Barista Express Espresso Machine BES870XL, Brushed Stainless Steel

The Breville Barista Express has been fantastic for me. It works flawlessly right out of the box and feels very well built. There’s a lot to learn with it, but once you get the hang of it, it’s extremely rewarding. I mostly use the double wall cup for my coffee when I’m not using the built-in bean grinder, and it produces consistently great espresso. The controls are intuitive, the steam wand works well for frothing milk and getting it hot, and cleanup is straightforward. It’s definitely an investment, but for anyone serious about making quality coffee at home, it’s worth every penny. A really solid machine that makes morning coffee something to look forward to. That storage bin that goes behind the drip tray is kind of annoying though since it gets splashed from the steam and boiler drip.

Pros: • Excellent espresso quality • Built in grinder works great • Steam wand makes solid lattes • Durable and reliable over time Cons: • Takes a little practice to dial in your perfect shot I’ve had this machine for over a year now, and it has been amazing. The espresso quality is consistently great, and the built in grinder makes the whole process convenient. Once you dial in your grind size and amount, it pulls really solid shots. The steam wand works well and has allowed me to learn how to make my own lattes at home. It honestly feels like a small skill I’ve picked up along the way. On top of that, it has significantly cut down on my coffee shop spending, which adds up quickly. It does take a little time to learn and maintain, but once you get the hang of it, it’s absolutely worth it. Overall, a reliable machine that delivers quality coffee every day.

I absolutely love this machine. With as many lattes as I drink, this will easily pay for itself within a year, inclouding the cost of beans, milk and cleaning products. Notes: Make sure to keep up with all the regular maintenance. Ever day after I've made my coffee, I wipe the steam wand, purge it, then wipe again. Make sure to get into all the crevices around the tip and you'll never need to use the pin to clean out the tip. Once I've done that and poured my steamed milk, I purge the showerhead by pulling one shot into the empty mug (no filters). This keeps the showerhead clean of coffee debris and keeps the coffee tasting pure. REMEMBER TO CHANGE YOUR WATER FILTERS. The filters should be changed every 60 uses or 2 months, whichever comes first. This wolill reduce how often you need to descale the machine, prolong it's useful life and provide better tasting coffees. You will still need to descale the machine every so often. The manual included is very helpful for keeping up with the maintenance (as well as pulling shots, making drinks and other useful tips) and you can also find instructions on their website should you misplace the manual. Gold tone makes pretty inexpensive replacement filters specific to this machine and they're available here on Amazon. I use them and am pretty happy with the results. Do not let the water run out. Ever. This could cause serious damage to the machine. If you forget once or twice, you'll probably be just fine but check the water reservoir at least 1-2 times per week. Clean the machine parts at least once a week. You may need to empty and rinse the drip tray 1-2 times a week (depending on frequency of use) but take it out and hand wash at least once a week. This is a good time to wash the tools and tool bin as well. Also, dont forget to take the coffee filters out of the portafilter and wash those as well. Over time, residue can build up underneath there. Also, the spouts in the portafiler twist off so you can clean them better. Clean out your parts, get in those crevices regularly and you'll be just fine. Don't forget to clean the hopper and grinder. You should clean it out every time you switch to a new bean or at least every few pounds of coffee. The instructions in the manual are pretty easy and straight forward. I also use a clean, dry towel to wipe any remaining coffee and oils from both the grinder parts and the hopper. Do not wash in warm water as you could risk it not drying well and rusting or not being lubricated enough and over heating. Just use the included brush and clean, dry paper towels. You could also vacuum out residual coffee from the grinder to assist in cleaning, but I don't usually need to. Also, remember that the stainless exterior is stainless plating. This means it can wear over time and not look as nice. The best way to handle this is to wipe it down with a damp cloth (once daily then more detailed once a week) and follow it up by drying it with a clean towel. This will prolong the exterior appearance. Also during your weekly cleaning, be sure to look under where the coffee and steam come out and clean around there. Milk, coffee and residue steam can splatter and build up so be sure to clean it as well. The weekly cleaning sound intensive but really takes maybe 5 minutes. Common issues: Keep in mind certain o-rings will need to be replaced over time. This is noted by Breville in the manual and on the website. There are two main places where you need to replace these: around the tip of the portafilter (where the spouts connect) and where the portafilter connects to pull shots. Another common issue is that the machine will make a loud "buzzing" sound and/or leak water out of the bottom of the machine. This is a common issue and, when it does occur, usually happens around 6 months to a year. This generally occurs due to a broken solenoid valve. If your product is still under warranty, take a video and contact their customer service. Maybe suggest it's a solenoid valve and they are usually very good about fixing or replacing the machines and parts. If it is no longer under warranty and they will not resolve the issue (because sometimes they still will after the warranty period), there are many repair services that can fix this. If you are especially handy and brave enough to fix it yourself, you can usually find the replacement parts fairly cheaply online (not just the valve, but really ANY part that may need to be replaced). Again, if it's still under warranty do not go this route, as it will void any existing warranty. Also, if you don't know what you're doing, you could do more damage than good. All-in-all, this is an amazing machine for this price point. There is a reason this machine is so popular and highly rated. There's a lot of customization available to you and it is a very good quality machine. I would not suggest any product below this machine and price point for your first machine as you'll likely be very disappointed in the results. Eventually you may want to upgrade to a more robust multi-thousand dollar machine, but this is great for the majority of consumers and is super user friendly. Use higher quality beans directly from the roasters and learn how to use the machine and make drinks and you'll be very happy with it. The quality is truly amazing for such a low cost espresso machine. Side note: Whole Latte Love on YouTube is a great resource for additional reviews, tips and tricks and maintenance for this machine (and many more). It's also a great resource on how to pull shots, steam milk, pick types of milk and make many different types of drinks when you're just starting out or want to up your coffee game.

I bought this in January 2020 and it lasted until late February 2026. The Breville became part of my life literally every day for six years. All my friends and family would come over and love the espressos I would serve. Pros: Absolutely delicious espresso came out every time. Very easy to use. Once I did my research and found out what numbers it should be every cup was perfect (coffee grind amount at like 1o’ clock and coffee grind at level 5). It hit the right infused section every time. The water tank was perfect. Filter would keep the water clean. The cleaning process was very easy. I love the hot water spout. Making tea was so easy thanks to the Breville. I didn’t need a kettle anymore. It fit nicely at the corner of my kitchen. Cons: Nothing is perfect, so there were very little issues. The bottom water tank would fill up fast. If you make coffee without the bottom basket water would spill everywhere. That’s probably why they included the basket in the first place. But half your water tank would be wasted in the basket for pressure, I guess. Cleaning the spout was always annoying. I think it’s just cuz I hate cleaning, especially when the spout was hot. The water tank also had a circle monthly calendar to remind you when to change the filter. But it was super stuck and never moved.

As my profile name says, this is my first ever review and a feedback for anything I bought anywhere online. I felt like doing it because I have some spare time over Christmas and also I hope someone will find this helpful. If your primary criteria for choosing an espresso machine is the looks, don’t read further. Choose this machine as my opinion it is the best looking machine on the market as of right now. If on the other hand you are assessing other features, keep reading. Bough this machine 3 weeks ago. Was away for a week on work travels and used it effectively 25 times. Made around 15 espressos and 10 cappuccinos. in two weeks. I owned two espresso machines in last 5 years and these were half the price of this one so you understand where my base line or the previous knowledge is. Issues The first issue is around excess amount discharged of water in the bottom tray (you will see it because Breville obviously even made a floater that flips red when it is about to overflow). Issue 1. Bottom tray was overflowing with water after using the machine 15 times. I thought this was strange, emptied the water and continue using the machine and this time I was monitoring the level of water in the bottom tray. After 10 further drinks (mostly espressos and a few cappuccinos) the tray was half-way full. I did not think this was right so I gave Breville support a call. They were very responsive and called me back. I explained the situation and the gentlemen I spoke with said it is a normal operating condition for this machine and that end-user is expected to empty the tray after a while due to, as he stated, 3 events taking place: - Event 1, When you switch the machine on it automatically drains any stale water from its pipes into a tray so that a fresh water from the plastic container is used. I see this as a positive and a smart function for the machine to do and can confirm not much water is discharged into a tray. - Event 2, Machine drains a certain amount of water after every espresso made into a tray in order to get rid of any water in internal pipes so, so no water under pressure is left in machine pipes as this prolongs the life of a machine. I confirmed this whilst on a phone to him and there was not much water discharged in the tray. - Event 3, Machine drains a certain amount of water after using steamer for e.g. milk frothing. Again, as explained this is so any excess pressure is released from the pipes as well as any water. Here, a large amount of water was released in the tray as I tested this whilst on the phone to support. My assessment of this issue is, if you have the time to change empty the tray after roughly you made 15 drinks and stress about whether the water will overflow in you espresso tray then consider this a non-issue. This normal operating condition is not listed in the manual or brought to consumer’s attention when choosing this product. This is obviously known to Breville since they went as far as designing a smart flipping floater turning red when the tray is full. However, they do not consider this too much of a hinderance to users. The next issue number 2, again as per my conversation with the support is a normal operating condition. Steamer pipe was blocked. I had to use a cleaning needle, supplied with the machine, followed by switching on the steamer to get it to work. This is after frothing the milk for around 10 cappuccinos I made using this machine, last one yesterday. The support said it may be because I used whole milk, and I think I did. Again, this normal operating condition/best practice is not listed in the manual or brought to consumer’s attention when choosing this product. This is obviously known to Breville since they went as far as supplying a cleaning kit with this machine all with specifically designed needle. Obviously, they do not seem to consider this too much of a hinderance to users. Issue number 3 is to do with coffee grinder feature usability. You cannot tell how much coffee has been ground (the grinder will go on as long as you keep the porta filter basket/handle pressing the grinder switch). As a result every coffee you make will taste different. Now, in summary, I am returning this product since I cannot afford the time to maintain it (empty water, clean). Although making a coffee is a ritual, I do not feel like I can get use to this machine. It would require too much of my attention to maintain and learn how to operate it. Also, I want to be able to use any milk type without a fear it will clog the steamer pipe and lastly the coffee tastes differently every time I make it (this last one would take some time to get use to the machine which admittedly I did not allow for). Although I am a coffee lover, I cannot justify the price of this espresso machine with having all the basic issues I listed. And for whomever over-engineered the self-cleaning functionality of this machine, and the person who approved it, they have done it to the detriment of usability and have affected the end product result at the end of the day. The next section are my suggestions on how to improve this product in the future, so for Breville Product Owner, in case they ever read this. 1. Have a light at the top of the grinder dispenser so that I can see how much coffee has been ground. Maybe have both options available to users, unlimited coffee grinding (needs light to see) as well as the exact amount 2. Find a better way of cleaning the machine than discharging a lot of the water in the tray - this is a burden to end-user. See suggestion 3. 3. Instead of on/off steamer switch, have a knob controlling how much steam to use. This will help with cleaning the pipes as well as stopping excess water discharge in the tray since the user can simply release any excess steam with the knob. Not as easy with on/off switch, not to say impossible 4. Grinder dial numbers are hard to see Hope this helps.

I researched many different espresso machines and read numerous reviews but I finally decided on the Breville Barista Express and I am extremely satisfied so far. I have owned it for about a month and make 2-4 coffees per day. Using the instructions recommended starter settings, the machine produced a delicious espresso and cappuccino right out of the box. I’ve fine tuned it following the instructions and You Tube videos to make it even better. My wife and I believe this produces much better coffees than the local coffee shops. The machine comes with everything you need to get started other than good coffee beans but I highly recommend getting a few accessories and upgrades for the best results: a small coffee scale to help fine tune your input and output amounts, a bottomless portafilter (the one provided appears nice but has plastic inside), a self leveling tamper, a WDT to break up any clumps in your grinds, and a few nice microfiber clothes for wiping the steam wand and quick cleanups of the machine. It is very easy to use, very easy to clean, and makes delicious coffee drinks for a fraction of the local coffee shops. A few notes for other reviews that I’ve read: heat up time - people have complained about the start up and heat up time, I don’t know what they are talking about, as this heats up very fast and is ready to go before I have my portafilter tamped; grinder fineness, watch a few YouTube videos and they show you how to adjust the grinding settings inside the grinder. Bottom line this is an amazing espresso machine for this price point, just don’t pay full price as it regularly goes on sale for 20-30% discounts.

The Breville Barista Express Espresso Machine is fantastic for anyone wanting a near-café experience at home. The build quality feels solid, the grinder works well, and it’s very convenient to have a machine that lets you grind, tamp, and brew in one device. The shots taste great when dialed in, and it’s perfect for learning espresso at home. That said, I’ve noticed that the consistency isn’t always exact. Some shots pull perfectly, while others are slightly off. I’m not sure if this is due to differences in the coffee beans I’m using, grind size, or the machine itself—but it’s something to be aware of if you’re looking for perfectly repeatable results every single time. Overall, this is a highly capable espresso machine that makes delicious drinks, especially if you enjoy experimenting with grind size and tamping. With a little practice, you can get very close to café-quality espresso at home. I’m giving it 4 stars because of the minor consistency issue, but it’s still a fantastic machine and worth considering.

6 year update: Well, it finally happened. It broke beyond my ability to repair! Bad smell and funny sound happened while pulling a shot. Opened machine and could pretty quickly see one of the solenoids was burning up. Not sure what the cause of it is -- part failed? Triac failed and sent too much current to it? Water damage from leaking tubes? Bought a new solenoid for $20, but after replacing it the machine was leaking from pretty much every tube I had to disconnect. I couldn't be bothered to wait anymore and find a supplier for 5 o-rings of the right od/id size, so it's done. Bought a new Breville, this time upgraded a dual boiler one. New machine works great! This one did for many years too, so I'm still 5-stars happy with it even though it gave up the ghost. It was repairable for probably another $10, unless the triac was bad too; couldn't find a replacement for that triac. Anyways, wholly recommend this machine. It's a good value and makes good coffee, and is as reliable as can be expected! 5.5 year update: Still love this machine. Still working great. I like to read negative reviews on things I'm going to purchase, and have been surprised by some of the negative reviews. One of the higher upvoted reviews talked about the maintenance this machine requires. Yes, it does require maintenance. It's not a pod-style machine where the maintenance is nothing. There is a tray that you have to empty *and clean* pretty regularly. It gets a fine coffee buildup from the cleaning process, and will get pretty nasty if you don't clean it. The same with the water tank, the filter in the water tank, the two different cleaning cycles indicated by the lights, and the dried milk on the steam wand. It's not a one-button leave-it-dirty-AF thing like your microwave crusted in tomato sauce and butter splatter. If you don't clean it, it may break. Don't buy it if you can't take an extra few minutes to check water levels, wipe down the steam wand, clean the group head with a paper towel, or wipe the coffee oil out of the filter. If you can do that, I can't recommend this enough. At 5.5 years of at least 2 2-cup espressos daily, it's still going strong, still only one replacement gasket in it's life. 4.5 year update: We did have to replace the gasket, which was pretty easy. Barista Express didn't have the gasket in stock, but there are a number of compatible ones on Amazon. $8 or so. Otherwise still making the same great espresso on day 1600 as it did on day 1! Update: Checking in at 3.5 years. This thing is still going strong, supplying my wife and I with delicious daily lattes. That's roughly 2500 quad lattes without breaking down! The gasket around the group head did pop out recently during one of the cleaning cycles, but didn't need replacement -- we were able to detatch and put it back together. The price has gone up 30% but it's still a steal. Back-of-napkin math: 1 cup milk per drink 20 grams of ground beans per drink 1/2 gal of milk costs $3.50 in my HCOL area 1.14kg of espresso beans is $15 That means each drink is 40 cents of milk and 26 cents of coffee beans. Maybe 10 cents of electricity? Another 4 cents of occasional vanilla or caramel flavoring? Our 2500 drinks have cost $2,000 plus the $500 for the machine, vs $12,500 if we'd walked to the nearby cafe every day. What a bargain! We've had this now for 1.5 years. It is absolutely the best $500 I've spent in recent memory. It makes a fantastic espresso shot for us plebs. I'm sure true aficionados can find many faults, but for the Starbuck-going average Joe this will make an espresso on par or better simply because you can choose the beans. No plastic waste or expensive custom cups, and you can actually control all the little variables like grind and time and pack density. I get up 10 minutes earlier and prep our morning coffee, saving the $10/day Sbuck habit for two. I haven't done the math, but the cost of milk, beans, and electricity is probably less than half that. 100 days and it pays for itself, 450 days and we're $2200 richer than the alternative.