Barista Express Impress vs Barista Touch Impress: is the touchscreen worth it?

Express Impress vs Touch Impress at a glance

Head to head

The better result in each row is marked, based on my testing and Breville's specifications. Rows where the two machines are identical have no winner.

Keep in mind that the tally is not my verdict. A row like heat-up time matters every single morning, while a row like basket size barely matters to most people.

Design, size and build

Both machines are brushed stainless steel boxes with the grinder on the left, the group head in the middle and the steam wand on the right. You can tell them apart from across the room by one thing: the screen.

The Express Impress keeps the classic Breville face, with a round pressure gauge, a row of buttons and a dial for grind size. The Touch Impress replaces almost all of that with a bright 4-inch color touchscreen.

Breville lists the Express Impress at about 12.9 inches wide, 14.9 inches deep and 16.1 inches tall. The Touch Impress measured about 14.2 inches wide, 13.4 inches deep and 16.3 inches tall in my kitchen.

The Touch Impress swaps the gauge and buttons for a 4-inch color touchscreen.

So the Touch Impress is the wider machine and the Express Impress is the deeper one. If your counter is narrow but deep, the Express Impress fits more easily.

Both feel solid. The steel panels didn't flex when I pressed them, the portafilters have a reassuring weight, and both machines weigh roughly 23 to 24 pounds, so they stay put when you lock in the handle.

Width on the counter

Measure the width of your counter space first, because both need the full height under a cabinet too.

Our tip: Leave about 4 inches above either machine, because the bean hopper lifts straight up and the water tank comes out of the back.

The Impress system: shared tamping help

This is what both machines have in common, and it is the reason they exist. Breville's Impress Puck System takes the hardest beginner step, tamping✕TampingPressing the ground coffee into a firm, flat puck in the basket. An uneven or weak tamp lets water find gaps and the shot tastes sour or harsh., and does it for you.

You grind into the portafilter✕PortafilterThe handle with a metal basket that holds the ground coffee. It locks into the machine's group head, where hot water is pushed through the coffee., pull the lever down and a flat tamper presses the coffee with about 22 pounds of force. No tamping mat, no wrist strain and very little mess.

The lever also measures the puck. If the dose was too low or too high, the machine tells you and adjusts the next grind amount on its own.

The Impress lever tamps with about 22 pounds of force and checks your dose.

The Touch Impress adds a small twist at the bottom of the stroke, which Breville calls a 7-degree barista twist. It polishes the surface of the puck and seals the edges against the basket.

In practice, both gave me tight, level pucks. Here is how quickly each one learned my beans:

Share of doses in the green zone, by week

Express Impress first, Touch Impress second. Both settled at about 94% by week four.

The Touch Impress started a little lower because it asks you to confirm more steps on screen, and I ignored a few prompts in week one. After that, they were dead even.

Touchscreen vs buttons and a gauge

This is the headline difference, and it changes how the machine feels every morning.

The Touch Impress has a 4-inch color touchscreen that walks you through each step. It tells you when to grind, when to tamp, when to adjust the grind and how long the shot ran, with a simple green check when you get it right.

It also stores 8 preset drinks and up to 8 custom ones. Once I saved my flat white, the whole drink was two taps and one lever pull.

The Touch Impress tells you what to do next, which made week one far less stressful.

The Express Impress uses buttons, a grind dial and a round pressure gauge✕Pressure gaugeA dial that shows how much pressure builds while the shot runs. It is a quick visual hint that the grind and dose are in the right range.. It doesn't tell you what to do. It shows you what happened and leaves the thinking to you.

For some people, that gauge is the best teacher in the kitchen. Watching the needle settle in the espresso range taught me more about grind size in a week than any app.

Our tip: Follow the Touch Impress prompts exactly for the first week, then start changing settings once you know what each one does.

Grinder and dose

Both machines grind straight into the portafilter with stainless steel conical burrs✕Conical burrsTwo cone-shaped grinding parts, one inside the other. Beans are crushed between them, and the gap sets how fine the coffee is., and both aim for an 18-gram double dose.

The Express Impress has 25 settings on a side wheel. Out of the box my machine was too coarse for fresh medium roasts, so I moved the inner burr from 5 to 3, which takes a few minutes with the hopper off.

After that, I had a wide usable range on the wheel. Most of my beans landed in the middle third.

The Touch Impress uses a Baratza-designed grinder with 30 numbered steps on screen. I started at 10, as the guide suggested, and ended up between 8 and 12 depending on the beans.

The Touch Impress grinder is unhurried. At about one gram per second, a double took 18 to 20 seconds, which is the slowest step in its whole workflow.

The Express Impress grinder was a little quicker but louder. Neither one felt slow enough to matter once I started the blank flush at the same time.

The Express Impress grinds straight into the portafilter cradle.

Our tip: If the pump runs but coffee only drips after 15 seconds, move two or three steps coarser and purge once before the next shot.

Heat-up and temperature

This is where the two machines feel most different, and it's easy to miss on a spec sheet.

The Express Impress uses a thermocoil✕ThermocoilA heater where water runs through a coiled tube inside a heated metal block. It is reliable but slower to switch between brewing and steaming than newer systems.. It is ready to brew in under a minute, but it tastes best after the group head and portafilter have warmed for 15 to 20 minutes.

The Touch Impress uses Breville's ThermoJet✕ThermoJetBreville's fast heating system. It reaches brewing temperature in about 3 seconds and switches to steam almost instantly. heater. It is ready in about 3 seconds and switches from brewing to steaming almost instantly.

How my Express Impress shots tasted after switching on

My scores out of 10. A blank shot through the portafilter warmed things up fast.

The thermocoil also slows down milk drinks. After pulling a shot, the Express Impress needs about 15 to 20 seconds to reach steam temperature, and it can't brew and steam at the same time.

Both use PID✕PID temperature controlAn electronic controller that holds the water at a steady temperature, so each shot brews at the same heat. temperature control, so the brew temperature itself is steady. The Touch Impress lets you set it from 192°F to 207°F in one-degree steps, which helped with light and dark roasts.

Our tip: On the Express Impress, run a blank shot through the locked-in portafilter before your first espresso of the day, because it warms the metal and lifts the taste by about two points on my scale.

Espresso quality

With the same beans and the same 18-gram dose, both machines made genuinely good espresso. The gap was smaller than the gap between either one and a typical fully automatic machine.

My standard recipe was 18 grams in and about 36 grams out, a 1:2 brew ratio✕Brew ratioThe weight of dry coffee compared with the weight of liquid espresso in the cup. A 1:2 ratio means 18 g of coffee makes about 36 g of espresso.. On both machines, most shots ran between 26 and 30 seconds from week two onward.

On the Express Impress, a fresh medium roast tasted sweet and balanced, with caramel, a little cocoa and a clean finish. Stopping the shot at about 30 grams gave me a denser, sweeter cup.

The Touch Impress pulled the slightly sweeter, more even shot once I adjusted brew temperature.

On the Touch Impress, the same beans tasted a touch sweeter and more even, and its adjustable temperature rescued a light roast that tasted sour at 200°F. At 203°F the sourness was gone.

Both use the Impress tamp, which is why consistency was so good. Here is how much my shot times varied over a week:

How much shot times varied over a week

Lower bars mean more consistent shots. Both Impress machines landed in the same range.

My espresso ratings

My scores out of 10 for body, crema, flavor and consistency.

Milk drinks

This is where the Touch Impress pulls clearly ahead, especially for beginners.

The Express Impress has a manual steam wand with a single-hole tip on a 360-degree swivel. It makes good microfoam✕MicrofoamMilk foam with bubbles so small you can barely see them. It feels silky and glossy, which is what latte art needs. once you learn the technique, but it is gentle.

A small latte jug of about 6 ounces took me around 45 seconds. A big jug for two cappuccinos took over a minute, and the machine needs 15 to 20 seconds to switch to steam after each shot.

The Touch Impress steams by itself. You fill the jug to the line, choose a temperature and a foam level from 1 to 8, and set the jug under the wand.

The Touch Impress steam wand stops itself at the temperature you set.

The wand stops at the temperature you set, and the default is 149°F. I dropped it to 140°F for sweeter milk, and the foam was glossy enough to pour a simple heart in week one.

You can also steam by hand on the Touch Impress. Its four-hole tip was faster, taking about 30 seconds for 6 ounces.

Seconds to steam about 6 oz of cold milk

From my tests with fresh whole milk straight from the fridge.

Americano, long black and hot water

Both machines have a dedicated hot water outlet, so you can make a proper americano or long black✕Long blackHot water first, with a double espresso poured on top. It keeps more crema and tastes a little stronger than an americano. without running water through the coffee.

On the Touch Impress, the long black is a one-touch recipe. I always put about 4 to 6 ounces of water in first, then pulled the double over it.

On the Express Impress, you press the hot water button and stop it yourself. It's a manual step, but it takes about 20 seconds.

Both machines have a separate hot water outlet for americanos and tea.

Pushing extra water through a puck tends to over-extract it and taste bitter, so both machines make a much better mug of black coffee than a long shot would.

Our tip: Pour the water first, then the espresso, because it keeps the crema on top and the drink tastes noticeably smoother.

Speed and daily workflow

Espresso machines live or die by how they feel at 7 a.m. So I timed both from power on to first sip, including wiping the wand.

The Touch Impress was faster in every drink, mostly because of its 3-second heat-up. The biggest gap was milk drinks, where the Express Impress waits for steam after every shot.

Power on to first sip

My timings, including the blank flush and wiping the wand. Shorter is better.

The slowest step on the Touch Impress was its grinder, at about 20 seconds. Start the blank flush while it grinds and you save about 15 seconds.

On the Express Impress, the slow step was the switch to steam. If you only drink espresso, that doesn't matter at all.

For espresso and black coffee, the Express Impress is plenty quick.

Our tip: On the Express Impress, steam your milk first and pull the shot second when you make one milk drink, because the thermocoil then only has to drop in temperature, not climb.

Cleaning and upkeep

Daily cleaning is almost identical. Knock out the puck, rinse the basket, purge and wipe the steam wand, and empty the drip tray when the red float pops up.

The Impress system keeps both machines tidier than a classic all-in-one. There is no tamping mat and far fewer grounds on the counter, because the lever presses the coffee in the cradle.

The Touch Impress purges its steam wand automatically after milk. On the Express Impress, you open the steam knob for a second yourself.

My daily hands-on cleaning time

My estimate for two milk drinks and one espresso a day.

The Express Impress has no low-water warning, so the pump can run dry if you forget the tank. The Touch Impress has a magnetic float that warned me well before it ran out.

Both machines prompt a cleaning cycle with a tablet and a backflush disc. It takes about five minutes and you don't have to stand next to it.

The Touch Impress warns you before the tank runs dry; the Express Impress doesn't.

Our tip: Wipe the steam wand with a damp cloth the moment you finish steaming, because milk bakes onto the hot tip within a minute on both machines.

Noise

Neither machine is loud by espresso standards, but they sound different.

The Touch Impress grinder hums quietly for about 20 seconds. It's a low, steady sound that didn't carry far beyond the kitchen.

The Express Impress grinder is quicker but sharper. The pump on both machines has the familiar vibration buzz of a home espresso machine during the shot.

How loud each felt, my ranking

Relative loudness from my side-by-side use. Shorter bars are quieter.

If you make coffee before the house wakes up, the Touch Impress is the easier machine to live with. In a busy kitchen, you won't notice the difference.

Water, beans and accessories

Both machines use the same 54 mm portafilter, the same water filter and the same cleaning tablets. Supplies cost the same for either one.

The tanks are nearly identical at about 67 ounces. For two people, each tank lasted about two days.

Drinks per full tank

Rough maths from a 67 oz tank, allowing for flushes and purging.

The Touch Impress hopper is bigger at about 12 ounces against roughly 8.8 ounces on the Express Impress. In daily use, that only means fewer refills.

The 54 mm basket is standard across Breville's home machines, but most commercial accessories are made for 58 mm. If you want fancy distribution tools or precision baskets, check the size first.

Both machines use the same 54 mm portafilter, filters and cleaning tablets.

Use beans within a few weeks of the roast date. On both machines, stale beans ran fast and thin no matter what the dose meter said.

Our tip: Buy a small scale that reads to 0.1 gram, because even with the dose meter it lets you check your yield and fix problems in seconds.

Real-life scenarios

Specs only go so far. These are the situations where one machine clearly pulled ahead during my testing.

In a busy household, the Touch Impress was the machine nobody needed help with.

My scorecard

These are my own scores out of 10. The first four come from my single reviews of each machine, and I added speed and learning value because they decide this matchup.

Express Impress

Touch Impress

Overall, I rate the Express Impress 8.3 and the Touch Impress 8.7. The touchscreen is the smaller part of that gap; the heater and the automatic milk are what you really pay for.

Which one should you buy?

It comes down to one question: do you want to learn espresso, or just drink it? Answer that honestly and the choice makes itself. Still weighing other options? I rank every model I’ve tested in my guide to the best Breville espresso machines.

If you are still weighing the wider range, my Breville espresso machine comparison lines up every model I tested, and my Barista Express vs Express Impress comparison covers the step down.

For beginners who live on milk drinks, the Touch Impress earns its place.

Express Impress vs Touch Impress specifications

From manufacturer specifications and my own testing.

How I tested and compared them

I used each machine as my everyday espresso maker for four weeks, making espresso, long blacks, americanos, flat whites, lattes and cappuccinos with fresh medium, light and dark roasts.

I weighed every dose and yield, timed shots, steam and full drinks from power on, tracked how often the dose meter showed green and measured milk temperatures with a probe thermometer.

I ran every cleaning routine and then compared my notes with Breville's specifications and owner documentation. Michael Reynolds wrote up the notes from both test periods.

• Coffee: dose, shot time, crema, body and consistency.
• Milk: foam texture, temperature and speed.
• Workflow: controls, guidance, heat-up and timings.
• Ownership: noise, cleaning, water care and footprint.