Breville Bambino vs. Bambino Plus: Which Should You Buy?

Same Espresso, Different Milk Experience

Here's the thing that surprises most people shopping between these two: the espresso itself is identical. Same ThermoJet heating, same 54mm portafilter, same Italian pump, same pre-infusion. If you drink your coffee black or you're happy steaming milk by hand, the $200 gap between these machines is buying you almost nothing. If you make milk drinks daily and hate the learning curve of a manual steam wand, that same $200 buys you real, daily convenience.

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The Core Difference in One Paragraph

The Bambino has a standard manual steam wand — you control temperature and texture entirely by hand, same as any traditional espresso machine. The Bambino Plus swaps that for an automatic steam wand with two buttons, one for temperature and one for froth level, each with low/medium/high presets, so it froths milk hands-free while you do something else. The Plus also carries a larger water tank (64 oz versus 47 oz), a slightly wider body to fit it, more color options, better included accessories, and a 2-year warranty instead of 1.

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Quick Picks

• Best if you drink espresso or Americanos, not milk drinks: Bambino
• Best if you make lattes or cappuccinos daily and want it hands-free: Bambino Plus
• Best value for the espresso itself: Bambino — you're not paying extra for shot quality either way
• Best if you want to learn real steaming technique: Bambino, precisely because it doesn't automate it away

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Bambino — Best for Espresso Purists and Manual Control

The original Bambino strips a genuinely good espresso machine down to its essentials and prices it accordingly.

What we like:

• Full manual control over steam texture and temperature — better for anyone who wants to develop real barista skills rather than rely on presets
• About $200 cheaper than the Plus for identical espresso quality
• Narrower body (6.3" wide) fits tighter counter spots than the Plus
• Same 3-second ThermoJet heat-up as the Plus — no compromise on wait time

Where it falls short:

• Manual steam wand has a real learning curve; expect inconsistent microfoam for the first several attempts
• Smaller 47 oz tank means more frequent refills if you're pulling several shots a day
• Fewer included accessories — no razor trimming tool or backflushing disc in the box
• Only available in stainless steel, no color options

Price range: $299-349 depending on sales

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Bambino Plus — Best for Milk Drinks on Autopilot

The Plus exists for one clear reason: hands-free, consistent microfoam without spending months practicing wand technique.

What we like:

• Automatic steam wand with temperature and froth-level presets produces consistent microfoam every time, no technique required
• Larger 64 oz tank covers roughly four more cups before a refill compared to the base Bambino
• Better included accessories: proper tamper, razor trimming tool, backflushing disc and tablets
• Available in multiple colors, plus a 2-year warranty versus the base model's 1-year

Where it falls short:

• Costs roughly $200 more for features that don't touch espresso quality at all
• The auto-steam system is one more mechanism that can fail — see the Bambino Plus auto steam not working guide if the wand stops behaving
• Slightly wider footprint (7.7") than the base Bambino, which matters in a genuinely tight kitchen

Price range: $499-549 depending on sales

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Reliability: What Actually Breaks

Because the espresso side is identical, both machines share the same ThermoJet-related issues — scale buildup causing low pressure being the most common, covered in depth in our Bambino low pressure guide. Where they diverge is entirely on the milk side:

• Bambino has no auto-steam system to fail — a manual wand is mechanically about as simple as it gets, so wand-related failures are rare and usually just a clogged tip
• Bambino Plus occasionally needs an Auto MilQ reset if the wand stops steaming or produces inconsistent foam, on top of the same ThermoJet scale issues both machines share

Neither machine is meaningfully less durable overall — the Plus just has one additional system (auto-steam) that the base Bambino simply doesn't include, for better or worse.

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Is the Auto Steam Wand Actually Worth $200?

That depends entirely on how often you make milk drinks and whether you enjoy the process. If steaming milk by hand feels like a chore you'd rather skip every morning, the Plus pays for itself in daily convenience fast. If you actually like the ritual, or you mostly drink your espresso black, the automation is solving a problem you don't have — and the base Bambino gives you the identical shot for meaningfully less money.

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Can You Go Wrong Either Way?

Not on espresso quality — that part's a wash. Where people go wrong is buying the base Bambino assuming they'll "pick up" steaming quickly and getting frustrated for weeks, or buying the Plus and never using the milk features because they actually drink Americanos. Be honest about your actual daily drink before deciding; the $200 gap only makes sense if you know which side of that line you're on.

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FAQ

Does the Bambino Plus make better espresso than the base Bambino?

No. Both use the same ThermoJet heating, pump, and portafilter — the shots taste identical. Every difference between them is on the milk side.

How long does it take to learn the Bambino's manual steam wand?

Most people get workable microfoam within a couple of weeks of daily practice, though genuinely smooth latte-art-ready texture usually takes a few months of regular use.

Can I add automatic steaming to a base Bambino later?

No — the Auto MilQ system is built into the Plus's steam wand assembly at the factory. There's no retrofit kit for the base Bambino.

Is the Bambino Plus's larger tank the main reason to upgrade?

For most buyers, no — the automatic steam wand is the deciding feature. The larger tank is a genuine bonus, but people who choose the Plus are almost always choosing it for hands-free milk, not water capacity.

Which one is easier to descale?

Both follow the same descaling process and button sequence, covered in our Bambino Plus descaling guide — tank size is the only real difference, since the Plus's larger reservoir needs slightly more descaling solution per cycle.

Is the 2-year warranty on the Plus worth factoring into the decision?

It's a nice bonus but shouldn't be the deciding factor on its own — the extra year of coverage is worth maybe $20-30 in typical extended-warranty terms, far less than the actual price gap between the two machines.