As soon as upon a time, each AeroPress was the most effective AeroPress. However the humble AeroPress espresso maker has since multiplied. It has grow to be numerous. The previous half decade or so has introduced an explosion of recent variations of AeroPress: a plastic-free premium AeroPress (7/10, WIRED Recommends), a massive AeroPress, a small AeroPress, a crimson AeroPress, a blue AeroPress.
However at its coronary heart, the AeroPress stays a compact and ingeniously easy espresso maker, utilizing strain utilized by hand to extract a clean however richly flavorful and fragrant cup. Famously created by a Stanford-educated inventor beforehand recognized for enhancing the aerodynamics of the flying disc, every AeroPress seems a bit like a fats syringe that injects brewed espresso by means of a filter and into your ready mug. It would not appear to be it ought to make espresso nearly as good because it does. And but it does, attaining a outcome someplace between French press, espresso, and filter espresso. Be happy to observe the recipe on the field. However the system additionally permits a exceptional quantity of management over your espresso as you modify grind, brewing time, agitation, bloom, and filter of selection.
The AeroPress has impressed cultish fandom since its introduction in 2005, to not point out a burgeoning aftermarket of equipment and mods. And but it took until 2019 for AeroPress to launch a second mannequin, a barely smaller journey model referred to as the AeroPress Go (9/10, WIRED Recommends). After fairness firm Tiny Capital acquired a majority stake in AeroPress in 2021, the portal to the AeroPress multiverse was thrown open. Aeropress now makes alternate filters, flow-control caps, gadget organizers, and a sizzling pink AeroPress (as a result of why not?). A few of that is advertising. Some’s an actual enchancment—or at the very least an alternate imaginative and prescient for an already quirky espresso maker.
This is our greatest recommendation on which model of AeroPress to get, and our favourite equipment from AeroPress and different makers.
Be sure you take a look at our different espresso guides, together with the Finest Espresso Grinders, Finest Drip Espresso Makers, Finest Espresso Bean Subscriptions, and Finest Espresso Machines.
Up to date April 2025: We’ve added the AeroPress Premium, Fellow Prismo, AeroPress Journey Filter Holder, AeroPress Stainless Metal Filter, Hexnub Bamboo Organizer, and Coffeesock wool filters. We’ve additionally retested earlier AeroPress units, and up to date hyperlinks and costs all through. The unique model of this information was written by WIRED contributor Joe Ray.
Finest AeroPress General
The WIRED staff has lengthy admired AeroPress. Reporter Steven Levy profiled its inventor in his Palo Alto workplace a decade in the past, when AeroPress mania was first reaching fever pitch. However like loads of low-cost, handy issues, the unique AeroPress is made from (BPA-free, pthalate-free, licensed food-safe) plastic. And microplastics are a priority that’s quickly rising in scope and significance, amid some actual well being questions.
At a little bit of a value premium, the brand new plastic-free AeroPress Premium is the reply: a steel-and-glass AeroPress with sturdy building and the identical nice skill to make AeroPress-style espresso. WIRED commerce director Martin Cizmar, a longtime AeroPress fan, has stowed his beloved unique AeroPress along with his tenting gear in favor of the brand new Premium as a house system. Be aware, nonetheless, he had intermittent points with espresso blowouts on one evaluation pattern, a “manageable quirk” he solved through the use of AeroPress’s stainless-steel filter we focus on beneath.
Prettiest AeroPresses
Magnificence is not free. It prices $10 additional. The brand new Clears and Colours (that are additionally thought of Clears) are just about the identical system as the nice old style AeroPress Unique. They only occur to be better-looking, brighter, extra numerous, and barely dearer. Some AeroPress lovers admire that the Clear enables you to see the brewing course of—although if I will be trustworthy, espresso slurry is not precisely a fireworks present. The true good thing about the brand new designs is that you just get to decide on a coloration that matches your shirt, your kitchen decor, or your complete vibe.
Finest Price range Basic
If you happen to’re a longtime AeroPress proprietor, chances are high that is the one you have bought. You in all probability really feel nostalgic and deeply connected, and rightly so. That stated, the unique Unique AeroPress coloration was truly clear. This “smoked” coloration was added in 2010 to scale back notion of espresso staining, again when AeroPress was made with a special materials. Now, this smokiness has advanced right into a design hallmark. Amid the proliferation of AeroPress sizes and colours, the Unique’s design has remained principally unchanged for 15 years. And lately it is $10 cheaper than the newer bright-colored and clear AeroPresses, which work the very same manner. Shopping for the Unique marks you as a sensible one that cares not for frippery.
Finest for Frequent Fliers
The travel-friendly 8-ounce Go (9/10 WIRED Recommends) is, on the one hand, only a barely smaller AeroPress. On the opposite, says WIRED contributor Joe Ray, it is an “ingenious” improve he could favor to the unique, nestling inside a mug for simple transport to a campsite or a resort. Voila: no extra unhappy resort Okay-cups. Grind no matter beans you possibly can earlier than heading out tenting—or should you’re in a brand new metropolis, purchase a bag and ask them to grind for AeroPress. (Though, should you actually wish to go for it whereas tenting, attempt our favourite hand grinder, the Kingrinder K6, at a grind setting between 60 and 90 clicks.)
AeroPress additionally launched an up to date journey AeroPress referred to as the Go Plus ($80), however this one’s a little bit of a dud, based on Ray: It is made for an insulated journey mug whose magnetic slider makes it disagreeable to drink from. The Go Plus can be too small to make use of with standard-sized mugs at residence, limiting its use case significantly. Persist with the usual Go.
Finest for (Actually) Huge Boys
AeroPress followers have been clamoring for an even bigger model of the basic brewer for years, principally as a result of the Unique’s 10-ounce capability implies that making espresso for a couple of individual is usually a ache within the butt. These followers bought their want with a mannequin that is twice the scale of the unique. However larger doesn’t appear to be higher. In actual fact, larger appears a bit extra harmful. Whereas the Unique, Clear, and Go all use the identical measurement cap and filter, every bit of the XL is bigger. It has its personal filters, and also you brew into the carafe it comes with, as a result of the XL’s bigger diameter makes it too massive to brew straight into most mugs. It additionally positive factors loads of peak. With the plunger prolonged and linked to the barrel, and all of that sitting on the carafe, it is 19 inches excessive. In our testing, 5’3″ Seattle barista Reyna Callejo from Olympia Espresso Roasting Firm stood on a stool to get it to work, a balancing act involving sizzling liquids you probably won’t wish to be doing earlier than your morning espresso, or ever, actually. Utilizing the inverted technique additionally feels extra perilous—that is half a liter of sizzling water you are perching excessive above your countertop, legs, and personal components. If you happen to actually love AeroPress, need an additional cup’s value each time you brew, and are not delay by the potential perils, go for it, however most of us who crave extra espresso would probably be higher off with a special type of brewer. —Joe Ray
Put a Lid on It?
The Fellow Prismo, initially launched in 2020, was a revelation, although not for the explanation it was marketed. The massive thought is that by changing the usual filter cap with a cap outfitted with a pressure-actuated valve, you possibly can pave the way in which to make precise espresso along with your AeroPress. You do that by grinding your espresso finer after which pushing actually, actually exhausting on the plunger. In apply, this can be a little little bit of hooey. Your arm shouldn’t be creating the 9 bars of strain required to supply espresso, irrespective of how exhausting you lean. However by grinding wonderful, utilizing much less water, and pushing the brew by means of the tiny holes of the Prismo’s stainless-steel filter, you possibly can certainly make a robust and espresso-like substance with some crema. It is a bit extra astringent than espresso, to my style. However right here we’re.
For me, what made the Prismo terrific was that its valve mounted the sluggish leak by means of the AeroPress’s normal filter cap. The usual model dribbles a bit whereas steeping, inflicting aficionados to do bizarre stuff like brew “inverted,” after which flip over a column stuffed with boiling sizzling liquid earlier than plunging. The Prismo avoids the necessity for such early morning adrenaline, and in addition stops your treasured elixir from dribbling into your mug earlier than you plunge the AeroPress. I just about solely use the Prismo or AeroPress’s circulate management cap, for this exact cause. And although the stainless-steel filter is required for the Prismo to work, you possibly can add a paper filter atop it for extra readability of taste.
AeroPress now has its personal model of flow-control filter cap referred to as, catchily, a “Movement Management Filter Cap.” The unique circulate management had an inclination to leak, based on some on-line studies, however AeroPress appears to have mounted this concern within the meantime: I’ve not had the issue. The Movement Management Cap prices the identical because the Prismo, and each are equally profitable at stopping the AeroPress from leaking earlier than its time. So the principle distinction between AeroPress’s and Fellow’s filter cap is as follows: The Prismo comes with a chrome steel filter on the identical value, but additionally requires that you just use the metal filter. (The rubber O-ring on Prismo’s metal filter stops the system from leaking.) So should you like a chrome steel filter? Use the Prismo. If not, roll with AeroPress’s model.
Additionally, here is a tip for many who cannot work out tips on how to expel espresso pucks utilizing the Prismo or Movement Management with out making a large number. Pull again the plunger a bit after brewing. This can create a vacuum and suck the espresso puck again up with it. Then take away the filter cap, and plunge out the espresso puck into the bin. You are welcome.
Filtered Outcomes
AeroPress makes reusable metal filters in a number of colours as a substitute for disposable paper filters. Some folks pitch this as an environmental choice, in decreasing waste. However provided that paper filters are small, and also you’re utilizing water and cleaning soap to rinse espresso oils off this metal filter, it is all probably a little bit of a wash (see what I did there?). The true distinction is choice and taste. The metal filter will supply physique that is a bit extra like French press, with extra espresso fines and oils within the espresso, however to some (together with me) the flavour will style extra diffuse or muddy. The metal filter will even offer you a little bit of satisfying crema should you push wonderful espresso by means of it with the Prismo or Movement Management Cap. The usual paper filters will supply extra readability of taste and take away all sediment and loads of the espresso, however will not have the physique of the steel-filtered stuff. However notice for the heart-conscious: Research going again a long time present that unfiltered espresso incorporates chemical substances referred to as diterpenes which can be related to a major improve in LDL ldl cholesterol. Paper filters have been proven to take away these chemical substances. Metal filters haven’t.
One other theoretically environmentally pleasant possibility is cotton-wool filters, not not like the filter used within the basic Toddy to make chilly brew. An Austin, Texas, firm referred to as CoffeeSock makes reusable woolen filters for chilly brew, pour-over, AeroPress, you title it. A 3-pack goes for $15. I did not overwhelmingly like the flavour I bought utilizing woolen filters on my AeroPress—it was a bit muddy-tasting, and perhaps even a bit gym-socky—and it is loads of work rinsing and drying and mainly doing laundry on my espresso filter. However perhaps you may prefer it greater than I did.
The Finest AeroPress Caddy
The AeroPress is each a remarkably easy espresso system and a tool with loads of humorous little components. There is a scoop should you’re a scooping kind, a funnel should you’re a grinder and pourer, a tamper should you like to combine up your AeroPress whereas it brews. There are filters. There is a filter cap, and perhaps your alternate valve-modulated filter cap. Thank goodness for Hexnub, a British firm based by former F1 racing gearheads, which makes by far essentially the most compact and downright handsomest resolution I’ve discovered. This little bamboo caddy sits properly on a countertop, with slots for an AeroPress and all of the . It sports activities equally good-looking little silicone mats to catch stray liquid. AeroPress makes its personal stainless-steel countertop organizer ($100) for its units, should you’d relatively a cyberpunk vibe.
Taking the Case
Every AeroPress used to return with a bit vertical stand in your filters. That is now not true. As a substitute, this compact little journey case is bought individually. Do you want a bit filter-holder? I dunno. But it surely would not value so much, it is compact should you’re taking the AeroPress on the go, and it seems undeniably nicer than a ziplock baggie. It additionally removes the prospect you splash all of your paper filters with water out of your sink. What I can say is that I am a bit happier now that I’ve it.
When You’re Having Funnel
It is a funnel. It additionally used to return with the AeroPress however now not does. If you happen to pour fresh-ground espresso into your AeroPress relatively than scooping, you may in all probability admire having this. It is also good for not spilling water whereas pouring rom a kettle. Funnels are good for not spilling stuff, generally. A couple of firms make knockoffs, however the ones we have seen aren’t even cheaper than the one from AeroPress. And this funnel says “AeroPress” on it, which is classier.
