Sage Barista Express or Barista Touch? Which one should you choose?
Dec 29, 2021
Sage has several different models and we often receive questions about the differences between the two models Barista Express and Touch. Visually, the two may seem very similar but in comparison, they are completely different machines. In this comparison, you will gain a better understanding About of the two machines and the important differences to help you choose which one suits you.
Short About Sage Barista Touch
Barista Touch is a machine from Sage that focuses on allowing the customer to make the best coffee at home possible with features that facilitate and simplify the espresso brewing process, which can otherwise be perceived as complicated and difficult. Barista Touch, as the name suggests, has an easy-to-navigate touchscreen with pre-programmed coffee drinks and has an automatic milk frothing function where you can easily select the milk temperature and amount of foam.
Sage Barista Touch comes with an integrated coffee grinder and a boiler that has a heating time of only 3 seconds.
This espresso machine is a hybrid between a fully automatic espresso machine and a manual one, but it has more control over the brewing process and can thus produce coffee drinks that are much better than fully automatic espresso machines. One feature that makes Barista Touch stand out is its touchscreen where you have control over brewing temperature, brewing time, milk temperature, and foam, as well as the ability to save up to 6 custom coffee drinks that you can name anything.
Short About Sage Barista Express
Sage Barista Express is a perfect espresso machine that can introduce you to espresso brewing and is fully capable of creating equally good coffee drinks as the other more expensive models from Sage, but it lacks the helpful features such as automatic milk frothing and integrated touch screens. Barista Express focuses only on the essential parts of espresso brewing and is one of the simplest espresso machines to work with. Barista Express comes with an integrated coffee grinder, two programmable buttons for single and double espresso, as well as a hot water outlet for tea and Americano, and a manual steam wand for your coffee drinks with milk. Everything you need for a perfect cup of coffee.
Sage Barista Touch vs Barista Express: A Complete Comparison
Now we will go through all aspects where the two machines differ from each other.
Type of Espresso Machine
Both offer a unique bean-to-cup experience and can grind fresh roasted beans and brew a coffee drink that is almost as good as a barista would make in just a few minutes. Since the beans are ground on-site, you get a unique opportunity to extract all the good aromas, flavors, and quality from the beans. The grinder has stainless steel conical burrs, and both machines have a knob to the left of the machine where you can adjust the grind size according to the beans. Both have the same grinder, but Touch offers a 30-step setting while Express has 18 steps. This practically means that with Touch, you can make finer adjustments.
User-Friendliness
There is no reason to own an expensive espresso machine About as it is far too complicated to use. With that in mind, user-friendliness for a machine is very important, and thus the functions and navigation of a machine can play a significant role.
Sage Barista Touch has a well-designed touchscreen that is very easy to navigate and use. The menu is divided into three steps; Grind, brewing, and milk frothing. The touchscreen allows you to easily change parameters such as brew time, temperature, grind time, milk texture, and milk temperature. To facilitate even more, you can grind the coffee directly into the portafilter for brewing. The grind size can be adjusted with the knob to the left, and the setting is clearly displayed on the screen.
One thing that Barista Express lacks is the simple touchscreen that gives you an overview of your brewing, but since Barista Express has only two programmable buttons, it is very simple and easy to use. Barista Express allows you to set the grind size in 18 steps. Like Barista Touch, you can grind the coffee directly into the portafilter, and with tamper which can be attached to the left side of the machine using a magnet, the entire process is very smooth. With the knob on the front of the machine, you can select the amount of coffee to be ground and choose About whether it is for single/double espresso.
When it comes to user-friendliness, both machines are very easy and smooth to use, but Barista Touch is ahead with its touchscreen where you can easily change various brewing parameters. The downside of Express is that it can feel a bit more complicated when you want to change certain parameters, such as brewing temperature, but that is something that changes very rarely, and therefore you should not place too much weight on this aspect in your decision.
Customizability
To help you, espresso machines often have a certain degree of customizability, such as saving your favorite drink. This feature can be useful if About you often switch beans and want to save settings to quickly return to previous beans. When it comes to customizability, Barista Touch has a significant advantage over Barista Express. With Touch, you can save up to 6 of your own drinks with customized brewing settings and milk texture, as well as name them whatever you like. Barista Express, on the other hand, has only two programmable buttons and thus does not have such a function. If you were to switch beans, Barista Express would need to be reprogrammed About according to the new beans for the best results.
One thing that Barista Express has to its advantage is the manual brewing function. By pressing program once and then holding down the single or double espresso button, you have a fully manual pre-infusion function. Pre-infusion is a term used in espresso brewing where the coffee puck receives brewing water at low pressure to saturate the puck before the actual 9-bar brewing pressure comes. This often results in better results and tastier espresso, but requires a bit more effort. Barista Express can be recommended to people who want a hands-on experience with the espresso machine where everything is done manually, thus providing even more control over the brewing process.
Milk Frothing
When it comes to milk frothing, Barista Touch has an advantage with its automatic milk frothing function where it can froth the milk to a customized texture and temperature. Barista Express has a manual steam wand where you get to learn how to froth milk with the right texture and perhaps even learn to make latte art. If one wishes to froth their own milk hands-on with Barista Touch, that can also be done. Something to consider when choosing an espresso machine is that Barista Touch has a stronger boiler and therefore does not need to wait for the boiler to build up steam pressure. This is something that is very notable with Barista Express where you need to wait about 30-45 seconds after brewing for the boiler to recover and build up to the right steam pressure.
Capacity
Both espresso machines have the same capacity when it comes to the removable water tank of 2L and the bean container that holds 250g. Both espresso machines also come with a 480 ml milk jug.
Size
Barista Touch has the following dimensions:
Width 322 mm, depth 394 mm, and height 407 mm
Barista Express has the following dimensions:
Width 325 mm, depth 310 mm, and height 400 mm
Both Express and Touch have similar dimensions, but something that is notable is the depth where Touch is 84 mm deeper than Express. Therefore, if space is an important aspect for you, Express will guaranteed take up less space than Touch.
Design
When it comes to design, both espresso machines are very similar. Both have stainless steel outer panels that give a luxurious feel. The difference is that Express has a more classic and retro design with a pressure gauge placed centrally in the machine while Touch has a large touchscreen.
Warranty
When you shop with us, you get a 12-month warranty for all of our espresso machines. Read more About about our warranty conditions.
Price
The price difference for these two machines is quite large despite them not looking so different. The reason lies in the fact that Sage Barista Touch has a large touchscreen, much faster usability, and more efficient internal components that heat up the water within 3 seconds while Express takes more towards 60 seconds. Also, Touch has better customization options as well as an automatic milk frothing function.
What do others say?
Regarding previous customers' opinions, the majority are very satisfied with Barista Touch. Users are especially pleased that they get very good coffee with the machine, provided that good quality beans are used. One of the aspects that customers are very satisfied with is the quality of the milk that Barista Touch produces, as well as the modern look combined with the stainless steel outer panels that give a luxurious feel. Something that customers have mentioned as a negative point is that it can take some time before one understands and achieves the best results with the machine, which is also something to be expected with a semi-automatic espresso machine. When you buy an espresso machine from us, we will guide and help you get started. Another factor that some have mentioned is that the drip tray is small and needs to be emptied regularly with regular use.
Sage Barista Express has received many positive feedbacks over the years and has a very large customer base. Many mention About how good coffee Express can brew and that many love the retro design that Barista Express has. Something that customers often mention is that this machine does not suit About if you are looking for an automatic machine, but that About is willing to learn About espresso brewing can Barista Express deliver extremely good coffee.
A negative aspect mentioned is that the drip tray is quite small and that the machine needs to be cleaned often as it quickly gets dirty and grimy with coffee breaks and spills.
Summary
In summary, between Sage Barista Touch and Express, both can create equally good coffee drinks that offer different advantages suitable for different types of customers.
Sage Barista Touch comes with an easy-to-navigate touchscreen, automatic milk frothing, and is very fast with its upgraded internal boiler that has a heating time of 3 seconds. These factors determine the price difference between the two espresso machines.
Sage Barista Express gives you the opportunity to brew equally good coffee drinks as Barista Touch but loses out on all the extra features and only has the essential functions such as a manual steam wand for milk frothing, two programmable buttons with manual brewing mode. Therefore, Express is recommended for people who are willing to have a more hands-on experience.