What do older homes, apartments, RVs, dorm rooms, and hotel rooms all have in common? They have no counter space! For those who love a nice cup of joe each day, that presents a problem.
After researching, the AdirChef Grab N’ Go Personal Coffee Maker comes out as the clear winner. You can use your favorite coffee and brew into the included travel mug. It’s priced right and works well. Read on to compare it to other space-saving coffee makers in our reviews.
If you want your coffee, but aren’t willing to sacrifice precious counter space, you can find a space-saving coffee pot. There are a lot of choices that we’ll go over here, from travel models to mountable options.
1. Keurig K-Mini Plus Single Serve K-Cup Pod Coffee Maker
The K-Mini plus is Keurig’s smallest model. It’s designed for single users, meaning that it makes one cup of coffee at a time.
This machine is unique because it is less than 5 inches wide. It’s about 11 inches deep and 12 inches wide, so will require some space and height. You’ll need a few inches of clearance above it in order to get the reservoir out and put the K-Cup pods in to brew.
Operation is ridiculously simple; just fill the water reservoir with 6 to 12 ounces of water, insert the pod, and brew. There is an option for a strong brew, but it doesn’t make a terribly big difference in the notoriously weak K-Cup pod brew.
SEE ALSO: How To Use A Keurig
Keurig is convenient, but the quality here is questionable. They’ve made it easy to get a quick cup of coffee. They’ve even provided built-in cord storage and built-in pod storage (for up to 9 pods).
But that doesn’t mean the mechanics are sound; this machine is very prone to malfunctioning and not bringing the water down when it is set to brew.
This unit is perfectly sized for travel, apartment use, or the occasional cup of joe. For those who drink more than one cup per day or those who like to have a customized cup of coffee, this K-Mini might not cut it.
2. BLACK And DECKER SpaceMaker Under The Cabinet Coffeemaker
Need counter space but love the convenience of a full-sized coffee maker? Then give this unique under-the-counter coffee maker a shot.
The Spacemaker coffee maker can brew a full eight cups of coffee. The stainless steel carafe clicks gently into place (great for campers on the move!) and does a decent job of keeping the coffee warm. There is a removable water filter to make brewing easier.
The interface has LED lights for those early morning brews. You can program the coffee maker to brew whenever, and you can rest easy knowing that it has an auto-off function. You can sneak a cup at any point in the brew cycle with the anti-drop feature.
The big downside of this unit is that it still requires under cabinet space. It’s 12 inches high from top to bottom, so it won’t really give you much extra space if you have low hanging cabinets.
Also, you have to drill into the underside of flat bottomed cabinets in order to mount it. Not all people will be willing or able to do that, especially if the apartment lease forbids it.
If you have a regular sized kitchen and real wooden cabinets that you don’t mind drilling into, then this is a fantastic space saver coffee maker. Otherwise, it might be a bit too extreme for small spaces.
3. AdirChef Grab N’ Go Personal Coffee Maker
Grab n Go is a suitable name for this travel coffee maker. It can be set up for permanent use in the kitchen but is better suited for use at work or traveling.
It measures in at only 10 inches tall and about 5 inches wide. The machine part is made from mostly plastic, and the lightweight travel mug is stainless steel and plastic. This makes it ideal for placing in a travel bag or putting it in a spot where it will need to be moved a lot.
The travel mug is 15 ounces and that’s the maximum capacity for this coffee maker. It has a water reservoir in the back of the machine where you place fresh water for each brew. The built-in mesh filter holds a few tablespoons of ground coffee.
The built-in filter is essentially a mesh sieve, so you will need to find a small cone filter to use to keep the grounds out of your cup. The coffee filter also helps the coffee reach a better temperature.
This very affordable unit probably isn’t up to the task of brewing several cups a day. But for once daily or travel use (especially if you want to avoid those questionable hotel room brewers), it’s a great option.
4. Elite Maxi-Matic 3-in-1 Deluxe Breakfast Station
One way to save space is to multitask with your appliances. This appliance is a small coffee maker, an electric griddle, and a toaster oven.
The coffee maker holds up to four cups. It features a reusable mesh filter and a glass carafe. The unit shuts off after 30 minutes for safety. It has a unique feature that pauses the brew when the coffee pot is removed, so you can pour a cup at any point in the brew cycle.
The 1500 watt four slice toaster oven has a 30-minute timer and light, medium, and dark roast settings. There is an indicator light and easy clean removable crumb tray.
The nonstick griddle is about 10.5 inches by 6 inches and has a nonstick surface. The tough-to-clean griddle has a glass lid with plastic handles.
This whole machine measures 7 inches tall, 9.5 inches wide, and 19 inches long. That is pretty compact, considering all it does. This works well for camping or travel use.
If you find yourself cooking breakfast often, you might like this unit. But if coffee is your main goal, there are much better, less leaky space saving coffee pots.
5. CHULUX Single Serve Coffee Maker Brewer
This single cup coffee maker is a strong competitor of the Keurig and with a lower price tag. Just like the Keurig, it’s designed to work with coffee pods. However, the Chulux Single Serve Coffee Maker Brewer will work with any brand or style of pod, 2.0 or otherwise.
The coffee maker uses a 12-ounce water reservoir to brew coffee. There are no settings on this coffee maker, just an on/off button and a brew button that are one and the same. It’ll make you a cup of coffee in three minutes or less once you lock in your coffee pod of choice.
With auto shut-off and overheating protection, you don’t have to worry about this coffee maker causing a problem if you forget to shut it off before you leave the house.
It’s only 4.3 inches wide, and 7.4 inches deep, with a height of 9.4 inches. The downside to that is that you have limited space for mugs. Even if you remove the drip tray, it still only fits a 5.3-inch mug.
This is ideal for people who want to have a cup of coffee every day. If you use a travel mug, it won’t fit in this maker, so this is good if you drink your cup at home or at the office, not on the road. The tiny size also makes it great for traveling to a place with no coffee maker available.
6. Elite Cuisine Dual Function Breakfast Station Toaster and Coffee
Here’s another piece of multitasking equipment. Since breakfast and coffee are forever entwined, you can toast your bread or bagel while your coffee brews. At 7.2 inches high, 14.1 inches wide, and 5.3 inches deep, it has a minimal footprint on the countertop.
The coffee maker produces only one true cup of coffee at a time. It works like a normal coffee maker, so the water you put in, up to the 8-ounce max, will be brewed back out.
You can put ground coffee of your choice in the reusable filter, but be warned – if you overfill the coffee basket, it will create a huge mess in the machine. That makes this troublesome for strong coffee drinkers.
The toaster is nothing too special. It has two extra wide slots for bread or bagels, seven levels of toastiness, and a cancel button. The sides are cool touch. Overall, it’s an adequate toaster.
This would be a great idea for someone in an RV or camper. It would also work well for a dorm. However, with daily use, I think the quality of this small coffee maker would deteriorate. If you are a daily coffee drinker, I would suggest finding a better coffee maker.
Final Thoughts
Why fire up a huge 12 cup coffee maker for just one cup? It hogs space and utilities. A single-serve or space saver coffee maker is a smarter option.
The AdirChef Grab N’ Go Personal Coffee Maker is not only affordable, but it also has one of the larger brew sizes available for a travel-sized coffee maker. The included stainless steel mug is the perfect size and keeps the coffee hot.
Plus, you can use whatever coffee you want and you aren’t limited to weak tasting, expensive pods. It’s the best choice in the space-saving coffee brewer market.
