The Best French Press

Melissa McCart, a former restaurant critic, spent years viewing all things food and drink with a critical eye. She has always been a French press fan, but she had qualms about glass beakers, which she overcame during testing. This guide’s first writer, Sabrina Imbler, has used (and broken) many French presses since their first year of college.

For this guide:

• We spoke with Nicholas Oddo, an assistant manager at New York’s Variety Coffee and owner of small-batch coffee roaster Capacity Coffee, as well as with TJ Fairchild, founder of Commonplace Coffee in Pittsburgh for guidance on brewing methods and the best coffees to use with a French press.
• We also interviewed Scott Carey, owner and roaster at Sump Coffee, and Matt Banbury, a regional salesperson at Counter Culture Coffee.
• Like all Wirecutter journalists, we review and test products with complete editorial independence. We’re never made aware of any business implications of our editorial recommendations. Read more about our editorial standards.

A French press is for people who want a great cup of coffee, but who don’t necessarily want to surrender lots of time, space, or money for a complicated coffee setup.

It’s less expensive than other methods since you don’t need paper filters. It has a small footprint, and unlike pour-over, you don’t need to spend time slowly drizzling water over your grounds. The French press method is fast; once your water has reached the temperature you’d like and you’ve measured out your coffee, the whole brewing process takes roughly four minutes.

You can also make more servings of coffee at once than with most pour-over methods (except for the Chemex, which can produce a few servings at a time).

French presses have a reputation for producing muddier pours and richer, less-bright flavors, but coffee expert Nicholas Oddo told us it doesn’t have to be that way. A French press require full-immersion brewing: steeped, with no filter, so drinkers will taste the full spectrum of the coffee—including defects—because it comes into contact with the water for a relatively long time.

“You may even get a broader range of flavor with a French press,” said Oddo. “But ... coffee gurus prefer light and bright styles right now, [and] the French press doesn’t favor that style of coffee,” he added.

Commonplace Coffee’s Fairchild told us that those who are interested in using a French press should choose coffees that are better suited to it—like a full-bodied coffee from Sumatra or Papua New Guinea—over more-delicate flavors from Ethiopia. “It’s for those times you’re looking for bold, darker-roasted coffee. If you’re looking for bright flavor clarity, go for a pour-over or a Chemex,” he said.

There are a few things we looked for when making our picks:

Tight-fitting plunger: Ideally, a French press should have a plunger with a mesh screen that fits snugly inside: This will ensure that stray grounds don’t escape into your coffee. The screen should also be sturdy enough to maintain its shape and easy to replace (should you need to).

Easy to clean: We looked for presses that wouldn’t be too difficult to clean, whether by hand or in the dishwasher. Ultimately, all of our picks are dishwasher-safe (but note that the Espro models are safe only in the top rack).

Beaker material: Every glass French press we’ve come across has a beaker made of borosilicate, a type of glass designed not to break when it undergoes a sudden temperature change. But even the nicest glass beaker made from borosilicate may crack for other reasons—say, if you knock it against the sink too hard.

Though glass doesn't hold heat as well as stainless models, we found that the best glass versions produced coffee on a par with much pricier stainless steel presses.

If you can treat glass with care, those versions are a better deal. But we did look for glass presses with an exterior frame that cushioned and protected the beaker from bumps and drops. And assuming that some breakage is inevitable, any good press should have replacement parts—such as beakers and filters—you can buy online.

Stainless steel versions are more durable, but good ones tend to be more expensive. Steel presses are often double-walled to retain heat. But if you like to immediately decant all of your coffee after pressing to prevent over-extraction, that may be irrelevant. (Our upgrade pick, the Espro P6, is a fairly effective at preventing over-extraction, so you can keep your coffee warm in the carafe.)

Capacity: French presses come in multiple sizes, but we recommend buying the eight-cup version (usually 32 to 34 ounces—in coffee gear, a “cup” is usually defined as 4 or 5 ounces), especially if you drink more than a cup or you’re sharing a pot.

Definitions of capacity differ between brands: Espro refers to how much brewed coffee a press can produce, while Bodum refers to the overall capacity of the beaker.

Most large presses still allow you to make smaller batches, but due to the Espro's double-basket design, 24 ounces is the smallest amount of coffee you can make in the 32-ounce press.

How we tested

Our testing has evolved since we first published this guide in 2017.

In our first round of testing, we brewed three batches of Dunkin’ Donuts pre-ground coffee in each press to see how they handle a ready-bought finer grind, and noted how much of the grounds ended up in our cups.

We also held a brand-concealed tasting panel with four Wirecutter staff members, brewing Café Grumpy’s Mahiga, a single-origin roast from Nyeri, Kenya, ground it in the Baratza Virtuoso, an older version of our upgrade pick for coffee grinder. For each batch, we used 25 grams of coffee to 350 milliliters of water, steeping for four minutes.

Each panelist took notes on how clarified, acidic, or muddy the brews tasted, as well as on how much of the grounds remained in their cups.

For our most recent round of testing, we brewed Counter Culture Coffee’s Forty-Six, ground in a commercial Ditting grinder, using the same ratio and timing as before. Then we did a second round of testing brewing in batches by brand—all Bodum, all Espro, and then the remaining presses grouped in order of price point.

Finally, we assembled a professional panel of testers, including barista and coffee roaster Nicholas Oddo, to taste coffee made in our six finalists.

In each round of testing, we hand-washed every press and ran dishwasher safe models through the dishwasher, noting which were easiest to clean

If you want the brightest coffee you can make with a plunger, the Espro P3 French Press (32 ounces) is a great choice and easy to use. For the price, it produces the most balanced, clean, and smooth coffee of all the French presses we tested.

It traps stray grounds. The P3’s two bucket-shaped micro-filters make every other plunger’s filters look rudimentary. The filters lock into each other, so they stay together while plunging, but you can easily detach them when cleaning the press. The lock is an extra step that takes a few tries to get comfortable with, but we found it easy to master.

The P3’s rubber-rimmed plunger also ensures a tight seal, though this can make it tougher to press than Bodum’s plunger

During testing, the filters kept out even the most slippery of runaway grounds. According to Espro, the gauze-like mesh is nine to 12 times finer than that of typical French press filters.

It prevents over-extraction. Once plunged, the Espro P3’s double filter locks the grounds and a small amount of coffee at the bottom of the press; Espro said this helps stop the brewing process (what pros call extraction). This portion of grounds and coffee continues extracting as long as it sits in the beaker, but it’s ostensibly too thick and sludgy to pass through the filter.

Meanwhile, your coffee sits above the filters, relatively separate from the grounds. So if you leave your coffee in the beaker for more than four minutes, it won’t become as bitter and over-extracted as it would in other presses.

To test Espro’s extraction-stopping claim, which is unique among the presses we tested, we brewed coffee in the P3 and poured half of it into a mug; we then let the other half stand in the press for two hours, tasting it at regular intervals. After 10, 20, and 40 minutes, the flavor of the coffee we left in the Espro matched that of the first pour. After the first hour, however, we noticed a slight increase in bitterness. Since it’s not unusual to drink a fresh-brewed pot within an hour, and because the difference after the first hour was ever so slight, we think Espro’s claim holds up pretty well.

The carafe is sturdier than most. The P3’s glass beaker is considerably thicker and more insulating than those of every other glass press we tested, and it will keep your coffee warmer than the Bodum models. The P3’s beaker might also be a little less fragile than standard beakers. Espro typically sells a variety of replacement parts if your beaker or filters break.

Flaws but not dealbreakers

It's not that attractive. Overall, the P3 is visually less appealing than Espro’s more expensive models (or even than most Bodum models, with their clean lines). But if you prioritize bright pours and a grit-free mug over aesthetics, the P3 is a better choice than a Bodum.

The spent grounds can be messy. We’ve seen comments from readers about the watery sludge that lingers at the bottom of the P3 after pressing. We think this leftover liquid is part of what ensures that your coffee is silt-free, and Wirecutter staffers who have been long-term testing the Espro agree. (By design, the Espro mimics some aspects of the French press technique that barista and YouTube coffee connoisseur James Hoffmann has popularized, which also tends to leave extra liquid at the bottom of the carafe.)

But we get that the liquid can seem like wasted coffee or be messier to clean. Some P3 reviewers have come up with their own solution for squeezing out more liquid from the bottom of the carafe; one Reddit user suggests holding the lid down and giving the grounds an extra half-pump after you’ve completed your initial press. This tip might be worth a try if you want to maximize the amount of coffee you’re making—though we have yet to try it, so we can’t vouch that your coffee will taste the same—or if you simply want to clear out more liquid before emptying the grounds into your trash or compost bin.

The beaker replacement is pricey. But that cost (about $25 at this writing) is not unusual among the glass presses we looked at. If you’re worried about having to replace the beaker, consider our upgrade pick, the stainless steel Espro P6, instead. You pay more up front, but the cost may even out in the long run depending on how prone you are to breaking things.

You can't brew small batches. Due to the Espro’s double filter, you cannot make less than 24 ounces of coffee in its 32-ounce press. If you want the option of brewing smaller amounts, you might consider one of our Bodum picks. If you have your heart set on an Espro press but want to brew smaller quantities, the P7 model—which performs just like our upgrade pick but has an all-metal exterior, more color options, and a higher price—is the only one that comes in an 18-ounce size. This smaller press can make as little as 12 ounces of coffee.

The Bodum Chambord (34 ounces) makes a rich, flavorful cup of coffee, leaving behind little residue in the cup. Designed in the 1970s, the Chambord looks like the quintessential French press. Although it didn’t make the brightest coffee of the bunch, some may prefer the more classic French press flavor it produces, as well as its clean looks. The Chambord is also easier to find online and in stores, so it’s a good alternative if the Espro P3 is out of stock.

It has an elegant and effective design. The Chambord’s polished, symmetrical steel design looks more upscale and feels sturdier than most other presses we tested. The press has tiny feet that lift the hot glass beaker a half-inch off the counter—and they keep the beaker from breaking if you set it down with too much force.

The plastic handle feels cool to the touch and safe for pouring. And the Chambord’s plunger moves through the beaker smoothly, which wasn’t the case with some of the pricier, stainless steel options we tested.

It makes flavorful coffee. Our tasters noted that the Chambord’s coffee was not too muddy and tasted better than brews made in other presses—aside from the Espro presses. And it highlighted many of the coffee’s tasting notes. We also saw few leftover grounds in the bottom of our cups, thanks to the fine mesh filter topped with a perforated steel plate.

The beaker is thin. The Chambord’s glass beaker is thinner and just a touch less insulating than the Espro’s (and likely more delicate). But since most people are unlikely to leave their coffee too long in the press, heat loss shouldn’t be a huge issue. And in the event that the Chambord beaker breaks, Bodum sells replacement parts, including filters and beakers (which are about $28 at the time of writing)

The Bodum Caffettiera (34 ounces) performs the same as the Chambord, but for almost half the price. It has the same frame, but the lid and handle are plastic, and this model comes in a fun selection of pastels. Otherwise, this press has the same beaker, internal plunger, and filtering screens as our runner-up pick. In our testing, this press produced the same brew as the Chambord—a balanced cup of coffee with few stray grounds—for an unbeatable price.

The glass beaker of the Caffettiera is just as prone to breaking as the Chambord’s beaker. And, somewhat frustratingly, replacing the beaker alone will actually cost you more than the price of the Caffettiera itself. Also, the Caffettiera’s plastic lid may scratch more easily than a steel frame, though that probably won’t affect the function of the press.

If you want smooth, harmonious coffee from a modern-looking French press—or you simply don’t want to worry about breaking a glass beaker—the stainless steel Espro P6 French Press (32 ounces) is sleeker than the glass options we tested and more durable. Available in a black matte or steel finish, the P6 makes an identical brew to the Espro P3, thanks to the same ultra-fine mesh double filter, which preserves tasting notes and traps grit.

It's insulated. The P6’s body has insulating double walls that allow it to keep your coffee hot longer than a glass press could. After brewing coffee in this Espro model and leaving it alone for two hours, we returned to find coffee that was not as hot as fresh-brewed, but it was still pleasant enough to drink.

In most cases, we find heat retention in a French press unnecessary, since it’s usually not a good idea to leave your coffee in the pot after pressing. However, as with the P3, the P6’s bucket-shaped double filter slows extraction as soon as you plunge by separating most of the coffee from the grounds; this means you can leave your coffee in the press with little to no change in flavor for roughly the first hour. (We did find that the coffee tastes slightly more bitter after about an hour in the press. So if your coffee will be around for longer than that, you may want to pour it into another container.)

It's shatter-resistant. At more than double the price of the Espro P3, the Espro P6 is a splurge. But a glass press will break if you drop it. This one won’t. And because of its stylish design, the P6 is also a thoughtful gift.

We think the Espro P6 serves up the best combination of value, flavor, and looks in a durable stainless carafe, but it does come with a plastic handle. If you’re looking for all-metal construction (or a gorgeous matte white finish), you may also want to take a look at the Espro P7 French Press, which is Espro’s most popular model and our previous upgrade pick. (But note that it costs around $40 more than the P6 and doesn’t perform any differently.)

If you’re looking for a less expensive stainless steel press, we didn’t find a lot of great options, but you might consider the Coffee Gator press. It made decent coffee (though not on a par with our picks) and is under $50.

If you want an affordable steel press: We didn’t expect to like the Coffee Gator as much as we did. But it turned out to be a charming, durable, minimalist press that punched above its weight in terms of flavor and design, especially for the price. It is also easy to clean. The main downside of this press is that it leaves a few more grounds in the cup than we prefer. Still, if you’re looking for an inexpensive stainless steel press, or you’re having trouble finding our picks, the Coffee Gator is a perfectly acceptable French press at a reasonable price.

If you want a slightly different look from the two Espros we recommend: We tested three other Espro models, and we think you can’t really go wrong. The Espro P5 produces the same results and is built similarly to our top pick, but the frame is metal instead of plastic. The Espro P7 has the same double-walled stainless carafe as our upgrade pick, the Espro P6, but it also has a curved metal handle and a few extra colors or finishes to choose from.

If you want an inexepensive, minimalist press: The Bodum Brazil was previously our budget pick, and it remains a great option for those who want to spend a little less, don’t mind plastic fittings, and prefer a more-modern look than the retro-cute Caffettiera offers. But it can look a little worn after multiple uses.

This is not a comprehensive list of everything we tested in previous iterations of this guide, just what’s still available.

Our tasting panelists agreed that the Frieling French Press is a looker. But the Espro P7 has a finer filter. And the Frieling lacks the rubber rings circling the Espro P7’s filter,  resulting in a metal-on-metal plunging noise that sounds like nails on a chalkboard.

A third stainless model we were looking forward to trying, Bodum’s Columbia, is attractive but awkwardly shaped, with a handle that leaves your knuckles too close to the pot.

Speaking of good looks, we also loved the oversize Stanley French press for its handsome retro vibe. But ultimately the plunger was too loose, so the coffee was muddy on multiple tries.

We nixed Le Creuset’s French Press because its loose plunge left too much residue in the cup. And though it has a 10-year warranty, this ceramic press oddly seems more fragile than our glass picks because it’s not protected by a frame. Should it break, it’s a total loss—and a pricey one (accidents aren’t covered by the warranty).

When we first conducted research for this guide, enticingly cheap stainless steel presses resembling the Frieling dominated Amazon’s best-seller list. Of that lot, we chose to test the 1-liter Secura Stainless Steel French Press (SFP-34DS), which often takes the number-one spot on Amazon. Our panel said this model’s brew tasted fine, but the seal on the filter did not seem that tight against the inner walls of the press. Overall, this press was like a less beautiful and less functional Frieling.

The Planetary Design Table Top French Press remains our favorite coffee maker for camping. It brews cleanly and offers better insulation than any other press we tested. But even though it travels well, it looks unwieldy on a kitchen counter. And if you plunge too fast, you’ll end up with splattered droplets of hot coffee on your breakfast. It’s also harder to clean, with a small metal cap that detaches from the end of the filtering pole (and that could slide into the drain if you’re not careful).

A few readers have commented that they love their inexpensive IKEA Upphetta French press, even comparing it favorably to Bodum presses they own. We’re interested in testing it against our picks in a future update.

This article was edited by Marilyn Ong and Marguerite Preston.