We have reviewed the best coffee makers for seniors in this article. If you are in a hurry, the table below gives a quick snapshot. Or you can scroll down for detailed product reviews.
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Coffee making seems like a pretty safe event in the kitchen. However, making coffee at home turns out to be a little difficult for the elderly, especially if they are suffering from ailments like dementia, weakness, or arthritis. Multiple issues like spills, burns, or leaving the coffee machine on all day can occur in these situations.
This article reviews coffee making machines that make the whole experience of making coffee safe and comfortable for the elderly in your house. The 9 best coffee makers for seniors are:
- Hamilton Beach Model 49350
- Breville BDC450 Precision Brewer Coffee Maker
- Mr. Coffee BVMC-PSTX95 10-Cup Coffee Maker
- Bonavita BV1900TS 8-Cup One-Touch Coffee Maker
- Atomi Smart App Coffee Maker
- Single Serve Coffee Maker for K-Cup Pods And Ground Coffee
- Hamilton Beach FlexBrew Coffee Maker
- Presto 02822 6-Cup Coffee Percolator
- Keurig K-Mini Plus Coffee Maker
What Can Go Wrong When Elders Are Making Their Own Coffee?
Coffee making, in general, is a routine event. But there are still a few things that can go wrong, especially when issues pertaining to memory and weakness begin to come up with seniors and the elderly.
- Leaving the coffee maker turned on: If the elderly forget to turn the coffee maker off and lets it sit for the whole day. the coffee can turn into a burnt mess and a potential fire hazard too.
- Difficulty in handling controls: The functionality of coffee makers can sometimes be difficult for the elderly to understand, especially for those suffering from ailments like Dementia and Alzheimer’s. The buttons, settings, and switches that are required to be used to get your perfect cup of coffee can also be a source of confusion and frustration among the elders.
- A Broken and dropped carafe: If the senior is not able to handle the glass carafe that comes with the coffee maker and leaves it, it may crack and create a messy situation. It can even lead to burns for the elderly person. A complete carafe of coffee can weigh up to 3 pounds and sometimes even more. While cleaning up the mess can lead to potential cuts or injuries, the bending over required for the clean up can also lead to falls or backache for the elderly.
- Issues related to filling the coffee maker: Although loading the coffee and water into a coffee maker looks like a simple task, it can be difficult for seniors to do if they are suffering from arthritis or just not able to understand the right way to do it.
What Features Should You Look Out for in Coffee Makers for the Elderly?
The best coffee maker for seniors would be the one that they are able to use safely and can easily understand the process of using it.
Your answer would also lie in the problem that the senior is facing while making coffee. The major features that you should consider while looking for a coffee maker for the elderly are-
Auto shut-off: To avoid instances where the user has forgotten to turn the coffee maker off, you should look at coffee makers that can automatically shut off after a certain period of time. With this feature, there is no worry about turning the maker off after pouring their morning coffee.
Simple controls: A coffee maker with lots of buttons can easily confuse and sometimes, frustrating the users. Fewer the settings and options on the coffee maker, easier it is for the seniors and elderly to operate it. However, different elders would have varying levels of concerns regarding coffee makers. It is a good idea to decide on the coffee maker depending upon their comfort level with using coffee makers with more functionality but some additional controls.
Stainless Steel Carafes: Always choose a coffee maker with a carafe made out of stainless steel instead of glass. This helps in preventing situations where the carafe might break if dropped on a hard surface and might cause injury to the elderly. Stainless steel carafes would, at the best, dent. Many carafes also come with a lid attached to them which reduces the probability of spillage. They also are insulated and keep the coffee hot for a longer duration.
Brew timer: A coffee maker with a timer is an excellent idea for the elderly who live with their family or have a caregiver. The caregiver can load the water and coffee into the machine and set the timer for the elderly. This allows the user to have their coffee at their usual time without any effort at all.
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What Are the Different Kinds of Coffee Makers That Are Available for Seniors and the Elderly?
There are an abundant amount of coffee makers in the market. While some are easy to use, others have pretty complex functions that might be overwhelming for an elderly person. We are listing down the different kinds of coffee makers that you should consider if purchasing for elderly people and seniors.
Automatic Drip Coffee Makers
These kinds of coffee makers can be seen pretty commonly in the kitchens these days. These coffee makers heat the water to near boiling point and then drip it through a filter basket of ground coffee. The coffee then drips into a carafe though the bottom of the basket. Some of the coffee makers have a heating element that can keep the carafe warm.
Most of these automatic coffee makers are good enough for the elderly and seniors as long as they are comfortable putting the water and coffee into the machine. Some of these coffee makers have many buttons and features that the seniors may not even understand.
The best drip coffee making machine for the elderly are the simple automatic ones where the seniors might just require to add the coffee and the water. If they are unable to do that, they might need someone to help with that. These are available in small sizes as well like single cup and four cup machines to ensure that a single pot is not wasted each time.
Single Serving Coffee Machines
This kind of coffee machine makes just a single cup at a time. You will also find models of automatic drip makers that can easily make smaller batches and can even brew single cups. The single-serving style of coffee machines is the best option for seniors and the elderly, especially in cases where they are living alone. These machines are easy to use and make smaller batches of coffee. This saves the wastage that might occur in making a full 12 cup pot of coffee.
These machines can often be a little more expensive to operate. Buying the cups is a somewhat costly affair as compared to buying loose coffee. These machines also cost more upfront. However, they are safe and easy to use.
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Percolator Coffee Machines
Percolators work by heating up water in the bottom of the pot. This can be done on a stove or by using heaters that are built in the percolator. The pressure that is built up pushes this hot water to the top while back down a basket of coffee is being ground. The coffee then returns to the bottom of the pot where this cycle repeats.
This is the standard type of coffee machine that was used in old times. Percolators are quite easy to use but a bit more difficult to clean. However, putting the coffee in the basket and getting the lid back on is one of the difficult parts. Once this is completed, all that is required is just starting the cycle.
In the case of the elderly, it is advisable to consider a model that has a built-in heater. It is advisable to take the stove out of the equation especially for the elderly considering that it might lead to burns or injuries.
What about the Other Kinds of Coffee Makers Available in the Market?
There are many other kinds of coffee machines available in the market. Some of these may work well for the seniors and the elderly. However, some of them may be too complex to operate.
There are coffee brewing machines that sound exotic, like the French Press, Pour Over coffee machines, and vacuum pots. Although you will definitely get a great cup of coffee from these methods, the process might not be an easy one.
Most of these coffee-making methods need multiple steps and a lot of careful observation. The overall process of brewing coffee thus becomes a complex task for the elderly people. They just need their morning cup of coffee and no additional effort to get it.
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#1 Hamilton Beach Model 49350
This is one of the unique products that will make the process of making coffee quite simple for the elderly in your house. This 12 cup coffee maker works well with Alexa and is thus a smart coffee machine.
You can ask your Alexa app or the smart speaker to start brewing coffee, change the brew strength, or turn off the coffee maker. The clock in the machine keeps the correct time automatically by syncing wirelessly with the app. You can thus program the machine quite easily for wake up ready coffee using the routines function in the Alexa app.
The reservoir’s front fill design allows you to add water without the need to move the coffee maker from under your cabinets. You can thus add coffee and water from the front easily. The brew basket uses a standard coffee filter and swings out for front filling.
The Alexa app also allows you to turn off the coffee maker. If you forget to do that, the auto-shutoff feature will automatically turn the heating plate off after 2 hours.
You can also pour a cup without any messy spills or drips. The glass carafe is designed with a drip-free pour spout that ensures that every drop of coffee mug. You can choose to brew regular or bold brew strengths coffee manually or via the Alexa App.
With the Alexa App functionality, this 6.69-pound coffee maker sets a high bar for reliability, responsiveness, and functionality. The setup with Alexa is pretty simple taking the trouble of unresponsive devices or software updates out of the picture.
Pros
- Integration with Alexa App enables a comfortable and reliable experience.
- The auto-shutoff feature makes it safe for the user.
Cons
- The carafe is made up of glass and can be risky to handle especially if the user has ailments like arthritis, etc.
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#2 Breville BDC450 Precision Brewer Coffee Maker
This 60 oz drip coffee maker weighs 3.15 pounds and has the required precision for brewing craft filter coffee automatically. It has PID control which offers adjustable and precise digital temperature control.
The pump allows you to select from three different flow rates that optimize the contact time. The Thermo coil heating system is able to deliver water that is purer than the typical brewing systems using aluminum.
The ‘My Brew Setting’ allows you to customize different parameters like flow rate, brewing temperature, and bloom time, to brew a specific coffee that you are using- be it floral, earthy, or fruity.
It also features flat bottom and cone filter baskets, that can brew any volume of coffee exactly how you might prefer. The Breville’s Sleep and Release Valve holds the water in contact with the coffee in situations where small cup volumes are being brewed without the carafe in its place, automatically.
There is also a Gold Cup preset mode wherein the brewer automatically adjusts the temperature for the water as well as the brew time. The coffee machine has 6 unique brewing ways that help you in getting the smooth, balanced coffee.
The preset modes include Gold, Strong, Fast, Cold Brew, Iced, and My Brew. My Brew is a custom mode that allows you to adjust your bloom time, brewing temperature, and flow rate. It also allows you to brew pour-over using a drip adapter with the pour-over device of your choice.
The Breville BDC450 Precision Brewer comes with a 2-year limited manufacturer warranty.
Here we have a Youtube video that shows a detailed guide.
Pros
- 6 unique brewing modes to enjoy a perfect, balanced coffee.
- Adjustable and precise digital temperature control.
- My Brew is a custom mode that allows you to adjust your bloom time, brewing temperature, and flow rate.
Cons
- You can save only 1 My Brew recipe in the coffee machine.
- You cannot pause the machine for pouring a cup mid-brew.
#3 Mr. Coffee BVMC-PSTX95 10-Cup Coffee Maker
The Mr. Coffee Optimal Brew Coffee Maker caters to a high brew temperature of up to 205-degree Celsius and offers a faster brew speed, finally pouring an exceptionally tasting coffee for you.
The machine is double-walled with a stainless steel thermal carafe that can hold the temperature and the fresh flavor of the coffee.
It includes all the programmable conveniences like Delay Brew and a water filtration disk to filter out chlorine and other impurities from the water during brewing so that you can enjoy a better taste. Water filtration reduces chlorine up to 97% for better-tasting coffee.
It features a removable water reservoir that makes adding water to your coffee maker quite easy. It conveniently gets filled at sunk and then easily slides into its place.
The filter basket lift out ensures fast and easy filling and cleaning. The special cleaning cycle helps maintain the performance of the coffee maker as well as the taste of the coffee.
The Fresh Brew Timer keeps the coffee hot, fresh, and ready whenever you need it. You would thus not be required to guess the freshness of the coffee.
The Pause ‘N Serve feature allows you to pour a cup during the brewing cycle. You would thus not required to wait for your coffee even while it is brewing.
It also has a 2-hour Auto Shut-Off feature that allows the coffee maker to automatically shut off. The special cleaning cycle ensures that calcium build-up is easily eliminated.
This coffee maker weighs 11.48 pounds and allows for hotter and faster coffee by brewing up to 20% faster at a temperature up to 205 degrees F thereby providing a richer taste for your coffee. You can brew 10 cups in less than seven minutes. This ensures a full-bodied flavor as well as thorough extraction since this is considered by coffee experts to be the optimal extraction duration.
Pros
- A stainless steel thermal carafe ensures that probable accidents that might happen with a glass carafe are avoided.
- With Pause ‘N Serve, coffee can be poured while brewing.
- Removable water reservoir and filter basket lift out ensure convenient filling and cleaning of the coffee maker.
Cons
- There is no warming plate under the carafe. However, the thermal carafe holds temperature and keeps the coffee warm.
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#4 Bonavita BV1900TS 8-Cup One-Touch Coffee Maker
The Bonavita 8-cup Carafe Coffee Brewer has a powerful and precise 1500-watt heater that helps in maintaining an optimal brewing temperature of 198 to 205 degrees Fahrenheit.
The optional pre-infusion mode imitates the pour-over brewing method and pauses water flow. This gives the coffee time to bloom. It features an enhanced showerhead that evenly saturates the grounds and enables optimal uniform flavor extraction.
It works in sync with the flat-bottomed filter basket and ensures even saturation leading to a favorable flavor profile. It has a durable stainless steel lined thermal carafe with a one-touch operation for simplified brewing and automatic power-off for enhanced safety.
This 6.13-pound coffee maker is a performance coffee brewer with simple operations and consistent results. The combination of its features ensures that you get the best flavor out of your coffee.
The enhanced heater has the ability to quickly reach and maintain an ideal coffee brewing temperature. The heater is powerful and ensures a better flavor and faster brewing.
It takes around 6 minutes to brew an 8-cup carafe. The showerhead enables even distribution of water over coffee grounds. The optional pre-infusion mode imitates the pour-over brewing method by pausing the showerhead to provide the coffee grounds with time to bloom.
Pros
- One-touch brew operation.
- Automatic Power-off feature.
- Stainless Steel Thermal Carafe.
- The filter basket, carafe lid, and showerhead are all dishwasher safe.
- All plastic is BPA free.
Cons
- The reservoir is non-removable.
#5 Atomi Smart App Coffee Maker
This coffee maker is WiFi enabled with all its settings including the LED digital clock that can automatically sync wirelessly with the Atomi smart app that you can download on your phone.
There is a manual option as well as a programmable one for brewing your coffee. In the programmable option, you can create weekly and daily schedules to fit according to your lifestyle. You can set or change the brewing strength and warm it up throughout your day.
This coffee maker is voice-activated and can be used with your Alexa smart speaker, Alexa App, or Google Assistant devices. This allows you to give voice command for brewing coffee, change brew strength, and even turn on or off the coffee maker.
It is made up of high-quality eco-friendly materials with an elegant black and stainless steel design. The glass carafe has a 12-cup capacity. The coffee filter is reusable, permanent, and dishwasher-safe thereby helping in saving money, time, and resources.
Pros
- Safe and simple to use.
- Made of durable stainless steel.
- WiFi-enabled and Voice-controlled.
Cons
- No audible tones for coffee brewing functions.
- No stainless steel carafe available.
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#6 Single Serve Coffee Maker for K-Cup Pods And Ground Coffee
This personal single-serve coffee maker weighs 2.53 pounds and gives a fresh, pure, and tasty cup of coffee in only 3 minutes. The water adjustment function allows you to control how much coffee you would want to brew thereby saving expensive grounds.
No products found.It has a durable and compact design and is much smaller than other coffee makers. You should be able to fit this coffee maker in tight places on office tables and countertops.
There is a simple side button feature that allows you to conveniently choose between 2 brewing styles – either use your favorite pods more conveniently and easily to brew a cup of coffee or make your cup of coffee the traditional way using ground coffee in a basket filter with lid.
This also includes a vacuum insulated tumbler that allows you to take home-made hot coffee on the go. It can keep your coffee hot up to a duration of 6 hours.
You can also control the coffee strength as per your preference. Selecting water measurement from 6 ounces to 14 ounces allows you to pick how much coffee you would want to control the coffee strength. This coffee maker is enough to fit all American Standard Coffee Pods to satisfy your differing tastes for different coffee capsules as well as tea pods and hot chocolate pods.
When you are finished using this machine, you can use the auto-clean button to simply let the machine clean itself. It becomes very easy to clean your pod and ground brewer machine.
The upgraded model 1177 has a lid for the basket filter. This allows the coffee grounds to be held in place and prevents them from flowing into your coffee.
It is advisable to use bottled or filtered water for this coffee maker and clean the machine every 2 months or after brewing more than 200 cups of coffee. You can also add safe cleaning solutions like Vinegar to clean it from inside.
Pros
- Ready to drink coffee available in 3 minutes.
- Auto-cleaning function.
- Compact, Durable, and Easy to use.
Cons
- The water tank is not removable.
No products found.
#7 Hamilton Beach FlexBrew Coffee Maker
The Hamilton Beach FlexBrew Coffee Maker offers two ways to brew a full pot- either you can use your preferred grounds on the carafe side or make a cup for yourself with a K Cup pod.
This 2-in-1 programmable coffee maker has a single-serve brew time of about 3 minutes to make a strong great-tasting cup of coffee. This coffee maker allows you to save energy because it heats the water only when you are ready for brewing the coffee instead of heating the water continuously.
The 14.02-pound coffee maker includes single-serve brew with K-Cup pods or without pod container and single-serve grounds basket. It also features a cup rest that adjusts itself to fit tall mugs and doubles as storage. The pod piercing assembly device removes for normal cleaning thereby preventing blockage that can sometimes occur in cases of frequent usage.
It features a programmable timer with Auto Pause and Serve and a 2 hour Auto Shutoff. It also has two brew options – Regular and Bold that help you in choosing your brew strength. Each brewer on the Hamilton Beach Coffee Maker has its own easy-to-fill water reservoir with an easily viewable water window so that you are aware of the quantity of water on each side.
The full pot side can brew up to 12 coffee cups using grounds. The single-serve side can brew up to 10 ounces.
Pros
- Ready to drink coffee available in 3 minutes.
- Programmable Timer, Auto Pause and Serve, and 2-Hour Auto Shutoff feature.
- 2 Separate Easy-Fill water reservoirs on each side.
Cons
- This model with the glass carafe cannot take a stainless steel carafe as it has a heating plate.
- Although programmable and convenient, learning to use it might be a little tedious for some elders.
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#8 Presto 02822 6-Cup Coffee Percolator
The Presto 02822 Coffee Percolator is a 500-Watt classic percolator that brews from 2 to 6 cups of coffee. It circulates hot water through the grounds and creates the familiar percolating sound.
It has a ready-to-serve indicator light and a drip-free spout that allows for graceful serving. It is made of durable stainless steel including the filter basket and perk tube. It weighs 16 ounces and brews 6-5 ounce cups.
For making coffee in this machine, you need to load coffee into the basket and screw the lid back on. Once you plug it in, you will have your coffee ready in 4 to 5 minutes. Its cord is detachable and it can thus be taken to the table for serving or can also be simply left on the countertop.
There is an automatic keep-warm mode that allows you to keep your coffee nice and warm for hours. A cool-touch knob and handle along with a stay-cool bottom allow you to safely pour the warm beverage. The lid knob has rolled edges and allows you safe and easy to handle.
Pros
- Safe and simple to use.
- Made of durable stainless steel.
- Stay warm feature keeps the coffee nice and warm for hours.
- Detachable Cord.
Cons
- It might require a little effort to clean with internal parts supposed to be removed, cleaned, and reassembled after each cycle.
#9 Keurig K-Mini Plus Coffee Maker
The Keurig K-Mini Plus Coffee single-serve coffee maker features a pod storage unit that has the ability to hold up to 9 K-Cup pods. This makes it portable and saves counter space as well. It can brew any cup size between 6 and 12 ounces depending on the amount of water you pour into the reservoir.
It has a removable one cup reservoir that makes it easier to clean and fill. It also allows for cord storage for easy transport and neat countertops. The removable drip tray can accommodate travel mugs that are up to 7 inches tall. It can also hold a full accidental brew that ensures easy cleanup.
This coffee maker is energy efficient and has an Auto-off feature that turns off your coffee maker 90 seconds after the last brew. It is also compatible with the My K-Cup universal reusable coffee filter and you can brew your own ground coffee as well.
Pros
- Simple and easy to use.
- Compact and can fit easily on your countertops.
- Travel mug friendly.
- An auto-off feature that automatically shuts down the machine 90 seconds after the last brew.
Cons
- Keurigs are simple but bit costlier than other coffee brewing methods. The machine would be higher in cost initially and K-Cups would need to be continually purchased.
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Conclusion
The ability to work independently in the kitchen is quite important to most seniors. While being able to cook for and feed yourself is a basic need, it is also essential to ensure that the tasks done by the elderly in the kitchen are safe.
While choosing coffee-making machines, you must ensure that they are safe and easy to use. Your decision may also depend on the extent to which the elderly would be able to work in the kitchen and the ailments that might be affecting them.
Some of the options highlighted above might be perfect for your requirements, while some of these might turn out to be a bit complex. Choose your coffee maker wisely to give a comfortable coffee-making experience to the elderly.
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