Breville Barista Touch BES880BSS vs Gaggia E24 RI9380/46 Espresso Machine

A household where more than one person makes milk drinks and nobody wants to learn to steam

Scores higher on steam power & milk texturing, build quality & durability, ease of use & learning curve.

Commercial parts in a domestic machine, made in Italy and meant to be serviced

Scores higher on value for money.

• +Hands-free milk texturing with 8 texture levels and a temperature you choose between 104F and 167F.
• +A 30-setting hardened steel conical grinder built in, dosing to Breville's stated 18g.
• +ThermoJet heating that Breville publishes as reaching extraction temperature in 3 seconds.
• +Two-year warranty, double the one year Breville gives the Barista Express and the Infuser.
• +Five preset drinks plus eight you can create, name and save.

• −$999.95, which buys a super-automatic that also pulls the shot for you.
• −A 54mm portafilter, not the 58mm commercial size, so accessories are less interchangeable.
• −The tamp is still manual, so the one step most likely to ruin a shot is left to you.
• −Breville publishes no pre-infusion pressure and no shot volumes, only the 9 bar extraction.

• +A commercial three-way solenoid valve, which releases pressure so the puck comes out dry
• +A 58mm stainless commercial portafilter and a commercial steam wand
• +Gaggia lists it as self serviceable, made in Italy, with a 2.1 litre tank
• +9 bar published as extraction pressure rather than a pump maximum

• −No built-in grinder
• −$449 buys no automation at all: every part of the shot is manual
• −No warranty term, wattage or weight is published