The Truth About Single Cup Coffee Brewers

Single cup coffee brewers are the ultimate in convenience. They look so bright, shiny and beautiful in the store, that you can’t help but want to take one home. But before you do that, there are a few things you will want to consider.

Budgeting for Your Single Cup Coffee Brewer

Anyone on budget will quickly realize that single cup coffee brewers are not inexpensive by any means. No doubt about it, they are wonderful machines. You can make all kinds of delicious coffees relatively quickly and easily, but you pay for that ease. On the bright side, it is a very competitive market out there, so you will get what you pay for.

Durability of Single Cup Coffee Brewers

Though single cup coffee brewers are designed to be easy to use, they are not simple machines. Naturally, complicated machines break down more often than simpler machinery. When your single cup coffee brewer breaks down, most likely it won’t be a quick fix that you can do yourself at home. You can count on having to send it in for repair. That means you’ll be without your coffee machine for quite some time, usually 2 to 3 weeks if you’re lucky.

Can You Afford to Drink the Coffee?

Most people focus on the price of the single cup coffee brewer itself. You may be able afford it, but that’s not the least of your concerns. The real question is, can you afford the coffee?

Coffee made in these machines will cost more because the pods or more expensive than beans.  The coffee pods can get very expensive, especially if you have to purchase them from one company. One pod makes one cup of coffee. To figure out your cost, simply multiply the price of one pod times how many cups of coffee you drink per day. Multiply that out by the number of days a year and you can see that adds up quite quickly.

What do you want to brew?

Some single cup coffee brewers are very versatile. With the Tassimo, you can brew espresso, cappuccino, hot tea, hot chocolate, as well as coffee. However, some machines are designed with only one function in mind. Nespresso is one machine that brews just espresso, and you are locked in to using their pods.

A Lifestyle Choice

Keep in mind that a single cup coffee brewer may not be the right thing if you frequently have a large number of guests. These machines are really designed just to brew a cup or two of your favorite beverage. Even though some have large water reservoirs, it’s still not practical or cost-efficient to use these machines for a large crowd.

Limitations in choice

Be aware that you’ll always be limited in the variety of coffee you can brew with a single cup coffee brewer. These machines require pods, which restricts your choice of coffee to that supplied by the pod manufacturers. With a regular coffeemaker, there is absolutely no limit. The world is your oyster… or coffee bean if you prefer.