My SIL had the Brew Express because she wanted an auto-fill. For that price ($300) I would get a Moccamaster as the taste is more important to me, than not having to add water. My Moccamaster brews the best coffee due to the copper unit inside. Most of my family in Europe has one (they are cheaper there, handmade in Holland), these coffee makers chug along a good 15-20 years.

Bunn, if you want true hot coffee, done professionally. It won’t make espresso or fancy drinks. But it’s been a restaurant standard for generations for a reason.

I'm having the Brew Express put into our new build and an added part that allows k-cup use. Although its not in yet, it appears to be sturdy. How does coffee taste from it? Ask me in three months! I think we paid around 450 for the wall version. (not 100% sure on cost last year.) We had the electrician wire its own circuit and water. It's recommended to have a water filter on the line. We are not coffee connoisseurs at all but if it makes a cup of Folgers or a k cup, we'll be happy.https://brewexpress.com/built-in-10-cup-black-model-be-110-bb.html

We have had brew express built into wall and loved it in another home. This year we spent 9 months researching best options for cost and size, since we did not have the wall space and ended up with the brew express counter one. Because of its compact size it fits neatly on the counter. Auto fill was a huge issue for us so it was convenient to run the water line from the fridge ice maker line. Also had confidence in the product since our last one was pretty reliable.

The Miele built in coffee machine can be plumbed for auto water filling. You still have to manually add coffee beans, remove old grounds, empty out drip tray and empty drip tray when running clean/maintenance cycles. I don't drink coffee, so this appliance is DH's responsibility!

Yes, I don't see the point in auto filling water neither, because all the other components for coffee are still needed to be renewed. I have a KRUPS XP320, but it doesn't autofill the water. Anyway, I think the taste of coffee is better, when you change water every time you make a cup of coffee. Btw, if you want to know my opinion, you may get an ordinary Single-Serve machine or a machine with removable water reservoir and add there a CP3 water fill kit, which you can buy on amazon.

I would avoid anything built-in. When they break you've an expensive problem.

For a countertop... How many cups do you need to be able to make at once? How many per day? Since you didn't specify I assume you plan to grind your coffee and use a filter basket?

Be very careful of Bunn. Some of their less expensive units have poor temp control for both brew water and caraf plate temp. Bitter cup in a restaurant? Bunn. They do have some higher end units that I think do well.

If you want pods then I'd strongly recommend a Nespresso. There are many that are plumbed.

For some other options: http://localmile.org/cafe/

You should also check out Chris Coffee.

Adding to my previous post. Even if you have to do all the other maintenance things that go along with a built-in coffee machine, having the Miele plumbed version is well worth it. Yesterday we went to the big Wolf/SZ showroom in our area and I had them show DH their coffee machine. Wolf has no plumbed model. DH decided he liked that feature and will stick with Miele for the new build.

The Wolf CSO is also not plumbed. I decided I really like the Miele CSO with a water line and a drain connection. These are extras that don't cost a huge amount to add before construction and the added convenience was worth it to us.

On the other hand, I would never add a pot filler over a stove, but plenty of people have them and love them! So choose what works for you and not based on what others like or dislike.

Thermador and Gaggenau also make built in plumbed versions of their coffee centers. they not only have auto water but also have drains.

I would strongly recommend installing a sediment filter, and preferably also a charcoal filter for any plumbed appliances. Not only does it make the water taste better, but it also extends the lifetime of the appliance. When you ask your plumber to run all the pipes, this is an easy additional job. You can even have the filters in a location outside of the kitchen, where it is easier to service (e.g. in your garage).

We have our beverage center, CSO, and potfiller on the filter. The sink is unfiltered. Works great for how we use out kitchen. I understand the controversy about potfillers. It works really well for us, and I am so happy we decided for it. But I can also understand that, depending on kitchen layout, it might not always make sense for other households.

If you have hard water, things get a little more complicated. Resin-based water softeners are probably fine, but you need to regularly change or refresh the cartridge. On the other hand, reverse-osmosis is problematic, even if it might be easier to service. Several appliance manufacturers explicitly tell you that RO water will damage the plumbed appliance. Also, there is some worry about health issues with longtime consumption of RO water; and I have read several coffee lovers complaining that coffee made with RO doesn't taste quite right.

Check this out: https://www.umjava.com/products/umjava-coffee-maker-waterline-kit It auto refills any coffee maker. We're doing a kitchen rennovation now with a coffee bar. I'm having the plumber install a refridgerator water line and shutoff behind or above where we plan to have out coffee maker. I HATE refilling the coffee maker!

Thanks for all the wonderful input on our coffee maker. We went with the Brew Express countertop. The plumber tied our filtered water line to the refrigerator and the coffee maker. It really is wonderful not having to fill the tank daily. We also purchased the Kcup adapter. After a year of daily use we are very happy with it.