De'Longhi Rivelia vs Dinamica Plus: which mid-range machine wins?

Rivelia vs Dinamica Plus at a glance

Head to head

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

Keep in mind that the tally is not my verdict. Some rows matter far more than others, and which ones matter depends on how your household drinks coffee.

Design, size and build

Side by side, these two look like they came out of the same design studio, and in a sense they did. Both are tall, narrow towers with a touchscreen on top and the spouts on the front.

The Dinamica Plus is the slimmer of the two at about 9.3 inches wide. The Rivelia measures about 9.6 inches on paper, and with its side tank fitted my tape measure showed closer to 10 inches.

Depth is where you need to pay attention. Both sit at roughly 17 inches deep, and both need a little room in front so you can pull out the drip tray without dragging the machine.

The Rivelia's two bean hoppers sit on top and lock in with a quarter turn.

Height is closer than you might expect. The Dinamica Plus stands about 14.2 inches tall, while the Rivelia comes in around 15.2 inches with a hopper fitted, so measure the gap under your wall cabinets before you order.

The finish is mostly plastic on both. The Rivelia's matte panels and colored hopper lids feel a little more modern, and the Dinamica Plus has a cleaner, more traditional front with a brushed-look strip.

Weight is a wash at about 21 pounds each. Neither is something you will want to slide around daily, which is why the hopper and tank positions matter so much.

Height on the counter

Both fit under standard 18-inch wall cabinets, but the Rivelia needs more clearance to refill a hopper.

Our tip: Leave about 3 inches above the Rivelia for hopper swaps, because you lift the whole hopper straight up rather than just opening a lid.

Setup and the first week

Setup is guided on screen on both machines, and both had me making drinks in about 15 minutes. You fill the tank, test your water hardness with the strip in the box and let the machine rinse its pipes.

The Rivelia adds one clever step called Bean Adapt✕Bean Adapt TechnologyA guided setup on De'Longhi's newer machines. You tell the machine about your beans, taste a test shot and it adjusts grind, dose and temperature for that roast.. You tell it what kind of roast you loaded, taste a test shot and answer a few questions, and it sets the grind and temperature for you.

For a beginner, that is a real advantage. Instead of guessing at 13 grind settings, you start somewhere sensible and fine-tune by taste.

The Dinamica Plus took a week of small changes before its espresso really shone.

The Dinamica Plus has no guided bean setup, so my first week was a tuning project. Out of the box the espresso was thin and long, and I scored it 5.8 out of 10 on day one.

Here is how it climbed once I started adjusting one thing at a time:

My Dinamica Plus espresso score, week one

Rated out of 10 after each change. The Rivelia started at a solid 7.5 thanks to Bean Adapt.

By day seven, the Dinamica Plus was pulling the best espresso of the two machines. The Rivelia got me to good coffee faster, but its ceiling was a little lower.

Our tip: On the Dinamica Plus, change only one setting per day, because grind, strength and volume all affect each other and you will not know which change helped.

Touchscreen, profiles and the app

Both machines use a bright 3.5-inch color touchscreen, and both are easy to read from across the kitchen. Each drink is one tap away from the home screen.

The difference is in how they handle a household. The Rivelia stores four user profiles✕User profilesSaved settings for each person in the house. Each profile keeps its own strength, size and temperature for every drink., and each one remembers strength, size and temperature for every drink.

The Dinamica Plus stores three. That sounds like a small gap until you have a family of four, at which point someone shares a profile and nobody's coffee is quite right.

The Rivelia's 3.5-inch screen and four profiles made it the easiest machine to share.

The Dinamica Plus app

The Dinamica Plus adds De'Longhi's Coffee Link app over Bluetooth. You can start drinks from your phone, build custom recipes and see maintenance alerts.

In practice, I used it twice a week at most. The connection was slow to pair, and because it is Bluetooth rather than Wi-Fi, it only worked when I was within a room or so of the machine.

The Rivelia has no app at all, and I never missed one. The touchscreen does everything, and my partner found it more intuitive than the app.

Our tip: Name each profile after the person and the drink they like most, so guests can find a sensible starting point without asking you.

Bean Switch vs one hopper

This is the headline difference, and for some households it decides everything on its own.

The Rivelia comes with two 8.8-ounce hoppers. Each one locks onto the grinder with a 90-degree twist, and you lift one off and drop the other on in a few seconds.

The trick is what happens to the beans already in the grinder. On my machine, roughly 10 grams stayed behind after every swap, which is about two-thirds of a single shot.

Lifting a Rivelia hopper off takes a quarter turn and about two seconds.

After a swap, the Rivelia asks whether to grind and discard that leftover coffee or use it in your next drink. If you are switching to decaf in the afternoon, discard it, because a transition drink still carries caffeine.

Beans lost per day by switching habit

Based on the roughly 10 g I measured left in the grinder after each swap.

If you only drink one coffee, the second hopper still earns its keep as airtight-ish storage for your next bag. I kept a fresh bag in the spare hopper so I never ran out mid-week.

The Dinamica Plus has one hopper and no switching system. You can still use pre-ground decaf through its bypass chute, one scoop at a time, which works for the occasional evening cup.

For a household that drinks decaf most days, that scoop gets old fast. That is where the Rivelia pulled clearly ahead in my testing.

The drink menu

Both machines cover the drinks most people actually make: espresso, a double, long coffee, americano, cappuccino, latte, latte macchiato and flat white.

The US Rivelia lists 18 one-touch recipes, all hot, including a cortado✕CortadoA small drink of espresso cut with roughly the same amount of warm milk, with very little foam. and an espresso macchiato. There is no iced coffee unless you add De'Longhi's cold milk accessory, which is sold separately.

The Dinamica Plus lists 16 one-touch drinks, but they include iced coffee and iced milk drinks. Its over-ice program brews a stronger, shorter coffee so the ice does not water it down.

One-touch drinks on each menu

Counted from each machine’s US menu. Hot water is not included, and the Rivelia’s iced drinks need the separate cold accessory.

In daily use, the menus felt close. My household lived on espresso, long coffee, cappuccino and flat white on both, and the extra recipes on either machine saw little use.

Iced coffee was the exception. In a warm week, the Dinamica Plus iced coffee became a 3 p.m. habit, and it was genuinely good rather than a gimmick.

The Dinamica Plus brews a shorter, stronger coffee for its iced drinks.

Our tip: Fill your glass with ice before you press start on the Dinamica Plus iced coffee, because the program is tuned for a full glass of ice and tastes weak with only a few cubes.

Grinder and dose

On paper, the grinders are the same. Both use 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. with 13 settings and both top out at about 15 grams of coffee per brew.

That 15-gram ceiling is generous for a fully automatic machine. It is what lets both of them make a full-bodied double rather than two weak half-shots.

On the Rivelia, intensity 5 ran the grinder for about 10 seconds and gave me roughly 15 grams on my scale. Bean Adapt settled on a middle grind setting for my medium-dark blend.

On the Dinamica Plus, a single shot grinds for about 5 seconds and the double-strength options run for about 10. Its sweet spot was setting 3, one of the finest, where the puck came out tight and dry.

Here is the catch on both: only change the grind while the grinder is running. Turning the dial with the burrs stopped can jam beans between them.

At its strongest setting, the Rivelia ground about 15 grams in roughly 10 seconds.

Our tip: Move the grind dial one click at a time and wait two or three drinks before judging, because the first shot after a change still uses coffee ground at the old setting.

Espresso quality

This is where the Dinamica Plus earned its place, once I put in the work.

Both machines use a 19-bar pump and a thermoblock✕ThermoblockA compact heater that warms water on its way through a metal block, instead of keeping a tank of water hot. It heats up fast and switches tasks quickly., and both run a short pre-infusion✕Pre-infusionA short soak of the ground coffee before full pressure starts, so water flows through the puck evenly. before full pressure. On paper they should taste alike. In the cup, they didn't.

On the Dinamica Plus, I set the strength to Extra Strong, the grind to 3 and cut the espresso volume to about 0.7 fluid ounces. That gave me roughly a 1:3 brew ratio✕Brew ratioThe weight of dry coffee compared with the weight of liquid espresso in the cup. A 1:2 or 1:3 ratio gives a short, concentrated shot., and the shot came out dense, syrupy and full of dark chocolate.

With a shortened volume, the Dinamica Plus pulled the most syrupy espresso of the two.

On the Rivelia, my go-to recipe was intensity 5 and a small cup, aiming for about 30 grams of espresso from 15 grams of coffee. The shot was smooth and balanced with a fine, even crema✕CremaThe golden, foamy layer on top of a fresh espresso. It forms when pressure pushes oils and gases out of the coffee., but the body was a step lighter.

Both machines ship with espresso volumes that are too long for my taste. Shortening the shot was the single biggest improvement on either one.

My espresso ratings

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

In milk drinks, the gap mostly disappeared. A cappuccino buries small differences in body, and both machines made a strong, sweet base for milk.

If you drink straight espresso after dinner, though, the Dinamica Plus is the machine I would want on my counter.

Long coffee and americano

If you mostly drink a mug of black coffee, this section matters more than the espresso one.

A proper americano is espresso topped with hot water. Pushing a whole mug of water through the coffee instead tends to over-extract it and taste bitter.

Both machines make a true americano. They pull the espresso first, then add water through a separate path, so the coffee keeps its crema and sweetness.

Both also offer De'Longhi's Long coffee, which brews in pulses with a longer extraction. It is a good mug of coffee, somewhere between an americano and drip.

The Rivelia's long coffee was a clean, easy mug for weekday mornings.

On the Dinamica Plus, I set my mug of coffee between 3.4 and 3.9 fluid ounces on Extra Strong. It came out rich and round, with none of the papery bitterness I get from oversized defaults.

On the Rivelia, intensity 4 to 5 and about 120 ml gave me a mild, clean mug. It was the drink my partner made most, and the one guests liked best.

So both handle a mug of black coffee well. The Dinamica Plus makes the bolder mug, and the Rivelia makes the gentler one.

Our tip: Use the Doppio+ on the Dinamica Plus as the base for a big americano and add hot water yourself, because the bigger dose keeps far more body than a long brew.

Milk drinks

Both machines use De'Longhi's LatteCrema✕LatteCrema systemDe'Longhi's automatic milk system. A carafe clicks onto the front, the machine draws milk in, heats it with steam and mixes in air, and a dial sets the foam level. system. You click a carafe onto the front, pick a drink and the machine froths the milk and pours it straight into your cup.

The difference is the carafe. The Rivelia uses a plastic LatteCrema Hot carafe. The Dinamica Plus uses a double-walled stainless steel carafe that keeps milk cold for longer.

That thermal carafe sounds like a small upgrade. In practice, it meant I could leave milk on the machine through a busy breakfast without the foam getting looser drink by drink.

The Dinamica Plus thermal carafe kept milk cold through a busy breakfast.

Texture and temperature

The Dinamica Plus poured some of the best automatic foam I have tested. It was dense and glossy microfoam✕MicrofoamMilk foam with bubbles so small you can barely see them. It feels silky and glossy, which is what a good flat white needs. on the flat white setting and a proper, airy cap on cappuccinos.

The Rivelia's foam was very good too, just a little lighter and less glossy. Its dial gives three foam levels, and the middle one suited lattes and flat whites best.

On the Rivelia, my frothed milk consistently measured between 140°F and 149°F. That is right in the range where milk tastes sweetest, hot enough to enjoy without scalding.

How each milk foamed on the Dinamica Plus

My ratings out of 10 for texture and stability. The Rivelia followed the same order, about half a point lower across the board.

Barista-style oat milk foamed well on both. Regular almond drink was a letdown on both, with big, loose bubbles that collapsed in under a minute.

Our tip: Keep your milk at fridge temperature, around 38 to 40°F, until it goes into the carafe, because warm milk makes big, loose bubbles on both machines.

Hot water and tea

If someone in your home drinks tea, it is worth knowing how hot each machine's water gets.

On the Rivelia, my hot water readings came in between 194°F and 203°F. That is hot enough for black tea and for topping up an americano without cooling it down.

The Dinamica Plus also dispenses hot water, and it was in the same ballpark in my use. It suited green tea, herbal tea and americano top-ups without any trouble.

Neither machine replaces a kettle for a big teapot. Each pour is cup-sized, and filling a large pot means pressing the button several times.

The Rivelia's hot water measured 194 to 203°F, hot enough for black tea.

Our tip: Run a little hot water into your cup before every espresso, because a pre-warmed cup keeps the shot hot to the last sip on both machines.

Cleaning and upkeep

On the coffee side, both are easy. They rinse the spouts when they switch on and off, and both have a removable brew unit✕Brew unitThe part that compresses the ground coffee, holds it while water passes through and then ejects the used puck. you can pull out and rinse under the tap once a week.

Where that brew unit lives makes a difference. On the Rivelia, it sits behind a side door that opens in one move.

On the Dinamica Plus, it sits behind the water tank. You slide the tank out, open the door and then pull the unit, which is one more step and a little awkward the first few times.

The Dinamica Plus brew unit sits behind its front-loading water tank.

The milk side

Both carafes have a clean function. When you finish a milk drink, you turn the dial to Clean and the machine pushes hot water and steam through the milk path.

The Rivelia's carafe is simple: a lid, a frothing head and a tube. The Dinamica Plus carafe has more parts, and because it is thermal, it needs a proper wash every day rather than a quick rinse.

I spent about 15 seconds on the Dinamica Plus clean cycle after each milk drink, and a few minutes a day washing its carafe parts by hand. On the Rivelia, my daily milk routine was closer to two minutes.

My daily hands-on cleaning time

My estimate of hands-on time per day, not counting automatic rinses.

How often you descale depends on your water. General guidance for home espresso machines is roughly every three months with soft water, every two months with medium water and every month with hard water.

Our tip: Store the Dinamica Plus carafe in the fridge between breakfast and lunch, then run the clean cycle once at the end of the day, which cut my washing in half without the foam suffering.

Noise

The Rivelia is the quieter machine. I measured 66 to 68 decibels while it was grinding and brewing, and the grinder only runs for about 10 seconds per drink.

That is about the level of a lively conversation. It never woke anyone in my house, even from a bedroom next to the kitchen.

The Dinamica Plus grinds with a sharper, higher pitch. On its finest setting it sounded busier, and the double-strength drinks grind for twice as long.

Sound level comparison

My readings for the Rivelia alongside common reference levels. The Dinamica Plus was noticeably sharper by ear.

Neither is loud enough to worry about in a busy kitchen. In an open-plan apartment at 6 a.m., the Rivelia is the easier machine to live with.

The Rivelia was the better machine for early, quiet mornings.

Water, beans and supplies

Running either machine costs about the same in supplies. Both use De'Longhi's water filter, descaler and milk cleaner, and both are happy with ordinary whole beans.

The tanks are a different story. The Dinamica Plus holds about 60 ounces and loads from the front, while the Rivelia holds about 47 ounces and loads from the side.

For two people drinking a mix of espresso and milk drinks, the Dinamica Plus tank lasted about two days. The Rivelia needed a refill every day or so.

Drinks per full tank

Rough maths allowing for rinse water. Your numbers depend on cup size.

Use fresh whole beans within a few weeks of the roast date. Medium and medium-dark roasts worked best on both machines.

Avoid very oily or flavored beans on either one. They can clog the grinder over time, and on the Rivelia they cling to the hopper gates when you swap.

Our tip: Buy a bag you can finish in two or three weeks, because both grinders show off fresh coffee far better than stale.

Spent coffee pucks do not have to go in the trash. They are a useful addition to a compost pile in small amounts.

Real-life scenarios

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

For espresso lovers and iced coffee fans, the Dinamica Plus earns its place.

My scorecard

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

Rivelia

Dinamica Plus

Overall, I rate the Rivelia 8.5 and the Dinamica Plus 8.6. That is as close as two machines get, and it is why your household, not the scorecard, should make the call.

Which one should you buy?

It comes down to one question: does your home drink one coffee or two? Answer that honestly and the choice mostly makes itself. Still weighing other options? I rank every model I’ve tested in my guide to the best super-automatic espresso machines.

If you are still weighing up the wider range, my guide to the best De'Longhi super-automatic machines ranks every model I tested, and the Magnifica Duo vs Rivelia vs Eletta Explore comparison covers the step up to cold brew.

For shared kitchens and two-bean homes, the Rivelia earns its place.

Rivelia vs Dinamica Plus specifications

From manufacturer specifications and my own testing.

How I tested and compared them

I used each machine as my everyday coffee maker for four weeks, making espresso, long coffee, americanos, cappuccinos, flat whites, lattes and tea water, plus iced coffee on the Dinamica Plus.

I weighed doses and yields, measured milk and hot water temperatures with a probe thermometer, took decibel readings while grinding and worked through the grind range on both.

I foamed whole, semi-skimmed, skim, barista oat and almond drinks, ran every cleaning routine and then compared my notes with De'Longhi's specifications and owner documentation. Michael Reynolds wrote up the notes from both test periods.

• Coffee: dose, crema, body and consistency.
• Milk: foam texture, temperature and drink range.
• Workflow: touchscreen, profiles, bean switching and app.
• Ownership: noise, cleaning, water care and footprint.