little more work and can take a little longer to reach your desired brew strength for a single serving. You also need an additional kettle if you want to make hot coffee in a French Press.
There are advantages to both options, and a lot of people do own both an electric coffee maker and a French Press. But it’s worth thinking about which option is right for you.
Pod Or Filter Coffee Maker
Choosing between pods and filters is an interesting choice for a lot of people. Pods are usually faster and more convenient, but they also produce a lot more waste. Filters, even disposable filters, are more environmentally friendly, but also take a little more time and effort to use.
Reusable filters are the most eco-friendly option, but they need daily cleaning and aren’t always as good at keeping coffee grounds out of your coffee.
While this is a personal choice, it will stick with you for however long you’re using your new coffee maker, so you should take some time to choose the right option for you.
Our Verdict
There are a ton of great coffee makers out there, and modern technologies mean that you can get fantastic coffee makers for $100 or less, very easily.
Overall, the best coffee maker under $100 is the Hamilton Beach 2-Way 12 Cup Programmable Drip Coffee Maker & Single Serve Machine. That’s thanks to its function as both a large coffee maker and a single-serve coffee maker, plus the suite of powerful and convenient programming options that make this coffee maker easier to use.
But, if you’re an espresso lover, prefer the flexibility of a French Press, or need a coffee maker with a smaller footprint, we’re confident that one of the other coffee makers we’ve evaluated for this review will work for you.
FAQs
Yes, but you’ll want to grab the coffee out of the carafe as quickly as you can after it’s made. That’s because 12-cup coffee makers are usually designed to keep 12 cups of coffee warm, not just one.
If you leave one cup of coffee in a 12-cup coffee maker for too long, it will probably overheat, which can burn the coffee. It will also degrade the amount of caffeine in your coffee and can make the coffee evaporate faster.
At least 5 years, with proper maintenance. High-quality machines can often last longer, but even the most affordable design should last at least 5 years.
If you find yourself having to replace a coffee maker in less than 5 years, we’d recommend choosing a different model or brand. All of the coffee makers on this list should last at least 5 years, even if you drink more coffee than average.
Yes and no. Leaving your coffee maker on all day is safe, but it can contribute to your coffee maker wearing out sooner than it otherwise would.
You should never leave an empty coffee maker on, since the heat in the bottom of the carafe can shatter it.
It’s also not a good idea to keep coffee hot all the time if you want to get the caffeine benefits. Heat actually degrades caffeine over time, so higher temperatures and longer heating can both mean less caffeine in your cup.
However, it is safe to leave your coffee maker on as long as there is coffee in the carafe to prevent overheating. Some coffee makers will auto-off, but that’s more to preserve the caffeine and prevent your coffee from getting too thick than to prevent a safety issue.
