Difference Between Nespresso And Keurig: Is Nespresso Better Than Keurig?

Suppose you have to pick one between pizza and barbecue. What will you choose? Yes, it is a very tough situation where you have to choose one and left another behind. But both foods have their appeal.

It is the same situation to choose one between Nespresso and Keurig. Nespresso and Keurig are 2 of the most popular brands of coffee makers on the market. Both are unique and stylish in their product line, but which one is better? They also won the heart of users with their functionality and performance.

In this article, we will not choose one, we’ll compare Nespresso vs. Keurig to help you decide which is the better option for your needs. First, show the difference between Nespresso and Keurig.

Though both are single-serve makers, they are distinctive in their ways. Maybe my comparison table of Keurig vs. Nespresso helps you out.

Nespresso and Keurig have a sufficient number of coffeemaker models. So, the functionality varies from one model to another. In a bold line, both brands have everything of the best coffeemaker but not in one model. We talk about the standard features of each brand in this chart. But, the detail is below section.

Topic	Nespresso	Keurig
Type of Machine	Automatic Single Serve	Automatic Single Serve
Design	Slim	Bulky and Slim
Material	Thick Plastic	Thinner Plastic
Work As	Espresso maker	Brewer
Coffee Type	Capsules/Pods	Capsules/Pods
Pod Except	Licensed and Non-licensed	Licensed and Non-licensed
Pod Type	Single Cup	Cup, Mug, and Carafe
License detection Technology	No	Yes
Volume Adjustment While Brewing	Yes	No
Refill Possibility	Third-party Pods	Licensed Pods
Pod Rotation	7000 rpm	No Rotation
Pod Holder Size	28	1
Pods Variation	16-19	500
Water Reservoir	1 Liter	1-2 Liters
Brewing Time	1-2 minutes	1-3 minutes
Strength Control	Yes	Yes
Milk Frother	External	External and Combined
Cleaning	Self Cleaning	Auto
Energy Saving Mode	Yes	Yes
Output Product	Espresso and Coffee	Coffee and others
Iced Settings	No	Yes
User Interface	Button	Button and Touch Screen
Price	Expensive	Affordable
Durability	Durable	Durable
Warranty	2 years	1 year

Nespresso is a self-serving automatic espresso machine of the Swiss brand Nestlé. It uses capsules to brew espresso drinks. Those single-serving pods contain ground coffees, sometimes with extra flavors. Original and Vertuo are 2 product lines of Nespresso varying the regions. The Original line is a favorite among European countries. The Vertuo line specially produces for North America. Because in the United States and Canada of they use larger serving. After 2014, they spread the Vertuo line over the world alongside the Original line. You can use a lot of capsules from Nespresso and other brands.  It was not possible while everything was patented under Nespresso. But things are relaxed after the patent time ends.

Each capsule holds 5-7 grams of coffee grounds. During brew, you can adjust the water volume of coffee without changing the pods. The outer side of the capsule makes of aluminum, and the inner side is with food-graded lacquer. There is a barcode on each pod. So the machine can control temperature, volume, water flow, infusion time, and rotation speed. With the help of a third party, there are some refillable capsules now. Espresso and Lungo are the popular drinks in their collections.

Varying on the technology of Nespresso machines, it pierces the top into 3 small holes or 1 large hole. Then it injects pressurized hot water inside to brew. The raised bottom part creates rupture holes to drain out the coffee extract. There is a pressure release safety valve to prevent explosion due to the path blockage.

• Original Line
  • Nespresso Atelier
  • Creatista Pro
  • Creatista Plus
  • Creatista Uno
  • Citiz
  • Gran Lattissima
  • Lattissima Pro
  • Lattissima One
  • Inissia & Aeroccino
  • Essenza Plus
  • Essenza Mini
• Vertuo Line
  • Vertuo Next
  • Vertuo Plus

Keurig is an American company that produces commercials and homebrewers. These are also single-serving brewers including, 500 varieties of beverages. It can brew both cold and hot coffee, tea, chocolate, and many more. The Keurig brewers do not accept coffee grounds direct, only take pods. It launches K-mug and K-carafe pods along with K-cup pods.

The pods are made of recyclable plastic. The brewer pierces a hole in the foil seal of the K-cup and sprays hot water with a nozzle. At the same time, a discharge nozzle penetrates the bottom to collect the extract. Though brewing happens under pressure, it is not as similar to espresso. Maybe, for this reason, people call it a regular but rich coffee.

Including K-cups, K-mugs, and K-carafes, Keurig licensed 500 varieties of beverages. Around 75 brands collaborate under this tremendous collection. So, you can pick your favorite blend and roast from it. As the brewing K-cups, Keurig also collaborates with other brands to make brewers. It turns out such Cuisinart, Mr. Coffee, and Breville.

Keurig has enormous models of different product lines. Keurig 1.0 and 2.0 are major role-players here. In the older Keurig 1.0, you can use licensed and non-licensed pods simultaneously. But, it is not possible in their subsequent product line, Keurig 2.0. The brand introduces licensed pod detection technology in 2.0. If you put a non-licensed pod wrongly, it will show an incompatible message on the LED screen. Some familiar Keurig brewers for home and commercial use are listed below.

• K-Elite
• K-Supreme
• K-Classic
• K50
• K150
• K155
• K1500
• K-Slim
• K-Mini
• K-Mini Plus
• K-Select
• K-Duo
• K-Cafe

Keurig and Nespresso are popular in the world of the single-serving coffeemaker. Both machines are automatic and brew coffee within 3 minutes. It is tough to get all the best things in one. After all, you can pick one depending on the features you prefer.

Nespresso and Keurig both obtain the latest designed stylish coffee maker. They could suit your commercial and home places. Nespresso is elegant and ultra-slim, which occupies less area on the countertop. Almost every Nespresso has 4 kilograms of weight. It is made with recyclable plastic so that it sustains for a long.

Keurig is made of plastic as well but is not durable as Nespresso. It is stylish that can be set perfectly in the office and home kitchens. This classic and aesthetic coffeemaker is less weighted than Nespresso. Unlike Nespresso, Keurig can brew non-coffee beverages as well. So, it has another name, Keurig Brewer.

Capsules and coffee pods are the same things in the single-serve coffee world. It is a tiny airtight cup, which contains ground coffee. Keurig calls it coffee pods, while Nespresso calls it capsule. According to the brand, capsules, and pods may vary, but their goal is the same.

i) Materials:

Keurig pods are little plastic cups that use recyclable plastic. Within the cups, filter paper holds ground coffees. Nespresso uses aluminum cups for the outer and food-grade lacquer for the inner. The top of the pods of both brands covers with foil paper to make sure air cannot passes.

ii) Size:

Keurig offers K-cups in 6 oz, 8 oz, and 10 oz sizes usually. So, you can easily brew your preferences. They also allow K-mug and K-carafe pods to brew a higher amount at once.

On the other side, Nespresso offers only a single-cup capsule. Each capsule holds 5-7 grams of ground coffee. Nespresso machines can take 28 caplets together in one go.

iii) License Issues:

Keurig brand accepts all kinds of K-cup pods in their 1.0 product models. You do not need to bother about the licenses. Meanwhile, Keurig 2.0 never allows non-licensed pods. They use modern technology to detect indulgences.

The Original models of Nespresso also accept both licensed and non-licensed capsules. But, you cannot use non-licensed pods in Vertuo models. The shape of Vertuo capsules is different so, it will not work.

iv) Rotation per Minute:

There is a barcode strip on the capsule, which is readable to the Nespresso machine to operate. Once it reads out, the device adjusts itself to perform the brewing automatically. There is information on temperature, volume, water flow, infusion time, and rotation speed. The capsules can rotate up to 7000 rpm during brewing.

Keurig can only detect the non-license pods but no extra performance during brewing.

v) Reusability:

According to the brands, you cannot reuse their pods again. It will make a tasteless drink in the 2nd brew of the same pods or capsules. But you can use reusable K-cups as much as you wish. Keurig brought my reusable K-cups so that you can brew home-ground coffees. After each brew, take it out from the brewer and cleans it properly. Once the reusable cup gets dry, take ground coffee and brew again. Inversely, Nespresso has no option for reusing the same capsule twice or on home grounds. But the third-party brands solve it for you now.

vi) Variety of coffees:

Nespresso has a great collection of coffee ground capsules. For instance, they offer 7 capsules for espresso drinks. Pure origin, Lango, and Decaffeinato each have 3 different flavors of caplets. On the contrary, Keurig has 500 numbers of a tremendous collection of coffee pods from 75 well brands. So, you can taste various flavors when you want.

Keurig is a simple coffee brewer, which brews coffee within 1-3 minutes. So, you can have a rich flavorful coffee drink in a moment. You can adjust the strength of the coffee and the temperature of your cup. Keurig also has multiple cup brewing options using larger pods in one go. 

Contrariwise, the Nespresso maker can brew espresso and regular coffee. It takes a 1-minute brew at maximum. Without changing the capsule, you can change the volume of drinks. Nespresso automatically selects temperature, infusion time, and rotation speed from the barcode. You can use both single-serving machines for home and commercial purposes.

All Nespresso makers have a removable water reservoir. Depending on the models, the reservoir size varies from 0.6 liters to 1 liter. They have extensive storage in very few models.

Similarly, Keurig coffeemakers also have a removable reservoir. Most reservoirs are 1-2 liters. Both Nespresso and Keurig use a filter to purify water.

Nespresso has a system of auto on/off. It can brew your coffee automatically at your selected time. It can also save energy when it sits not used. 

Similarly, Keurig brewers also have an auto-on/off option. It can make ready coffee in the morning. It also saves energy while you are not brewing.

Keurig 2.0 models have an LED touchscreen user interface that is easy to operate and track. It also shows every state during brewing. In Keurig 1.0, you need to press a button. But, you can complete any operation only using 3 buttons. These operations are so simple.

On another side, Nespresso automatic coffee maker only needs one button push. The rest of the operation performs from the barcode of the capsules. You can operate it from your Smartphone as well. A display screen also lets you know what is going on.

Since you use capsules or coffee pods, it reduces your cleaning and maintenance work. Vertuo Nespresso machines can clean themselves. You do not need much attachment while cleaning. Maybe some need for the Original models. It also alerts you when it needs descaling. So, it reduces your extra headache.

Keurig brewers have an auto-cleaning process in 2.0. But in 1.0, you need to clean it the manual way. When it comes to a descaling cycle, both 1.0 and 2.0 show the indicator alert. Using pods reduces cleaning activities.

Nespresso and Keurig machines are durable since both are colossal brands. All models of different product lines of both brands last at least 3-5 years. Sometimes more than 5 years if you clean and maintain properly. Keurig offers a 1-year warranty for its products. But, Nespresso provides 2 years warranty periods for coffeemakers.

The brand name itself impacts a lot on the price of a machine. Keurig machines are less expensive compared to Nespresso. But, in Keurig brands, prices are changing according to product lines. The price range is $79-$300.

Besides, the price range of Nespresso starts from $199 and goes up to $1199. The price changes with available features in Nespresso.

It is very crucial to answer this question. There are some terms where Nespresso wins the question. But, in other cases, Keurig also may win the question. The situation ties in because both brands are outstanding at the core of their product. Here is a guide that, may get rid of the confusion between Nespresso and Keurig.

• Best design and fitting: Both Nespresso and Keurig
• Best serving cost: Keurig
• Best performance: Nespresso
• Popular based on coffee drinks: Nespresso
• Variety of coffee drinks: Keurig
• Easy to clean: Nespresso
• Durability: Both Nespresso and Keurig
• Cost of Purchase: Keurig

From the above 7 points, you can see that Nespresso wins in popular demand. But, this does not mean that Keurig is unsatisfactory according to these criteria.

Keurig is a budget coffeemaker that can satisfy you in all aspects. Keurig brews different coffees at a minimal cost. It also uses the latest technology that extracts fabulous flavor. Both manual and auto cleaning are easy and take less time. Most Americans and coffee lovers from other countries are regular Keurig users. So, you never know which brand will suit and satisfy your caffeine curves in need.

Cost analysis provides the estimation of expenses you spend for a particular purpose. Here, we estimate the cost for a year. Mainly, we consider the pod or capsule cost to calculate.

Each Keurig pod costs $0.35-$0.65. If you drink a cup daily, then the cost will be,

If you compare Nespresso and Keurig, then you can see there is variation. You can save $146 – $73 per year if you utilize Keurig instead of a Nespresso coffeemaker.

So, drinks from coffee shops are way too expensive. So, having a coffeemaker is a win-win situation for the everyday coffee lover.

In the world of single-serving brewers, Nespresso and Keurig have no opponent to fight. Yes, these two brands compete to make them the best. But, once you become a fan of them, you cannot switch in randomly. The reason is they hold a unique style that is not easy to compare. Keurig is best when you are a fan of regular coffee with lots of variety. And, Nespresso is good in terms of the espresso world. So you can pick anyone from these two according to your preference.

Happy Brewing!