The Breville Bambino Plus costs about $200 more than the standard Bambino, and almost all of that premium buys you one thing: a steam wand that froths milk by itself. That sounds like a small upgrade until you have spent three months ruining lattes with a manual wand, or until you realize your rushed weekday mornings do not include a five-minute milk-steaming apprenticeship. The question is not whether the Plus is good. It is whether automatic milk is worth $200 to you.
This review answers that directly, plus the stuff most reviews skip: what the Plus genuinely does better than its little brother, the three annoyances you will live with daily, and the real total cost once you add the grinder this machine demands. If you already read our Breville Bambino review, think of this as the sequel for milk-drink people.
Verdict: 4.6/5. The Breville Bambino Plus is the easiest way for a beginner to make cafe-quality lattes at home. The automatic milk frothing genuinely works, the 3-second heat-up is not marketing fluff, and the footprint fits anywhere. Buy it if milk drinks are your thing and you value convenience. Buy the standard Bambino instead if you drink straight espresso or want to learn manual steaming.
| Spec | Detail |
|---|---|
| Heating system | ThermoJet, ready in ~3 seconds |
| Portafilter | 54mm stainless steel |
| Milk system | Automatic steam wand, 3 temperatures, 3 textures |
| Temperature control | Digital PID |
| Pump | 15-bar Italian pump |
| Water tank | 64 oz (1.9 L), rear access |
| Footprint | 7.7 in wide, 12.6 in tall |
| Typical price | Around $500 |
What the Plus Actually Adds
The standard Bambino and the Bambino Plus share the same ThermoJet heating, the same 54mm portafilter, and the same PID-controlled extraction. The espresso they pull is essentially identical. The entire $200 difference is the milk system, and it is a bigger difference than it sounds.
The standard Bambino has a manual steam wand: you position the pitcher, open the steam, and learn by burning through a lot of milk. The Plus has an automatic wand. You set your milk temperature (three levels) and texture (three levels, from silky flat-white foam to dry cappuccino foam), stick the wand in the pitcher, and press a button. The machine steams, purges itself, and stops at your settings. The microfoam it produces is legitimately good, the kind you can pour simple latte art with on your first week.
That is the whole pitch, and for the right buyer it is worth every dollar. Manual steaming is the steepest learning curve in home espresso. Plenty of people buy a Bambino, use the wand twice, and quietly go back to black coffee. The Plus removes the skill barrier entirely.
The 3-Second Heat-Up Is Real
ThermoJet is Breville’s thermocoil system, and the headline number is honest: the machine reaches extraction temperature in about three seconds from a cold start. Compare that to the Gaggia Classic Pro’s five-to-six-minute warm-up and you start to understand the Plus’s whole philosophy. This is the machine for people who decide they want a latte and are drinking it ninety seconds later.
There is a tradeoff, and you should know it. A thermocoil does not have the thermal mass of a brass boiler, so temperature stability during the shot depends on the PID doing its job. It does the job well for this price class, but the shots will never have the heavyweight stability of a dual boiler. For milk drinks, where milk covers a multitude of sins, this does not matter. For straight espresso nerds, it is one more reason to look at the Gaggia or the Dual Boiler instead.
Three Annoyances You Will Live With
No review should skip these, because all three show up in your first week.
1. The drip tray fills itself. The auto-purge feature blasts steam through the wand after every use to keep it clean, and all that water lands in the drip tray. The tray is small to begin with, so if you make two or three milk drinks, you are emptying it constantly. Get in the habit of dumping it every morning and it stops being a problem, but it is a daily ritual you did not ask for.
2. The chassis slides. At under 11 pounds, the Plus is light, and locking in the portafilter can shove the whole machine across the counter. Everyone develops the one-hand-on-top technique within days. It works, but a heavier machine would not need it.
3. The milk settings take trial and error. Three temperatures times three textures sounds simple, but finding your combination takes a week of experimentation, and the manual’s descriptions are vague. Start at medium temperature and the middle texture setting, then adjust. Write down what you land on, because you will forget.
None of these are dealbreakers. All three are the kind of thing owners stop noticing after a month. But you deserve to know before you buy, not after.
The Real Cost: Do Not Forget the Grinder
The Bambino Plus has no grinder, and this is where the true budget lives or dies. The machine is $500. A capable espresso grinder starts around $170 for the Baratza Encore ESP and climbs from there. So your real entry price is roughly $670, not $500.
Do not cheap out here. The Plus ships with both pressurized (dual-wall) and non-pressurized (single-wall) baskets. The pressurized baskets will make drinkable espresso with pre-ground coffee, which is a fine way to start. But the machine only earns its price with fresh beans and a real grinder. Our best espresso grinder guide covers the options; the short version is that the grinder matters more than the machine at this level.
One more cost note: Breville sells the Plus in several colors, and some retailers charge a premium for the fancier finishes. The stainless version is usually cheapest. The color does not change the coffee.
Plus vs Standard Bambino: The Decision
Choose the Plus if: milk drinks are at least half of what you make, you have never steamed milk and do not particularly want to learn, your mornings are rushed, or you are buying for someone who wants great lattes without a hobby.
Choose the standard Bambino if: you drink mostly straight espresso or americanos, you actually want to learn manual milk steaming (it is a fun skill), or the $200 difference buys your grinder upgrade instead. A standard Bambino paired with a $200 grinder will make better coffee than a Plus paired with a $50 grinder. That is not close.
The most common buyer’s remorse story, by far, is buying the standard Bambino to save money and then realizing milk was the whole point. If there is any chance you will want lattes, get the Plus the first time. Returning a machine to upgrade costs more than the difference.
Pros:
- Automatic milk frothing produces genuinely good microfoam with zero skill
- 3-second heat-up means coffee in about a minute, every time
- Compact 7.7-inch footprint fits under cabinets and in apartments
- PID temperature control keeps shots consistent
- Auto-purge keeps the steam wand clean without effort
Cons:
- $200 premium over the standard Bambino buys only the milk system
- No built-in grinder; real total cost is $650+ with a capable grinder
- Small drip tray fills fast from the auto-purge
- Lightweight body slides when locking the portafilter
- Thermocoil lacks the thermal stability of a boiler for straight-espresso purists
Maintenance: Easier Than It Looks
The descaling light confuses everyone, because Breville uses light combinations rather than plain words, so keep the manual’s descaling page bookmarked the first time. In practice: descale every 2-3 months if you have hard water, every 6 months with filtered water. The machine walks you through it once you decode the lights.
Daily maintenance is minimal: empty the drip tray, wipe the steam wand (the auto-purge does most of the work), and run a blank shot through the group head. Backflush with water weekly. That is the whole routine, and it takes about two minutes.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the Bambino Plus better than the Barista Express?
Different machines for different buyers. The Barista Express includes a built-in grinder and costs about the same as the Plus alone, but its grinder is the limiting factor and its milk wand is manual. If you already own a good grinder and want automatic milk, the Plus wins. If you need everything in one box, the Express is the simpler buy. Our Barista Express review covers it in depth.
Can the Bambino Plus make real latte art?
Yes, with practice. The automatic wand produces proper microfoam, which is the hard part. Pouring the art is on you, but the milk will cooperate from day one, which is more than most beginners get.
Does it work with pre-ground coffee?
Yes, using the pressurized (dual-wall) baskets. It will not be as good as fresh-ground, but it is genuinely drinkable, which makes the Plus a reasonable first machine while you save for a grinder.
How long will it last?
Breville machines typically run 3-5 years of daily home use with basic maintenance. The 2-year warranty covers defects. It is an appliance with a lifespan, not a buy-it-for-life machine like the Gaggia Classic Pro.
Conclusion
The Breville Bambino Plus is the fastest path from “I want lattes” to actually drinking them. The automatic milk system is not a gimmick; it is the feature that makes this machine make sense, and it works from day one. The espresso is good, the heat-up is absurdly fast, and the footprint disappears on your counter. Just go in with open eyes: budget for a real grinder, empty the drip tray without complaint, and do not buy it if you only drink straight shots. For milk-drink people who value their mornings, it earns its price.
