If you want a proper espresso at home and don't want capsules, you have two roads: ESE pods or whole bean coffee. Both make good coffee. The difference is how involved you want to be every morning, and what you're willing to pay per cup and for the machine.
The two options, head to head
ESE PODS
Convenience
How you make it
Put the pod in, pull the lever down and press.
Coffee per cup
7 g, dosed and tamped at the factory.
Cost per coffee
Between 0,36 and 0,44 €.
Coffee machine
From 139 €.
Cleaning
Hardly any: the used pod goes in food waste.
WHOLE BEAN COFFEE
Control
How you make it
Grind, dose, tamp and extract.
Coffee per cup
Whatever you decide: between 7 and 9 g for an espresso.
Cost per coffee
Between 0,20 and 0,30 € with a 500 g bag.
Coffee machine
With a built-in grinder, like the G50S (559 €), or a coffee machine plus a separate grinder.
Cleaning
Portafilter, grinder and grounds every day.
The cost per coffee for beans comes from dividing a 500 g bag, between 14,50 and 21 euros in our shop, into about 70 espressos of 7 grams. For pods it's the price of the box of 25 divided by 25.
Pros and cons
ESE PODS
Pros
- Coffee ready in a minute, the same every time.
- No grinder, no grounds, nothing to calibrate.
- Every dose is sealed: the coffee keeps for months.
- Open standard: works with coffee from any roaster.
- Smaller, cheaper coffee machines.
Cons
- Each cup costs a little more than with beans.
- Less room to play with grind or dose.
- A little waste per coffee (compostable paper and a recyclable wrapper).
WHOLE BEAN COFFEE
Pros
- The freshest aroma: you grind just before brewing.
- Full control over grind, dose and extraction.
- The cheapest coffee per cup.
- The same beans work for espresso, moka pot or filter.
Cons
- Takes time and a bit of practice.
- Portafilter and grinder need cleaning.
- A machine with a grinder costs more.
- Opened beans lose aroma within a few weeks.
Which one is for you
you want your coffee to come out right without thinking about it, you drink one or two a day, your kitchen is small or everyone at home makes their own in a rush.
you enjoy making coffee, you want to try origins as espresso and as filter, you drink several a day and the saving per cup is worth the time.
There's a third, very common option: pods for every day and a bag of beans for the weekend, with a French press or a moka pot. You don't have to marry one format.
Which coffee machine
Polti Coffea S18
ESE pods · 139 €
La Piccola Piccola
ESE pods · 310 €
Polti Coffea G50S
Beans, with grinder · 559 €
If you're coming from capsules and don't want any fuss, start with pods: in this article we explain what they are and why they're not capsules. If the ritual is your thing, the G50S grinds exactly what it's going to use, with 30 grind settings and a 58 mm portafilter, the café standard.
FAQs
Are whole beans cheaper than pods?
Per cup, yes: with our 500 g beans an espresso works out at between 0,20 and 0,30 euros, against 0,36-0,44 for pods. But a bean-to-cup machine with a grinder costs more, so the saving shows once you drink several coffees a day.
Do pods taste worse than beans?
Not necessarily. Each pod holds 7 g of origin coffee sealed in its wrapper, which keeps the aroma very well. Freshly ground beans have an extra edge of freshness, which is why people who like making coffee find it worth it.
Can I use ground coffee in a pod machine?
Not in our pod machines: they work with 44 mm ESE pods. The G50S does take ground coffee as well as beans.
How long does a 500 g bag of beans last?
About 70 espressos of 7 g. If you drink two a day, just over a month.
Two formats, the same origins: See ESE pods → · See whole bean coffee → · See coffee machines →
