The best pod coffee machines

Short answer

Pick the pod system first, then the machine. For most people that’s Nespresso Vertuo and the Vertuo Up: ready in about three seconds, with a 1.4-litre tank and every Vertuo cup size from a ristretto to a carafe. For one-touch milk drinks, get the Vertuo Lattissima; for the smallest machine, the Nespresso Essenza Mini.

Best overallNespresso Vertuo Up

£139at John Lewis · checked 2 Nov 2026

Check price at John Lewis (opens in a new tab)

Every pod machine takes one system’s pods, and the pods are where your money goes for years. So we’ve grouped our picks by system (Nespresso Vertuo and Original, L’OR Barista, Nescafé Dolce Gusto and Tassimo) and then chosen on what separates the machines: heat-up, tank size, milk and the space they take. Compare them all, with prices, on our pod machine hub.

Our picks at a glance

1. 1
   Best overall

   Nespresso Vertuo Up

   Fast heat-up, big tank and every Vertuo cup size in a slim body

   • 1.4 L tank
   • 25.5 cm tall
   • 2-yr warranty
   £139at John Lewis · checked 2 Nov 2026

   Check price at John Lewis (opens in a new tab)
2. 2
   Best budget

   Tassimo by Bosch Style Friendly

   One-button barcode brewing with no warm-up wait

   • 0.7 L tank
   • 26.5 cm tall
   • 2-yr warranty
   £69.97at Hughes · checked 2 Nov 2026

   Check price at Hughes (opens in a new tab)
3. 3
   Best premium

   Sage Nespresso Creatista Plus

   Auto-frothing steam wand with 11 temperatures and 8 textures

   • 1.5 L tank
   • 30.8 cm tall
   • 2-yr warranty
   £499.95at Sage · checked 2 Nov 2026

   Check price at Sage (opens in a new tab)More retailers for the Sage Nespresso Creatista Plus
4. 4
   Best for milk drinks

   Nespresso Vertuo Lattissima

   One-touch cappuccino and latte from a carafe, on the Vertuo system

   • 1.6 L tank
   • 31.5 cm tall
   • 2-yr warranty
   £199at John Lewis · checked 2 Nov 2026

   Check price at John Lewis (opens in a new tab)More retailers for the Nespresso Vertuo Lattissima
5. 5
   Best compact

   Nespresso Essenza Mini

   Only 8.4 cm wide and 20.4 cm tall, for the tightest worktops

   • 0.6 L tank
   • 20.4 cm tall
   • 2-yr warranty
   £119at De’Longhi · checked 2 Nov 2026Out of stock

   Check price at De’Longhi (opens in a new tab)

Side by side

One machine, several model numbers

Nespresso’s machines are built by partners, so one machine often carries several codes. The Vertuo Up is also De’Longhi’s ENV200, Krups’s XN940 and XN941, and Nespresso’s MC1 and MD1. The Essenza Mini is De’Longhi’s EN85 and Nespresso’s C30, C31, D30 and D31 (different shapes and colours, same machine). The Vertuo Lattissima is De’Longhi’s ENV300, and the Creatista Plus is Sage’s BNE800. Our product pages name the model number we matched.

Nespresso Vertuo

Vertuo pods carry a barcode that tells the machine how to brew them, from a ristretto to a carafe, so there’s nothing to set. The catch is choice: Vertuo machines brew Nespresso’s Vertuo pods only, and Original capsules don’t fit. Our Nespresso Original vs Vertuo guide takes you through that choice.

Best overall

Nespresso Vertuo Up

Milk system

None

Cup sizes

7

Water tank

1.4 L

Heat-up time

3 s

Height

25.5 cm

Warranty

2 years

The Vertuo Up is Nespresso’s newest mainstream Vertuo and our pick for most people. Nespresso quotes a heat-up of about three seconds, against about 30 for the older Vertuo Next, and the 1.4-litre tank swivels round for refilling. It brews all seven Vertuo cup sizes, and a Coffee Creations button makes a concentrated shot to pour over ice or into milk. Water hardness, temperature and cup volumes are set in the Nespresso app, so plan to pair it with your phone. We found no UK owner reviews of it that we could read. More in our Vertuo Up review.

Where to buy the Nespresso Vertuo Up

• John Lewis£139In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to John Lewis (opens in a new tab)

Prices and stock change; the retailer’s page is always the final word.

Best for milk drinks

Nespresso Vertuo Lattissima

Milk system

One-touch (automatic)

Cup sizes

6

Water tank

1.6 L

Heat-up time

30 s

Height

31.5 cm

Warranty

2 years

The Vertuo Lattissima is the Vertuo for milk drinkers. Its 0.5-litre carafe makes a cappuccino, latte macchiato, espresso macchiato or plain hot foam at one touch, and leftover milk can go back in the fridge in it. Nespresso recommends semi-skimmed milk straight from the fridge; plant drinks work, but the froth varies. Beyond its size and the rinse it asks for after every milk drink, the catch is the descale alert: carry on brewing once it blinks fast and the machine locks itself until you run the 20-minute descale. Read the Vertuo Lattissima review.

Where to buy the Nespresso Vertuo Lattissima

• De’Longhi£379In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to De’Longhi (opens in a new tab)
• Nespresso£379In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to Nespresso (opens in a new tab)
• John Lewis£199In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to John Lewis (opens in a new tab)

Prices and stock change; the retailer’s page is always the final word.

Nespresso Original

Original is Nespresso’s older system: smaller aluminium capsules for espresso and lungo, and the format other brands make capsules for. Philips, for one, lists Nespresso Original-type capsules as compatible with its L’OR Barista machines.

Best compact

Nespresso Essenza Mini

Milk system

None

Cup sizes

2

Water tank

0.6 L

Heat-up time

25 s

Height

20.4 cm

Warranty

2 years

The Essenza Mini is the smallest Nespresso, at 8.4 cm wide and about 20 cm tall. It runs Original capsules through a 19-bar pump, and its two buttons brew a 40 ml espresso or a 110 ml lungo, each with a volume you can store yourself. It switches itself off after nine minutes, or 30 if you change the setting, and descales in about 15 minutes with one Nespresso sachet. The small body means a small tank and capsule container, and there’s no frother, so it suits espresso drinkers better than a household making mugs. See the Essenza Mini review.

Where to buy the Nespresso Essenza Mini

• De’Longhi£119Out of stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to De’Longhi (opens in a new tab)

Prices and stock change; the retailer’s page is always the final word.

Best premium

Sage Nespresso Creatista Plus

Milk system

Automatic steam wand

Cup sizes

3

Water tank

1.5 L

Heat-up time

3 s

Height

30.8 cm

Warranty

2 years

The Creatista Plus is Sage’s machine for Nespresso Original capsules, and its point is milk. You choose one of 11 milk temperatures, from 55 to 75°C, and one of eight textures, stand the supplied jug on the sensor in the drip tray, and the steam wand froths and stops on its own. You still pour by hand, so this is café-style microfoam rather than drinks at one touch. It adds a 1.5-litre tank and a colour screen with guided descaling; Nespresso’s guide puts the heat-up at about ten seconds from switching on, against Sage’s three. The jug isn’t dishwasher-safe. Our Creatista Plus review has the full summary of what owners say.

Among the owner reviews we read, one owner had a steam leak at three months, repaired under warranty; another had the frother fail within weeks on two machines in a row; and two found rust-like marks on the casing within weeks. That’s a handful of reports, not a failure rate. One long-time owner keeps the wand clear with an extra purge after each drink. Descale on time, too: Sage’s warranty excludes damage from scale, and the interval runs from about 2,200 espresso-size drinks in the softest water to about 600 in the hardest.

Where to buy the Sage Nespresso Creatista Plus

• Nespresso£529In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to Nespresso (opens in a new tab)
• Sage£499.95In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to Sage (opens in a new tab)
• John Lewis£499.95In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to John Lewis (opens in a new tab)

Prices and stock change; the retailer’s page is always the final word.

L’OR Barista

The Philips L’OR Barista Sublime has no badge, but it’s the only machine here that brews two espressos at once from a L’OR Barista double capsule. Philips also lists Nespresso Original-type capsules as compatible, so it takes the widest range of capsules on this page. Against it: no frother or app, a 0.8-litre tank, and a descale of up to 40 minutes with citric-acid descalers only. Owners in the 32 reviews we read on L’OR’s own UK shop, our only source, mostly praised the coffee; a few had pods that didn’t pierce first time. It’s in the table above; read the L’OR Barista Sublime review.

Nescafé Dolce Gusto

Dolce Gusto machines take Nescafé Dolce Gusto capsules only and make cold drinks as well as hot. Dolce Gusto’s UK site wasn’t available to us, so our facts come from De’Longhi, which makes our pick. Choosing between this system and Tassimo? Read Dolce Gusto vs Tassimo.

Best value

Nescafé Dolce Gusto Genio S Plus

Milk system

None

Warranty

2 years

Pump pressure

15 bar

Weight

2.13 kg

The Genio S Plus is a light machine, about 2.1 kg with a plastic body, that switches itself on when you open the clamp handle and take out the capsule holder, and off five minutes after the last drink. De’Longhi lists a two-year warranty. Its weak spot is information: De’Longhi’s UK listing gives no tank size, dimensions or heat-up time, and we haven’t been able to check its manual, so ask the retailer for the measurements if space is tight. We could count only one UK owner review of it. Read the Genio S Plus review, or see every Dolce Gusto machine we track.

Where to buy the Nescafé Dolce Gusto Genio S Plus

• De’Longhi£99.99In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to De’Longhi (opens in a new tab)

Prices and stock change; the retailer’s page is always the final word.

Tassimo

Tassimo, from Jacobs Douwe Egberts with machines made by Bosch, reads a barcode on each T DISC and sets the water, brewing time and temperature for that drink. The machines take original T DISCs only, and the range covers tea and hot chocolate as well as coffee.

Best budget

Tassimo by Bosch Style Friendly

Milk system

None

Water tank

0.7 L

Width

17.1 cm

Height

26.5 cm

Warranty

2 years

Depth

32 cm

The Style Friendly is Bosch’s current compact Tassimo, and it has taken the older Style’s place in Bosch’s UK range. It’s 17.1 cm wide and 1.9 kg, the cup stand lifts out for tall mugs, and the outlet, piercing unit, disc holder and cup stand go in the dishwasher. The yellow service T DISC kept in the machine runs its cleaning and descaling programmes. Against it: a small tank, setup and descaling steps shown only in pictures in the manual, and no way to froth fresh milk. More in the Style Friendly review.

In the 37 owner reviews we read on Tassimo’s own UK shop, our only source for this model, most owners liked how simple it is; the complaint that came up more than once was a full tank that’s awkward to refit without spilling. These are anecdotes, not a failure rate.

Where to buy the Tassimo by Bosch Style Friendly

• Hughes£69.97In stockchecked 2 Nov 2026Go to Hughes (opens in a new tab)

Prices and stock change; the retailer’s page is always the final word.

Recycling pods and old machines

Pods can be recycled in the UK, but only through your brand’s scheme. Nespresso takes Original and Vertuo capsules back free in its recycling bag, by a booked Royal Mail collection, at a Royal Mail location or at a Nespresso Boutique. Podback, a not-for-profit set up by Nestlé and Jacobs Douwe Egberts, takes its member brands’ pods: aluminium ones such as Nespresso’s in white bags, plastic ones such as Tassimo and Dolce Gusto in green. Some councils collect the bags at the kerbside; elsewhere there are drop-off points. Drain the pods first; the grounds can stay in. When the machine itself is finished, the shop selling you a new one must offer to take the old one back free, giving you at least 28 days to bring it in.

How to choose a pod machine

• Start with the pods. Original or L’OR Barista for the widest choice of capsules, Vertuo for mugs and big cups, Tassimo for tea and hot chocolate too. Pods are the running cost, so check whether bean-to-cup works out cheaper than pods.
• Decide on milk. A built-in carafe (Vertuo Lattissima), an automatic steam wand you pour from (Creatista Plus), or a separate frother such as Nespresso’s Aeroccino3.
• Measure your space. These machines stand from about 20 cm to just over 31 cm tall. Measure the gap under your wall cupboards and leave room to lift the lever; for tight spots, see our compact coffee machines that fit under cupboards.
• Budget tiers. Under £100 buys a basic single-system machine with a small tank and no milk. £100 to £200 brings faster heat-up, bigger tanks and more cup sizes. £200 to £400 is where one-touch milk arrives. Over £400 buys an automatic steam wand and finer control of milk temperature and texture. Sales move machines between these bands, so check the price boxes above.

Not sure a pod machine is right for you? Which coffee machine should you buy? sets pods against bean-to-cup, espresso and filter machines.

How we chose these

1. Started from what decides a pod machine: the pod system, milk, tank, heat-up and size.
2. Compared published specs, manuals and support pages from Nespresso, De’Longhi, Sage, Philips and Bosch.
3. Checked prices at John Lewis, Nespresso, De’Longhi, Sage, Philips and Hughes, and show the date we checked.
4. Read owner reviews where we could. We found none we could read for the Vertuo machines, and the Tassimo and L’OR samples come from one shop each.
5. Revisit the list when prices move or a model is replaced.

What we don’t do: lab-test every product. When we have used one ourselves, the review says so.

Our full method

Pod machine questions

Which pods does each machine take?

Each takes one family. Vertuo machines brew barcoded Vertuo pods only; Original machines such as the Essenza Mini and Creatista Plus take Original capsules. Philips lists L’OR capsules and Nespresso Original-type capsules for the L’OR Barista. Tassimo machines take original T DISCs only, and the Genio S Plus takes Nescafé Dolce Gusto capsules.

How do I recycle coffee pods in the UK?

Through your brand’s scheme. Nespresso takes Original and Vertuo capsules back free in its recycling bag, by Royal Mail or at a Boutique. Podback takes its member brands’ pods, aluminium in white bags and plastic such as Tassimo and Dolce Gusto in green, from the kerbside in some council areas or at drop-off points. Drain the pods first; the grounds can stay in.

How often should I descale a pod machine?

Whenever its descale alert comes on, once you’ve set the water hardness so the alert suits your water. On the Creatista Plus that’s anything from about 2,200 espresso-size drinks in the softest water to about 600 in the hardest; Tassimo suggests about four times a year. Use the maker’s descaler, because some warranties exclude scale damage.

Can a pod machine make lattes?

Yes, if it has milk built in or you add a frother. The Vertuo Lattissima makes cappuccinos and latte macchiatos at one touch from its carafe, and the Creatista Plus froths milk in a jug with an automatic steam wand. For the Vertuo Up, Essenza Mini and other machines without milk, Nespresso sells the Aeroccino3, a separate frother.

Can I use filtered or softened water in a pod machine?

Check your manual first, because makers differ. Bosch says not to use chemically softened water in its Tassimo, and Nespresso’s guide for the Creatista Plus says heavily filtered, demineralised or distilled water can make the steam very wet. A carbon-and-resin jug filter cuts only the temporary hardness that forms scale, so you’ll still need to descale.