Owly Rating

91/100

Appearance 20
Features 18
Performance 20
Health & safety 14
Price to value 19

General thoughts

If you were to walk away from this Keurig K-Elite review, I would like you to know one thing: in my opinion, K-Elite is an excellent single serve coffee maker with a very strong feature set. It is a great choice for singles and families who enjoy deep fragrant coffee. Offers a wide variety of types of coffee. I personally don’t like that it is primarily plastic, and Keurig does not seem transparent about the chemicals and materials used in manufacturing. Though K-Elite may seem a little bit expensive, I find the price-to-value ratio of this single serve coffee maker to be strong.

This product can be perfect for

Can be a great choice for those who appreciate convenience. Can be ideal for: iced coffee, kcups, coffee grounds, and more! Easy to  brew coffee for a party!

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Why choose Keurig K-Elite over other coffee makers?

I hope that it will become very clear through this Keurig K-Elite review that this coffee maker is among the best. As a matter of fact, it placed #1 on the Best K-Cup Coffee Maker Q2 2019 Ranking and #2 on the Best Single Serve Coffee Maker Q2 2019 Ranking. I found this model to be a compelling choice.

  • Very robust feature set that allows users to control the brewing process (timing, temperature and strength)
  • Multi-functionality and flexibility: brews anything from k cups and ground coffee to iced coffee
  • Perfect for entertaining many guests with flavorful coffee
  • Awesome and prestigious appearance
  • Keurig brand

Who is Keurig K-Elite perfect for?

As you will soon discover in this Keurig K-Elite Review, K-Elite is among the best k cup coffee makers. Its strong performance, stunning appearance and awesome feature set can hugely benefit many consumers like myself!

In my opinion, Keurig’s K-Elite is a perfect choice for the following:

✓ Families and individuals who value flexibility and convenience of their coffee maker

✓ Families and individuals who enjoy multi-functionality of their appliances

✓ Families and individuals who value good quality

✓ Families and individuals who like entertaining guests

✓ Iced coffee lovers

✓ Brewing coffee in a hurry

✓ Preference for k cups

Who is Keurig K-Elite NOT perfect for?

Though K-Elite is one of the top coffee makers available in the market, this model is not perfect for everyone:

✗ Coffee of a coffee shop quality

✗ Low budget

✗ Preference for plastic-free coffee makers

✗ Preference for k pods

✗ Truly perfected brewing temperature

Keurig K-Elite Review and Evaluation 🕵️

→ Appearance

Owly Rating

20/20

K-Elite stands out with its elegance, prestige and elite appearance. Though made primarily with plastic, K-Elite looks reliable and sturdy. In my opinion, this coffee maker can fit into a variety of styles and spaces.

K-Elite single serve coffee maker steals the show with its elegance and elite appearance. I saw it at my friend’s house for the first time, and I fell in love with it almost instantly. I was impressed with the K-Elite’s quality. Not only was it elegant, but it looked like a high-performing single serve coffee machine I wanted to have. I also knew that I would like to prepare a Keurig K-Elite review for you to enjoy.

I entertain family and friends with coffee from K-Elite. They always rave how handsome and appealing this coffee maker is. Some of my friends purchased the same unit after seeing it at my place!

K-Elite comes in two color options: brushed silver and brushed slate. Either option exudes a stainless-steel look and feel, though it actually is made of plastic.

K-Elite is similar in size to most other coffee makers that made on our rank. It is about 13 inches tall, and about 17 inches when the upper lid is completely open. It fits on my countertop, but I need to pull it out to place coffee inside the k-cup.

To my surprise, this unit is rather light, weighing about 7 pounds. I found it very easy to lift, move and clean. From this perspective, I would not hesitate to give K-Elite to my grandma.

→ Features and technical specs

Owly Rating

20/20

From programmability to temperature control, from iced tea to hot coffee grounds functionality. Keurig K-Elite is among the best single serve coffee makers from Keurig. Its robust and perfected feature set allowed us to brew coffee that’s rich and fragrant.

Voltage: K-Elite is made for 120V, and can be used in Canada and the US only.

Beverage size: K-Elite single serve coffee machine offers a handsome selection of 5 beverage sizes: 4oz, 6oz, 8oz, 10oz and 12oz. I can drink a small cup of coffee Sunday morning, while enjoying a larger mug on the way to work on Monday. Unlike some other single serve machines, Keurig’s K-Elite can accommodate a 7-inch tall travel mug underneath a brewing segment. I was able to accomplish this by removing the drip tray. Very easy, and this proved to be extremely useful on my morning commute routines.

Weight: This handsome single serve coffee maker weighs about 7 pounds. I find it rather easy to lift and move around, and I imagine others would have little to no problems doing the same. From this perspective, I imagine most people would find this machine easy to operate.

Unit size:  Though regular size, I find K-Elite to be rather compact. It is about 10.5 x 7.5 x 13 inches, and 15 x 9 x 17 inches when the upper lid is open. Though it fits perfectly on my countertop, I need to pull it out from underneath the cabinet to re-fill coffee in the k-cup.

Additional perks: K-Elite offers a superior feature set, much better from other single serve coffee makers. This feature set, which contributes to brewing a jaw-dropping cup of coffee, is what truly differentiates K-Elite.

K-Elite is fully programmable. Though a lot of people are not familiar with this functionality, let me tell you: it made my life 100X easier. I am able to set a specific time to start brewing coffee within a 24 hour window. I do not need to wake up too early to start the morning routine. I wake up to delicious fragrance of freshly brewed dark coffee.

K-Elite is equipped with a temperature control. The controls allows to heat up water even more to reach what is considered a perfect temperature to brew coffee. Unlike other single serve coffee makers, K-Elite is able to brew coffee that’s hotter, thus yielding much deeper, richer and fragrant flavors.

K-Elite is equipped with a strength control. The control allows the coffee to be even deeper and more flavorful. I use this feature for an extra kick to my coffee on some mornings. It works miracles simply by touching one button.

K-Elite offers a separate feature for iced-coffee. Iced coffee that comes out of this single serve coffee machine is perfect for a hot summer day (or evening!).

In addition to those features, K-Elite offers some “standard” perks, such as a large 75oz removable water reservoir. Thanks to that, I do not need to make frequent trips to refill water. I can also entertain several guests with coffee at the same time. Further, a charcoal water filter purifies water. I feel like those charcoal filters enhance coffee flavor quite a bit.

→ Performance

Owly Rating

19/20

K-Elite exhibited very strong performance. Though the brewing time took a bit longer (2-2.5 minutes) than expected, water was heated enough to reach a near-perfect brewing temperature (about 190 F degrees). This allowed me to sip very rich cup of coffee.

Brewing time: K-Elite took a little less time to brew coffee than some of the other best single serve coffee makers. From heating water to seeing the last drop of coffee fall into my cup, it took between 2.5 to 3 minutes. This time was largely contingent upon the beverage size.

Flavor: Among single serve coffee makers that I have tested, K-Elite yielded an absolutely delicious, fragrant and rich coffee flavors. Now, I can welcome each morning with a tasty cup of joe, day after day.

Temperature: K-Elite model seems to solve some of the problems that other single serve coffee makers seem to suffer from. The temperature control allows to brew significantly hotter coffee. In my tests, freshly heated water reached between 185 and 190 Fahrenheit degrees, which is almost on par with the recommended brewing temperature (195 to 205 Fahrenheit degrees). This temperature allows for the coffee grounds to permeate, thus yielding much richer and deeper flavors.

Noise levels: I found K-Elite to be less noisy than some of the other single serve coffee machines. Again, there are some noises (squeaking form the water pump), but this seems to be less bothersome than with some other single serve coffee makers.

Customer-reported technical issues

To be fair in the Keurig K-Elite review, I want to note that some users have reported just a couple of issues with the K-Elite single serve coffee maker. Those issues seem to be an exception rather than the norm. In fact, K-Elite is doing much better overall than other single serve coffee machines.

While I do not believe those reports are a reason for a major concern, I’d like to flag some of them:

  • Leaking water
  • Pumping cold-water

→ Health and safety

Owly Rating

7/20

With K-Elite, Keurig did not impress me with its transparency. Though the company claims that all of its coffee makers are BPA-free, there’s no mention of any other chemicals and plastics. To stay on a side of caution, I am deducting points.

Though Keurig seems more transparent with its other coffee makers, I did not find useful information for the K-Elite single serve coffee maker. Keurig does not say much about materials from which the single serve coffee maker is made.

There is no information whether K-Eite includes chemicals such as lead. Some users reported that K-Elite indeed contained led and other chemicals, but Keurig did not make it easy for me to confirm or refute that concern.

Keurig states that all of its single serve coffee makers are BPA-free. This should include K-Elite.

However, K-Elite is made primarily of plastic. Whether it is BPA-free or not, this plastic comes into direct contact with scorching hot water. As you may know by now, I am personally very concerned about using products in which boiling water touches plastic.

The BPA-free status is helpful to know, but it typically does not guarantee that there are no other potentially dangerous substitutes used in the production process.

Reports show that many manufacturers replace BPA with other types of plastic. These types include but are not limited to  BHPF (fluorene-9-bisphenol), TPP (triphenyl phosphate), and bisphenol S (BPS). The exact health effects of the BPA substitutes, such as BHPF, TPP and BPS, are unknown at this point.

Keurig does not publish information what kind of materials or chemicals are used, so I am not able to verify.

→ Price to value: is K-Elite worth the money?

Owly Rating

19/20

Just a tad less expensive than Moccamaster Cup One, Keurig’s K-Elite also features one of the best price-to-value ratios available. Sold between $$$ and $$$$, K-Elite comes with a diversity of features and awesome performance to brew the cup of coffee I love day after day, year after year!

Depending on the store, K-Elite sells for anywhere between $$$ and $$$$. Given the feature set, which is much more superior to that of other single serve coffee makers, I find the price-to-value ratio to be extraordinary. I realize that $$$$ is a substantial investment. However, it is my firm belief that with its strong functionality, high performance and amazing feature set, K-Elite is the best single serve coffee maker. I am very pleased with this product.

I am not going to lie in this Keurig K-Elite review: I am bothered by the plastic, and I hope Keurig will address this issue with an updated model.

Should I buy Keurig K-Elite? Owly’s verdict! 🔨

Keurig K-Elite is arguably one of the best single serve coffee makers. It performs really strongly, and it currently is among the most awesome appliances in the Keurig’s portfolio. This unit should last for a long time, so the investment, though pricey, may be worth it in the long run.

Do you like your K-Elite? Did we miss anything in the Keurig K-Elite review? Let us know in the comments!

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