OXO Brew 12-Cup Coffee Maker with Single-Serve Function Review

Brew Quality

As much as I love getting a latte when I go to a coffee shop, a drip machine would be my brewer of choice if stranded on a desert island (an island that conveniently has electricity in this imaginary scenario). To me, drip coffee is an unbeatable combo of tasty and easy to make. And I could happily live off the coffee that the OXO Brew 12-Cup makes. I used three different types of coffee—a light, medium, and dark roast—while testing the machine, and each one came out strong yet nuanced enough to taste the differences between them. 

The instruction manual has a convenient graph that recommends how much coffee to use per cup, which cuts down on the guesswork for new users. However, I experienced some trial and error when utilizing the single-serve function, mainly because I used a grind size that was a little too fine. The resulting coffee was too gritty, and it also caused a mess inside the spray head. 

These issues were immediately resolved after I dialed in a proper medium grind, though. In short: the single-serve function is slightly more finicky than the larger brew settings, but I was able to make identically delicious coffee on all settings after a few test runs.

Now, most drip coffee makers have a 1-4 cup setting like this OXO model, but what sets the OXO apart is that it comes with a smaller filter basket for single-serve brewing. This ensures that single cups are fully and proportionately extracted. It’s a small added step to swap filter baskets when alternating between large and small batches, but one that’s well worth it.

Ease of Use

Like most drip coffee makers, the OXO Brew 12-Cup requires little effort to use. It’s also extremely intuitive. The front of the machine simply has a brew button, a dial, and a digital display. I think most users would be able to start brewing as soon as the dual coffee maker is unboxed.

There are two inconveniences, albeit minor, worth mentioning, however. First, the coffee maker requires paper filters. That’s not uncommon, of course. Many coffee makers, including high-end ones, use paper filters to keep excess oils out of the coffee, which leads to a purer taste. The main reason it stands out to me is because customers will naturally go through paper filters faster when brewing one or two cups at a time. Normally when I use paper filters it’s because I’m brewing a full pot that lasts throughout the day, not such a small batch. While the OXO Brew 12-Cup cuts down on coffee pod waste, it’s not zero waste.

The second inconvenience is that the water tank is permanently fixed in place. It cannot be removed and filled in your sink. I have somewhat low cupboards in my kitchen, so I had to slide the OXO Brew 12-Cup out a bit in order to open and fill the water tank. Thermal carafes in general don’t pour as smoothly as glass carafes, which also makes the process a tad more strenuous. Again, though, these are minor inconveniences to what is an overall convenient device.

Value for Money

Even though I would recommend the OXO Brew 12-Cup to anyone looking for a drip coffee maker, that doesn’t mean it’s the best machine out there for your specific needs. Maybe you have no use for the single-serve function or want more control over water temperature and brew strength. Maybe you drink coffee so quickly that you don’t care about having a thermal carafe. If so, there are plenty of quality drip coffee makers out there, some for a third of the price. 

But if your goal is to invest in a machine you can count on to brew good coffee, the OXO Brew 12-Cup gets the job done. In this way it reminds me of the Technivorm Moccamaster series, which are widely considered some of the best drip coffee makers available, yet they have few frills. It’s just consistently great coffee.

One final note…

I personally have a love-hate relationship with thermal carafes, and this one is no different. It’s well-built and successfully keeps coffee hot for hours without altering the taste. Eight hours after brewing, the coffee remained over 140 degrees. But thermal carafes are harder to clean. I used a bottle brush to clean inside the carafe, but it doesn’t feel as thorough as a sponge would be. Additionally, the carafe pours well until the last few ounces; then it requires some tipping and shimmying to get all the coffee out.

Why Trust The Spruce Eats? 

This piece was written by Derek Rose, the coffee and tea expert for The Spruce Eats. He researches a variety of coffee products, from measuring scoops to commercial espresso machines, and interviews field experts for their insight. For this piece, he tested the OXO Brew 12-Cup Coffee Maker with Single-Serve Function for 30 days and presented all of his findings.