8 Best 12-cup Coffee Makers Compared in 2024

This is a review of the best 12-cup coffee makers for home and professional use. Check out our recommendations.

I want to entertain guests and find myself needing a 12-cup coffee maker. That led me to build this guide on finding the best machine of this type.

I chose the Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT as the best because it’s an SCA-certified machine that’ll brew quickly and lasts for a long time.

Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT: Best Overall

• Price: $$$
• Dimensions: 6.75 × 12.5 × 17.75 in (D, W, H)
• Water Capacity: 15 cups
• Carafe Material: Stainless steel
• Machine Material: Stainless steel & plastic
• Warranty: 5 years

Check Current Price

Many folks may not like this maker’s price point. Consider our alternatives in that case.

Let’s go.

Best 12-Cup Coffee Makers for Home Use

1. Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT: Best Overall
2. Black + Decker 12-Cup: Most affordable
3. Braun BrewSense: Best programmable maker
4. Hamilton Beach 2-Way: Best under $100
5. Hamilton Beach FrontFill: Most compact
6. Breville Precision Brewer Thermal: Includes thermal carafe
7. Cuisinart PerfecTemp: Includes automatic shut-off
8. Ninja Espresso & Coffee Barista System: Best maker, Canada

Top Eight 12-Cup Coffee Makers

The following sections will review all the best 12-cup coffee makers. I’ll cover each machine’s pros and cons, whether it’s worth its price, and discuss any extraordinary features.

Almost all coffee makers on this list will brew up to 12 cups. One will brew more than that. Though, it’ll still technically brew 12 cups.

And here’s that pick.

1. Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT: Best Overall

Price *	$$$
Dimensions	6.75 × 12.5 × 17.75 in (D, W, H)
Water Capacity	15 cups
Carafe Material	Stainless steel
Machine Material	Stainless steel & plastic
Warranty	5 years

The Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT (39340) works best for anyone who wants to entertain guests and not worry about running out of coffee quickly.

This specific machine has a 15-cup coffee carafe, unlike other devices on this list which support up to 12 cups. However, the Grand CDT will technically still make 12 cups of coffee. It’s a pain to do so, which I’ll swing back to in a second.

Yes, it’s worth the money. If you’re looking for a coffee maker that’ll keep the carafe warm and keep guests caffeinated for hours.

There’s no warming plate, but the carafe’s double-walled stainless steel body will keep it warm for hours. There’s also no risk of burning your coffee, like warming plates pose on glass carafes.

It’s a pain to gauge whether you’re serving 12 cups because there’s 1 fill line on the water reservoir (15 cups). You must measure out the water you’ll want in a measuring cup if you’re after a specific cup size.

And the reservoir isn’t removable, which makes this thing a bit more difficult to refill. Because you’ll need to move the entire machine to do so. Unless you keep it in an open area with no cabinets above.

It’s almost 18 inches without opening the reservoir’s lid, which is the typical distance between your countertop and the bottom of your cabinet. When opening the lid, there’s no way it’ll fit under a cabinet.

Here’s why I love this machine:

It’s Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) certified. It’ll automatically brew your coffee per international standards that they deem will make the “perfect” cup of coffee [1]. And it means this machine passed a bunch of tests to meet these standards.

One example being that this machine doesn’t produce coffee with as much sediment as other machines. Resulting in a beverage that’ll have a less gritty taste.

Few machines will get on their list of certified coffee makers. Hence, why I always make it a point to mention SCA certification.

It’ll take 6–7 minutes for the Grand CDT to brew a full carafe of coffee, which meets the SCA’s certification requirements and is faster than most drip coffee machines.

It’s easy to use and hard to make a mistake with. There aren’t a million buttons you need to memorize just to make a cup of coffee. However, there’s no programmability.

Or you could consider our next pick.

2. Black + Decker 12-Cup Thermal Programmable: Best Cheap Options

Price *	$
Dimensions	9 × 9.4 × 13.2 in (D, W, H)
Water Capacity	12 cups
Carafe Material	Stainless steel
Machine Material	Plastic
Warranty	1 year

The Black + Decker 12-cup coffee maker (CM2046S) works best for anyone who wants a cheap coffee maker filled with features machines that cost more than $100 would typically have.

That statement alone should tell you whether this machine’s worth the money. It is.

For the most part, Black + Decker did a stellar job with their design choices. It’s not front-loading, which means this thing may not fit under typical wall cabinets. While 13 inches won’t fill the 18-inch requirement, opening the lid will require more than 4 inches of vertical clearance.

You won’t need to open the reservoir when you wonder how much water remains. A window on the machine’s front’ll show you the remaining water. Meanwhile, it includes all the buttons on the machine’s front. No need to reach around the side to brew your coffee.

The 4-layered stainless steel carafe will keep your drinks warmer for longer than those with double-walled carafes. That’s because you’ll have more layers insulating your beverage. There’s no warming plate, but that’s no issue with this carafe type.

The one design flaw comes from the lack of a backlight on their clock. This’ll make it difficult for anyone who wants to program their coffee maker in a low-light environment.

You also don’t have control over brewing parameters like bloom and temperature as you would with the Breville Precision brewer. However, this machine doesn’t cost much, and I don’t expect it to have such features.

It gives you a Strong button, which will brew coffee slower to extract more flavors. But I wish it could have included an Over Ice function to brew coffee that you’d put ice cubes over.

The instruction manual is thorough and won’t leave you guessing how to use or clean the machine. And you could set your machine to brew coffee later, for instance when you wake up the following morning.

If the lack of temperature control annoys you, consider the next machine.

3. Braun BrewSense: Best Programmable

Price *	$$
Dimensions	7.9 × 7.9 × 14.2 in (D, W, H)
Water Capacity	12 cups
Carafe Material	Glass
Machine Material	Plastic
Warranty	2 years

Get the Braun BrewSense (KF7150BK) if you want a machine that balances price and functionality. Meanwhile, it’ll allow you to program your maker in a low-light environment.

Yes, it’s worth the money.

And yes, this machine has temperature control. But it’s high, medium, and low. You can’t control it at a granular level. However, that’ll prevent you from risking brewing it outside optimal brewing temperatures (195–205 °F).

You don’t care about temperature control? Use the pre-programmed Regular or Bold settings, and the machine will automatically adjust things. The latter setting brews coffee slower to suck more flavors from the beans.

It would have been nice to see more pre-programmed options. For instance, one that would make your coffee more watery.

The Gold Tone filter will prevent oil from those beans from accumulating on the coffee maker’s filter, which would otherwise lead to stale-tasting coffee and having a harder-to-clean machine.

A charcoal filter inside the water reservoir will filter chlorine to make your coffee taste cleaner. And while the machine doesn’t use a thermal carafe, the glass will give each drink a cleaner taste.

Since you won’t have metal seeping into your beverage.

After brewing, there’s no alarm that’ll notify you when it’s done. Set a timer for around 10 minutes and check on your machine once it goes off.

The BrewSense also has a design that prevents condensation from building up under or around your machine, which’ll make it easier to clean.

This machine isn’t ideal if you want to make single cups of coffee as well as carafes. Consider the next pick for that.

4. Hamilton Beach 2-Way: Best Under $100

Price *	$$
Dimensions	10.6 × 12.1 × 13.6 in (D, W, H)
Water Capacity	12 cups
Carafe Material	Glass
Machine Material	Stainless steel & plastic
Warranty	3 years

The Hamilton Beach 2-Way (49980A) is a boon for anyone who wants an option of single cups without pods or a full carafe of coffee.

The 2-Way is worth its value considering its features and low price point.

It doesn’t support K-Cup pods on the single-cup side like other dual coffee makers. It has 2 separate grounds bins instead.

To switch whether you want single- or carafe coffee, flip the clearly labeled knob in the middle of the machine.

It lets you choose between Bold or Regular coffee. No Over Ice or watered-down options. Seeing at least one of those would have been nicer, considering there’s a single button to control “many” brewing options.

Not designating the Bold setting to its own button is a waste.

Otherwise, this machine’s simple to use. Press the Program, Minute, and Hour buttons to program your machine to brew at a later time. And press the backlit power button to power your machine on or off.

And once your machine finishes brewing, it’ll automatically power off after a couple of hours. Making it a fantastic pick for anyone who frequently forgets to turn off their coffee makers.

The water reservoir is a nightmare to access. It’s not removable, which makes it more difficult to clean and refill. And it’s located in the machine’s rear and accessible from the top.

And this machine requires at least several inches of vertical clearance to access the main filter basket and water tank. You could pull out the filter basket for the single-serve side through the front. I wish they would have incorporated this design choice more with this machine.

I also wish they would have a window on the front of the machine that shows how much water you have left.

In short, this machine isn’t great for small kitchens or for anyone who doesn’t have much space under their wall cabinets.

If you want a water reservoir that’ll synergize better with your wall cabinets, check out the next pick.

5. Hamilton Beach FrontFill: Best Compact

Price *	$$
Serves	14 cups
Dimensions	11.2 × 8.2 × 14.4 in (D, W, H)
Carafe Material	Glass
Machine Material	Stainless steel
Warranty	1 year

The Hamilton Beach FrontFill works best for anyone who doesn’t have much space under their wall cabinets.

If this machine’s available, get it. It’s worth the cost.

The best part of this coffee maker comes from its ability to access the water reservoir and the filter basket from the machine’s front. Which makes this machine a perfect fit for anyone with low-hanging wall cabinets.

You’ll need to open a small lid on the top of the machine—toward the front. But you won’t need to move your entire coffee maker to refill it. There’s also an embossed water reservoir level indicator on the machine’s side.

And since it’s embossed, you will see the remaining water without checking your machine’s side. Perfect if you plan on having other appliances beside your coffee maker.

You’ll access the filter basket by opening the user interface panel like a door. From there, you change your Gold Tone filter line normal. This type of filter doesn’t accumulate oils like stainless steel mesh filters.

Oil accumulation is bad because it’ll gather flavors from old beans and make your drink taste stale. It’ll also make cleaning your coffee maker more of a pain.

Hamilton Beach machines don’t seem to have the best design regarding brew options. They use one button to allow you to choose between a Bold or Regular brew. When they could replace that button with a “Bold” button and achieve the same results.

It gives us an extra step to perform when making coffee. They should have the Brew Option button if they give us 3 or more options (e.g., Over Ice, Bold, and Regular).

The FrontFill will automatically power off after 4 hours before brewing. A great way to help you save money on your power bill. Is 4 hours too long? Set the auto shut-off timer in 10-minute intervals to tell it when to power off.

I exaggerated the truth earlier when I claimed the Technivorm was the only coffee maker with more than 12 cups. But this one will still brew 12 cups. It just brews 14 cups max.

Do you hate the lack of control this machine gives you with brewing parameters? Don’t leave, yet. This next machine will give you the most control over brewing with drip coffee makers.

6. Breville Precision Brewer Thermal: Best With Thermal

Price *	$$$
Dimensions	9 × 14 × 16 in (D, W, H)
Water Capacity	12 cups
Carafe Material	Stainless steel
Machine Material	Stainless steel & plastic
Warranty	1 year

The Breville Precision Brewer (BDC450BSS) is a no-brainer for anyone who wants to fine-tune their beverage.

Because of all the control this machine grants, this machine’s well worth the cost.

The Specialty Coffee Association (SCA) is an organization that strives to optimize home coffee making. It also offers a seal of approval (SCA Certified) to machines that meet its standards and pass many tests.

A couple factors they consider as a “Golden Cup” is that brewing temperatures never exceed 205 °F and that drinks don’t have much sediment [2].

They offer A LOT of pre-programmed buttons that’ll automatically adjust brewing parameters, like:

• Fast: Brews quickly.
• Gold: Brews per SCA’s Gold Cup specifications & optimizes every setting.
• Strong: Brews longer to extract more flavor.
• Over Ice: Concentrated black coffee.
• My Brew: Your programmed settings.
• Cold Brew: Brews for hours.

Don’t want the machine on autopilot? Control variables such as bloom time and volume; brew temperature, and flow rate. Or replace the default carafe with a Chemex to have a cleaner-tasting coffee.

Or replace the default filter basket with a manual pour-over device like a Hario V60.

Replacing these parts could further enhance your coffee’s taste due to the individual coffee makers’ optimized design choices.

This device isn’t without its flaws. Most of those flaws come from the water reservoir and machine size. There’s no way it’ll fit under typical cabinets because you can’t remove the water reservoir. And opening the water reservoir will require several inches of vertical clearance.

Such a simple design adjustment would have made this machine perfect…

It would have also been nice to see more cup sizes on the water reservoir. You’ll need a measuring cup to add specific amounts of water (e.g., 1 cup).

The Precision Brewer doesn’t include a warming plate, but it comes with a thermal stainless steel carafe. This will keep your drink warm for hours without the risk of burning it. It’s also much more durable than a glass carafe.

However:

You could have a stainless steel-flavored drink. Since the metal may seep into your coffee. It won’t kill you. Replace the carafe with a glass one if that’s what you’re worried about. Worried about keeping your drink warmer for longer?

Consider a borosilicate or double-walled glass carafe. These may retain heat for longer.

This machine may fall out of your budget. The next one shouldn’t.

7. Cuisinart PerfecTemp: Best Maker With Auto Shut-Off

Price *	$$
Dimensions	7.75 × 9 × 14 in (D, W, H)
Water Capacity	12 cups
Carafe Material	Glass
Machine Material	Stainless steel
Warranty	3 years

The Cuisinart PerfecTemp (DCC-3200) works best for anyone who wants a plastic-free coffee maker and wants the cleanest-tasting coffee.

All the features it includes, and its robust body justify the machine’s cost.

Though I wish you could remove the water reservoir, it would make cleaning and refilling much more accessible. Instead, you must access the water tank by opening the machine’s top and pouring water into it.

The PerfecTemp will require more than 4” of vertical clearance when opening the lid, which means that it won’t fit under typical wall cabinets. You’d need to move the machine when refilling it.

There’s also no way to see how much water remains in the reservoir without opening the device.

While it doesn’t have the best design choices, this machine will produce some great-tasting coffee, partially thanks to its charcoal water filter. It’s a great way to filter out chlorine if you’re not planning on adding filtered water to your reservoir.

Though, you should add filtered water.

Anyway:

Unlike mesh reusable filters, the Gold Tone one doesn’t accumulate oils from coffee beans. This makes the filter much easier to clean and gives you a cleaner-tasting coffee. Usually oils from old beans build up on mesh filters, making your fresh coffee taste stale.

Want more cleaner-tasting coffee?

Opt for the 14-cup glass carafe version. It also includes a carafe warming feature that allows you to set what temperature you want the carafe to remain at. I linked the 12-cup thermal carafe, which’ll keep coffee warm without relying on a warming plate.

It’s nicer than glass because it’s more durable, and you don’t risk burning your coffee from the warming plate. But your coffee may have a slight metallic taste due to it puddling in stainless steel.

Why is there a “1–4” cup button? It would have been more efficient for them to give us additional strength control buttons to adjust brewing temperature. The pre-programmed button it provides us is Bold. It’ll brew coffee slower to extract more flavor.

If you’re looking for a machine with more pre-programmed buttons, check out our last pick.

8. Ninja Espresso & Coffee Barista System: Best 12-Cup Coffee Maker, Canada

Price *	$$$
Dimensions	31 × 24.9 × 37.9 cm (D, W, H)
Water Capacity	12 cups
Carafe Material	Stainless steel
Machine Material	Plastic & stainless steel
Warranty	1 year

Due to Ninja’s widespread warranty policy, the Ninja Espresso & Coffee Barista System (CFN601) works best for anyone living in Canada.

All machines are strictly drip coffee machines on the list except this one. As it’ll also brew espresso shots using 19 bars of pressure. 19 bars of pressure usually result in a slightly more bitter-tasting drink. However, since it’s brewing Nespresso pods, that’s not the case.

Since it’s not blowing water directly through coffee grounds in a portafilter. Instead, it’s spraying water through an aluminum pod with coffee.

Speaking of pods, the pod side of this maker accepts Nespresso Original line pods. You can’t use the Vertuo ones.

While the Nespresso pods allow you to brew espresso, the machine itself allows you to choose between solo espresso shots and lungo—watered-down shots.

Because of all the features this machine includes, it’s worth the cost.

The other side of the coffee maker doesn’t include a reusable mesh filter, but that’s probably for the best.

While they save money on buying filters, they’re often difficult to clean and result in coffee with more sediment. Since finer grounds can slip through the mesh and into your drink.

Be careful when tinkering with this machine’s buttons. As it often starts brewing on its own. I recommend always keeping a cup or carafe under the drip coffee side to prevent that from happening.

Nespresso and drip coffee makers don’t usually include milk frothers. This one’s an exception. While unsightly, this device allows you to froth milk to concoct drinks like lattes and cappuccinos.

Once you’re done using it, clean it then fold it inside your machine.

The water reservoir is removable, which makes the machine easier to refill and clean. But it’s located on the machine’s rear, making it a pain to access if your machine is tucked under a wall cabinet.

The machine’s massive size already makes it inconvenient for smaller kitchens. The vertical clearance required makes it nearly impossible for homes to use if their kitchens have less than the typical 45 cm clearance between their cabinet and countertop [3].

It also includes multiple brew styles like Classic, Rich (slower brew time), and Over Ice—more concentrated to prevent dilution from ice.

Do you wonder whether you’re making the right choice? You likely are. But to make sure, check out our buying guide.

How to Choose the Best 12-Cup Coffee Maker: Buying Guide

Consider these factors when shopping for a 12-cup coffee maker:

The following sections will dive further into each factor. I’ll explain why each factor is important and provide additional information to help you make an educated purchase.

If you don’t agree with everything I suggest, take what you find useful and leave what you don’t.

Let’s dive in.

1. Choose the Best Coffee Maker Type

Let’s compare different coffee makers that are capable of brewing 12 cups:

Let’s talk about who should get each type of coffee maker:

• Drip coffee maker: You’re someone who wants to entertain guests, make a pot of coffee for the office, or have a cup of coffee that’s ready when you wake up.
• Thermal coffee maker: You’re someone who wants to keep your coffee hot for hours.
• Stovetop coffee maker: You want concentrated coffee.
• Coffee percolator: You’re someone who wants a traditional way to make coffee or wants to brew for groups.

Coffee percolators and stovetop coffee makers cost the least and will produce the richest-tasting coffee. However, most of these types of coffee makers aren’t electric and require manual input to work.

They also produce concentrated coffee, as opposed to thermal and drip coffee makers.

2. Ease of Use & Cleaning

These features will help make a machine easier to use and clean:

• Removable water reservoir: This makes it easy to fill and clean the water reservoir.
  • Essential for preventing build-up of coffee residue.
• Dishwasher-safe carafe: Clean the carafe in the dishwasher, without having to worry about hand-washing it.
• Self-cleaning cycle: This feature automatically cleans the coffee maker after each use.
• Easy-to-remove filter basket: This makes it easy to remove & clean the filter basket.
  • Also essential for preventing build-up of coffee residue.
• Pause-and-serve function: This allows you to pour a cup of coffee before the brewing cycle is complete.
  • Convenient if you are in a hurry.

These features are becoming more common on 12-cup coffee machines, but it is still important to check the specifications of each model before you buy.

3. Additional Features

Consider these features when shopping for a 12-cup coffee maker:

Most 12-cup coffee makers will include features like the pause-and-serve function, removable water reservoirs, brew strength control, and easily removable filter basket. Though, the brew strength control isn’t the most intuitive.

It mostly gives you a single pre-programmed button like “Strong.” This will brew coffee slower. Some machines will include an “Over Ice” button that’ll brew less coffee that’s stronger to resist dilution from ice cubes.

Otherwise, it’s difficult to find 12-cup coffee makers with milk frothers.

4. Price & Warranty

A common price for a 12-cup coffee maker is around $100. However, you’ll find coffee makers for less or more depending on the features you want.

Warranties can cover defects in materials or workmanship. This means that if the coffee maker breaks down due to a defect, the manufacturer will repair or replace it for free. They also offer a peace of mind.

Knowing that you’re covered if something goes wrong can make you feel more confident about your purchase.

Our Verdict

Let’s review our top picks:

• Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT: Brews a lot of coffee quickly.
• Black + Decker 12-Cup: Affordable & programmable.
• Braun BrewSense: More temperature control than other models.

I picked the Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT as the best because it’ll brew a lot of coffee in under 10 minutes while meeting the Specialty Coffee Association’s strict standards.

Technivorm Moccamaster Grand CDT: Best Overall

• Price: $$$
• Dimensions: 6.75 × 12.5 × 17.75 in (D, W, H)
• Water Capacity: 15 cups
• Carafe Material: Stainless steel
• Machine Material: Stainless steel & plastic
• Warranty: 5 years

Check Current Price

Footnotes:

• * Price will vary by model, manufacturer, and vendor.