I’m a proud owner of the Breville Barista Touch, and I still love it — but after finding the Casabrews Ultra, I have to admit there’s a much cheaper way to get the same at-home espresso experience.

The Casabrews Ultra Espresso Machine is the machine I’d point to for anyone who wants a serious espresso setup without spending Breville money.

The biggest difference is also the easiest one to explain: the Breville Barista Touch has a built-in grinder, while the Casabrews Ultra doesn’t. Breville currently lists the Barista Touch at almost $1,000, while Casabrews lists the Ultra at less than $200 on Amazon right now.

So yes, you’ll need a separate burr grinder. But that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. A dedicated grinder gives you more control over your grind size and lets you upgrade the grinder independently later. And, even after adding a good grinder, you can still come in hundreds of dollars below the Breville.

The Ultra has several of the features I look for in a proper espresso machine: a 20-bar pump, adjustable brewing temperature, adjustable shot volume, a 58mm portafilter, an LCD display with a shot timer and a manual steam wand. Casabrews also says it uses low-pressure pre-infusion and a thermoblock heating system.

That’s why the comparison with my Barista Touch makes sense. You’re getting the same basic semi-automatic process: grind your beans, dose the portafilter, tamp, pull the shot and steam your milk yourself. The Breville simply automates more of those steps and wraps everything in a much more polished touchscreen interface.

It goes without saying, but that convenience gives this Breville-alt some serious brownie points. I use my Breville because it makes excellent coffee and makes the process almost ridiculously simple. But if you’re willing to add one extra piece of equipment, the Casabrews Ultra gives you many of the core tools needed to make café-style drinks for dramatically less money.

If you’re shopping for a Breville and balking at the price, I’d seriously look at the Casabrews Ultra first. Spend the difference on a good grinder and some excellent beans — and you could have a surprisingly delightful espresso setup while keeping hundreds of dollars in your pocket.

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