Aeropress

Never settle for bad hotel coffee again. The AeroPress is the world's favourite portable coffee maker — and for good reason. In under a minute, it produces rich, smooth, espresso-style coffee with none of the bitterness of a plunger and none of the bulk of a machine.

Invented by Alan Adler (the aerodynamics engineer behind the Aerobie flying ring), the AeroPress is deceptively simple: add coffee, add water, press. The result is a full-bodied, low-acidity cup that'll ruin you for instant coffee forever. It's the one piece of kit serious coffee drinkers refuse to leave home without.

Which AeroPress Is Right For You?

The range looks similar at a glance, but each model is built for a different life.

• AeroPress Original — The classic. Single-cup brewer, lives on the kitchen bench or in the cupboard, makes the same cup it has since 2005. If you mostly brew at home and occasionally take it away, this is the one.
• AeroPress Go — Travel-first. Same brewing system, smaller footprint, and everything (including a stirrer, scoop, and 350 filters) packs neatly into the included travel mug. The mug doubles as the lid for the chamber. Designed to live in a bag without rattling.
• AeroPress Clear — Same dimensions as the Original, made from BPA-free Tritan that's translucent rather than opaque. You can actually watch the coffee brew, which is more useful than it sounds for dialling in your method. Same flavour, more visual feedback.
• AeroPress XL — Double the capacity of the Original. Brews up to 4 cups (or one very large one). The pick if you brew for two people every morning, or if you're tired of running the Original twice in a row.

Why The AeroPress Travels

• BPA-free plastic body — survives drops, packing, and overhead lockers
• Brews in under a minute
• Packs into a backpack corner or the included Go mug
• Works with any grind, any coffee, any kettle
• Easy to clean — pop the puck into the bin, rinse the chamber

Frequently Asked Questions

What's the difference between AeroPress and AeroPress Go?

The Original is built for home use; the Go is built for travel. The Go is slightly smaller, comes with a travel mug that holds the entire kit (chamber, plunger, stirrer, scoop, filters), and is designed to pack and unpack quickly. Brewing capacity is similar — both make a single cup. If you mostly brew on the bench, get the Original. If you mostly brew on the road, get the Go.

Can you make espresso with an AeroPress?

Not technically — true espresso needs 9 bars of pressure, and the AeroPress produces around 0.4–0.7 bars by hand. What it does make is an espresso-style concentrate: thick, full-bodied, low-acidity, with crema-like surface texture. Use it as a base for milk drinks, dilute it for an Americano, or drink it neat. Most people prefer the AeroPress version to bad-machine espresso.

Is AeroPress worth it for travel?

If you care about coffee and you spend any time in hotels, holiday rentals, or campsites — yes. The AeroPress Go in particular pays for itself the first time you skip the hotel café and brew your own. It weighs almost nothing, packs into its own mug, and gives you a properly good cup anywhere there's hot water.

What is the AeroPress XL?

The bigger sibling. Roughly double the chamber capacity of the Original, designed to brew enough for two people in one go (or one large mug). Same brewing principle, same flavour profile — just more of it. The pick for households that share their morning routine, or anyone who's been quietly running the Original twice every day.

New to it? Read our honest verdict — AeroPress vs French press: which is better for travel.