EvenĀ the best French press does not have the set-it-and-forget-it convenience of aĀ drip coffee maker or precisely the same coffee aficionado cachet as aĀ pour-over kit, but if youāre looking for a quick and uncomplicatedĀ brewing method for your morningĀ cup of coffee, it is hard to beat. The process of making press coffee is simpler thanĀ espresso or pour-over, but the marketplace is bursting with all sorts of subtle variations on the form, each one claiming its own innovations and vying for coffee press supremacy. There areĀ borosilicate glass carafes, affordable plastic frames, and insulated stainless-steel models withĀ double filters.
We brewed, plunged, and sipped our way through a slew of well-regarded presses in an array of materials, shapes, and sizes. The goal: to findĀ the best French pressāone that produces great coffee and can withstand intensive everyday use. Keep reading to see ourĀ top pick; for the specifics of how we tested and other models we considered, scroll to the bottom of the page.
The best French press coffee maker:Ā Espro P7
The Espro P7,Ā Esproās high-end,Ā double-walled stainless steel press just feels like a serious coffee maker. The pitcher is heavy with a handle that seems bomb proof. But itās the ādualĀ micro filterā system that really sets this coffee maker apart. Yes, the multiple filters, plus the double-lippedĀ silicone ring,Ā plus the strainer on the lid do have a āF*** Everything, Weāre Going to Five Bladesā thing going on, but they really work. TheĀ filter system on theĀ Espro came the closest to producing aĀ clean cup, free ofĀ coffee grounds and grit of anything we tested. If for some reason you want and even cleaner cupĀ Espro also makesĀ paper filters, which you can add to the French pressĀ filter system. But even though that list of pieces sounds like a pain to disassemble and clean it was quite easy to do. TheĀ plunger unscrews just like it does in almost every French press youāve ever used and the two incredibly fineĀ mesh filters unclick and slide apart with an easy twist.Ā Espro says all parts areĀ dishwasher safe on the top rack, and we didnāt have any issues running it through, but given how fine the filters are and that they are the secret sauce that makes the press work, weād recommendĀ handwashing for longevity purposes.
Another excellent feature ofĀ the Espro P7 is that, unlike almost every other press we tested, it is actually designed to stop the coffee extraction process. After you press theĀ plunger it separates the grounds from the coffee that pours from theĀ carafe. Thatās why there is always some liquid that remains at the bottom of theĀ carafe after it seems youāve poured everything out. So, note: itās a feature, not a bug that you canāt pour every last drop. In fact, itās what stops over-extracted coffee from getting in your cup. What this design also means is that this is the onlyĀ insulated French press that can make good use of that insulation. As long-time coffee pro Ever Meister explains in their extensiveĀ how-to on French press coffee, the extraction process continues to take place as long as the coffee and water are still in contact. The only way to stop that is to pourĀ allĀ the coffee out of the press after the four minute brewing period ends. That means thereās little use in owning anĀ insulated French press; it will only encourage you toĀ keep coffee brewing in it for longĀ periods of time, which you shouldnāt do. ButĀ the Espro P7 has actually designed around that issue. Its insulation is only okay, though. After 90 minutes it had dropped almost to room temperature.
Like we said, the double-walledĀ carafe does a so-so job of keepingĀ coffee warmāitās definitely not capable of, say, what youād get in a good vacuum insulatedĀ travel mug. We arenāt judging too harshly though since itās the only press of the bunch weād even consider leaving coffee in. We also tested the larger P7āit comes in 18 ounces and 32 ouncesāand unless youāre having people over for brunch or youāre in a household that has fourĀ coffee drinkers, it may be bigger than you need. TheĀ amount of coffee youād brew in the 18-ounce version would be fine for one or two people.
Size: 6.7ā x 4.6ā x 10.1ā
Weight: 2.7 lbs.
Material: Stainless steel
Capacity: 32 ounces (18 ounces also available)
Warranty: Limited lifetimeĀ warranty
The best value French press: Espro P3
TheĀ Espro P3, is a cheaper version ofĀ the Espro P7 with a plastic frame and aĀ glass beaker instead of a single piece of stainless steel. It uses the sameĀ filtration system as the P7, which meant very very littleĀ sediment in the cup. Also, a big cut in price from the last time we tested made this truly a budget choice. Considering it uses aĀ glass carafe rather than a double-walled steel one, it does a nice job of keeping theĀ coffee warm (though not as nice a job as the P7), and again, because of itsĀ filtration system, you can leave the coffee in the press without worrying about unwanted extraction.
It is a cheaper model than its luxe cousin and it shows in the plastic frame. It didnāt feel like it would break, but was quite lightweight. That frame also meant we werenāt thrilled with the idea of keeping it on theĀ countertop permanently and would want to store it away.
Size: 6.1ā x 4.3ā x 9.5ā
Weight: 1.8 lbs.
Material:Ā Borosilicate glass andĀ BPA-free polypropyleneĀ
Capacity:Ā 32 ounces
Warranty: Limited lifetimeĀ warranty
How we tested
First, we unboxed and cleaned each press and made some general notes about its design, size, and other physical features. Then we brewed a full pot using a 14 to 1 ratio of grams of water toĀ grams of coffee, medium/coarse groundĀ coffee beans and 200Ā°F water. Then we dismantled each press, cleaned it, and reassembled it. We put parts that said they wereĀ dishwasher safe in the dishwasher. We continued incorporating our favorite presses into our regular daily coffee routing for two weeks.
We didnāt test specifically for long termĀ heat retention in theĀ carafes because, as we explained above, theĀ Espros were the only models weād feel comfortable leaving coffee in once the brew was finished.
What we looked for
Upon unboxing each French press, we considered how it felt and looked. Is the body sturdy and solid in the hand? Do the materials seemĀ high-quality? Does it look good on the table?
Related to feel, we also considered how comfortable brewing coffee with each French press was. Does the press feel balanced in the hand when pouring? How heavy is it when filled? Does theĀ plunger work tightly and smoothly or does it jostle and squeak during use?
Is theĀ filtration system effective at keeping the grounds and coffee separate? Or does the coffee have a muddy, gritty taste? Is it balanced? Or bitter and over-extracted?
If youāre going to use a press every day, youāll want it to be easy to clean. With that in mind, we paid attention to how hard the filter was to rinse, whether theĀ carafe was easy to scrub, and whether the parts wereĀ dishwasher-safe.
Other French presses we tested
TheĀ Oxo press brewed a niceĀ cup of coffeeāwe preferred it to other inexpensive models like the classicĀ Bodum Chambord or theĀ Secura, though not as much as theĀ Espro P3āand filtered the grounds adequately.Ā Oxoās penchant for adding one extra little thing is why we really liked it though. In this case it was the grounds lifter, really just aĀ silicone disc with a handle, that rests at the bottom of the press. French press coffee is notoriously one of the messiest to clean up.Ā Coffee grounds often require scooping out, and even then they donāt all come out until you begin rinsing theĀ carafe, at which point there is the inevitable explosion of grounds all over the sink.Ā Oxoās grounds lifter easily slides almost all of the spent grounds easily out of theĀ carafe and into the trash can. In fact, this was the only French press that weād consider truly easy to clean.
Chances are, if youāve ever ordered French press coffee at a cafĆ©, it came in some version of the Chambord. Designed in the 1950s, theĀ steel frame andĀ glass carafe are what most people envision when they picture aĀ classic French press. And for an inexpensive press it still holds its own. In terms of brewing and filtering performance, it was on par with theĀ Oxo, which edged it out thanks to the nifty grounds lifter. Bodum makes an even more inexpensive press called theĀ Bodum BrazilĀ that was only $15 at the time of publishing that is very similar to the Chambord with a cage thatās made of plastic instead of stainless steel.
An upgrade to the Chambord, the Bodum Tribute looks to be discontinued, although, at the time of publishing you can still get it as part of aĀ set that includes a bladeĀ coffee grinder and aĀ travel mug. But the press is still quite nice. We found theĀ carafe to be on the smaller side, which compared to the large version ofĀ the Espro P7 was actually quite nice. It made enough coffee for two,Ā maybe three people to have an average cup or, if youāre like us, enough for one giant mug to help power through those morning meetings. The hard plastic handles stayed cool to the touch even after the coffee brewed for a few minutes, and theĀ plungerāa combination of mesh andĀ siliconeācreated a tight but easy-to-move seal to keep those larger grounds from sneaking into our mug. TheĀ siliconeĀ plunger also helped prevent the inside of the press from getting scratched up, and was easier to clean than the standard coil and mesh you find in most French press brewers.Ā Carafe cleanup was easy too, particularly easy with the plain stainless-steel model, which, unlike the painted models, isĀ dishwasher-safe.
Le Creusetās singular aestheticĀ is on display with theirĀ stoneware French press. TheĀ stainless steel filter is almost identical to the coil and springĀ filtration system on Bodum French presses. It poured a slightly heavier, darkerĀ cup of coffee than theĀ Espros or the Bodum models, but still tasty and not too gritty. The heavy pitcher could keep liquid warm for an extended period if needed and it could also serve as a beautiful serving pitcher for any non-coffee drinks you might want to serve. Itās less expensive thanĀ the Espro P7 and if you like the country house vibeĀ Le Creuset puts out and the choice of a dozen different colors, this is a press to consider.
TheĀ Frieling French press is another favorite among critics and has hundreds of glowingĀ Amazon reviews praising its luxe, insulated stainless body and the nuanced, light coffee it produced. We were impressed by the tightness of the seal around the filter, but that same tightness also made it a little awkward to use as we wrestled to get theĀ plunger smoothly into theĀ carafe. We also wondered if the Freilingās filter might be a little too effective. It produced a cup so clean that it tasted likeĀ pour-over coffee. Which raises the question: If youāre choosing a French press donāt you want toĀ brew coffee with a little bit of body?
TheĀ SterlingPro looks like a clone of some more expensive metal presses, like the high-end Frieling, and is only available onĀ Amazon. The insulated 18/10 stainless-steelĀ carafe felt good in the hand and cleaned up easily after brewing. (WeĀ hand-washed it, but it isĀ dishwasher-safe.) However, the flavor of the coffee was noticeably thinner than a number of its competitors and it did let a few large solids through. Itās quite affordable for aĀ stainless steel press but couldnāt measure up to the quality of the Epsro P7 or the value of the P3.
We tested theĀ matte blackĀ Secura French press, but it also comes in a stainless steel that is nearly identical to theĀ SterlingPro. It performed similarly to the Sterling and, like the Sterling, came with extra screens for additional filtering capabilities. Itās quite inexpensive, but the we found the coffee so much better in theĀ Espro P3 and theĀ Oxo that we couldnāt make this our value choice.
Like everything Fellow theĀ matte black Klara French press is beautiful. Other than theĀ Le Creuset itās the only one weād feel excited about having out on the counter at all times. Unlike almost everything else Fellow though, there is a big issue with this one: It leaks. The lid design has strainers in several places around the circumferenceāmost lids only have oneāand we consistently had spillover beyond theĀ spout. But the filter worked well at keeping grit out.
The modern-lookingĀ Varia Multi Brewer is sleek and compact. It is alsoĀ meant to offer three different brewing options: French press,Ā pour-over coffee, and Moka potāstyle. In theory itās a great little brewer. In practice, however, this was quite a letdown, especially given its price. The first thing we noticed was that the actualĀ carafe was very small. Thatās fine when youāre just brewing for one person, but youāll be apologizing to your guests as you make each of them a singleĀ cup of coffee to order. Youāll also be apologizing to them for the mass ofĀ coffee grounds floating around in their mugs. In the first test we were surprised to find so many grounds pouring out of theĀ spout. Surely it must have been a user error, right? Unfortunately, it was not. We tried again and again only to find that this brewer just was not working the way it should. It isnāt unusual to find some grounds at the bottom of a mug of French press coffee, but this was ridiculousātheĀ plunger simply wasnāt creating a proper seal. And because theĀ carafe is opaque, there was no way to tell what was happening inside.
A vacuum insulatedĀ carafe with a size that could best be described as āBig Gulp,ā theĀ Stanley French press is best suited for a group camping trip. Itās just too big and rugged looking to use around the house on a regular basis. It brewed a rich, darkĀ cup of coffee thatās probably also best if youāre drinking at dawn while cooking bacon over a campfire.
The takeaway
Esproās filter design is simply the most effective of all of the French presses we used. And its high-end P7 stainless steel model is the only French press we think can actually make good use out of its insulation. The very affordable P3 will produce just as nice aĀ cup of coffee in a more budget-friendly package.
