My first coffee machine was a Dolce Gusto. These days I make espresso at home in Ooij every day with a Sage Barista Express Impress, and everything I came across along the way is on espressodeal.nl.
There is so much choice in espresso machines that I found it hard to decide. The specifications are spread over different websites, and so are the prices. That is where the idea for espressodeal.nl came from.
My aim with espressodeal is to show the most common coffee machines in one overview with all their specifications. On espressodeal I also try to stick to the specifications as much as possible, so you can make the comparison and reach a verdict yourself. Besides, I only have experience with the two Sage machines I own and owned, so it would be odd for me to judge a machine I have never used. I hope espressodeal helps you in the search for your next machine!
So I have chosen a manual espresso machine twice, where I do most of the steps myself. I like that, because it does not just let me experiment with all kinds of coffee beans, it is also a kind of ritual. I enjoy the smell of coffee and the steps that go into making it. A coffee tastes so much better when you made it yourself.
Questions about an article or the site? Send me a message.
Missing an espresso machine in the overview? Let me know and I will add it.
I hesitated about mentioning it here, but my very first coffee machine was a Dolce Gusto. I drank relatively little coffee and simply went for convenience.
The longer I drank coffee, the more I started to ask of it, and after drinking real coffee a number of times I decided for myself that a Dolce Gusto was not my thing. I found the capsules relatively expensive, and what also bothered me is that they were made of plastic, which I did not find very sustainable.
What I use nowSage Barista Express Impressin Almond Nougat€626.00in Black TruffleRight now I have the Sage Barista Express Impress. I was very happy with the Sage Barista Express I had before, but when I moved in with my partner, the colour of the coffee machine suddenly became an important factor.
In almost every respect the Barista Express Impress is like the Barista Express, except that this machine has an automatic tamper that always presses the coffee into the portafilter with the right force. I use it every day and keep varying between different kinds of coffee beans. With it I make espressos, lungos, latte macchiatos and flat whites. At the moment I am using beans I bought at Bairro Alto in Nijmegen, roasted by Blommers from Nijmegen.
What I had beforeSage Barista Expressin Black Truffle€459.00My very first real espresso machine was a Sage Barista Express, which I had for a little over three years. That is where my experimenting with coffee began. I mostly used beans from Brandzaak with it. Compared with the Dolce Gusto it was a big step forward, but what I mainly noticed is that I enjoyed spending more time and attention on making a coffee, rather than putting in a capsule and pressing a button.
I think the Sage Barista Express is a fine machine to start with. For real coffee enthusiasts it is often a no-go, because a machine that has everything in one (a grinder, an espresso machine and a frother) is often a compromise between all three. But not everyone has the budget to start with a grinder and a machine that each cost more than 1000 euros. Everyone starts somewhere.
Every day espressodeal automatically collects the prices of the espresso machines from the shops and makes them visible. That way you know whether you are buying the machine at a good price, or whether you are better off waiting a little. Because prices are tracked daily, it also suddenly becomes clear whether, say, a Black Friday deal really is a deal. And if you are smart, you set a price alert for your favourite machine, so you always buy it at the best price.
I try to write a blog regularly, focusing mainly on the machines I have experience with myself, or on the general steps of making coffee. Especially when you start with your first espresso machine there is a lot to take in, and in my blogs I try to explain it simply and clearly.
29 September 2026 · 4 min read
Does your espresso taste sour, or too bitter? It is usually not the beans or the machine, but how long the water runs through the coffee. How to recognise it and what to do.
29 September 2026 · 5 min read
A bean-to-cup does everything for you; with a manual machine you do it yourself. Which fits you depends on how much time and attention you want to give your coffee. Why I chose a manual machine twice.
29 September 2026 · 5 min read
Good milk foam is no accident, but two steps in the right order. How I steam milk with the wand on my Sage, which milk works best and which mistakes I made myself.
28 September 2026 · 5 min read
From bean to cup with a manual espresso machine: the recipe, the grind, tamping and cleaning. The way I do it myself with my Sage, including the mistakes I made along the way.
20 September 2026 · 4 min read
The beans decide more of your espresso than the machine. What to look for: the roast, the roast date, arabica or robusta, and how to store them.
19 September 2026 · 4 min read
The price of a coffee machine moves through the year. How to tell whether an offer really is an offer, and when waiting pays.