Top 5 compared
The best French presses
Real coffee with nothing to plug in, made with ground beans, hot water and a few minutes’ wait.
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The top 5 at a glance
A French press makes rich, full-bodied coffee from ground beans and hot water, with nothing to descale or wear out. Coarse grounds go in, water just below boiling goes over them, and after about four minutes a mesh filter on the plunger pushes the grounds to the bottom. Many also brew tea and cold brew, and some makers suggest one for frothing milk.
Despite the name, the French press has an Italian patent behind it: Milanese designers Attilio Calimani and Giulio Moneta patented it in 1929. Most of these go in the dishwasher, and a double-walled steel press won’t crack if it takes a knock, so it can ride along to a campsite or the office.
What matters
- 21 oz makes two mugs; 34 oz serves a household.
- A fine, multi-layer steel filter for less sludge in the cup.
- A cool-touch handle and knob.
#1Secura Stainless Steel French Press (34 oz)
$20–$30
Double-walled 18/8 stainless steel inside and out, so it won’t crack like glass and the coffee stays hot while you drink the first cup. A three-layer steel filter, plus two spare screens, keeps the sludge out.
What owners say: Owners call it heavy-duty and next to unbreakable, with no seams in the steel, and say it keeps coffee hot well after brewing. It comes apart easily for cleaning and makes a strong cup.
A closer look: Stack a spare screen onto the filter for a cleaner cup when the grind is on the fine side, as Secura suggests. Swirling a splash of hot water around the pot first warms the steel, so the coffee holds its heat longer once it’s brewed.
- Won’t crack like glass
- Stack screens for fine grinds
- Cool-touch handle and knob
- 2-year warranty
Best for: Kitchens where glass presses break
- Capacity
- 34 oz
- Material
- Stainless steel
- Double-walled
- Yes
- Dishwasher safe
- Yes
- Filter
- 3-layer steel, 2 spare screens
#2MuellerLiving Double-Walled Stainless Steel French Press (34 oz)
$50–$75
Built to travel: the double-walled steel takes knocks at a campsite or in the office kitchen and keeps a full pot hot while you work through it. Four stages of filtering, a coiled spring, two fine screens and a cross plate, keep grounds out of the cup.
What owners say: Owners like having no glass to worry about and say it holds the heat well. It strips down quickly for washing, and the polished steel looks sharp on the counter.
A closer look: Beyond coffee, MuellerLiving suggests it for tea and hot chocolate. The strength chart in the manual sets the coffee-to-water ratio for a mild or strong pot, and with no glass to crack it can ride in a camping box without any wrapping.
- Strength chart in the manual
- Makes tea and hot chocolate
- No glass to crack
- Plunger and filters come apart
Best for: Camping, office and home
- Capacity
- 34 oz
- Material
- Stainless steel
- Double-walled
- Yes
- Dishwasher safe
- Yes
- Filter
- Coil, 2 screens, cross plate
#3Secura Stainless Steel French Press (50 oz)
$30–$50
The same sturdy press as Secura’s 34 oz, scaled up to 50 oz, enough for five or six mugs, for a big household or a weekend with guests. It’s 304 stainless steel inside and out, with a three-layer steel filter and a spare screen to stack for a finer cup.
What owners say: People buy it for the size and aren’t disappointed: it keeps a big pot hot, cleans up in a few minutes and brews strong coffee. Owners expect it to last, and one has had theirs going for three and a half years.
A closer look: A half pot works fine, but coffee left sitting on the grounds keeps steeping, so pour anything not drunk right away into a carafe once it’s pressed. At 50 oz it’s a press for a busy kitchen or a cabin weekend more than a backpack.
- Stack screens for fine grinds
- Cool-touch handle and knob
- 2-year warranty
Best for: Big households and guests
- Capacity
- 50 oz
- Material
- Stainless steel
- Double-walled
- Yes
- Dishwasher safe
- Yes
- Filter
- 3-layer steel, spare screen
#4Veken Glass French Press (34 oz)
$30–$50
A glass press with no plastic where it touches the coffee (steel and food-grade silicone instead), a four-layer filter for a sludge-free cup and ounce markings on the glass, with a measuring scoop in the box.
What owners say: Owners say the coffee comes out smooth rather than bitter and like the scoop that comes with it, and the glass lifts out of the frame to clean with a bottle brush in seconds. The glass is the weak point, with several breaking within months.
A closer look: The ounce marks and the scoop make a favorite ratio easy to repeat each morning. It handles cold brew too: leave coarse grounds steeping in cold water in the fridge overnight, then press slowly and pour over ice.
- Ounce markings on the glass
- Measuring scoop included
- Heat-safe to 302°F
- Makes cold brew too
Best for: Plastic-free brewing
- Capacity
- 34 oz
- Material
- Glass, steel frame
- Double-walled
- No
- Dishwasher safe
- –
- Filter
- 4-layer steel
#5QUQIYSO Glass French Press (21 oz, copper)
$20–$30
Copper-finished, this borosilicate glass press has a perforated plate and a fine 80-mesh screen to keep grounds out of the cup, with a spare filter in the box. It doubles for tea, cold brew and frothed milk.
What owners say: Owners like the quality and the taste of the coffee. Size splits them, right for two for some and smaller than expected for others, and a few had the glass break.
Heads up: Hand wash the lid: QUQIYSO says rough scrubbers dull its finish, though the beaker, filter and plunger can go in the dishwasher.
A closer look: For frothed milk, warm the milk first, then pump the plunger up and down until it has roughly doubled. At 21 oz it makes two good mugs, so it suits one or two coffee drinkers more than a crowd.
- Spare filter included
- Froths milk too
- Makes tea and cold brew
Best for: Coffee for two, or frothed milk
- Capacity
- 21 oz
- Material
- Glass, copper finish
- Double-walled
- No
- Dishwasher safe
- Not the lid
- Filter
- Plate and 80-mesh screen
How they compare
Swipe sideways or rotate device to see all 5.
| Feature | #1Secura 34 oz | #2MuellerLiving 34 oz | #3Secura 50 oz | #4Veken 34 oz | #5QUQIYSO 21 oz |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall | Best for big batches | Best budget | |||
| Picked Rating | 9.5 | 9.4 | 9.4 | 9.1 | 9.0 |
| Price | $20–$30 | $50–$75 | $30–$50 | $30–$50 | $20–$30 |
| Capacity | 34 oz | 34 oz | 50 oz | 34 oz | 21 oz |
| Material | Stainless steel | Stainless steel | Stainless steel | Glass, steel frame | Glass, copper finish |
| Double-walled | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Dishwasher safe | Yes | Yes | Yes | – | Not the lid |
| Filter | 3-layer steel, 2 spare screens | Coil, 2 screens, cross plate | 3-layer steel, spare screen | 4-layer steel | Plate and 80-mesh screen |
| Best for | Kitchens where glass presses break | Camping, office and home | Big households and guests | Plastic-free brewing | Coffee for two, or frothed milk |
| Buy now | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon | Amazon |
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