Coffee enthusiasts love the Moccamaster — but is it worth the price? I tried it for a month to find out

I’m an avid coffee drinker, and have been for over a decade. I’ve tried many coffee makers in my time, and have come to appreciate what different models can bring to the table — the convenience of a Keurig, the barista-level experience of a Nespresso and the simplicity of a Mr. Coffee. I’ve seen plenty of machines hit the market over the past few years that prioritize both function and aesthetics, including the Technivorm Moccamaster, which developed a fiercely loyal fanbase in the coffee world due to its sleek design and great-tasting coffee. Since I’ve never been one to splurge on a coffee maker, the $359 price tag was a little jarring — plus, in true coffee snob fashion, I’ve always preferred pour-over coffee over single-serve and drip coffee makers anyway.

To see if it was worth the hype, I tried out the Moccamaster for a month after the brand sent me its KBGV Select model to test. Below are my honest thoughts about the coffee maker, how the coffee actually tastes and how it ultimately converted me into a drip coffee lover.

Technivorm Moccamaster KBGV Select

The Moccamaster ($359) is a drip coffee maker made by Dutch coffee company Technivorm. The brand has several drip coffee models, including ones with stainless steel thermal carafes and others with glass carafes, like the KBGV Select model I tried. Its glass carafe brewers have a hot plate (which automatically switches off after 100 minutes), while its thermal carafes automatically keep coffee warm for up to an hour, according to Technivorm. 

The KBGV Select model has an automatic drip-stop brew method, meaning the brew basket automatically stops the flow of coffee when you remove the carafe, so it won’t keep dripping onto the hot plate or table (and prevents a mess). It’s the most straightforward and beginner-friendly method compared to manual-adjust stop coffee makers, which the brand also makes. In those cases, you’ll need to manually control or stop the brew speed by using a dial on the brew basket (where it steeps the coffee grounds).

The KBGV Select can brew up to 10 cups of coffee at a temperature between 196 degrees Fahrenheit and 205 degrees Fahrenheit. The amount you brew depends on how much water you put into the water tank. The KBGV has a switch at the bottom that adjusts the hot plate temperature (ranging from 175 degrees to 185 degrees Fahrenheit) depending on how much I brew — either half a carafe or the full 10 cups.

The brand sent me two Moccamaster models to try out: the KBGV (with a glass carafe) and the KB (with a thermal carafe). Though both worked well, I preferred the glass carafe since I could keep it hot for longer (nearly two hours after brewing), I could see exactly how much coffee I have left and I found it much easier to clean after every use). I used the Moccamaster KBGV everyday for a month and brewed 8-10 cups in the morning, which was the perfect amount for both me and my partner.

The process for using the Moccamaster is similar to most other drip coffee machines and is relatively easy and beginner-friendly, in my experience. Here’s what I did:

1. Remove and prep the brew basket by wedging a No. 4 paper coffee filter inside the brew basket and pre-wet the filter with warm water to help reduce any paper-like taste.
2. I grind up my preferred whole-bean coffee using a separate grinder (I prefer the Capresso Infinity Plus Burr Grinder). When using the Moccamaster, I primarily reached for Irving Farm and Partners Coffee.
3. Once my beans are ground, I place them into the brew basket using the small scoop that came with my appliance. Conveniently, the Moccamaster manual comes with a table that tells you the ratio of ground coffee scoops to cups of water.
4. Once the coffee grounds are inside the filter, I put the brew basket back into place and put the lid on top. 
5. I fill the nonremovable water reservoir with cool filtered water — the amount of water I put in should be equal to the amount of coffee I want to brew. The tank has clearly labeled measurements ranging from 2 cups to 10 cups (increasing by increments of two), so if I want to brew 8 cups of coffee, I fill the tank to the eight-cup line.
6. The coffee maker automatically starts brewing once I switch it on. Since the model I tested has an automatic drip-stop mechanism, it instantly stops the brew flow once I remove the carafe.

My experience with the Moccamaster, including setting up my device and brewing a delicious cup, has been seamless and user friendly.

The Moccamaster has a fiercely loyal fanbase, and for good reason: Simply put, the coffee tastes amazing. I had very high expectations when I first used this coffee maker due to the price, and it truly met every single one in terms of coffee quality and taste. Though a lot about the taste has to do with the quality of the coffee beans you use, the Moccamaster actually delivers the strong, rich taste of a pour-over cup that I’m looking for.

In my experience, many drip coffee makers tend to brew a burnt- or bitter-tasting cup. The Moccamaster, on the other hand, brews the coffee at an ideal temperature so that it doesn’t burn the grounds or lose the flavor of the beans, according to the brand. (All Moccamaster brewers are certified by the Specialty Coffee Association — a nonprofit, membership-based organization that represents coffee producers, roasters, importers/exporters and retailers — to meet the organization’s recommendations for water temperature and brewing time.)

I like my coffee scalding, so there are few things worse than coffee quickly getting cold (I even bought a pricey temperature control mug to help avoid this problem). The Moccamaster really delivers in this area: It brews the coffee to 205 degrees Fahrenheit, according to Technivorm, which is a perfect temperature for my personal taste (making it just slightly too hot to drink).

The hot plate keeps my coffee at the same hot temperature for the full 100 minutes until it automatically shuts off (a great and convenient safety measure, in my experience), and keeps the coffee decently hot for about an hour after that. The Moccamaster also has a convenient high and low switch, which adjusts the temperature based on how much coffee I brew (for example, the low setting keeps about 2-6 cups hot, while the high setting keeps 8-10 cups at the perfect temperature).

The Moccamaster’s chic design is a huge selling point for me. The overall look of the machine is sleek and sophisticated, it is relatively compact and smaller than some other coffee makers I’ve tried, and it looks much neater on my kitchen table than the average (often bulky) drip coffee maker. It also comes in 20+ colors; I chose the off-white shade, which was neutral enough to match with my other kitchen appliances.

Though the glass carafe does get hot to the touch, I find it a lot easier to clean than the KB model’s thermal carafe, which is much longer and has a narrower top. This was a major advantage for me since I brew coffee daily (sometimes multiple times a day) and clean my carafe after every use. I also like that it’s transparent, so I can see exactly how much coffee I brew and how much I have left (as opposed to the thermal carafe, which is entirely wrapped with stainless steel).

The coffee maker brews a full 10 cups in about six minutes. Though this doesn’t entirely differentiate itself from other coffee makers, it’s much faster than my everyday pour-over method using my Chemex, which takes about 7 minutes to make 8 cups of coffee, plus about 5 more minutes for prep including grinding the coffee beans and heating up the water. The Moccamaster averages a little over 30 seconds per cup, which isn’t much more than a typical single-serve coffee maker like the Keurig, too. Since it has an automatic drip-stop, I recommend waiting to remove the carafe until the coffee is fully brewed to prevent the filter from overflowing.

There is no denying its hefty price tag; at $359 it’s more than other high-quality drip coffee makers out there, including the Breville Precision Brewer ($330), Oxo Brew Stainless Steel Coffee Maker ($230) and Bonavita Connoisseur ($190). For the price, it doesn’t come with the high-tech and user-friendly features you may expect, like a built-in grinder, programmable settings that automatically brew your coffee at a certain time or a removable water reservoir. Though the simplicity of the brewer makes it relatively beginner friendly, the convenience doesn’t match up to some other higher-end machines.

I love the glass carafe, but it gets hot. This is expected with anything made of glass, and it comes with a plastic handle to make pouring easier. But if you find yourself touching the carafe by accident when pouring your coffee, you will likely be treating yourself for a minor burn. There are multiple other parts of the coffee maker that get equally as hot, including the metal outlet arm at the top where the hot water goes through and the brew basket and of course, the hot plate itself. Fortunately, the base, water reservoir and sides of the machine don’t retain heat.

One small annoyance was the static water tank at the top of the machine — a removable water reservoir is usually easier to clean and fill up, especially if you have a larger, nonportable water filter in your fridge or if you simply like using sink water. This isn’t abnormal when it comes to drip coffee makers, though. Most of them don’t come with a removable water tank, and I usually see it more often in single-serve machines like a Keurig or Nespresso. If you are looking for a drip coffee with removable reservoirs, consider options from brands like Bonavita and Zwilling.

With its high-end price and quality of the brew, the Moccamaster is a solid choice for true coffee enthusiasts — it doesn’t offer the most user-friendly, high-end features that some other drip coffee machines have (especially for the price), but it does make a near perfect cup of coffee. The process is straightforward, which can be useful for beginners looking to go a step above a single-serve machine and indulge in pour-over quality without needing to purchase the extra supplies or follow strict temperature and ratio rules. The Moccamaster is also a great option for those looking to prioritize aesthetics over the convenience of high-tech features or an affordable price — the sleek design and various colorways can fit most people’s kitchens and personal styles.

I am an updates editor at NBC Select with more than three years of experience writing about coffee and coffee makers. For this article, I tried the Technivorm Moccamaster for a month and considered the coffee quality, ease of use and design.