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We’ve added two new picks to this guide: the more travel-friendly AeroPress Go Travel Coffee Press and the Fellow Prismo espresso accessory for AeroPress.
The world of coffee accessories is vast, and it seems to just continue growing. From complex siphons to ultralight drippers, there’s a novelty accessory for everyone. But within that universe of niche tools, the AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker is one of the few that will appeal to a wide range of coffee drinkers. The AeroPress is fast, like a Nespresso machine, and easy to use, like a French press, and it makes coffee that tastes almost as great as a lovingly prepared pour-over. Also, it comes in a durable, portable package.
The lightweight, compact AeroPress is the simplest way to make an excellent-tasting single cup of coffee, no electricity needed.
*At the time of publishing, the price was $32.
The AeroPress Coffee and Espresso Maker’s sterile appearance and clumsy learning curve might draw more than a few confused looks in the office kitchen the first time you use it. But it’s easy to get the hang of the technique, and we quickly grew to love this weird-looking beverage syringe. Anywhere you have ground coffee and hot water, the AeroPress can make a great cup of coffee in less than two minutes. If you buy one, you’ll be joining a large community of coffee enthusiasts who love the AeroPress—including many Wirecutter staffers, as well as pros who conduct annual AeroPress competitions.
The AeroPress Go has a slightly smaller capacity than the original, but it comes with improved accessories and seamlessly packs down into a travel cup.
Although the original AeroPress is quite portable, the AeroPress Go Travel Coffee Press makes it easier to bring all the accessories (stirrer, scoop, and filters) with you. It comes in an adorable compact container that doubles as a cup, and we found the updated accessories to be better designed than the originals. But what’s gained in convenience is lost in some capacity: The Go holds only 8 ounces, whereas the original AeroPress holds 10. You can still make the original AeroPress recipe for 4 ounces of concentrated coffee (which can be diluted), but some other recipes for brewing a standard cup of coffee will need to be modified. And if you don’t care about using all of the accessories, you may find it just as convenient to travel with the original AeroPress, which has space in its chamber to carry your stash of pre-ground beans or a hand-crank coffee grinder. Ultimately, either AeroPress will work well for travel, but you should get the Go if you value a coffee setup that loads into a self-contained package, including a cup.
The lightweight, compact AeroPress is the simplest way to make an excellent-tasting single cup of coffee, no electricity needed.
*At the time of publishing, the price was $32.
The AeroPress Go has a slightly smaller capacity than the original, but it comes with improved accessories and seamlessly packs down into a travel cup.
In the early 1990s, inventor Alan Adler set out to make something that could brew a single cup of coffee that not only wasn’t watery but didn’t involve a fussy and time-consuming process, like that of pour-over coffee. He decided to make a device that could brew coffee faster by using pressure, as an espresso machine does. After testing more than 40 iterations, Adler landed on the design that he released to the public in 1994.
The current AeroPress brewing system, which is the same both for the original and for the AeroPress Go, is comprised of three essential parts: the plunger, the chamber, and the filter cap. Both models also come with a stack of paper filters and an array of accessories, such as a coffee scoop (accessories vary depending on the model). To use the brewer, you add a paper filter to the cap and set the chamber onto your cup or mug. Then you add ground coffee to the chamber, add some hot water, and insert the plunger and lift it up a little to create a vacuum seal (once you fit it all together, you’ll see that it’s basically a giant syringe). You wait a little bit and then press the plunger toward the grounds until you hear a hiss.
This device, which has since been embraced by countless coffee professionals and enthusiasts alike, provides one of the quickest ways to brew a single cup of coffee ever invented. Once you’ve ground your beans and heated your water, making coffee with the AeroPress, using the recipe on the box, takes less than two minutes. That recipe produces about 4 ounces of a full-bodied concentrate; it’s not quite espresso, and you’re encouraged to dilute it with hot water before drinking, kind of like an Americano. You can also find numerous other recipes online for brewing with the AeroPress, to create everything from an 8-ounce cup of coffee (from our preferred method) to something approximating espresso.
In 2008, expert coffee roaster Tim Wendelboe hosted a small contest among three baristas in his Oslo, Norway, cafe, giving whoever employed the best technique the title of World AeroPress Champion. To become the 10th holder of that title in 2017, Paulina Miczka had to compete against 3,000 baristas—each with unique recipes and brewing styles—from around the world. We spoke with both Wendelboe and Miczka (as well as with some enthusiastic Wirecutter staff members) to help us understand what makes the AeroPress so great.
To learn how to use the brewer, most of our staff members either watched one of the countless tutorial videos on YouTube or just followed the recipe on the box.
The AeroPress produces coffee that’s full-bodied and flavorful—though maybe not as bright or as fruity as what you’d get from a perfectly timed pour-over using expertly ground beans.
Once you’re finished brewing your coffee, you can remove the filter cap from the AeroPress’s brewing chamber while holding it over a trash can. If the puck doesn’t come out immediately, give it a little plunge, and your grounds should go straight into the garbage (or compost bin)—a much neater process than scooping spent coffee from a French press. Then wash and dry your dripper as you would anything else. And the AeroPress is dishwasher-safe!
Although AeroPress advertises its newer Go model as being specifically for travel, the original AeroPress is also highly portable. Unlike a glass or ceramic pour-over dripper, the plastic AeroPress is basically “unbreakable,” as Miczka described it, and self-contained. Wendelboe agreed, saying, “Personally, I use it more for travel. When I go to Kenya or somewhere to buy coffee, I bring an AeroPress and a [hand] grinder [like the Porlex Mini] that fits into the [brewing chamber] handle.”
The main advantage of the AeroPress Go for travel is that it’s more self-contained: The brewer and all its accessories pack into a compact cup with a lid. You can buy the original AeroPress with a zippered travel pouch, but otherwise its accessories are difficult to keep together. That said, you don’t always need all of the accessories, and you can’t fit a hand grinder into the Go.
Once you’ve learned the basics of the AeroPress, it’s pretty easy to begin experimenting with different recipes and the many variables of the brewing process. It’s simple to play around with water temperature and amount, grind and dose size, timing, and of course bean types and roasts, one cup at a time. “If you don’t like the coffee you made, just make another one,” Miczka advised. “Life is too short to drink bad coffee.”
Though the AeroPress makes coffee quickly, something like a Nespresso machine or a Keurig will make a cup even faster. Similarly, though the AeroPress makes relatively great-tasting coffee, it might not be as flavorful as a cup made with a pour-over dripper or an espresso machine. But these small compromises are actually the foundation of what makes the AeroPress so great. With a bit more time and effort, you get coffee that is much better than that from any capsule brewing system, while also avoiding the plastic or aluminum waste that capsules generate. And you’ve still put in much less time and effort than you would to master brewing with other methods.
You can really only use the AeroPress to brew one cup of coffee at a time. If you’re just making that first cup for yourself in the morning, or using the AeroPress at work, that’s no big deal. But if you live with others or want to make coffee for guests, you probably won’t want to rely solely on your AeroPress. To make multiple cups at once, consider getting a French press, a Chemex, or a standard drip coffee maker.
The AeroPress Go has a slightly smaller capacity than the original, but it comes with improved accessories and seamlessly packs down into a travel cup.
There’s a lot to like about the newer, more “travel-friendly” AeroPress Go Travel Coffee Press. It works exactly like the original AeroPress, but it’s more self-contained, with the brewer and accessories packing down into a sweet carrying case that doubles as a cup. The updated accessories are also more user-friendly than the original’s. The main downside is that the Go’s capacity is smaller. And if you don’t think you’ll use all the accessories (only the filters are essential), you may find it more convenient to travel with the original, which can fit other items—like a hand grinder—in its empty chamber.
Every accessory that comes with the AeroPress Go was a delight to use. The new cup is the highlight: It’s comfortable to hold and convenient to carry with you. We also think the rest of the accessories are improvements on the original’s. The stirrer folds in half for storage, and it’s slimmer than the original’s, making the Go stirrer easier to use. The new scoop has the same capacity as the original’s, but its elongated design makes it easier to dump coffee grounds into the AeroPress without spilling them all over the counter. The nifty filter holder is cute, too, and it should be useful for when you’re traveling and need only a few filters at once.
But you’ll have to weigh the convenience of the Go’s tidy packaging against the fact that it holds less than the original AeroPress: The Go has an 8-ounce capacity, compared with the original’s 10 ounces. (When you’re brewing, some of the total capacity is occupied by coffee grounds, so the Go actually requires that you use less than 8 ounces of water.) You can still make the original AeroPress recipe for 4 ounces of concentrated coffee (which can be diluted), but you’ll need to modify other recipes (including our favorite from Stumptown) to fit. And since the Go’s chamber is slightly shorter than the original’s, we found the plunger a bit more difficult to use—we had less room to insert it and pull it back to get a good seal when the chamber was full. You may prefer the original if you plan to brew mostly at home or at work, or if you don’t plan to use all of the accessories.
If you’re into camping, or you tend to seek out ultralight gear, keep in mind that the Go might not be an upgrade from the original AeroPress. The Go is about 3½ ounces heavier, not including a grinder or any other coffee accessories you might pack.
There are two main methods of brewing with the AeroPress: the standard method (where you fill the device filter side down and plunge directly into your cup) and the inverted method (where you stand the AeroPress on its plunger and fill it, letting it infuse for a few seconds before flipping it over to dispense). The inverted method is popular among enthusiasts because it offers a bit more control over the immersion and brew time, since no water will drip down through the filter while you’re brewing.
Our favorite version of the standard method comes from Stumptown. It starts with 17 grams of coffee (ground to a medium or fine consistency). Begin the process by pre-wetting any surface (the seal, the brewing chamber, the filter cap, and the filter itself) that will be exposed to coffee; use water that’s just off-boil (about 205 °F). Then place the filter on the cap and attach it to the bottom of the brewing chamber. Put the chamber onto the mug you’re planning to drink out of and add the grounds to the chamber. Start a timer just as you add a little bit of your water, which will allow the grounds to bloom. Then add the rest of the water while spinning the chamber, until you reach the number -4 marker; this will end up being about 220 grams of water. Place the plunger into the brew chamber and pull up slightly to create a pressure seal. After your timer reaches 1 minute, 15 seconds, remove the plunger, stir the slurry a little, then reinsert the plunger and press it down slowly, until you hear a hiss. This will produce about 7 to 8 ounces of coffee. Feel free to dilute with a bit of hot water if it’s too strong for your taste.
The inverted method starts with the same amount of coffee and water at about the same temperature. Pre-wet your filter, brewing chamber, and seal. Insert your plunger into the brewing chamber and invert it onto a stable surface. Add your ground coffee to the inverted chamber, and then put in just enough water to cover the grounds and allow them to submerge. Hold off about 20 seconds before filling the AeroPress with the remaining water; stir to ensure that all of your grounds are immersed; and wait one minute. Attach the filter cap, with the filter, to the top of the brewer and hold the opening of your mug on top of the attached cap. Use your other hand to hold the AeroPress, pressing it to the opening of the mug, as you flip the entire system over (you’ve got this!), so that your mug is right side up and the AeroPress is set on top of it, as it would be if you used the standard method. Plunge straight down, steadily, until you hear that oh-so-satisfying hiss.
The AeroPress’s popularity has led a number of other companies to develop accessories for it, ranging from cold-brewer add-ons to espresso-maker attachments. So we’ve tested some of those as well.
The Fellow Prismo’s pressurized valve makes strong coffee that resembles espresso. It’s a bit fussy to use, but it’s also a fun extra for AeroPress lovers.
*At the time of publishing, the price was $25.
The Fellow Prismo attachment, which allows you to make something like an espresso, is the only AeroPress accessory we’d recommend. The Prismo replaces the AeroPress’s paper filters and perforated cap with a metal filter and a small, pressure-actuated valve that allows you to force hot water through your coffee grounds with more pressure than you can using the regular AeroPress. This simulates the pressure created by an espresso machine when you pull a shot. The result isn’t a perfect replacement for a hand-pulled shot, but the Prismo imitates one pretty well. The “espresso” we made with the Prismo tasted strong and flavorful, and it even had a crema-like foam, albeit a weak one.
Although the Prismo attachment itself was easy to use and made good coffee, the brewing process is a little fussy, requiring you to measure the coffee, water, and brew time carefully. Also, Fellow recommends that you use ultra-fine ground beans, but we found that the shots were less grainy and better-tasting when we used a less-fine grind, similar to what we used for regular brewing with the AeroPress. None of the steps were too difficult, but using the Prismo is such a precise process that you may find it easiest to use at home, rather than on the road. At $25, the Prismo costs almost as much as the AeroPress itself, but it’s a nice extra if you want to make something like espresso at home and aren’t in a position to buy a full-on espresso machine.
We also tried the PuckPuck slow-drip cold brew attachment for AeroPress. But the PuckPuck’s cold brew didn’t taste as smooth as either our office cold brew or that from the OXO Good Grips Cold Brew Coffee Maker. The full set-up was tall and cumbersome, and we found it difficult to dial in the drip rate on the PuckPuck, even when using the complementary app. When it’s finished brewing, two hours later, the PuckPuck also yields remarkably little coffee, only around 400 mL, which was about enough for two servings of cold brew. For $20 more, we’d buy the much larger, simpler OXO brewer instead.
The most common AeroPress accessories are reusable metal mesh filters, which you can swap in for the paper filters. They’re handy for travel, and you can find dozens of nearly identical options on Amazon. But we haven’t tried any, because we’re perfectly happy with the provided paper filters. In our experience, metal mesh coffee filters tend to yield a muddier-tasting cup of coffee, because they let more sediment through.
Tim Wendelboe, director, Tim Wendelboe Coffee Roaster, Espresso Bar, and Coffee School, Skype interview, May 21, 2018
Paulina Miczka, founder of Panda Brews and World AeroPress Champion 2017, email interview, May 29, 2018
Steven Levy, First Alan Adler invented the Aerobie. Now he’s created the perfect cup of coffee, Wired, March 16, 2015
The Brew Guide: AeroPress, Stumptown Coffee
AeroPress Inc., Brewing with Inventor Alan Adler (Single Cup), YouTube, October 24, 2019
by Dorie Chevlen and Justin Krajeski
by Rachel Wharton and Liz Clayton
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