Seemingly everyone’s go-to coffee beverage in the summer is cold brew. Though it’s not the best version of iced coffee for everybody, its appeal can’t be denied. Cold-brewed coffee is smooth, flavorful and more basic (as in less acidic) than hot-brewed coffee. You can make a batch of cold brew and be set for days without having to wait for a pot of drip coffee or a carafe of pour-over coffee. When it comes to cold brew brewers, all you need is a large vessel for soaking coffee grounds and a way to cleanly remove those grounds from the liquid. But not all cold brewers make a good cup of coffee. These are the 10 best cold brew makers for getting the most out of your beans.
Best Overall Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Oxo Good Grips 32 Oz. Cold Brew Coffee Maker
Capacity: 32 ounces
Brew Time: 12 to 24 hours
Oxo's cold brew coffee maker makes it rain. The contraption features a perforated “rainwater” overhead that sprinkles water over the coffee grounds for even extraction. The brewer uses a metal filter to filter out the grinds, but Oxo includes a batch of paper filters that it claims produces a cleaner, smoother drink. Dispense cold brew at the flip of a switch much like a standard water cooler. At $50, it isn’t cheap, but considering a 16-ounce cup of cafe-bought cold brew costs around $5, your first batch of cold brew will nearly pay for itself.
Best Splurge Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Cold Bruer Drip Coffee Maker
Capacity: 20 ounces
Brew Time: 4+ hours
Rather than steeping coffee grounds in water, the Cold Bruer is a slow-drip coffee maker that results in a sweet, full-bodied coffee. The Cold Bruer is for true coffee nerds who can fine-tune their coffees for optimal flavor extraction. Watching the water drip is entertaining, but some may me dismayed by how slowly the brew takes to come to fruition; and many complain about not being able to accurately guess the time it takes for the water to finish dripping. Regardless of its flaws, the ingenuity of this slow-drip cold brew maker is apparent. In 2013, the Cold Bruer started as a project on Kickstarter before backers blew it up into a beloved, fully realized coffee maker.
Best Budget Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Hario Mizudashi Cold Brew Coffee Pot
Capacity: ~20 ounces, ~34 ounces
Brew Time: 12 to 24 hours
Hario is known for doing all things coffee and for doing it well. Just look at its pour-over dripper, coffee scale and miscellaneous coffee products. Its cold brew coffee pot is dumb easy to use, with a simple dump-and-soak brew process. We like that the pot is slim so it saves some refrigerator space, and it comes in more colors than other cold brew coffee makers in this list. The engraved measurements on the side of the glass are convenient so you always know how much water you're using to perfect that coffee-to-water ratio.
Best Compact Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Takeya Deluxe Cold Brew Iced Coffee Maker
Capacity: 32 ounces, 64 ounces
Brew Time: 12 to 36 hours
Cheap and easy to use, the Takeya makes a notably weaker coffee than most other brewers. For some, this might be a good thing, as most brewers create a concentrate that is meant to be diluted with water or milk. Fill the coffee filter with about eight ounces of coffee grounds, screw in the filter to the top, add water almost to the top, shake the device to agitate the grounds and water, then chill overnight for cold brew in the morning. The pitcher is small enough to fit on a refrigerator door, and disassembly and clean up are simple. Some have noted that the filter may discolor over time, but Takeya sells replacement filters if that bothers you.
Best Large-Batch Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Primula Burke
Capacity: 51 ounces
Brew Time: 12 to 24 hours
Primula offers a number of cold brew coffee makers, with its Burke model offering a great big-batch brew in a convenient carafe. The fine mesh filter is notable for providing better filtration than most other comparable cold brew makers, and it means you'll have a cleaner cup of coffee with fewer fine sediments and debris. The wide opening of the filter makes it easy to get coffee grounds into the filter and not everywhere else. Plus, cleanup is easy, because no one wants to deal with messy wet coffee grounds.
Best Rustic Cold Brew Coffee Maker: County Line Kitchen Cold Brew Mason Jar Coffee Maker
Capacity: 32 ounces, 64 ounces
Brew Time: 12 to 24 hours
Mason jars are truly multipurpose. Pickle in it, drink out of it and make cold brew coffee with it. County Line Kitchen's two-quart cold brew coffee maker is crazy easy to use. Fill the stainless steel filter with ground coffee and let it steep in the mason jar overnight. The mason jar comes with a flip-cap lid for easy pouring.
Best Fast-Brewing Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Cuisinart Automatic Cold Brew Coffeemaker
Capacity: 56 ounces
Brew Time: 25 to 45 minutes
Cuisinart's automatic cold brew maker takes time out of the equation when making cold brew. Well, it takes out most of the time; cold brew comes out in as little as 25 minutes. Using this coffee maker is as easy as using any of the other brewers on this list or a drip coffee machine — just add grounds and water and you're good to go. Choose between three extraction levels — mild, medium and bold — then just hit the brew button. Once the machine is done, flip a switch to filter out that sweet liquid gold. Bonus points to the machine for being completely dishwasher safe (just make sure you get all those grounds out so they don't clog your dishwasher).
Best Coffees for Cold Brew
Five Coffees Great For Cold Brewing
Best Classic Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Toddy Cold Brew System
Capacity: 37 ounces
Brew Time: 12 to 24 hours
The Toddy system is a bit messier than most other cold brew makers, but baristas have used the Toddy for cold brewing coffee for over 50 years. It comes with a brewing container, a glass carafe, felt filters, a rubber stopper and optional paper filters (which we strongly recommend unless you like scooping out muddy grounds). To brew, pour coffee grounds into the brewing container and let steep for up to 24 hours. To decant, remove the rubber stopper from the bottom of the brewing container and let drip into the accompanying carafe. Be fast because coffee will spurt out immediately once the stopper is removed. The felt filters last for around three months, and using the paper filter will expand its longevity while making cleanup clean.
Best Cold Brew Coffee Maker for Parties: KitchenAid Cold Brew Coffee Maker
Capacity: 28 ounces, 38 ounces
Brew Time: 12 to 24 hours
This is a cold brew maker for when you're hosting a huge party (or when coffee basically runs through your veins). It has a nice stainless steel body, and the pour spout makes it feel like you have cold brew on tap. It takes up a lot of space on your counter and in the fridge, so this is best if you can afford the space.
Best Coffee Nerd Cold Brew Coffee Maker: Yama Glass Cold Brew Maker
Capacity: 32 ounces
Brew Time: 3 to 12 hours
As much as we love the look of the Yama, we don’t actually expect you to buy a $250 cold brew coffee maker. The device contains an ice water reservoir that slowly drips into coffee grounds, with brewed coffee making its way into a glass reservoir through a spiral slide. Adjust the water valve’s flow with a frequency between one second and one-and-a-half seconds to control the coffee’s boldness. Coffee takes between three to four hours, and watching the coffee brew is half the fun. Be wary of the glass’ fragility because, like most art, it’s delicate as hell.
