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A large part of the appeal of a French press is its simplicity. No accessories to buy, no deftness needed to pour, no stressing about precise timing (as you would with an espresso shot). For a coffee enthusiast, there’s room for experimentation in the coarseness of the grind, the ratio of water to coffee, and the interpretation of “water just off the boil” that’s to your liking. But at its heart, it’s a simple device, inspiring the same simple pleasure as brewing a pot of tea (which it also does rather well).
With such purity in its design, what makes one French press stand out over another? I reached out to baristas, instructors, and other experts to get their takes and tested five of the presses myself. I brewed each pot using beans from the same batch, ground just before brewing. I hand-washed each carafe, plunger, and filter, noting how easy it was to clean each press of errant grounds. To test heat retention, I poured water at 205 degrees Fahrenheit — the midpoint of the range recommended by our experts — and measured its temperature from brew time through the course of a few hours.
There was little noticeable difference in the coffee produced by any of the models in terms of flavor, the amount of grounds that made it through the filter, or the temperature at brew time. This was confirmed by my experts, who had a lot to say about making French-press coffee but were less adamant about the model you use to make it. “Generally, for French presses, it’s more about preparation than the vessel,” says Guy Benjamin, a former drummer who now runs an espresso bar at S&S Kitchenette in Martha’s Vineyard. “I wish there were more to talk about, but aesthetics and heat retention are kind of all that matters.”
The best presses didn’t necessarily make a better cup of coffee than any other, but they all had a particular strength that set them apart. If you’re looking for other coffee paraphernalia, we also have guides to the best coffee grinders, coffee makers, and gifts for coffee lovers.
What we’re looking for
Material
French presses are typically made of glass, stainless steel, or ceramic, though plastic models exist as well. Glass retains heat relatively well but is more delicate and often not dishwasher safe. Stainless steel is more expensive but relatively indestructible. One material isn’t inherently better; experts preferred different materials for different reasons.
Volume
Think of the size of your French press as the greatest amount of coffee you want to make. It needn’t always be filled to capacity, so if you’re worried that you might one day want to make a larger batch, you’re safe to buy the biggest press that makes sense and still use it for your daily cup. Just note the temperature changes could be more drastic with a lower volume of water, so you may want to preheat your press with hot water before brewing.
Care
With their emphasis on aesthetics in addition to function, French presses can be delicate — one glass model I tested arrived broken in the packaging. Some are entirely safe for the dishwasher, some are only safe for specific parts, and others are strictly hand-wash only. With the exception of one, all of our top presses are fully dishwasher safe.
Insulated
A few of the French presses tested were designed to hold their temperatures for a significantly longer period of time — in our testing, these presses stayed hot for up to five hours after brew time. But in most cases, you’ll want to decant the coffee once it’s done brewing and dispose of the grounds in order to avoid overextraction, which leaves a bitter cup. This means needing another vessel, at least temporarily, though our favorite insulated press featured a novel filter that eliminated the need for decanting.
Best overall French press
Material: Glass carafe with plastic and chrome finish | Volume: 12, 17, 34, or 51 oz. | Care: Dishwasher safe | Insulated: No
The Bodum Chambord is the one press that was mentioned by nearly all experts, who praised its affordability and classic look and the quality of the coffee produced. And in my own testing, it lived up to that reputation. It held heat as well as or better than its competitors (not including the presses with insulated carafes) and was easy to disassemble and clean. It edged out the competition due to its affordable price and the availability of models and parts.
“A completely standard Bodum French press is still the go-to for many consumers,” says Klaus Thomsen, one of the founders of Denmark’s the Coffee Collective. “You’ll find one in almost all Danish households, though sometimes all the way in the back of the cabinet. It’s still a nice cup, full-bodied, and an easy way for someone to have a great experience of brewing up something special for themselves.”
Best less expensive French press
Material: Glass carafe with a BPA-free plastic body | Volume: 12, 34, or 51 oz. | Care: Dishwasher safe | Insulated: No
Bodum’s Brazil, a less expensive cousin to the Chambord, simplifies the design but still delivered a great cup of coffee in my testing. At her restaurant Kampar in Philadelphia, chef-owner Ange Branca serves Malaysian kopitiam tea and coffee drinks brewed traditionally, with a cloth coffee strainer. But at home, a Bodum press is her less effortful way to make chai or Malaysian teh tarik. “Because the sieve is so fine, it works really well with tea dust,” she says. “If you don’t have a cloth filter, it’s much better than putting tea dust into bags and steeping that way.”
Best durable French press
Material: Stainless steel, ceramic lining | Volume: 34 or 64 oz. | Care: Dishwasher-safe | Insulated: Yes
Yeti’s new Rambler almost won out as the best overall, but the premium price point for extra features — all of which are excellent, but none of which are crucial to making a good cup of coffee — pushed it into the high-end category. The Yeti truly is impressive, from its sleek design and vibrant colorways to its excellent thermal retention (a full pot was still hot, not merely warm, after five hours) to thoughtful design touches such as the sipper lid and what the company calls a “GroundsControl filter,” a kind of rubber gasket over the filter screen that prevents overextraction. The packaging aptly calls the Rambler “overengineered,” but every bit of that engineering comes together to create a French press that’s useful, large, easy to clean, and attractive. And with its tight seal, it’s also an excellent press for cold brew — the insulation can prevent picking up off-flavors from your fridge.
Best durable French press for large quantities
Material: Stainless Steel | Volume: 48 oz. | Care: Fully dishwasher-safe | Insulated: Yes
Most French presses look at home on the dining table, but Stanley’s French press, like the Yeti, is built for the great outdoors. Durable and well-insulated, the highlight of the Stanley is the volume at this price. Bodum makes versions of our picks above that are slightly larger than this model, but the glass carafes are more fragile than the Stanley’s stainless-steel one, and the 64-ounce Yeti, while also rugged, costs significantly more.
Best French press for a cleaner cup
Material: Glass body, stainless-steel finish | Volume: 32 oz. | Care: Top rack, dishwasher safe | Insulated: No
Since French press is a full-immersion brew method and doesn’t use a paper filter, there’s a higher chance that grounds will make their way into your cup. That wasn’t an issue with any of the presses in my testing, but with the wrong grind size or a worn-out filter, it becomes more likely. That’s a much smaller risk with Espro’s presses, which come with a particularly fine, double-basket filter. They come in a range of models, all of which contain the same double filter and differ in price, body construction, and volume, so you can choose the one that most fits your needs. I chose the P5 for its more premium and durable finishes at a modest price difference over the P3, but all models should create a similar brew.
Best heirloom-quality French press
Material: Stainless steel | Volume: 17, 23, 36, or 44 oz. | Care: Dishwasher safe | Insulated: No
“It’s the gold standard of French presses,” says Kelsey Horwitz, who uses the Frieling in her French-press classes at Beacon Coffee in Ventura, California. With an entirely stainless-steel construction, it’s dishwasher safe and, especially compared to its glass competition, virtually indestructible. Though it comes in at a higher price point than some of the competition, Frieling sells replacement parts at an affordable price. Horwitz suggests that, for someone whose daily cup is French press, it’s a better idea to spend more up front on a Frieling and never have to worry about buying another press ever again — just replace the filter as needed.
Best centerpiece French press
Material: Glass | Volume: 850 mL (approximately 29 oz.) | Care: Hand-wash only | Insulated: No
The Yield is a strikingly beautiful piece of equipment. Its unibody glass design means that you’d better hand-wash this one very carefully, though that same design also makes cleaning a breeze. It comes in a range of attractive colors (amber, green, clear glass, gray, and blue), and the company also offers glassware to match.
Our experts
• Guy Benjamin, barista and founder, S&S Kitchen
• Ange Branca, chef-owner, Kampar
• Noelle Graham, café operations & quality control, Rival Bros Coffee
• Kelsey Horwitz, director of education, Beacon Coffee
• John Masi, assistant teaching professor and culinary lead, Florida International University Chaplin School of Hospitality and Tourism Management
• Klaus Thomsen, founder and head of coffee-shop quality, the Coffee Collective
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