Whenever you’re looking at buying a new product for your home and daily use, you want to do your research to ensure that you’re buying a product that best suits your everyday use.

You also want to make sure that the quality of the product is up to par with your needs. Although a Keurig and coffee maker are essentially the same type of machine, and offer similar features, they are very different.

As advances in technology continue to grow each and every day, so does our need to enhance our users’ experience from brewing a pot of coffee in the morning, to making yourself a single served latte in the morning.

Shopping for a new Keurig or coffee maker can be quite confusing; browsing through your local supermarket or even searching the web, as there are so many options, and upgraded versions being offered.

However, it doesn’t have to be!

First you want to look at your lifestyle and your daily routines.

For a bachelor, a Keurig might be a better choice as it’s quicker to brew in the mornings, and it’s a single serve, so you don’t have to worry about wasting a pot coffee.

Whereas, couples or larger families may prefer a coffee maker because it makes larger quantities at once.

Something you have to keep in mind, is that with every product you purchase, there will always be pros and cons. Most of the time, it takes buying a product and using it, to figure out what it is you like and dislike about it.

In this post, we’re going to help you get a head start, and list some pros and cons about purchasing, and using a Keurig or coffee maker. 

Keurig Vs. Coffee Maker: Their Pros and Cons

Some Keurig Pros: 

1. Instant beverages – ready when you are!
2. You can select the size of your coffee, usually from 4oz to travel size.
3. No pre-programming necessary as it will begin heating the water for you once you turn it on. You can also choose your heat settings.
4. You can brew yourself a cold or hot beverage with a variety of flavors to choose from, like coffee, tea, iced coffee, hot chocolate, lattes and more.
5. You’ll always have fresh tasting coffee because the Keurig pods are individually sealed.
6. Keurig even offices a reusable filter for coffee grounds and loose-leaf teas, so you can still enjoy your favorite coffee or tea brands like Folgers or David’s tea.

Some Keurig Cons: 

1. The Keurig pods also known as the K-cups can be quite pricey compared to your instant coffee or canned coffee.
2. Keurig machines can be on the expensive end of coffee makers and the lower-end keurig’s don’t offer the special features of brewing and heat strength, brew sizes and have a smaller water reservoir that needs to be refilled more frequently. 
3. K-cups are not recyclable
4. And, in order to create cold beverages, you need the newer models, as this feature is not offered in older models. 

Coffee makers have evolved from the cafetiere(french press) to the auto drips and with each new method of brewing coffee presents their own pros and cons.

French Press Coffee Maker Pros:

1. The taste is fresher and you have full control over the flavor. You can even add spices directly to the coffee grounds for a spiced coffee or latte. 
2. The Coffee Maker is very affordable.
3. Small in size making it easier to store. 
4. You can create cold or hot beverages.

French Press Coffee Maker Cons: 

1. Very messy to clean up unless you have a dishwasher as the coffee grounds are still mixed in the water.
2. Needs to be cleaned after every use.
3. Taste can vary depending on your brewing process and time.

Auto Drip Coffee Maker Pros: 

1. Simple to use
2. Clean-up is easy and effortless all you have to do is throw out the used filter and refill the water tank.
3. Make a large pot of coffee so you’re able to provide coffee for a lot of people. Providing coffee for a large group of people with K-cups would be very expensive.

Auto Drip Coffee Maker Cons: 

1. You can’t control the brewing temperatures or quality of the brew. 
2. The heating elements are made up of aluminum or copper and it could be expensive to fix if the heating elements stop working.
3. Most coffee makers use aluminum to heat the water and it doesn’t quite get hot enough to bring out the flavors in the coffee beans.

Now these are just a few commonly known pros and cons of the Keurig and regular coffee makers. You may discover more pros and cons along the way, if you decide to purchase one.

Our Product Choice

As we mentioned above, there are tons of coffee machines to choose from. But we wanted to end this post with some recommendations on which coffee maker or Keurig you should purchase.

The Keurig K-Classic is a single serve coffee maker with different brew sizes from 6oz, 8oz and 10oz. The smaller the brew the stronger the coffee. It can hold up to 48 ounces in the water reservoir which is approximately 6 cups before having to refill. You can also remove the water reservoir to refill with water or to clean it. The Keurig K-Classic also offers an automatic shut off when it hasn’t been used within a certain timeframe. This feature is easy to program.

The Ninja CE251 coffee maker comes in black with stainless steel accents, and a 12-cup glass Carafe. This coffee maker has a variety of brew settings for a more customed brew, and can keep your coffee warm for up to 4 hours with its warming plate. You can also program the Ninja CE251 to turn on and start brewing your coffee in the morning at a specific time within 24 hours, so your coffee is ready to go when you are. They also provide a 60 ounce water reservoir that’s easily removed to make refilling effortless.

We recommend the Keurig K-Classic single serve brewer, and the Ninja CE251 programmable coffee maker.

At the end of the day, if you’re looking for something that is quick and easy and offers a smaller portion, a Keurig would probably work best for you.

If you want something that can accommodate a larger group or household, a coffee maker would make your job a lot easier.