Wondering which one you should choose among Breville’s famous Barista line? To help you decide, we compare two popular machines in Breville’s Barista line: Breville Barista Pro vs. Touch.
When it comes to home espresso machines, Breville is one brand that stands out from the rest with its technology and classy designs. In fact, Breville’s compact, stainless steel espresso machines have become one of the brand’s most iconic kitchen appliances.
Breville carries a wide array of manual and automatic espresso makers, but the Barista line is very well-known for making a coffee shop-worthy cup at home.
But, among the Barista line, which one should you choose? To help you decide, we compare two popular machines in Breville’s Barista line: Breville Barista Pro and Breville Barista Touch.
Breville Barista Pro vs. Touch: Quick Overview of Features
| Breville Barista Touch | Breville Barista Pro | |
| Dimensions | 12.7 x 15.5 x 16 Inches | 13 x 12 x 13 Inches |
| Capacity | 1.9 Liters | 1.9 Liters |
| Material | Brushed Stainless Steel | Stainless Steel |
| Color | Stainless Steel | Brushed Stainless Steel |
| Weight | 26.8 Pounds | 20 Pounds |
| Power | 1800W | 1680W |
| Coffee Bean Storage Capacity | 9 ounces | 8 ounces |
| Interface | Touchpad, Digital | Button, Dial |
| Steam Wand | Automatic | Manual |
| Integrated Grinder | ✓ | ✓ |
| Removable Water Reservoir | ✓ | ✓ |
| 3 Second Heat Up | ✓ | ✓ |
| Personalized Coffee Settings | ✓ | x |
| Digital Temperature Control | ✓ | ✓ |
| Auto Shut-Off | ✓ | ✓ |
Features
Both the Barista Pro and the Barista Touch can help you prepare a delicious cup of coffee. However, the Barista Touch has an edge over the Pro: The Barista Touch allows you to prepare a cup in next to no time, thanks to its programmable settings.
The Barista Touch comes pre-programmed with the 5 most popular brews: espresso, latte, cappuccino, Americano, and flat white. Feeling picky? The Barista Touch also allows you to you easily tweak the settings to your liking and save up to 8 customized coffee and temperature settings.
Equipped with Breville’s ThermoJet 3-second heating system, both Barista Touch and the Barista Pro can heat up the water in no time to extract the espresso and steam the milk. Plus, they feature Digital Temperature Control for that flawless espresso extraction. Breville’s system extraction system guarantees a balanced flavor in every cup.
Milk and Coffee Quality
Both the Barista Pro and the Barista Touch espresso machines promise to help you make coffee shop-quality coffee at home, and they definitely deliver. Their ThermoJet boiler, Digital Temperature Control, adjustable grinder, well-thought-out porta-filter, and efficient steam wand all work together to create the coffee that suits your taste quickly and conveniently.
Plus, the high-performance steam wands on both the Barista Pro and the Barista Touch are equipped to create micro-foam milk. This does not only make your cappuccino or latte taste better, but its texture also lets you design latte art while pouring the milk.
However, the Barista Touch kicks it up a notch with its automatic steam wand that allows temperature and texture customization so your coffee is exactly the way you want it. The Barista Pro’s steam wand is also powerful, but it lacks the Touch’s automatic feature.
Automation Level and Display Screen
Apart from similar technology, both the Barista Pro and the Barista Touch espresso machines also look very similar. The most obvious difference lies in their display screens. The Barista Pro comes with a basic blue backlit LCD with button controls. On the LCD, you get to see information such as the grinding time and extraction progress.
On the other hand, the Barista Touch comes with a full-color touch screen with a lot of customization options. You can easily customize the strength of your espresso, the texture, and the temperature of the milk, and you get to save these preferences in up to 8 profiles. To avoid the guesswork, Touch also comes with 5 pre-programmed coffee recipes.
Breville Barista Pro vs. Touch: User Reviews
Below, we take a look at some reviews from Barista Pro and the Barista Touch users.
“This produces a delicious coffee drink. The espresso tastes like coffee house quality; I was very impressed with the taste/consistency for the price. Though not cheap, there are many higher-priced options when it comes to a home espresso machine.
This is easy to use and customize after a little trial and error to find the perfect coffee amount and grind size…..this changes depending on the particular espresso beans used. The coffee is hot and the milk temperature is adjustable. I am very happy with this purchase, well worth the money.” – Kelly Burke, Breville BES880BSS Barista Touch Espresso Machine
“Perfect for any beginners. It’s very simple to set up. Quick and easy clean-up. Does require other purchases but it’s worth investing when you’re no longer buying $5-6 coffees at coffee shops.” – Felipe Carreon, Breville BES878BSS Barista Pro Espresso Machine
“I have owned my Barista Touch for almost a month now. If you think that you’re going to make great espresso right out of the box you may find yourself a little bit frustrated at first as I did. While this machine makes it possible to make high-quality drinks at home there is a definite learning curve that must be endured. You will waste a bag or two of coffee in the process of learning how to adjust the grind, dose, and extraction time for the beans you select.
I recommend going to a store that sells and demonstrates these machines to get some expert advice on settings, extraction, and which beans will help get the best from your machine. Having said all that I am really loving this machine! I am now getting consistent shots with great taste and the milk frother makes it really easy to make great tasting drinks at home.
Even my daughter, who used to be a barista was impressed. I’m even beginning to branch out and experiment with new recipes and drinks. I highly recommend the Barista Touch. Have owned this machine now for over a year and use it one or two times daily. It still works great and I love using it and still recommend it.” – James Connerly, Breville BES880BSS Barista Touch Espresso Machine
“I love this machine. I’m new to making coffee like this as I had just gone into coffee shops every day, but after a couple of trips to Europe, I had developed an interest in doing it on my own, and saving money! Couldn’t have made a better decision! Coffee is amazing and I’ve saved hundreds of dollars already in just a few weeks!
This machine takes a minute to figure out (or maybe it’s just me), but it’s fairly simple and after making it a few times, you get the knack for it. Highly recommend this machine.” – Denny, Breville BES878BSS Barista Pro Espresso Machine
“Did a lot of research on home espresso makers, and finally decided on this one and it was definitely the right choice. Very flexible, and has an interactive liquid crystal display for different drink types… even allows you to program a choice for your own personal tastes which is great. I’ve had it for over a year-and-a-half now and it is not broken and still is used every single day.
I would go online and watch the videos so you can learn different techniques and tricks. The instructions are not the greatest. The most important thing about this unit as well as any espresso maker is the quality of the beans. You must use fresh coffee beans. That cannot be stressed enough. Pass on the Starbucks at the grocery store or the Starbucks at the Starbuck stores.
Try to find a store that actually specializes in selling beans only and you will see a big difference in the quality of the pour it comes out more like syrup and tastes great. I also checked the temperature of the espresso as it was being pulled, and it was 185F, so I don’t have this problem that other people are mentioning.” – Joe, Breville BES880BSS Barista Touch Espresso Machine
“This is by far the best gift I’ve gotten for my husband! We both love everything about this machine! The ease of using it… the perfect brew and flavor every single time! I used to go to Starbucks daily… haven’t been there since we got this! I love being my own barista! Do yourself a favor and look no further!” – Loretta, Breville BES878BSS Barista Pro Espresso Machine
The Bottom Line
Breville Barista Pro vs. Touch: Whether the Barista Pro and the Barista Touch is better really depends on how involved you want to get with making your coffee.
The Barista Touch has greater automation and is easier to use with its coffee recipes pre-programmed. You can still adjust the parameters of the recipes if you want and store your preferred settings. Milk texturing is also automated, but you still have the option to vary the texture and temperature of the milk.
On the other hand, if you want more control, the Barista Pro will be a better choice and it is also at a cheaper price. However, this would also mean you won’t have the higher degree of automation that can be found on the Barista Touch. But, you do get to see all the brewing parameters on the beautiful bluish backlit LCD screen.
At their price points, you may wonder: Is either worth it? Honestly, while Breville espresso machines may be costlier compared to other brands, many would say that they are worth their price points. They are really intuitive to use and no matter which you buy, both are a great bargain as you get both a high-quality espresso machine and a high-quality grinder, both of which will cost a bit on their own.
