I thought this Casabrews espresso machine wouldn't deliver — but I’m eating my words as I sip its delicious coffee

It’s a fact of life that the best espresso machines are expensive. That’s just how they are. Until you discover Casabrews’ range of crazily cheap espresso machines, and you’re left wondering why other brands are so expensive.

Well, there’s a really obvious reason: other brands’ espresso machines are, by definition, technically superior. The Casabrews 3700 Essential is one of the cheapest espresso machines I’ve ever seen, and it has a few quirks you’d expect from a $129 espresso machine. For starters, if you want ‘true’ espresso, you’ll need to spend an extra $38 on accessories, and the steam wand needs purging after most uses, lest it overheat.

But, even with these quirks, the Casabrews 3700 Essential is actually a really good machine. I took the time to master its difficulties, and I’m left pleasantly surprised. For just $129, this is a deal so good it’s almost beyond belief. I’ll get into all the details in this Casabrews 3700 Essential review.

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Cheat sheet

• Who is it for? People who want an espresso machine for as little $$$ as possible
• What does it do well? Well, it’s one of the cheapest espresso machines I’ve ever seen
• What are its weaknesses? It’s got a few quirks that you’ll need to master
• Anything else to know? Unfortunately no accessories are provided, so you’ll need to spend a little extra for those

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Specs

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Price & availability

In the U.S., the Casabrews 3700 Essential is just $129 on Amazon, which makes it one of the most affordable espresso machines money can buy. It’s often on sale for around $99 as well. This is an incredibly good deal — other super-budget espresso machines I’ve tried are the $149 De’Longhi Stilosa and the $299 Casabrews 5418 Pro.

In the U.K., the Casabrews 3700 Essential is pricier: £144 from Amazon U.K., although it’s often on sale for about £139. While this isn’t much of a discount, it’s always nice to save a little money where possible.

As with other Casabrews machines I’ve tested, this is an incredibly low price for an espresso machine. You’d be hard-pressed to find any other espresso machine as affordable as this. Obviously, some sacrifices have been made in terms of usability, which I’ll get into later.

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Design

As the Casabrews 3700 Essential is a compact machine, it’s definitely positioning itself as a Breville Bambino Plus dupe. In my opinion, that’s a smart move to make, as the Bambino/Bambino Plus is often lauded as the best compact espresso machine money can buy — but it’s a lot of money. If you’re just starting out or you’ve got a tight amount of space, you don’t want to be throwing $500 on a machine you may or may not use.

As the Casabrews 3700 Essential is just 5.7 inches wide, it’s one of the smallest coffee machines I’ve ever seen. If you’re short on space and budget (big relate), then there’s nothing better. Even the De’Longhi Stilosa, which is $149, is 8 inches wide.

In terms of appearance, the Casabrews 3700 Essential looks quite cheap, but I don’t think it detracts from the overall usability of the machine. The circular buttons are responsive, and, in my opinion, look better than the oblong-shaped buttons on the Casabrews CM5418 and 5418 Pro.

There are four buttons: on/off, single, double, and steam. There’s also a steam dial on the right side of the machine that you must turn to actually activate the steam wand after it’s heated up. The steam wand is a little frustrating to use, but I’ll discuss that properly in the ‘Milk’ section below.

Instead of a ‘pressure gauge’ (that has no numbers, so I’m not sure how accurate of a pressure gauge it actually is) like on the CM5418 and the 5418 Pro, the 3700 Essential has a big ‘B’ logo on the front. I like this appearance; it looks simple, less technical, and, as a result, more appealing to complete beginners.

The shower screen (where you put the portafilter) is also a little… interesting. It has a large screw that impresses upon the coffee grounds during extraction. I fixed this issue by using the puck screen from the Casabrews bottomless portafilter, so I’d recommend buying one of these to get the best out of your machine.

Another reason I think this machine is intended for complete beginners: Casabrews only ships the machine with a dual-walled (pressurized) portafilter. Dual-walled portafilters are intended to be used with preground coffee, as the basket forces the water through a tiny hole (pressurizing the espresso), and creates a fake crema.

Technically, this isn’t ‘real’ espresso, so espresso purists will look down on this machine. I tested with both the provided dual-walled portafilter, and Casabrews’ bottomless portafilter, which is awesome. I would recommend buying the bottomless portafilter (it’s just $38 from Amazon) to level up your espresso making without breaking the bank. I’ll discuss espresso properly in the next section now.

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Espresso

Let me get this clear right off the bat: if you use this machine without a few alterations, you’ll be disappointed. Well, if you consider yourself a bit of a coffee snob (guilty), you’ll be disappointed. If you’re the kind of coffee drinker who just wants hot bean juice, then I don’t think any alterations will be necessary.

There’s nothing wrong with being either kind of coffee drinker: as with, say, movies, video games, and books, different strokes for different folks. For me, I would immediately replace the dual-walled portafilter with a bottomless portafilter to brew ‘true’ espresso.

I still made decent espresso with the provided pressurized portafilter, but it wouldn’t impress coffee nerds.

Here’s a photo of the espresso extracted with the dual-walled portafilter. I used house blend beans from a roastery.

As you can see, the crema is quite dark and bubbly. This is a 1:2 espresso shot extracted over 23 seconds. As the pressurized basket is a little smaller than the bottomless portafilter, I dosed 15g of espresso for 30g out.

The pressurized espresso was strong, a little bitter, but wasn’t well-rounded as one would expect from specialty beans. Again, if you consider yourself less of a coffee snob and more of a coffee guzzler, then this won’t be a problem. Also, if you tend to put syrups in your coffee (it’s almost PSL season everyone!), this won't be a problem.

Anyway, for some of my testing, I used the Casabrews bottomless portafilter, just to see what the 3700 Essential could be capable of. I loved using this machine with the bottomless portafilter.

Here’s a photo of a shot I pulled on the Casabrews 3700 Essential with the bottomless portafilter.

As you can see, the crema is softer than with the pressurized portafilter. This shot was also more rounded, with a balanced, sweeter flavor. I much preferred the shots pulled on the bottomless portafilter than the provided dual-walled portafilter, so I’d recommend you grab the accessory too.

As there’s no PID controller (what do you expect from a $129 machine?), you won’t be able to control temperature as adeptly as other machines. However, if you want a PID controller, you’ll need to spend a lot more money. I think if you want to save as much money as possible, then the Casabrews 3700 Essential with the bottomless portafilter will impress beginner espresso enthusiasts.

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Milk

Like with other Casabrews machines (CM5418 and the 5418 Pro), the steam wand situation on the 3700 Essential is a little confusing and quirky. After steaming milk, you have to unclick the ‘steam’ button and then purge excess steam to cool down the inner mechanisms.

If you don’t do this, the single and double shot buttons will flash at you and you won’t be able to pull another shot until the flashing stops by itself. If you couldn’t guess, this takes a while.

As a result, I’d advise that you purge the steam wand after steaming milk (as you normally would for cleanliness sake), then deselect ‘steam’ and purge the steam wand for about ten seconds. This flushes out the boiler and cools it down.

While, yes, this is annoying, this machine is literally $129. There are obviously going to be some sacrifices for a machine this affordable.

Once I learned this quirk, though, I was really impressed with the quality of the steam wand. It only has one hole, which usually means a less-than powerful steam flow, but I was able to get barista-quality microfoam with this steam wand. It took a little more finesse than the steam wand of the De’Longhi Stilosa, but it was still easier than on the original Casabrews Ultra.

Here are some photos of milk texture.

As you can see, the milk is velvety and pleasantly aerated, although it’s a touch bubblier than I’d like.

Here’s a photo of a hot chocolate I made, which proves you can use the steam wand for more than coffee.

This milk was smooth and velvety, and mixed with the chocolate powder well. I would recommend this machine for making all kinds of hot drinks, not just coffee.

The steam wand joint is flexible, and is more maneuverable than the CM5418’s wand. I was able to get the jug at any angle, and I felt like I could control the steaming process easier than on other Casabrews machines.

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Storage & maintenance

As I discussed in the ‘Design’ section earlier, the Casabrews 3700 Essential is ideal for small spaces. As it’s less than 6 inches wide, this is the perfect espresso machine for those with a tight kitchen, and I recommend it wholeheartedly if you’re focusing on saving space.

In terms of maintenance, Casabrews doesn’t ship any cleaning products with the machine. Unlike Breville, which ships a cleaning portafilter and a steam wand cleaning pin with the Bambino Plus, Casabrews recommends you clean the 3700 Essential with a normal pin. I know it’s just $129, but come on. A pin? I would appreciate being provided with an actual steam wand cleaning pin — they can’t cost $$$ to manufacture.

Casabrews recommends cleaning the shower screen with a brush, and as there’s no cleaning tablet, I doubt that you can clean the internal system easily. As a result, this machine might not last you up to 8(ish) years like a Breville. However, I am a mere human, and I cannot see the future, so I can’t say definitively that it will last/it won’t last. This is just my speculation based on personal experience.

Casabrews also recommends against disassembling the brew head. This is interesting, as it likely means you can’t fix the machine when broken — you might just have to buy a new one.

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: How does it compare?

In terms of budget espresso machines, the only competition really is with other Casabrews products. There’s the $149 De’Longhi Stilosa — which is awesome and I 100% recommend it if you can spare an extra $20 and 2 inches of kitchen counter space — but other than that, it’s most likely Casabrews or bust.

The Casabrews CM5418 is another option, but the aforementioned milk steaming overheating issue is more prevalent on the CM5418. There’s the Casabrews 5418 Pro, which is $299 and does have a PID controller, but, again, that’s an extra $170 on top of the 3700 Essential.

Yes, you’ll get better, more consistent coffee with less barista experience on something like the Bambino Plus, but if you’re trying to save as much dough as possible, it’s not an option. If you want the most affordable espresso machine on the market, yeah, it’s going to be the Casabrews 3700 Essential.

Casabrews 3700 Essential review: Verdict

As I’ve mentioned many times, if you want an espresso machine for as little money as possible, the Casabrews 3700 Essential really is the best option. Personally, I’d probably lean more towards the De’Longhi Stilosa due to the better steam wand and more consistent boiler heating, but that’s $20 pricier than the 3700 Essential.

If you can get over the slightly frustrating purging-the-steam-wand routine after every use, then the 3700 Essential is definitely a machine that will impress beginner coffee drinkers. No, it probably won’t be good enough to make serious coffee lovers happy — not without additional accessories, either — but if you want the cheapest option on the market? By all means, check out the 3700 Essential.

With a little patience, understanding, and dedication to learning how to master the 3700 Essential’s quirks, this could be a machine worth much more than $129. Just be expected to take some time to show it who’s the boss.