The reason that coffee makers are great is that they save you so much of your precious time.
But what if they could be even better at that while also making delicious coffee?
Well, that’s what two-way coffee makers do – and you want only the best of the best.
Today, we went searching for the best dual coffee makers on the market. Take a look at what we found.
Table Of Contents
What are Two Way Coffee Makers?
Dual or two-way coffee makers are coffee machines that are able to make two cups of coffee at once – basically, two coffee makers in one machine.
You can use different blends, control the size, brew type and everything else independently and so on.
Most of these coffee makers have a single-serve dispenser on one side while the other can make either single-serve coffee or carafe-sized portions.
Some use coffee pods and other similar systems while others use coffee grinds or can use both independently.
Two-way coffee makers offer a lot of flexibility and speed up the time needed to make multiple cups of coffee which can be a life-saver when both you and your partner are in a rush to get to work in the morning.
Of course, they are larger than regular coffee makers, and you’ll only have space for one, so you’ll want the best – and we’ve got just that right here.
Our Reviews For The Dual Coffee Makers
- Hamilton Beach 49976 FlexBrew
- Hamilton Beach 49980A 2-Way
- Cuisinart SS-15 12-Cup
- Cuisinart CHW-12 Coffee Plus
#1 Hamilton Beach (49976) FlexBrew, Single Serve & Full Coffee Pot
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The FlexBrew is a great example of what Hamilton Beach can offer. It’s a highly effective and versatile coffee maker that excels in two fields at once without falling short in either.
On the single serve side of things, it gives you the option of using the usual k-cups or other similar products or using your own coffee grinders, with two brew choices – bold or regular. The tray can fit a travel mug or a regular mug – whatever you prefer. Sadly, a travel mug is not included with the machine.
The carafe side has a variety of options as well. You can brew in many different sizes, from 2 up to 12 cups of coffee at once and you can use your own grinds. You can also choose between regular or bold.
The programmable brew timer can also save you a lot of time since you can set it in advance to make coffee whenever you want.
PROS
- It can use coffee grinds or k-cups
- It’s programmable with an auto-shutoff
- There are multiple brew options
- A wide variety of size options
- It doesn’t take up a lot of space
CONS
- The coffee it makes ends up being weak
- Some have reported leaking issues
- Takes a lot of time to brew
- Difficult to clean up
#2 Hamilton Beach 49980A 2-Way Coffee Maker
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This is a slightly less versatile product than the previous one from Hamilton Beach, but rest assured that this 2-way brewer easily makes up for it with some additional power and a few extra options.
It can also use either coffee grinds or k-cups to make you your favorite brew, which is always a plus.
It’s made out of stainless steel and much more durable than other coffee makers while also being cleaner overall.
Like their other product, the carafe side can brew up to 12 cups at once, but it has a large water reservoir to draw from, so it doesn’t need to be refilled quite as often.
You can set it to brew either bold or regular coffee, depending on your taste and you can program it to brew your coffee up to 24 hours before you want it done.
The single-serve side has adjustable height, allowing you to easily make it fit any cup you want to use – no spillage.
PROS
- Solid, stainless steel construction
- Programmable to brew up to 24 hours in advance
- The single serve cup holder has adjustable height
- Can use both coffee grinds and k-cups
- Easy to use and clean
CONS
- Takes up a lot of space
- Brews coffee slowly
- The cord is too short
- Difficult to refill
- The included travel mug is poorefill
#3 Cuisinart SS-15 12-Cup Coffee Maker and Single-Serve Brewer
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Cuisinart definitely comes out swinging with a coffee maker that’s top of the line. The carafe side can brew up to 12 cups at once, and you can choose the type of brew you want – regular or strong. It all comes down into a thermal carafe that keeps your coffee hot, and you can choose the amount of heat applied to it.
The single serve side also allows you to choose between sizes – 6, 8 or 10 ounces – which is a nice touch.
Both sides are compatible with your own grinds as well as k-cups and use a gold-tone coffee filter. They also have a reusable filter cup.
You don’t need to worry about cleanliness either – the glass carafe is completely safe, and the plastic reservoirs are BPA-free, per industry standards.
It has a programmable timer as well, so you can set it to brew your coffee in advance or shut off exactly when you need to go to sleep – it saves you tons of time.
PROS
- The carafe can be heated to keep coffee hot
- Has a strong, gold-tone coffee filter
- It has multiple size options for the single serve side
- Brews coffee quickly
CONS
- Refilling it can be difficult
- Non-adjustable singe serve tray
- There have been leaking issues
- The price is rather high
#4 Cuisinart CHW-12 Coffee Plus 12-Cup Programmable Coffeemaker
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This Cuisinart coffee maker adheres to all their standards and has a lot of features that you’ll already be familiar with. This includes the heated, glass carafe, a programmable brew timer and more.
However, it does have a few features unique to it. One of them is the hot water dispenser, which allows you to use it for making tea, certain types of instant coffee or other hot drinks that you might like.
It has an absolutely huge, 54-ounce water reservoir that’s used for all the brewing and the hot water dispenser.
The single-serve size allows you to choose between 1 to 4 cups at once, while the carafe side can brew up to 12 cups at once.
Besides being able to brew on its own when you program it, it also cleans itself with the auto-clean feature, saving you more time than ever before.
PROS
- It can clean itself with an auto-cleaning option
- A wide array of size options available
- Large water reservoir
- Hot water dispenser
- Heated glass carafe
- Programmable to brew in advance
- Auto shut-off feature
CONS
- Refilling it can be difficult
- Non-adjustable singe serve tray
- There have been leaking issues
- The price is rather high
What to Look For in a 2-Way Coffee Maker
If you’ve never bought a two-way coffee maker before – well, you’re in for a treat.
But you’re also in for a lot of tough decisions, and we’ll help you make them by giving you the crucial info you need in order to pick the best machine on the first try.
Which Options Does it Have?
You need to look at what a two-way coffee maker offers you before you even consider buying it.
At the least, it needs to offer multiple brew types and sizes and be able to use grinds and k-cups, but other options like programmable timers, adjustable heat, removable and adjustable trays and so on are great to have, and you want a machine that can do everything you want.
The Size Matters
No matter what anyone tells you, size is important.
You need to be able to fit this huge machine into your kitchen or living room, so you need to check the dimensions carefully.
You also need to look at the size of the reservoirs, especially if you intend to use it often since you don’t want to refill it every five minutes.
What’s It Made Out of?
Is the carafe made out of glass or plastic?
Are the water containers plastic, steel or glass?
Is plastic BPA-free?
These are all questions you need to ask if you want to get a durable machine that will be safe for you and your family.
Always look at the details on the packaging instead of trusting the front of the box
What’s the Price Like?
Some of these machines can be incredibly overpriced, and there are no two ways about it.
You need to carefully compare the prices and the features offered by different machines before setting your mind on one of them.
Otherwise, you might overpay for something that you could have gotten cheaper elsewhere.
Two-Way Coffee Makers FAQ
Some common two way coffee maker questions:
Q: Does a Two-Way Coffee Maker Have Problems Making a Single-Serve and Carafe Portion at the Same Times?
A: No, a coffee maker like this is supposed to handle that easily.
These machine usually have two separate mechanisms, including separate water reservoirs, which allows them to smoothly make both single-serve and full pot coffee at the same time.
Q: Can Dual Coffee Makers Use K-Carafe Pods?
A: Some of them can, but not all of them. If you’re not familiar with k-carafe pods, they’re like k-cups but for a carafe-sized portion.
Most two-way coffee machines that can use k-cup pods can also use k-carafe pods without a problem but there are exceptions.
Q: Can I Wash a Dual Coffee Maker in My Dishwasher?
A: That depends on the model, but most models have at least some parts that can be washed in the dishwasher.
For most models you can run a few cycles using hot water and vinegar or detergent and clean their insides. Look in the instruction manual, it’s usually all there.
You might still need to open them up afterwards and scrape out some excess dirt from the insides with a needle, a toothpick or some similar tool.
Q: What Do I Do If Only One Side of My Dual Coffee Maker Doesn’t Work?
A: For starters, you can try to run a cleaning cycle and see if that gets it to run again. If it doesn’t, you can open it up and look for clogs which you might be able to clean out by hand.
If that doesn’t do the job, you should probably take it to be serviced and check if your warranty is still valid before doing it.
Definitely don’t continue to use just the working side while ignoring the problem – it’s all connected and you might make the problem worse.
The Verdict
So, which of these dual coffee makers is the best one? Well, it’s difficult to say since they’re all quite good.
However, we believe that the Cuisinart CHW-12 Coffee Plus 12-Cup just about edges out the competition, mostly due to its incredible versatility.
It can use both grinds and k-cups while additional options like the hot water dispenser and the ability to clean itself are invaluable, and they save you a ton of time and effort.
What do you think? Which of these two-way coffee makers seems like the best to you? Sound off in the comments, and we’ll see you there!
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