Best De’Longhi coffee machine 2025: Our expert-tested picks

Here at Expert Reviews, we’ve tested and reviewed enough coffee machines to keep the whole team awake for the next decade or so. Among the models we’ve reviewed, few brands have scored as consistently highly or appeared as frequently on our round-ups as De’Longhi’s coffee machines. If you’re set on getting a top-notch manual espresso machine or bean-to-cup model from the historic Italian brand – and we commend your choice – our round-up will help steer you towards the right machine for your needs, budget and level of coffee mastery.

Below, you’ll see our at-a-glance-list, which cuts to the chase and highlights the best De’Longhi machines in various categories. Scroll a little further and you’ll find our mini reviews of our favourite De’Longhi coffee machines, which provide more information on the positives and negatives of each appliance. Finally you’ll see our full-length buying guide, which should clear up any lingering questions you might have regarding coffee machine types, pricing and more.

Best De’Longhi coffee machine: At a glance

How we test coffee machines

We thoroughly test all the coffee machines we review and the models listed below are no different.

To best assess the depth of flavour a given coffee machine can produce, we rigorously test its regular espresso-making abilities using high-quality single-origin coffee beans from artisan roasters such as Craft Coffee House. If a machine we’re testing requires ground coffee, we employ a popular, affordable grinder – the Iberital MC2 (around £150) – to grind our beans, so we can make reliable and repeatable comparisons between different machines. As well as grinding to perfection, we aim to dose our coffee accurately by using digital scales and look to brew for a consistent amount of time, to make top-notch, replicable espressos across different tests.

As well as testing a machine’s coffee-making abilities, we also test any other features it might have, such as milk frothing, and compare and contrast it to similar machines in terms of quality and price range. Overall, if we’re satisfied that a coffee machine can produce a brilliant brew in our kitchen, we’re happy to recommend it for yours.

READ NEXT: Best milk frother

The best De’Longhi coffee machines you can buy in 2025

1. De’Longhi Dedica Style: Best entry-level manual espresso machine

Price when reviewed: £179 | Check price at John Lewis

• Great for… tasty espresso on a budget
• Not so great for… premium features, single-origin brewing

Regular visitors to Expert Reviews will know that the budget-friendly De’Longhi Dedica Style has long been our go-to recommendation for anyone seeking out an entry-level espresso machine. The Dedica is sturdily built, has a slim profile that won’t take up too much space on your countertop and is straightforward enough to be operated by beginners.

The Dedica can produce a solid espresso without much faff, and its pressured portafilter basket means it will be forgiving even if your dosage or grind size aren’t quite right. The steam wand is straightforward and works well, with one setting for foam and one for plain hot milk.

In testing, the Dedica struggled to produce truly silky microfoam with its steam wand and unlock the deeper flavours of more expensive, single-origin coffees when brewing espresso. However, these limitations are to be expected with a model at this price point. If you’re an aficionado seeking a next-level cup of coffee, you’ll probably want to aim for a more premium machine. Otherwise, this is a solid bet.

Key specs – Dimensions (WDH): 149 x 303 x 330mm; Water capacity: 1.1l; Milk frothing: Manual (steam wand); Coffee type: Ground

2. De’Longhi Magnifica S Smart: Best budget bean-to-cup coffee machine

Price when reviewed: £387 | Check price at Amazon

• Great for… ease of use and solid build quality
• Not so great for… long drinks, default settings need tweaking

Our favourite bean-to-cup machine available for under £500, the De’Longhi Magnifica S Smart allows you to get much of the automation and quality of drink of a bean-to-cup machine for much less. This relatively compact but sturdily built machine is simple to operate and can produce espressos, double espressos or long coffees at the touch of a button. It isn’t fully-automatic, however, so you will have to steam the milk yourself. We’re confident that this won’t prove much trouble for most users, as the steam wand frothed cappuccino-ready milk with ease in our tests.

As is the case with most bean-to-cup machines, our expert found they had to tweak the settings on the Magnifica S Smart to get a properly textured and flavoured espresso. Thankfully, this was mostly achieved by some simple strength dial adjustments and a reduction in water input. The main bugbear for our tester was the long coffees the Magnifica S Smart produced, which tended to be a little bitter.

Overall, if you’re looking for a bean-to-cup machine that won’t break the bank, the Magnifica S Smart is a clear winner.

Read our in-depth De’Longhi Magnifica S Smart review

Key specs – Dimensions (WDH): 430 x 340 x 220mm; Water capacity: 1.8 litres; Milk frothing: Manual (steam wand); Adjustable grind: Yes; Adjustable strength: Yes

3. De’Longhi Magnifica Evo One Touch: Best coffee machine for most people

Price when reviewed: £419 | Check price at John Lewis

• Great for… one-touch cappuccinos, lattés and more
• Not so great for… noisy in use

If you’re prepared to spend a little more, the De’Longhi Magnifica Evo One Touch offers excellent value for money. A fully-automatic bean-to-cup for just over £400 is a bit of a steal, especially when you look at the price of similar machines. Sweetening the deal further, regular discounts have seen this model drop below £400 on numerous occasions.

As well as being well-priced, the Evo One Touch is also a straightforwardly great coffee machine. Living up to its name, this easy-to-use De’Longhi machine can whip up tasty flat whites, lattés, macchiatos, cappuccinos and more with the press of one button. You can also long-press on a drink’s icon to access a range of customisation settings.

While our coffee expert found the Evo One Touch’s espresso couldn’t quite match a manual option like the Gaggia Classic Pro or a high-end bean-to-cup machine like the De’Longhi PrimaDonna Soul, any minor differences were hard to notice in milky coffees or long drinks.

Read our in-depth De’Longhi Magnifica Evo One Touch review

Key specs – Dimensions (WDH): 440 x 360 x 240mm; Water capacity: 1.8l; Milk frothing: Automatic; Adjustable grind: Yes; Adjustable strength: Yes

4. De’Longhi Rivelia: Best mid-range bean-to-cup coffee machine

Price when reviewed: £600 | Check price at John Lewis

• Great for… custom drink settings can be saved, reliable coffee quality
• Not so great for… pricey, bulky design

Bridging the gap between De’Longhi’s Magnificas and high-end machines like PrimaDonna Soul and Eletta Explore, the Rivelia is an aesthetically pleasing coffee machine which allows users to make great quality espresso with minimal effort.

Though slightly fewer than the 20+ options offered by the PrimaDonna Soul and the Eletta Explore, the Rivelia’s 16 different drinks should be enough to satisfy most comers. Like those machines, the Rivelia offers customisation options for its different drinks, as well as the ability to save personalised settings. Our reviewer even found that the Rivelia kept abreast of their drinking habits, putting americanos at the top of the drinks list in the morning and listing cappuccinos first in the afternoon.

A neat physical feature of the Rivelia which impressed our reviewer is the machine’s dual 250g bean hoppers, which allow you to easily switch between two different sets of beans. This set-up meant they could easily switch between beans with different flavour profiles or keep both regular coffee and decaf beans on hand.

When testing the espresso produced by the Rivelia, our reviewer noted that it had a smooth flavour and good crema.

Read our in-depth De’Longhi Rivelia review

Key specs – Dimensions (WDH): 245 x 430 x 385mm; Water capacity: 1.4l; Milk frothing: Automatic; Adjustable grind: Yes; Adjustable strength: Yes

5. De’Longhi PrimaDonna Soul: Best high-end bean-to-cup coffee machine

Price when reviewed: £1,380 | Check price at John Lewis

• Great for… stylish, makes great coffee, tea and more
• Not so great for… can’t match manual espresso for flavour

Its price may be slightly eye-watering, but the De’Longhi PrimaDonna Soul goes a long way to justifying its cost, being one of the best bean-to-cup machines we’ve tested. It is handsomely built and robust, with a 500g bean hopper and a large 2.2l water tank helping keep things pleasantly autonomous.

In use, the Soul proves itself up to a range of tasks. Tap the Soul’s sleek 4.3in touchscreen, and you’ll be able to choose from its list of 21 available drinks, which range from long blacks and lattés, to cortados and even tea. Across these different drinks, our expert was impressed with the deep flavours and silky textures the PrimaDonna Soul was able to produce.

A standout De’Longhi feature present in the PrimaDonna Soul is its Bean Adapt setting. Input the type and roast level of the beans you’re using, and the Soul will automatically choose a brew temperature, grind and dosage to achieve the optimal flavour profile. While initially skeptical of this feature, once they tested it, our coffee expert was impressed with how well it worked.

Read our in-depth De’Longhi PrimaDonna Soul review

Key specs – Dimensions (WDH): 262 x 485 x 390mm; Water capacity: 2.2l; Milk frothing: Automatic; Adjustable grind: Yes; Adjustable strength: Yes

6. De’Longhi Eletta Explore: Best coffee machine for cold drinks

Price when reviewed: £1,000 | Check price at De’Longhi

• Great for… wide range of drinks, responsive touchscreen
• Not so great for… very expensive, a tad overambitious

The De’Longhi Eletta Explore is an odd proposition. It probably tries to do too much, certainly costs too much, and yet it still mostly managed to win us over when we tested and reviewed it.

Like most De’Longhi machines, it is easy to use, solidly built and offers a range of grind and strength adjustments. It is operated via a bright, responsive 3.5in touchscreen, from which you can select one of its many drinks options. And it’s here, in all its overambition, that the Eletta Explore shines. The 28 customisable drink options include quickly-made cold brew, hot coffees, cold milk drinks and more. Once you’ve settled on the perfect length, strength and texture for a drink, you can also save it to favourites on your user profile.

Looking at its core espresso-making abilities, our coffee expert found that it took a decent amount of initial adjustment to get a good espresso pull. Once again, the brand’s handy Bean Adapt function helped guide them along through this process. After some tinkering, they found the Eletta could produce a very drinkable and reliably reproducible espresso.

Ultimately, if you want to go broad rather than deep with your coffee selection, the Eletta Explore is a likeable, easy-to-use, jack-of-all-trades.

Read our in-depth De’Longhi Eletta Explore review

Key specs – Dimensions (WDH): 260 x 450 x 385mm; Water capacity: 1.8l; Milk frothing: Automatic; Adjustable grind: Yes; Adjustable strength: Yes

How to choose the best De’Longhi coffee machine for you?

Still have some questions? Check out our short FAQ below to get all the information you’ll need to make an informed purchase when buying a De’Longhi coffee machine.

How much should I spend on a De’Longhi coffee machine?

If you plump for the entry-level machine featured on our round-up, you will usually be able to pick one up for less than £200. For coffee machines at this price point, you won’t get any extra fancy features or functions, like built-in grinders, automatic frothing or touchscreens and smart features. However, you’ll still be able to make an excellent cup of coffee at home.

By pairing a machine like the Dedica Style with some quality ground coffee, or buying a separate grinder and some quality beans, and taking a little time to get familiar with the steam wand, you’ll quickly pick up the skills to make delicious barista-style coffee at home.

If you don’t want to have to put too much thought or effort into your morning brew, then spending a little extra money on a bean-to-cup option is the way to go. Depending on sales and discounts, the mid-range for De’Longhi’s bean-to-cup machines can range from between £400 and £700, or thereabouts.

Opt for one of these machines and you’ll receive a sturdy appliance that will actually grind, dose and brew your coffee for you. Most bean-to-cup machines in this range will also offer automatic milk frothing, extra drink options and handy customisation settings.

High-end bean-to-cup machines in the brand’s range can go for anywhere from £700 to in excess of £1000. If you’re looking to spend this much money, you can expect to pick up a machine that is highly-finished, has smart features like touchscreen inputs, user profiles and further customisation options, as well as the ability to make a wide range of drinks including hot coffees, tea, cold brew and iced coffees.

As far as the quality and depth of flavour of the espresso produced, machines in this category should be able to make a shot that stands head and shoulders above the output of cheaper machines.

What are some of the parts and features of De’Longhi coffee machines I should know about?

As you’ve been going through the options we’ve laid out, you may come across some terms and features you’re unfamiliar with. Here is a quick glossary of terms:

• Bean-adapt: A feature found in more expensive De’Longhi coffee machines, the brand’s Bean Adapt technology uses user-inputted information about the type and roast of the coffee beans you’re using to optimise the machine’s settings. It does this by adjusting things like grind consistency, brewing temperature, dosage and more to suit the bean in question

• Bean hopper: The container which holds the coffee beans and from which they are fed into a grinder

• Burr grinder: As opposed to a blade grinder, a burr grinder uses two or more abrasive surfaces to crush and grind coffee beans. Burr grinders are preferred for their consistency, quiet operation and their ability to grind coffee beans without producing excess heat. All the coffee machines on this page which feature an in-built grinder use a burr grinder, as will nearly all the machines we review on the site. Blade grinders are usually separate devices or feature as part of cheaper machines

• Crema: The flavourful and aromatic light-brown froth which forms on the top of well-made espresso

• Dosage: This simply refers to the amount of ground coffee used to prepare a given coffee or shot of espresso

• Portafilter: A portafilter is a component which consists of a handle and a basket for holding ground coffee. It is used attached to the main unit of an espresso machine in order to brew espresso. A pressurised portafilter basket is one with a built-in mechanism to increase brewing pressure, which helps maintain shot consistency, develop a crema and makes for a more forgiving process, even if your dosage or tamping are a little off

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