The best coffee machines under $500 in Australia

$500 is enough for a machine that makes proper espresso and steams milk, and in a couple of cases it is enough for a grinder too. What you give up under $500 is mainly the ability to brew and steam at once, and a big water tank. Prices below were checked at Breville, JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman, The Good Guys, Kitchen Warehouse, Myer and Appliances Online on 18 October 2026; for the machines also on Amazon Australia, check the current price on Amazon. Retailer prices move during sales, especially around Black Friday and Christmas, so check on the day. We compared maker specifications and retailer listings; we have not used these machines ourselves.

Four ways to spend $500

1. A manual machine and fresh-ground coffee. The Bambino Plus at $487 is the best machine here, but you need ground coffee or a grinder.
2. A cheaper manual machine plus a grinder. The Breville Bambino ($399) and Sunbeam EM0440 ($95) come to $494, with a burr grinder that goes straight into the portafilter.
3. A manual machine with a grinder built in. The De’Longhi La Specialista Arte is $497 at The Good Guys.
4. Bean-to-cup. The De’Longhi Magnifica S grinds and brews at one touch for $476.95 at Kitchen Warehouse, with a manual steam wand.

Which is right depends on whether you want to make coffee or just drink it. If it is the second, read the bean-to-cup guide, where the next step up, the Philips 2300 with automatic milk, is $679.

Compared

The picks

The Breville Bambino Plus is the best machine under $500. It heats in 3 seconds by Breville’s rating, holds temperature with PID, uses the same 54 mm portafilter as Breville’s dearer machines, and textures milk hands-free: you choose the temperature and texture and leave the jug under the wand. It was $487 at JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman and The Good Guys, with a two-year warranty. JB Hi-Fi had the stainless model on back-order, and Harvey Norman’s $487 was for the Sea Salt colour.

The Breville Bambino is the same idea with a manual steam wand, a 1.4 L tank and a one-year warranty, for $399 at Breville, JB Hi-Fi, Harvey Norman, The Good Guys and Myer. Add the Sunbeam EM0440 burr grinder ($95 at Harvey Norman, 25 settings) and the whole setup is $494. The Sunbeam is a starter grinder; when you move to single-wall baskets, our grinder guide covers what to upgrade to.

The De’Longhi La Specialista Arte is the only manual machine under $500 with a grinder built in, at $497 at The Good Guys and $498 at JB Hi-Fi and Harvey Norman. It has three brew temperatures, a manual steam wand and a full barista kit. JB Hi-Fi and The Good Guys list 15 grind settings for the current EC9155MB2; Amazon’s listing for the EC9155.MB says 8. We compare it with the Barista Express in Breville vs De’Longhi.

The De’Longhi Magnifica S is the under-$500 bean-to-cup choice: 13 grind settings, a 1.8 L tank, a 250 g bean hopper and a manual milk wand, $476.95 at Kitchen Warehouse and $477 at The Good Guys and Harvey Norman.

The De’Longhi Dedica Maestro Plus brings automatic milk under $400: three milk temperatures, three textures, single-wall baskets and a 1.6 L tank for $369 at The Good Guys. The Dedica Duo ($276.95 at Kitchen Warehouse) and Dedica Arte ($196.95 at Kitchen Warehouse) are the 15 cm wide entry machines with manual wands and 1.1 L tanks. The Sunbeam Origins Slimline gives you a 58 mm group and PID for $244 at JB Hi-Fi, though it was $299 at Harvey Norman and $381 at Appliances Online the same day.

What to avoid

Buying on price alone between stores without checking the model number. Breville, De’Longhi and Sunbeam sell the same machine in several colours and model suffixes, and prices differ by colour: the Barista Express was $649 in brushed stainless but $598 in Liquorice at JB Hi-Fi, just over this page’s limit. Also check which baskets are in the box. The Dedica Arte, Dedica Duo and Sunbeam Slimline come with dual-wall (pressurised) baskets only; Breville packs both single and dual-wall baskets with the Bambino and Bambino Plus, and the Dedica Maestro Plus comes with single-wall baskets. Dual-wall baskets make a passable shot from pre-ground coffee, but you need single-wall baskets and a proper grinder to get the most from any machine here.