The Best Portable Coffee Makers for Travel We’ve Found

Buying coffee from a local coffee shop is one of the great joys of traveling. We do this a lot. But sometimes we’re staying nowhere near a good coffee shop, or we don’t particularly want to spend $14 on two coffees before we’ve even figured out what we’re doing that day.

We travel a lot. Our toddler has already been to seven countries, and went to Dubai when he was 3 months old. We travel for fun, for work. We tent camp and camper camp. We can rock a hostel or a fancy hotel alike. I have strong opinions about packing cubes and check Google Flights recreationally. There’s usually at least one trip we’re considering even if we don’t technically have a trip planned.

So, naturally, we bring coffee stuff with us. Not all of our coffee stuff. We’re not insane. 🤪But enough to make a pretty good cup without relying on whatever situation awaits us.

These are the portable coffee makers we’d actually travel with, whether you’re on holiday, road-tripping, camping, or working remotely somewhere for a few weeks. Or however you like to travel.

Recap of top portable coffee brewers

Here’s a quick snapshot of our recommended travel coffee gear

Best for	Product
Best overall portable coffee pot	AeroPress Go
Best all-in-one system (includes travel mug)	AeroPress Go Plus
Best travel French press	OXO Venture French Press
Best for travel pour over coffee	Hario Zebrang
Best portable cold brew coffee maker	Toddy Go Brewer
Best easy travel pour over	OXO Collapsible Pour Over
Best travel espresso maker	No recommendation yet. We haven’t tested enough portable espresso makers to recommend one confidently. We haven’t spent enough time with products like the Wacaco Nanopresso or OutIn Nano, but we’ll update this guide if that changes.

What makes a good travel coffee maker?

The “best” travel coffee maker is a slightly different thing from the best coffee maker, period.

Could we travel with a nice grinder, scale, gooseneck kettle and our favorite ceramic dripper? Sure. Do we want to? Not really.

We’re looking for something that makes pretty-good-to-actually-great coffee, doesn’t take up half a suitcase and, perhaps most importantly, isn’t annoying to use. We’re not trying to recreate our entire home coffee setup when we travel.

Size/packability, durability, cleanup and whether you need electricity are probably more important here than squeezing every last percentage point of extraction out of your beans.

Here’s a punch list of the factors that matter to us in a good travel coffee maker:

• Size
• Durability
• Ease of cleaning
• Brew quality
• Packability
• Whether it needs electricity

Our favorite portable coffee makers

Aeropress Go

Best overall portable coffee pot

If you just want us to tell you which one to buy, we’d probably buy this one.

If we could only pack one brewer for a trip, we’d pack the AeroPress Go. This portable coffee pot makes a rich, smooth cup in under two minutes, and it’s incredibly forgiving even if your grind size or technique isn’t perfect.​

Part French press, part pour over, and part espresso-style brewer, the AeroPress Go (full review here) offers plenty of flexibility without taking up much room in your bag.

We also love that everything packs neatly into the included travel mug, and cleanup couldn’t be easier – think of it like a mini coffee maker for travel. Just pop out the used coffee puck, give it a quick rinse, and you’re ready for tomorrow’s brew.

Which AeroPress? Original vs. AeroPress Go vs. AeroPress Go Plus

AeroPress Go Plus

Best all-in-one system (includes travel mug)

Choose this if you want the best all-in-one portable coffee machine.​

The AeroPress Go Plus is basically the AeroPress Go, but more. This travel coffee machine brews the same excellent coffee, but the overall travel experience feels much more polished.​

The brewer packs inside a 16-ounce vacuum-insulated stainless steel tumbler, so your coffee stays hot much longer than it would in the standard plastic cup. The tumbler includes a magnetic lid and built-in filter storage, making it easy to keep everything together between stops.​

Do you need it? No. But if you travel a lot and make coffee basically everywhere you go, the nicer tumbler starts to make a lot more sense. Read our honest AeroPress Go Plus review here »

OXO Venture French Press

Best travel French press

Glass French presses are made of glass. Luggage gets thrown around. You see the problem.

That’s why we like the OXO Venture French Press, the best coffee press for travel.​

It’s made of plastic, but the BPA-free Tritan carafe is shatter-resistant, and the included protective case gives you one less thing to worry about when tossing it into a backpack or car trunk.

It still delivers the rich, full-bodied coffee you’d expect from a French press, but without the stress of packing something fragile.​

What is the best coffee for French press?

Toddy Go Brewer

Best portable cold brew coffee maker

If cold brew is your daily coffee of choice, go with this portable coffee brewer.​

Most travel brewers focus on hot coffee, but the Toddy Go Brewer is built for people (hi, it’s me) who’d rather have cold brew year-round.​

Made from brewer-grade stainless steel, this cold brew coffee maker is durable enough for travel while keeping cold drinks cold (and hot drinks hot).

It’s about the size of a normal water bottle (Nalgene, let’s say). It holds 25 ounces, which is either several servings of cold brew or one serving if you’re having that kind of morning.

Hario Zebrang

Best for travel pour over coffee

If you’re putting together a travel pour over coffee kit, the Zebrang is a pretty obvious place to start. Most portable pour over coffee makers involve some compromise. But weirdly, the Zebrang doesn’t feel like much of a compromise—except that it’s smaller than you might think (a plus when it comes to travel) but a little fiddly to snap together (a minor annoyance, regardless of location).

Despite folding down into an incredibly packable size, it brews remarkably similarly to a standard Hario V60. Which is nice! Especially if you’ve made approximately 9 billion V60s at home and don’t particularly want to learn a new coffee maker because you went abroad.

This “travel coffee pot” is lightweight enough for hiking and camping, but feels sturdy enough once assembled. Setup takes only a few seconds (and requires filters), and once you’ve used it once or twice, the folding design becomes second nature.

OXO Collapsible Pour Over

Best easy travel pour over

Choose this if you want pour over coffee without fussing over your pouring technique.

Rather than standing over your coffee with a gooseneck kettle and carefully controlling each pour, you add your water and let the brewer handle the rest. Which, frankly, is more our speed when traveling.

The OXO Collapsible Pour Over is compact, doesn’t require electricity, and packs down into its included storage case. Basically, if you can find hot water, you can make a pretty decent cup of coffee.

If you’re on a budget, OXO also makes the OXO Brew Pour-Over Coffee Maker with Water Tank which is just as easy to brew, slightly larger, and $15 cheaper.

If you actually want that delicious, slow ritual of brewing a traditional pour over mid-vacation, we’d still choose the Hario Zebrang. If you mostly want good coffee with as little effort as possible, the OXO wins.

Additional recommended travel coffee gear

A travel coffee brewer is only half the equation. A few thoughtfully chosen accessories can make brewing on the road much easier, but you don’t need to pack your entire home coffee station. Here’s what we actually bring (and what we’d happily leave behind).

A portable grinder

Freshly ground coffee is better. We know this. You know this. But we’re also not hand-grinding coffee at 6:15 a.m. in a hotel room while our children are asleep six feet away.

Pre-grinding coffee before a short trip is completely reasonable.

But if you want to grind fresh coffee on vacation (and sometimes we do!), here are the grinders we’d bring.

• JavaPresse Manual Coffee Grinder: An affordable option that gets the job done for under $30. It’s the best camping coffee grinder we’ve found.
• OXO Hand Grinder: A noticeable step up in grind quality and ergonomics.
• TIMEMORE Chestnut C3 ESP: Our favorite upgrade if you want excellent grind consistency without spending a fortune.
• Hario Ceramic Coffee Mill: Comfortable to use and easy to pack, making it another solid travel companion.

A way to make hot water

There is, unfortunately, one problem with bringing most coffee makers on vacation: You still need hot water.

If you’re staying in a vacation rental or hotel with a kitchen, use the electric kettle if there’s one available. No kettle? A small pot on the stove, or even the microwave in a pinch, works just fine.

For camping, road trips, or more remote adventures, a Jetboil system is hard to beat for quickly boiling water (don’t forget a lighter). If you’ll have access to electricity, a compact portable electric kettle is another worthwhile addition that takes up surprisingly little room in your luggage.

Coffee scale

Do you need a coffee scale on vacation? Absolutely not.

We have traveled with one, because we are the sort of people who own multiple coffee scales. But we have also pre-measured coffee into little bags before leaving home. And we’ve eyeballed it. Everyone survived.

The TIMEMORE Basic Mini Coffee Scale is our travel option pick though because it’s incredibly compact (hence, “mini”) and easy to shove into a backpack or luggage.

Of course, if half the fun of traveling (for me) is picking up beans from local roasters along the way, bringing a scale lets you dial in those new coffees immediately instead of waiting until you’re back home.

A mug you love

This sounds extremely precious, but drinking coffee out of a mug you hate is annoying.

So, yes, sometimes we travel with a cup.

If you want something versatile, the Klean Kanteen Low Ball Tumbler works equally well for hot coffee, cold brew, cocktails, or a glass of wine. If you’re planning to walk around with your coffee in hand, we’d instead recommend a leakproof travel mug like the Owala SmoothSip (it’s our fave Owala coffee tumbler).

And remember – several of the brewers on this list, like the AeroPress Go, already pack neatly inside their own travel cups, saving even more space.

Travel coffee storage

There are people who will tell you that you need to travel with an airtight coffee canister. We are not those people. We roll down the top of the coffee bag and put it in our luggage. That’s it.

If you prefer dedicated storage, the Fellow Atmos Vacuum Canister is a popular choice and comes in multiple sizes. It’s just more gear than we personally feel the need to pack.

Coffee set travel bag/dopp kit

The easiest way to lose a filter or coffee scoop is to scatter everything throughout your weekend bag.

Instead, dedicate one pouch to your coffee kit. We actually prefer a lightweight dry sack, like the Osprey Ultralight Waterproof Dry Sack, because it molds around the rest of your luggage instead of taking up rigid space.

You don’t need a purpose-built coffee case, though. A Dopp kit, lunch bag, camera pouch, canvas tote, padded zipper pouch, or even a freezer bag, works just as well. The goal is simply keeping your brewing gear organized so you can make coffee without digging through your backpack every morning.

​Best travel coffee setup by trip type

For all of these travel scenarios, we’d say the TIMEMORE Basic Mini coffee scale is optional, but a nice to have. You know whether you’re the kind of person who’s actually going to use this.

Hotel traveler

• Brewer: AeroPress Go or OXO Collapsible Pour Over
• Grinder: JavaPresse or TIMEMORE Chestnut C3 ESP
• Hot water: Electric kettle (if the room doesn’t have one) or microwave
• Cup: A mug that can keep coffee hot all day

Vacation rental

• Brewer: Hario Zebrang or Toddy Go Brewer
• Grinder: OXO Hand Grinder or TIMEMORE Chestnut C3 ESP
• Hot water: Use the rental’s kettle or a pot on the stove
• Cup: Whatever mugs the rental provides. We’re not packing mugs for an Airbnb or VRBO.

Camping or backpacking in the woods

• Brewer: AeroPress Go or OXO Venture French Press
• Grinder: JavaPresse Manual Grinder (or pre-grind your coffee before leaving)
• Hot water: Jetboil cooking system
• Coffee scale: Skip it and eyeball it
• Cup: An insulated mug with outdoor vibes, like a Yeti Rambler
• Storage: Waterproof dry bag to keep everything together

Business travel

• Brewer: AeroPress Go Plus
• Grinder: TIMEMORE Chestnut C3 ESP
• Hot water: Hotel kettle or electric kettle
• Cup: Use the Go Plus tumbler or your favorite leakproof travel mug

Backpacking through Europe (or anywhere else)

• Brewer: AeroPress Go
• Grinder: OXO Hand Grinder
• Scale: Eyeball it
• Hot water: Use what’s available at your hostel, hotel or vacation rental
• Cup: Use what’s included with the brewer, or pack a trusty mug if space allows. Just don’t expect it to come home looking quite as nice as when it left.
• Storage: Keep your coffee in its original bag and tuck the whole setup into a small, dedicated dopp kitt

Road trip

• Brewer: AeroPress Go or OXO Collapsible Pour Over; Toddy Go Brewer if you’re a cold brew person
• Grinder: OXO Hand Grinder or TIMEMORE Chestnut C3 ESP
• Hot water: Compact electric kettle (at motels or rest stops with outlets) or Jetboil if you’re camping along the way
• Cup: A travel mug that can fit in the car cup holder and is *extra* leakproof, like the Contigo Autoseal
• Bonus: Bring more coffee than you think you’ll need. You’re in a car. Weight is somebody else’s problem.

Other tips on how to pack coffee for travel

Here are a few other things we’ve learned:

Pack for the trip itself, not every possibility. This is actually great advice for your general packing list, too! The biggest mistake people make is overpacking. Seasoned travelers realize they don’t need to recreate their home coffee bar; instead, only bring the gear they’ll actually use based on the destination.

Rely on what’s already there. Skip the kettle if you’re staying in hotels or vacation rentals, where you’ll likely have access to a kettle, stovetop, microwave, or at least a way to heat water. 

Pre-grind your coffee. We won’t tell anyone. For a three- or four-day trip, we’re completely fine grinding coffee before we leave. It’s technically less fresh, but it’s still better than the coffee in that little hotel-room pouch. Then… 

Pre-portion your coffee. Skip toting your scale and pre-weigh doses of ground coffee into small zip-top bags. Use reusable vials or tubes. Learn what a serving looks like and simply eyeball it.

Don’t forget the filters: Paper filters weigh almost nothing and fit inside many brewers. Bring only what you need instead of an entire box.

Also: Sometimes don’t bring any of this stuff. If we’re spending a weekend somewhere with six excellent coffee shops within walking distance, we’re going to those coffee shops. The travel setup is for cabins, campgrounds, conferences, hockey tournaments and other situations where good coffee at 7 a.m. isn’t a given.

And, yes, we have been known to travel with instant coffee. This is a judgment-free zone.

Wrapping up

You don’t want to end up with your coffee gear needing its own carry-on, right? Right.

Decide what matters most: Every travel coffee set up is a compromise. Usually you’re optimizing for one of three things: the best-tasting coffee, the smallest and lightest kit, or the fastest and easiest morning routine. 

Figure out which one matters most for this trip, then pack accordingly. Trying to maximize all three usually means carrying more gear than you actually need.