Bonavita - 5-Cup Compact

I would check out the SCA certified brewer list on their website. All the machines there look pretty good. I just replaced my Bonavita, which I had for at least 10-12 years with a used GE cafe brewer. I also looked at the OXO machine, but my wife preferred the look of the GE. I don’t think you can go wrong with any of the units on the SCA list— pick one that fits your price point and desired features.

Bonavita 5 Cup coffee maker. It’s better than the Moccamaster, which is way overpriced.

My Bonavita died after about 2 years. It would steam up so much that the amount of coffee was about half the amount of water I put in. I descaled and descaled and descaled and when that didn't fix the issue, I took it apart figuring I could manually clean it. Good luck ever trying to get it back together again if you go that route! I've been relying on my Bodum pour over but am ultimately just going to get a Moccamaster.

Bonavita has served us well for 4 years now and is SCA certified

If all you you want is a big pot of drip, buy a Bona Vita or a Technivorm Paired with a decent grinder (say the Ode Fellow) and you’ve got drip bliss for far less than your KF7 (and you know I love my KF7 as we’ve talked some- but my needs are different than yours)

I am 5 years in on a BV One Touch and it's still making solid coffee with the pre-infusion mode. I would buy it again today.

I do t have a moccamaster I have a Bonavita from 7-8 years ago. Still makes perfect coffee every time. A moccamaster is even more high end quality wise. I’d imagine it’s a great investment especially if you’re burning money on nespresso pods.

Bonavita has excellent but simple models with a glass carafe.

The sca certified brewers. https://sca.coffee/certified-home-brewer Of those I like bonavita or moccamaster personally. If you need temp control then xbloom and aiden make more sense.

I have the bonavita 5 cup coffee pot and it is great for two and an aeropress when I want just one cup.

Second the Bonavita Thermal Carafe brewer. Half the cost of the Mochamaster and 99% of people wouldn't be able to distinguish a cup from one or the other. Fresh beans and a good grinder matter WAY more than picking between two very good brewers.

Owned a Moccamaster for a month. My BV made a far more consistent and better tasting cup than the former. The MM is surprisingly hard to dial in. However, the QC from BV is definitely not anywhere near as good as MM.

What's your verdict a month into owning it? Seems nice. I was disappointed with a Moccamaster and went back to a Bonavita. When I have time, I use my Hario Woodneck.

I’ve had a Bonavita for years, and have always loved it. However, Santa Wife got me a Moccamaster KBT for Christmas, and I absolutely adore it, even more than the Bonavita. You simply can’t go wrong with either one (or indeed any other options listed on this thread).

First off, I have no complaints at all about the Bonavita. It has served me well for years, and has always brewed a very, very good pot of coffee. The only small note I have is that the thermal carafe does not keep the coffee constantly warm for more than an hour or, at tops, two. I would prefer the carafe be slightly better insulated. To me, the Moccamaster makes a slightly better cup of coffee. I lack the proper coffee vocabulary, but I'll try. It's clearer somehow, and more consistent. Some of this may be confirmation bias on my part, as I just got my MM, have loved drinking the coffee that comes from my friend's MM for years, and am excited finally to have my own. So, who knows? Both the MM and the Bonavita brew comes out at the same temp (as my mouth measures these things. I have not confirmed this with a thermometer), though the MM carafe keeps the brew warmer, longer. I like that the MM has only one switch, off and on. While the Bonavita also has one switch, it has two settings, one with a quicker drip, and (after holding the switch down for three seconds to change settings) a more diffuse one. I have never wanted the first setting, and indeed wonder what it's even for. The MM has no such thing, so a half-point to simplicity in the MM system there. I have not gotten rid of my Bonavita, and luckily have room in my closet to keep it as a back-up system, or addition if I ever need to have two brewers going at once. But the MM is No. 1 on the depth chart for me right now. Hope this answers your question.

My Bonavita makes good coffee. It’s very simple. It has a carafe instead of a hotplate and it doesn’t have any settings other than on/off. So, there aren’t many things that are likely to malfunction or break. I’m hoping that I’ll have it for life. I have a Chemex. It makes excellent coffee and has even few settings than the Bonatita (i.e. none).

Oh I did not know Bonavita sold out I was thinking of upgrading my old one it’s been strong for fiver years now.

I love my Bonavita drip coffee maker. It has one button and it makes coffee fast and good. No clock, no settings…just one button and a pot of coffee in under 5 mins that is consistently delicious.

my Bonavita is about 7-8 years old and still going strong.

I really like my five cup Bonavita with insulated carafe. For the $200 CAD I paid, I couldn't ask for better. I really appreciate how small it is, it takes up very little counter space. And while it's not aesthetically nice like the Moccamaster, it's not ugly either. The insulated carafe on it is fantastic, I've had coffee that is still warm 6 hours after I've made it and without the burnt taste you get from a hot plate. And lastly, and most importantly, it makes a great cup of coffee. I've never had a bad cup from this machine. It blooms the coffee, gets to the appropriate temperature, and just makes a tasty and smooth pot every time.

I currently have a Bonavita drip machine that has a thermal carafe, it's SCA approved and hard to beat for the price. But if my budget was larger, I'd go with the Breville Precision Brewer with the thermal carafe. The Breville offers adjustability that can come close to replicating techniques that you'd use for pour over. If it's good enough for James Hoffman, it's good enough for the rest of us. It's also worth noting that build quality aside from Breville, they have good customer service and repair. Even their out of warranty repairs are reasonable. Usually if you pay for an out of warranty repair, they might determine it's too difficult to repair and will send a refurbished or new unit. And yes, the thermal carafe is worth the money over the glass. That way you're not continuously heating the coffee.

Interesting! I’ve had my Bonavita for 5 years and haven’t had any major issues. It drops a bit after it’s done brewing, but other than that it works perfectly. Once it dies I’ll probably make the jump to Oxo or Moccamaster

Not Bonavita. Had one brewer for 5 years before I broke it during a remodel. Bought the exact one and it died at about 1.5 years. Warranty is only 1 year and they don’t give a fuck about helping you beyond that. $200 coffee machine and don’t sell replacement parts or offer service. In ours, we think it was a temp sensor that went out as it stopped brewing halfway through. Bought the OXO 8 cup as a replacement, but liking it after the last month or so.

I wanted a moccamaster for years. I've used to use a bonavita. I also do v60s and aero press. It's a good machine but it will be disappointing to a lot of people. I like it's simplicity. I was initially disappointed by the water distribution but after diving deep, I learned the whole concept of even distribution of water isn't really important at all.

A coffee roaster friend of mine suggested I get a Bonavita for my STR. It's going strong in its 6th year. Easy to use and clean. I've been super happy with this purchase.

I had one for awhile when I was still into drip coffee (I went the other direction and am now a Nespresso drinker). It's a nice machine but it is huge and tall, couldn't fit under the cabinets since it blocked the tank for filling. If I ever go back to drip I'd probably get a Bonavita instead, it's the other one that's SCA certified. In either case make sure to get a model with a thermal carafe, it'll keep the coffee warm without roasting it.

I’m very happy with bonavita + aeropress too, but if I didn’t have the bonavita I’d consider the new one from Fellows.

Ok so I have some experience here. I've owned 2 different Bonavita, and Oxo 9 cup, Oxo 8 cup, Moccamaster KBGT, and finally a Fellow Aiden. If you are looking for the very best coffee maker for what you get in the cup as black coffee, then of those all that is hands down the Aiden. However, for all the technical wizardry it has, it is mostly plastic, so longevity is a definite unknown. Of the other ones, Oxo has the best warranty in practice, and Technivorm has the best warranty on paper. Technivorm does not warranty their carafes at all - if it breaks, you are out $80+ shipping to replace it. This is even if it breaks due to a manufacturing flaw or some other reason. Oxo on the other hand replaced my carafe for free on my Oxo 9 cup 3 times - over time it would lose the vacuum, and would get hot to the touch. The coffee maker was 6+ years old the last time - long out of warranty, but they still replaced the carafe. The Oxo 9 cup is the best all around of the coffee makers I had before the Aiden. While it is tall, it made excellent coffee, and was programmable if you wanted to use that. It requires no stirring of the coffee while it is brewing. I cannot say the same with the Technivorm. While the Moccamaster does make excellent coffee, it is more hands-on to get the best out of it because of their dumb design for the shower bar. Ground saturation is an issue - I usually stirred everything after about 1 minute of brewing. The bar also feels like it is just a bit too short - most of the water doesn't fall in the center but rather closer to the back. The Bonavita coffee makers work well, and are smaller. My old one died for no reason that I could determine after a few years. The ones made now though are technically a different company - that original company went bankrupt. The Oxo 8 cup was an absolute disaster - no idea how that thing got the praise that it does from some reviewers. It always had to be stirred or half the coffee would never even get wet. I hated it. Overall from a BIFL perspective, the TV Moccamaster is likely the top candidate. They do just work for a long time, usually. Make sure to buy it from an authorized retailer and keep your proof of purchase if you need warranty service. If you buy one with a thermal carafe - baby it. They changed from being all stainless and basically unbreakable to being glass lined a couple years ago. It may keep coffee hotter but the carafes are very delicate and prone to breaking.