Breville Bambino Plus vs Breville Barista Touch
Quick take: The Breville Bambino Plus costs $500 less; the Breville Barista Touch has a built-in grinder.
| Spec | Breville Bambino Plus | Breville Barista Touch |
|---|---|---|
| Standout features | Steam Wand, 3-Second Heat Up | Built-in Grinder, Touchscreen, Programmable, Pre-Infusion |
| Approx. price | ~$500 | ~$1,000 |
| Type | Semi-Automatic | Semi-Automatic |
| Boiler | Thermoblock | Thermoblock |
| Built-in grinder | No | Yes |
| Pump pressure | 15 bar | 15 bar |
| Water capacity | 64 oz | 67 oz |
| Warm-up time | 3 seconds | 3 seconds |
| Steam wand | Auto | Auto |
| Basket type | Pressurized & Unpressurized | Pressurized & Unpressurized |
| Best for | Beginners | Milk Drinks |
| Dimensions | 7.7 x 12.6 x 12.2 in | 12.5 x 13.2 x 15.8 in |
| Weight | 11 lbs | 23 lbs |
| Warranty | 2 years | 2 years |
Pros & cons
Breville Bambino Plus
- ✓Very fast heat-up
- ✓Compact footprint
- ✓Automatic milk steaming
- ✓Great starter machine
- ✗No built-in grinder
- ✗Small water tank
- ✗Auto steam offers less control than a manual wand
Breville Barista Touch
- ✓Touchscreen guides grind, brew, and milk for every drink
- ✓ThermoJet is ready in 3 seconds - no waiting to brew
- ✓Auto milk texturing with adjustable temp and foam levels
- ✓Hundreds less than the Touch Impress with the same core workflow
- ✗No assisted tamping - you still dose and tamp by hand
- ✗Thermoblock can't brew and steam simultaneously
- ✗Grinder struggles with very light roasts
- ✗Superseded by the Touch Impress, so fewer retail discounts
What owners say
Breville Bambino Plus
The Bambino Plus is the $500 version of the same tiny Thermojet machine, and the extra $200 buys the milk. Its steam wand carries a temperature and texture sensor, so you drop it into the pitcher, press once, and it shuts off on its own at a chosen warmth and foam level - which is why it is the machine most often suggested to someone buying their very first setup, and the one that keeps showing up in households where a partner, a roommate or a teenager also has to be able to make a latte. It also adds a solenoid valve for drier pucks and no post-shot dripping, a 64 oz tank instead of 47 oz, and a second year of warranty. Heat-up is still about three seconds, the basket is still 54mm, and it still takes up almost no counter. Full owner insights →
Breville Barista Touch
The Barista Touch (BES880) is Breville's all-in-one answer to "I just want a good latte without owning four appliances": a conical burr grinder, a ThermoJet heater that goes from stone cold to shot-ready in about three seconds, an automatic steam wand that textures milk to a set temperature, and a colour touchscreen that stores drink profiles and walks a first-timer through the whole sequence. Current units run Baratza-derived burrs, and owners who have used both generations are clear that the newer grinder is a real step up over the early ones — a distinction that gets lost in the older "the built-in grinder is junk" advice still floating around. Full owner insights →
Breville Bambino Plus vs Breville Barista Touch: common questions
Which is cheaper, the Breville Bambino Plus or the Breville Barista Touch?
The Breville Bambino Plus is the cheaper of the two at roughly $500, about $500 less than the Breville Barista Touch at ~$1,000. Both figures are approximate list prices and street prices move with sales.
Does the Breville Bambino Plus or the Breville Barista Touch have a built-in grinder?
Only the Breville Barista Touch grinds its own beans. The Breville Bambino Plus needs a separate grinder, which is worth budgeting for — a dedicated burr grinder is usually the bigger upgrade to shot quality, but it also costs extra counter space and money on top of the machine.