Is the Breville Oracle Jet Worth It?
Based on tests by Tom's Guide (Oct 2024) and TechRadar (Aug 2025). How we score
Save $1,500Depends. Barista Express for most people.
Amazon prices as of Sep 29, 9:38 PM EDT (details)
Why
Tom's Guide (4.5 out of 5) and TechRadar (5 out of 5) both loved the Oracle Jet. It grinds, doses and tamps for you, times every shot and tells you how to adjust the grind, steams dairy or plant milk automatically, and adds cold brew and cold espresso. Tom's Guide found it "a little messier than some other machines," and TechRadar notes "you can't brew and steam at the same time." Both outlets also rated the Barista Express 4.5 stars; Tom's Guide found that "In cup after cup, the Barista Express produced perfect shots of espresso." It grinds too, but you tamp and steam milk by hand. The Barista Touch Impress, which TechRadar also rated 5 stars, automates dosing and milk and assists with tamping, without cold brew. Splurge if you want cold brew and full automation; save if you'll tamp and steam milk yourself.
Cheaper alternatives, scored against the Oracle Jet
Barista Express Espresso Machine
Average of 2 testers: Tom's Guide 10 · TechRadar 9
From 1 tester: TechRadar
Tom's Guide rated it 4.5 out of 5, the same as the Oracle Jet. Office testers "didn't want me to take it away," and it was "superior when it came to steaming milk too," though hand-steaming "took me a while to master" and there's no low-water warning. TechRadar also gave it 4.5: after eight cups of dialing in, it made "consistently great espresso every time," but "Coffee dispensing, tamping and using the razor can be messy." It has no cold brew and no automatic frothing, and its portafilter is 54 mm to the Jet's 58 mm.
Sources: Tom's Guide: Breville Barista Express review (Apr. 3, 2023), TechRadar: Sage (Breville) Barista Express review (July 20, 2022), Tom's Guide: Breville Oracle Jet review (Oct. 30, 2024), TechRadar: Breville Oracle Jet review (Aug. 6, 2025)
Barista Touch Impress Espresso Machine
From 1 tester: TechRadar
From 1 tester: TechRadar
TechRadar rated it 5 out of 5, the same as the Oracle Jet. It grinds and doses, helps you tamp with a lever, and froths dairy or plant milk on its own. What you give up, per TechRadar's Oracle Jet review: "it lacks the cold brew and cold espresso options and the digital display just isn't quite as swift." Tom's Guide's Oracle Jet reviewer owns a Touch Impress and found the Jet "doesn't quite beat my Touch Impress at making barista-quality steamed milk hands-free."
Sources: TechRadar: Breville Barista Touch Impress review (June 9, 2023), TechRadar: Breville Oracle Jet review (Aug. 6, 2025), Tom's Guide: Breville Oracle Jet review (Oct. 30, 2024)
Common questions
Breville Oracle Jet or Barista Express?
Tom's Guide gave both 4.5 stars; TechRadar gave the Jet 5 and the Express 4.5. Both grind beans. The Jet also doses by weight, tamps, times each shot, steams milk automatically and makes cold brew. On the Express you tamp and steam milk by hand.
Can the Oracle Jet brew and steam at the same time?
No. TechRadar notes that unlike earlier dual-boiler Oracles, it uses a single ThermoJet heating system, so the milk waits for the shot to finish. In exchange, it's ready to pull a shot about 30 seconds after you turn it on.
Sources: Tom's Guide: Breville Oracle Jet review (Oct. 30, 2024), TechRadar: Breville Oracle Jet review (Aug. 6, 2025), Tom's Guide: Breville Barista Express review (Apr. 3, 2023), Manufacturer specs via Amazon listing
