Breville Bambino vs Bambino Plus: What Does the Extra $200 Buy?
The two machines pull identical espresso. The entire price difference is milk. Here's what you're actually choosing between.
Tomas Reyes
August 9, 2026
5 min
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Almost every Bambino comparison online buries the one fact that decides the purchase: the two machines pull identical espresso. Same ThermoJet heating system, same three-second heat-up, same 54 mm stainless portafilter, same 18 g dose, same low-pressure pre-infusion into 9-bar extraction. Put two shots side by side and no one can tell you which machine made which. The extra $200 buys exactly one capability — the machine steams your milk for you — plus a bigger water tank.
That reframes the decision completely. You are not choosing between a worse espresso machine and a better one. You are choosing whether you want to learn to steam milk, or pay to skip it.
What's actually different
- Milk steaming — Bambino: manual, ball-jointed wand with a single-hole tip. Bambino Plus: automatic milk system with selectable temperature and foam level, plus auto-purge. This is the whole reason for the price gap.
- Steam wand movement — the Bambino's wand is ball-jointed and swings freely; the Plus's moves vertically only, because the automation needs a predictable position.
- Water tank — Bambino 47 fl oz, Bambino Plus 64 fl oz. Roughly two extra days between refills for a one-drink-a-day household.
- Price — Bambino around $300 (often $250 on sale), Bambino Plus around $500 (often $400).
- Everything else — heating system, portafilter size, basket size, pressure, pre-infusion, volumetric 1- and 2-cup buttons: identical.
The rule that decides it: do you want latte art?
The Plus's automatic frother makes good, consistent microfoam and it makes it hands-free — you attach the jug, press a button, and walk away. What it does not do is teach you anything, and it does not produce the tight, glossy, pourable milk that latte art needs. Automated wands texture milk to a recipe; latte art needs milk textured by feel, with the jug moved as the pitch changes.
So the question is not 'which is better,' it's which failure mode you'd rather have. With the Plus, your milk is reliably fine and never gets better. With the base Bambino, your first ten jugs are bad, and by the thirtieth you are pouring hearts. If the idea of a learning curve sounds like a chore rather than the point, buy the Plus. If it sounds like the fun part, buy the Bambino and put the $200 into a grinder — which, unlike the frother, genuinely does change how the espresso tastes.
So which should you buy?
Buy the base Bambino if you mostly drink espresso, americanos or cortados, if you want to learn latte art, or if your budget is better spent on a grinder. Buy the Bambino Plus if milk drinks are the whole reason you're buying a machine, if someone else in the house will use it and won't want a technique lesson, or if hands-free mornings are worth $200 to you. There is no wrong answer here, and there is no espresso-quality penalty either way.
Our picks, compared
Breville Bambino Espresso Machine (BES450)
Drinking espresso straight, or wanting to learn to steam milk yourself.
Breville Bambino Plus Espresso Machine
First real espresso machine you won't outgrow in a year.
Normcore 53.3 mm Spring-Loaded Tamper
Every Breville Bambino, Bambino Plus, Barista Express or Infuser owner.
The accessory both machines need
Both Bambinos ship with a light plastic tamper that does not fit the basket properly — and this catches nearly every new owner. The portafilter is 54 mm on the outside, but the basket is about 53 mm on the inside, so a 54 mm tamper won't seat and the stock one leaves an untamped ring around the edge. Water finds that ring, channels straight through it, and the shot comes out sour no matter how well you ground the coffee.
- Does the Bambino Plus make better espresso than the Bambino?
- No. Both use the same ThermoJet heating system, the same 54 mm portafilter and 18 g basket, the same low-pressure pre-infusion and the same 9-bar extraction. The espresso is identical. The Plus adds automatic milk texturing and a larger water tank, and that is the entire difference.
- Can you do latte art on the Bambino Plus?
- It's harder. The automatic frother textures milk to a preset temperature and foam level rather than by feel, and the wand only moves vertically. You can pour basic art with practice, but if latte art is a goal, the base Bambino's free-moving manual wand is the better tool — and it's cheaper.
- What size portafilter does the Breville Bambino use?
- Both the Bambino and Bambino Plus use a 54 mm portafilter — the standard across Breville's home range, including the Barista Express and Infuser. Note that the basket's inner diameter is about 53 mm, which is why the correct tamper is 53.3 mm rather than 54 mm.
- Is the Bambino big enough for two people?
- For espresso, yes — it heats in about three seconds, so back-to-back shots are quick. The difference shows in the water tank: 47 fl oz on the Bambino versus 64 fl oz on the Plus. A two-person, two-drink-a-day household will refill the base model roughly every other day.
Tomas Reyes
Tomas is a coffee equipment reviewer and former Q-grader. He has tested over 200 home grinders in the last eight years and writes a quarterly buyer's guide.