De'Longhi Magnifica XS review: big-machine espresso, a classic steam wand and a brew unit you rinse in the sink
The De'Longhi Magnifica XS Fully Automatic Espresso Machine ECAM22110SB uses the same brew unit and grinder as De'Longhi's far pricier machines, so its espresso punches well above its size. It's slim, simple and easy to keep clean, but milk drinks are hands-on and the warning lights feel dated.
Michael Reynolds
Hands-on review
Hands-on testing, research, specs
4 weeks
23 minutes
Jargon helpNew to espresso? Tap any dotted term to see what it means.
In this review
Yes, if you mostly drink espresso, long coffee or Americano and want a machine that will last. The Magnifica XS shares its brew unit with De'Longhi's expensive models, so the espresso is rich, sweet and consistent. Its removable brew unit rinses clean under the tap with no tablets, and the simple build has a long track record. The trade-offs are hands-on milk frothing with a basic Panarello wand, a loud grinder and blinking warning lights you'll need the manual to decode.
Magnifica XS at a glance
Magnifica XS pros and cons
- Rich espresso that matches much pricier machines
- Brew unit slides out and rinses clean, no tablets needed
- Slim, front-loading design with a big 60 oz tank
- Milk frothing is manual and takes practice
- Warning lights are cryptic without the manual
- Grinder is loud on every drink
Who should buy the Magnifica XS?
- Espresso, lungo and Americano drinkers
- People coming from pods who want simple fresh-bean coffee
- Small kitchens with limited counter width
- Households that drink several lattes a day
- Anyone who wants a screen, profiles or an app
- Very early risers in open-plan homes
First impressions of the De'Longhi Magnifica XS
Most bean-to-cup machines today try to impress you before you've had a single sip.
Big touchscreens, apps, dozens of drink icons and a milk carafe that does everything for you.
The De'Longhi Magnifica XS goes the other way.
It has a handful of buttons, one dial, a classic steam wand and a removable brew unit you can rinse under the tap.
I came to it with low expectations about the experience and high expectations about the coffee, because I knew what's inside.
De'Longhi uses essentially the same removable brew unit across its whole automatic range, from this small machine up to models that cost two or three times as much.
That means the part that actually makes the espresso is shared with far more expensive machines.
Out of the box, the XS looks like what it is: a sensible, slightly old-school appliance.
My unit was silver and black, with a lot of functional plastic and a small brushed-look panel around the controls.
It doesn't look cheap, but it doesn't try to look like a piece of design furniture either.
My first espresso was thin, which is normal for any new automatic machine.
By the fifth shot, once the grinder had settled and I'd turned the strength dial up, I had a dense, hazelnut-colored crema and a properly sweet, chocolatey espresso.
That set the tone for the next four weeks.
The coffee was the easy part. The milk took practice.
The Magnifica XS is narrow enough to tuck into a corner, with the cappuccino I made on day three.
What the Magnifica XS actually is
The Magnifica XS is a fully automatic, bean-to-cup espresso machine with a manual steam wand.
You fill the hopper with whole beans and the water tank with fresh water, press a button, and the machine does the rest.
It grinds the beans, doses them into the brew unit, presses them into a puck, pushes hot water through at pressure and drops the used puck into an internal drawer.
Milk is the one job it leaves to you.
Instead of an automatic carafe, the XS has a Panarello wand✕Panarello wandA steam wand with a plastic sleeve that has a small air hole near the top. It sucks in air automatically as you steam, so you get foam without needing barista technique..
You hold a jug of milk under it, open the steam knob and froth the milk yourself.
Inside, a thermoblock✕ThermoblockA compact heater that warms water as it flows through, instead of keeping a whole boiler hot. It heats up fast and uses less standby energy. heats the water on demand.
The pump is rated at 15 bar, which is plenty for proper espresso extraction.
The same thermoblock also makes steam, so you wait a short moment when switching from coffee to steaming.
At the heart of it all is the brew unit✕Brew unitThe chamber inside an automatic machine that receives the ground coffee, presses it into a puck, pushes hot water through it and then ejects the used grounds., which slides out from the side of the machine.
That single design choice shapes a lot of what I liked about this machine.
Who De'Longhi built it for
The XS is aimed at people moving from pods or a drip machine who want fresh-ground espresso without a learning curve.
It's also a great fit for people who mostly drink espresso, lungo or Americano and only make the occasional milk drink.
If you make three lattes a day for a family, read the milk section carefully before buying.
Magnifica XS design and setup
The Magnifica XS measures about 9.4 × 17 × 13.8 inches (W × D × H) and weighs around 20 pounds.
The width is the headline. It's one of the narrowest bean-to-cup machines you can buy.
At 13.8 inches tall, it slides under standard wall cabinets, though you'll want to pull it forward to fill the bean hopper.
Like most automatics, it's deeper than it looks, so measure your counter depth first.
Front access makes daily life easier
The water tank slides straight out from the front, which I loved in a tight corner.
You never have to swing the machine around or reach behind it to fill up.
The drip tray and the grounds drawer also come out from the front as one assembly.
The tank holds about 60 ounces, roughly 1.8 liters, which is generous for a machine this narrow.
Controls: buttons and one dial
The control panel is about as simple as it gets.
There are buttons for a short coffee (espresso), a long coffee, two cups, steam and power, plus a row of warning lights.
In the middle sits a rotary dial that sets the coffee strength, from a mild dose to an extra-strong one.
There is no screen. No menus. No app.
For daily use, I came to like that a lot.
For maintenance, I liked it less, but more on that later.
Bean hopper and pre-ground chute
The bean hopper on top holds about 8.8 ounces, or 250 grams.
It has a lid, and a small funnel next to it takes one scoop of pre-ground coffee for a decaf without emptying the beans.
The grind adjustment knob sits inside the hopper.
First-time setup
Setup took me about 15 minutes.
You rinse the tank, fit the water filter if you're using one, set the water hardness with the included test strip and run water through the circuit.
Then you set your first grind and strength and start pulling shots.
Expect the first three to five drinks to be weaker while the machine calibrates its dose and the grinder beds in.
Our tip: Don't judge the Magnifica XS on its first few shots. Pull at least five espressos before you change any setting.
With the front-loading tank, I could leave the XS pushed back against the wall all month.
The built-in grinder
The XS grinds with steel conical burrs✕Conical burrsA cone-shaped cutting part that turns inside a ring. They grind evenly at fairly low speed, which keeps heat and noise down..
It's the same basic grinder hardware De'Longhi uses across its automatic range.
There are 13 grind settings, numbered on a knob inside the bean hopper.
Lower numbers give a finer grind and a slower, stronger shot. Higher numbers give a coarser grind and a faster, lighter one.
Bars show how much resistance the coffee puts up. Most medium roasts landed for me between settings 3 and 5.
Only turn the knob while it grinds
This is the most important rule on any De'Longhi grinder.
Turn the knob only while the grinder is running.
Turning it toward fine with the burrs stopped can jam bean fragments between them and strain the mechanism.
My routine was to start an espresso, lift the hopper lid, turn the knob one click and judge the result two shots later.
The strength dial does something different
The dial on the front doesn't change the grind. It changes the dose, meaning how much coffee goes into each shot.
I found the best combination was a fairly fine grind with the dial near the top of its range.
That gave me a full, sweet espresso without bitterness.
Turning the dial up with a coarse grind just gave me a bigger, watery puck.
Our tip: Change one thing at a time: either the grind knob or the strength dial, then pull two shots before you change anything else.
Noise
The grinder is noticeably loud.
In my kitchen, it gave a sharp burst for several seconds on every drink, loud enough to hear from the next room.
There's no extra sound insulation like on pricier machines.
If you get up long before everyone else, this is worth knowing.
Magnifica XS espresso performance
This is where the XS earns its reputation.
Because the brew unit and grinder are shared with De'Longhi's more expensive machines, a straight espresso from the XS tastes very close to what you'd get from models much higher up the range.
I tested that idea directly against the Magnifica XS's bigger siblings, the Magnifica Evo and Dinamica Plus, and in a blind sip of plain espresso I couldn't reliably tell them apart.
The extras on pricier machines are mostly about milk, menus and convenience, not about the shot itself.
How it tasted
With a medium-dark blend at grind setting 4 and the strength dial near maximum, my espressos had a dense, hazelnut-colored crema✕CremaThe golden-brown foam on top of an espresso. It forms when pressure pushes gases and oils out of freshly ground coffee. that held for a couple of minutes.
The body was round and fairly heavy for an automatic.
I tasted dark chocolate, toasted nuts and a little caramel, with low acidity and very little harshness.
Back-to-back shots were consistent once the machine was warm.
The first shot of the morning was the exception. It came out a bit cooler than the rest, so I always ran a quick rinse first.
Shot temperature
You can set the coffee temperature in the machine's settings, using a button-hold sequence from the manual.
I set mine to the highest level and warmed my cups.
That combination gave me espresso hot enough to sip slowly, without the scorched taste you get when water is simply too hot.
| What you taste or see | Likely cause | First change |
|---|---|---|
| Sour, thin, watery | Under-extraction | Grind one step finer or turn the strength dial up |
| Bitter, harsh, drying | Over-extraction | Grind one step coarser or shorten the volume |
| Pale crema that fades fast | Stale beans or grind too coarse | Use fresher beans and grind finer |
| Coffee drips slowly or stops | Grind far too fine | Turn the grind knob coarser while it runs |
| Lukewarm shot | Cold cup or cold machine | Warm the cup and run a rinse first |
| Weak first few drinks after unboxing | Machine still calibrating | Pull five shots before adjusting |
Two cups at once
The XS has two coffee spouts and a two-cup button.
It's handy for guests, though the shots are a little lighter than two separate singles.
When I wanted two strong espressos, I made them one after the other.
Our tip: For the strongest double espresso, brew two single shots back to back instead of using the two-cup button.
Long coffee and Americano
The long coffee button pushes a larger volume of water through a single puck of coffee.
At a normal mug size, it gave me a smooth, mild cup with a thin layer of crema.
Pushed too far, the end of the pour started to taste flat and slightly bitter, because the puck is giving up everything it has left.
For a big mug, I preferred to make an Americano by hand.
I pulled a single espresso, then topped it up with hot water from the wand.
That kept the sweetness and body of the espresso and avoided the over-brewed edge of a very long pour.
| Drink | How it's made | Best use |
|---|---|---|
| Espresso | Short shot through one puck | Straight espresso, milk drinks |
| Two espressos | Two spouts, one cycle | Quick shots for two people |
| Long coffee | Larger volume through one puck | Mild mug coffee |
| Americano (manual) | Espresso plus hot water from the wand | Bigger mug with more body |
| Cappuccino or latte (manual) | Espresso plus milk you steam yourself | Milk drinks with control over texture |
| Hot water | Through the steam wand | Tea and topping up Americanos |
Milk frothing with the Panarello wand
The milk system is the XS's biggest compromise, and it's an honest one.
The wand has a plastic sleeve with a small air hole near the top.
As steam rushes through, the sleeve pulls in air automatically, so the milk foams without you having to master any technique.
What the foam is like
Out of the box, the wand makes big, stiff foam quickly.
It's great for a traditional, dry cappuccino with a thick cap.
It's less suited to a flat white or latte art, which need fine, glossy microfoam✕MicrofoamMilk foam with bubbles so small you can't see them. It feels silky and blends into the coffee instead of sitting on top like froth. that pours like wet paint.
You also do all the steps yourself: pour cold milk into a jug, steam it, watch the temperature, pour it and wipe the wand.
On a busy morning, that adds a few minutes and a bit of mess.
Milk types I tried
Cold whole milk gave the richest and most stable foam.
Semi-skimmed made lighter foam that faded faster.
Barista-style oat milk worked well. Regular oat and almond drinks gave thin, bubbly foam.
My ratings on a 10-point scale for texture and stability, with the sleeve on and off.
Hot water and steam timing
The steam function heats the thermoblock to a higher temperature, so there's a short wait after pressing the steam button.
After steaming, the machine needs a moment to cool back down before it brews espresso at the right temperature.
I found it easiest to pull the espresso first, then steam the milk.
Our tip: Use a small stainless steel jug filled only a third of the way, so the milk has room to swirl and you can feel the temperature through the side.
Two espressos at once from the dual spouts, my go-to when friends dropped by.
How I steam milk on the XS, step by step
After a month of daily cappuccinos, this is the routine that worked best for me.
It takes about two minutes once you've done it a few times.
| Step | What I do | Why |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Brew first | Pull the espresso into a warmed cup | The machine brews at coffee temperature before switching to steam |
| 2. Fill the jug | Pour cold milk to about a third of a small steel jug | Leaves room for the milk to grow and swirl |
| 3. Heat up | Press the steam button and wait for the light to settle | The thermoblock needs a moment to reach steam temperature |
| 4. Purge | Open the knob briefly over the drip tray | Clears water so it doesn't dilute the milk |
| 5. Stretch | Hold the tip just under the surface for a few seconds | Adds air for foam |
| 6. Spin | Sink the tip a little and tilt the jug | Creates a whirlpool that folds the bubbles in |
| 7. Stop | Close the knob when the jug is too hot to hold for more than a second | Roughly 140 to 150°F, the sweet spot for flavor |
| 8. Clean | Purge again and wipe the wand right away | Stops milk baking onto the tip |
The first week vs the fourth week
My first cappuccinos looked like a cloud sitting on top of coffee.
The foam was dry and the milk underneath was thin.
By the second week, I was getting a smoother texture with the sleeve on by keeping the tip shallower for less time.
In week three, I started steaming with the sleeve off, and the difference was striking.
By week four, my flat whites had a glossy surface and a simple heart poured on top most mornings.
My foam quality over the test, rated out of 10 for texture and pourability.
Temperature control is a hidden upside
With a manual wand, you decide how hot the milk gets.
That matters more than people think.
Milk tastes sweetest at around 140 to 150°F. Go much hotter and it starts to taste flat and cooked.
I could also make a kids' warm milk at a lower temperature, or a very hot latte for someone who drinks slowly.
An automatic carafe, like the LatteCrema on the Magnifica Evo, gives you one fixed result. The XS gives you the full range, if you're willing to do the work.
Our tip: Rest your palm on the side of the jug while steaming. When it gets too hot to hold for more than a second, stop.
Drinks I made most often
Here are the drinks I settled on by the end of the month, with the settings that worked for me.
They're a good starting point if you're new to the machine.
| Drink | Grind and strength | Volume and method |
|---|---|---|
| Morning espresso | Grind 4, strength near maximum | Short button, reprogrammed to a smaller, denser shot |
| Flat white | Grind 4, strength maximum | One short espresso plus about 4 oz of silky steamed milk, sleeve off |
| Classic cappuccino | Grind 4, strength high | One espresso plus a thick cap of foam, sleeve on |
| Big mug Americano | Grind 4, strength high | One espresso, then about 6 oz of hot water from the wand |
| Afternoon long coffee | Grind 5, strength medium | Long button at its default size |
| Evening decaf | Pre-ground chute | One level scoop, short button |
A note on cup sizes
The spouts adjust from about 3.25 to 5.5 inches of clearance.
Most mugs fit, but tall latte glasses don't.
For lattes, I brewed into a small cup and poured the espresso into the glass of milk afterward.
It's an extra step, but it also gives you a nicer layered look.
A shorter latte glass fits under the spouts. Taller glasses need the espresso poured in afterward.
Who will enjoy this hands-on side
If you like a small morning ritual, the XS is genuinely satisfying.
If you want that ritual with a touch panel and a one-touch Americano, the Magnifica Start uses the same style of steam wand.
You get push-button espresso without any fiddly grinding or tamping, and then a little craft with the milk.
If you'd rather press one button and walk away, that same ritual will feel like a chore.
Buttons, lights and programming
Day to day, the controls are a pleasure.
One press for an espresso, one press for a long coffee, one press for two cups.
The strength dial is right there in the middle, so changing the dose for a single drink takes a second.
Setting your own cup size
You can reprogram the volume for each coffee button.
Press and hold the button, let the machine brew, and press again when the cup reaches the level you want.
The XS remembers that volume until you change it.
I shortened my espresso to a smaller, denser shot and lengthened the long coffee to fit my favorite mug.
There are no user profiles, so everyone in the house shares those settings.
The warning lights
This is the dated part.
Instead of a screen with text, the XS uses a set of small symbols and blinking lights.
One light means the water tank is empty. Another means the grounds drawer is full. Another means it's time to descale.
Some combinations blink in patterns that only make sense with the manual open.
During my second week, a light came on and I had to look it up before I realized it was simply asking me to empty the grounds drawer.
Changing deeper settings, like temperature or water hardness, also means holding buttons in specific sequences.
It works, and you only do it once or twice, but it's not intuitive.
Our tip: Take a photo of the indicator-light page in the manual and keep it on your phone. It saves a lot of guessing.
Pre-ground coffee and decaf
The small funnel next to the bean hopper takes one level scoop of pre-ground coffee✕Pre-ground bypassA separate chute that sends already-ground coffee straight to the brew unit, skipping the grinder. Handy for decaf without emptying the bean hopper..
You turn the strength dial to the pre-ground symbol, add a scoop and press the coffee button.
It's simple and useful for an evening decaf.
Don't add more than one scoop, because extra coffee can clog the brew unit.
Cleaning and maintaining the Magnifica XS
This is where the XS really shines.
Many automatic machines ask you to run cleaning tablets through a sealed brew group every few weeks.
The XS doesn't. Its brew unit simply slides out from a side door, and you rinse it under warm tap water.
No tablets, no chemical cleaning cycle, no special tools.
I took it out every week, rinsed off the coffee fines, let it air-dry and slid it back in.
The whole job took about five minutes.
| When | Task | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| Daily | Empty the drip tray and grounds drawer | Prevents mold and odors |
| Daily | Purge and wipe the steam wand | Stops milk drying inside the tip |
| Weekly | Remove and rinse the brew unit, no soap | Clears coffee fines and old oils |
| Weekly | Pull off the wand sleeve and wash it | Keeps the air hole clear |
| Every 4–6 months | Grease the brew unit rails with food-grade silicone grease | Keeps the mechanism moving smoothly |
| When the light comes on | Descale with a liquid descaler | Protects the thermoblock and pump |
Don't use soap on the brew unit
Rinse the brew unit with water only.
Dish soap strips the food-grade lubricant from the moving parts, and the dishwasher can warp it.
Descaling
The descale light comes on based on the water hardness you set.
You pour a liquid descaler into the tank, start the program and let it run, then rinse.
A standard liquid descaler works. There's no proprietary cartridge system to buy into.
Using the water filter in the tank stretches the time between descales.
My estimate of hands-on cleaning time per day, including wiping the steam wand.
Built to last
This is the other side of the simple design.
Fewer screens and circuit boards mean fewer things to fail.
Owners regularly report seven to ten years of service from this platform with basic care, and spare parts, including a full replacement brew unit, are widely available.
That longevity is a big part of the value.
What daily use is really like
My mornings went like this: switch on, wait about a minute for the heat-up and the automatic rinse, and brew.
An espresso took well under a minute.
A cappuccino with hand-steamed milk took me about three minutes including wiping the wand.
The tank goes a long way
The 60-ounce tank is generous for a machine this size.
With two of us drinking a mix of espressos, long coffees and a cappuccino or two, I refilled it every two to three days.
Rough maths from a 60 oz tank, allowing for rinse water. Actual numbers depend on cup size.
In a bright kitchen, the XS looks tidy and unfussy, which suits its personality.
Beans, water and milk
The XS is good enough that your beans make a clear difference.
Use fresh whole beans, ideally within a few weeks of the roast date.
Medium and medium-dark roasts gave me the best balance of body and sweetness.
Avoid very oily, shiny beans. They can stick in the hopper and gum up the grinder over time.
| Bean type | Result on the XS | My setting |
|---|---|---|
| Medium-dark blend | Thick crema, chocolate and nuts | Grind 4, strength high |
| Medium roast | Brighter, sweeter, a little lighter | Grind 3–4, strength high |
| Light roast | Can taste sour unless ground finer | Grind 2–3, strength max |
| Very dark, oily | Bitter and hard on the grinder | Not recommended |
Water
Fill the tank with fresh, cold water every day.
Use the filter if your tap water is hard.
Avoid distilled water, because espresso needs some minerals to taste full and the machine's sensors rely on them.
Our tip: Only fill the hopper with what you'll use in two or three days, so the beans stay fresh.
Common mistakes to avoid
The Magnifica XS is easy to live with, but a few habits will hold it back.
| Mistake | What happens | Better habit |
|---|---|---|
| Turning the grind knob while the grinder is stopped | Beans jam and strain the burrs | Adjust only while it grinds |
| Washing the brew unit with soap | Strips the lubricant from moving parts | Rinse with water only |
| Leaving milk on the wand | The air hole clogs and foam suffers | Purge and wipe after every use |
| Using the two-cup button for a strong double | Two lighter shots | Brew two singles |
| One huge long coffee | Flat, over-brewed finish | Espresso plus hot water |
| Ignoring the blinking lights | Drinks stop mid-pour | Check the light guide in the manual |
What I would change
A simple text display instead of cryptic lights would fix my biggest annoyance.
An automatic milk option would make it much easier for milk-drink households, although De'Longhi sells that experience in models like the Magnifica Evo.
And a quieter grinder would make early mornings friendlier.
Is the Magnifica XS worth the money?
For the right person, absolutely.
You get espresso that matches far pricier machines, a brew unit you can clean in your sink and a platform known for lasting many years.
What you give up is convenience with milk and a modern interface.
Ask yourself three questions before you buy.
Do you mostly drink espresso, long coffee or Americano? Are you happy steaming milk by hand when you want a cappuccino? And do you value simplicity and reliability over screens and apps?
If the answers are yes, the XS is one of the easiest automatic machines to recommend.
How it compares with other De'Longhi machines
The most useful comparison is with the other machines in De'Longhi's own lineup, because they share the same brew unit.
| Feature | Magnifica XS | Magnifica Start | Magnifica Evo | Dinamica Plus |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Espresso quality | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent | Excellent |
| Milk system | Manual Panarello wand | Manual wand or LatteCrema | LatteCrema carafe | LatteCrema thermal carafe |
| Interface | Buttons, dial and lights | Touch icons | Touch icons | 3.5-inch color touchscreen |
| One-touch drinks | Espresso, long coffee | 3 to 5 | 7 | 16 |
| User profiles | No | No | No | Yes, plus app |
| Cleaning tablets needed | No | No | No | No |
| Best for | Black coffee and simplicity | Beginners | Milk drinks on a budget | Households with different tastes |
A newer touch-panel model makes milk drinks easier and clearer to operate.
A larger, connected model adds profiles, iced drinks and an app.
The XS sits at the simple end, with the same shot quality and the fewest things to go wrong.
| You mostly drink | Is the XS a fit? | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Espresso | Excellent | Shared brew unit, rich crema |
| Long coffee or Americano | Very good | Long coffee button plus hot water |
| One cappuccino now and then | Good | Panarello wand works well with practice |
| Several milk drinks every day | Fair | Manual steaming takes time |
| Iced coffee | Poor | No iced program |
The full package: button panel, strength dial, dual spouts and the Panarello wand on the left.
Other De'Longhi machines I tested
If you want the same coffee with a touch panel, see my De'Longhi Magnifica Start review.
For one-touch cappuccinos and lattes, my Magnifica Evo review covers the LatteCrema carafe.
For a big touchscreen, user profiles and an app, read my Dinamica Plus review.
Which one is right for you: is the Magnifica XS your match?
4 quick questionsMagnifica XS specifications
From manufacturer data and my own testing.
How I tested and scored the Magnifica XS
For four weeks, I used the Magnifica XS as my everyday machine for espresso, double espressos, long coffee, manual Americanos, cappuccinos and flat whites.
I worked through the grind range with medium, medium-dark and light roasts, tested the strength dial at every level, reprogrammed cup volumes and set the brew temperature to each level.
I steamed whole, semi-skimmed, barista oat and almond milk with the Panarello sleeve on and off, removed and rinsed the brew unit every week and tracked how long a tank lasted.
I then checked my notes against De'Longhi's specifications and owner documentation.
- Espresso (8.6): body, crema, flavor and consistency across back-to-back shots.
- Milk drinks (6.4): foam texture with and without the Panarello sleeve, milk temperature and effort.
- Ease of use (7.8): buttons, strength dial, programming, indicator lights and setup.
- Cleaning (8.4): weekly brew unit rinse, wand care, descaling and daily emptying.
The overall score of 7.9 is an editorial rating that reflects those four areas.
Magnifica XS FAQ
Is the De'Longhi Magnifica XS worth it?
Yes, if you mostly drink espresso or black coffee. It shares its brew unit with pricier De'Longhi machines, so the espresso is excellent, and it's simple and easy to clean. If you drink several milk drinks a day, a model with an automatic milk carafe will be more convenient.
Does the Magnifica XS have an automatic milk frother?
No. It has a manual Panarello steam wand. You froth milk in a jug yourself, which takes a little practice but gives you control over temperature and texture.
Can the Magnifica XS make microfoam for latte art?
With the plastic sleeve on, the foam is thick and stiff. If you slide the sleeve off and steam with the bare tip, you can make silky microfoam with practice.
How many grind settings does the Magnifica XS have?
It has 13 grind settings on a steel conical burr grinder. Only change the setting while the grinder is running.
Do I need cleaning tablets?
No. The brew unit slides out from the side and you rinse it under warm water. You only need a liquid descaler when the descale light comes on.
How big is the water tank?
About 60 ounces, or 1.8 liters, and it slides out from the front.
Can I use pre-ground coffee?
Yes. Turn the strength dial to the pre-ground setting, add one level scoop to the chute and press the coffee button.
Can it make two cups at once?
Yes, it has two spouts and a two-cup button. For two strong espressos, brew two singles one after the other.
Is the Magnifica XS loud?
The grinder is fairly loud for a few seconds on every drink. Brewing itself is quieter.
Does it make Americano?
There's no Americano button, but you can pull an espresso and add hot water from the steam wand.
How long does a Magnifica XS last?
With regular brew unit rinsing, occasional greasing and descaling, owners commonly report seven to ten years of use.
Kitchen & coffee tester
Michael spent six years as a line cook in restaurants in Chicago and New York, and he has tested kitchen appliances for HouseholdMe since 2018, from air fryers to coffee makers. He holds an SCA certificate in barista skills and used the Magnifica XS as his everyday coffee machine for four weeks for this review.
- Four weeks of hands-on testing of the De'Longhi Magnifica XS ECAM22110SB
- De'Longhi product specifications and owner documentation
- General espresso brewing and maintenance guidance