Coffee Machine vs Kettle – What is better?

So you have a trusty old kettle to up your water to make your favourite coffee but quite like the idea of a shiny new coffee machine that will whip up a delicious latte at the touch of a button. Coffee machine vs kettle; a common kitchen battle. Perhaps rivaled only by the old toaster vs oven or microwave vs oven.

Let’s see how these two appliances stack up against each other when it comes to getting you the coffee you deserve every day.

Coffee Machine vs Kettle

Let’s now take a look at how things stack up between a coffee machine vs kettle on a range of different factors that you may want to consider.

Coffee Machine vs Kettle: Quality of Coffee

For some the real question when looking at a coffee machine vs kettle simply comes down to the quality of coffee that can be produced through each.

When using a kettle for most people it will be in aid of instant coffee. Some may then have a separate handheld milk frother or steamer to make their favourite milk-based drink. No matter how accomplished you are at making a cup of instant coffee, for many, this could never compare to the aroma and taste of a brew made from freshly ground beans in a bean to cup machine for example.

That encapsulates a major advantage of coffee machines over kettles; the quality of coffee on offer. With a bean to cup coffee machine, for example, your coffee beans are ground at the time you make your coffee which means they are as fresh as possible. Unlike with instant coffee made with hot water from a kettle, your beans are freshly ground and then brewed when you want them resulting in fuller aromas and higher-quality taste.

For many, there is no contest in terms of coffee quality between a cup made from a coffee machine vs kettle.

Coffee Machine vs Kettle: Time

Time spent or saved is a key consideration for many when it comes to selecting a kitchen appliance. Kitchen appliances are supposed to make our lives easier by cutting to the chase in a way that hopefully results in higher quality output than we otherwise would have been able to achieve ourselves manually.

A kettle saves you time by you not having to put a pan of water on the stove and wait for it to boil. You not only save some time but it’s also safer to have water boiling in a container at the back of the kitchen counter than having to boil it in a pan.

A coffee machine, however, not only saves you time when it comes to boiling water for your coffee but will also brew it for you as well. There are many people who of course use coffee machines to also heat hot water they need for tea and other drinks which does save time. But the biggest advantage for a coffee machine over a kettle in terms of time is that it doesn’t just stop at saving you some time and effort involved in boiling the water; it finishes the job entirely.

Coffee Machine vs Kettle: Versatility

When it comes to appliances, the more jobs one can do the better for you. It will usually mean that you will have to spend less overall on multiple appliances that cover different jobs.

For example, if you consider getting a blender for soup, a food processor to cut up your vegetables, and a smoothie maker for your favourite breakfast recipes that could be a lot of money and counter space taken up by machines doing similar jobs that could be combined. In that instance, you could just get one multi-purpose food processor and blender that could potentially do all 3 or 2 of the jobs. This is the same with looking at the versatility involved in the coffee machine vs kettle battle. A kettle will only boil your water – that’s it.

A coffee machine, on the other hand, depending on what you choose, could boil your water, brew an espresso, make a milk-based coffee drink as well as hot chocolate in some cases. Some coffee machines could make drinks such as cappuccinos or lattes at the touch of a button from start to finish including grinding your beans, brewing the coffee, frothing the milk, and dispensing it all into a cup.

This versatility could potentially mean you don’t actually need a separate kettle as well as a coffee machine. It also means with a coffee machine you could have an appliance that caters to multiple needs and tastes.

Coffee Machine vs Kettle: Cost

It’s difficult to talk about the merits of a coffee machine vs kettle without talking about the cost of each.

You can pick up a nice quality kettle from around £25 – £40 without much fuss though some can go for well over £100. Thereafter there are no substantial running costs with only electricity and water needed for it to fulfill its purposes as well as of course your choice in instant coffee. Perhaps the more significant challenge cost-wise is finding a reliable kettle that can be used multiple times a day and last a good number of years.

When it comes to the cost of coffee machines, on the other hand, they typically cost more if you are after one of the main three types of automatic/semi-automatic coffee machines (pod/capsule; bean to cup; ground). A pod/capsule type of coffee machine could be around £40/50 at the lower end and go well above £100 on the other end. Although pod machines are relatively cheap upfront when compared to the other two main types, they tend to be far more expensive in the long-run in terms of running costs due to the cost of the pods needed to make the coffee.

Bean to cup machines tend to be the most expensive of the 3 types but also make the freshest coffee and can be fully automatic from end to end. These can range from around £200 all the way to £2000 and beyond though £500 – £800 will typically get you a very well rated machine. The ongoing cost of bean to cup machines then predominantly come from the inputs for the coffee most significantly the whole beans as well as milk and water depending on your level of consumption.

With ground coffee machines you can typically find units available from around £100 – £400 with the ongoing running costs then largely attributable to obtaining ground coffee as well as your milk and water supply.

However there’re cheap coffee machines still available out there, which can not only save Bucks $$$ but also some space. They are as big as a kettle can be therefore they’re also somewhat portable if you like to them with you on the go. Tasimo by Bosch is one of those Coffee Machine. This machine can cost you between £29- £35 making it among the cheapest Coffee Machines with great reviews.

All in all, when it comes to the cost in the coffee machine vs kettle stakes, it is clear that coffee machines regardless of the type will end up costing more than using the humble kettle to make your coffees.

Coffee Machine vs Kettle: Styles and Colour Available

For many people buying a new kitchen appliance is more than just a search for the best functionality, quality, and price. There are many who will not add a new kitchen appliance to their countertop unless it matches the theme and style of their kitchen and existing appliances. Whether it’s a dazzling red or glossy silver finish, they’ll try and ensure that each new appliance complements the rest and the design of the kitchen. For these individuals, the style and colour that appliances are available in becomes critical to the purchasing decision.

When looking at the availability of different styles and colours of coffee machines vs kettles, kettles come out very well though coffee machines do also offer some possibilities.

Look in any store for kettles and you can typically find several different styles whether it’s a retro look with one or two buttons or a modern stainless steel and simple finish all the way through to those with transparent bodies that allow you to see the water boiling and monitor the build-up of limescale more closely. Then when it comes to the availability of different colours it is quite common to see one model of kettle available in multiple colours. There are also many kettles that can be purchased as part of a set with a toaster with the same style and colour.

Increasingly, however, coffee machines can also offer a range of possibilities in terms of colours available. Pod/capsule coffee machines which can come in a range of different styles depending on the brand and also can sometimes be found in multiple colours.

There are also a number of bean to cup coffee machines that are available typically in black or silver colours. There are also some that come in black, silver as well as red.

Overall though, when it comes to the range of different styles and choice in colours between coffee makers and kettles, kettles have the edge.

Coffee Machine vs Kettle: Space Taken Up

Regardless of how big or small, your kitchen is, space is always valued. This is why making sure that any appliance you go for will fit well into your space requirements is important.

In terms of space, there can be significant differences in terms of footprint between a coffee machine vs kettle depending on the type of coffee machine you opt for.

Kettles do not typically take up too much space and can often have one of the smallest footprints on the kitchen counter when compared to other everyday appliances such as toasters and microwaves. They are also usually compact with typically two separate parts; the heating base and water jug.

Coffee machines on the other hand can vary in terms of their footprint depending on the type of machine. Pod/capsule machines would typically have the closest footprint and size to most kettles. They are also usually relatively compact.

Bean to cup and ground coffee machines on the other hand are much larger in size than your typical kettle. This is can be particularly the case with bean to cup machines which also include an integrated bean grinder.

Though pod coffee machines compare well to kettles in terms of size, if you are after a bean to cup or ground coffee machine, they’ll take up more space than a typical kettle.

Conclusion: Coffee Machine Vs Kettle

So coffee machine vs kettle, which appliance wins? Ultimately this will depend largely on your preferences, your upfront budget as well as how much you want to spend going forward and how important high-quality coffee made at home is to you. Both coffee machines and kettles have their respective merits but when it comes down to it if you are simply interested in making the best cup of coffee possible at home, then a coffee machine will probably be the way you lean.