Maybe a used flair classic, if you can live with manual lever brewing. I love mine, but you have to like making espresso and not just drinking it.
Edit: you'll need a proper grinder no matter which machine you choose.
this post was submitted on 18 Nov 2024
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I have a Breville Bambino, which I think is the low end of acceptable, but it's 300 USD new.
Look for a $500 espresso machine that's used in selling for $200 or less
And you'll also need a grinder that can make espresso fine grounds. Your blade grinder won't work for that.
Without trying to be gate-keepy about espresso, $100 is really too cheap. Since you just have a blade grinder, you'd have to get your coffee ground at the store/coffee shop. That makes it difficult to get the pressure/flow rate right without a pressurized basket.
If I were you, I'd stick to trying to make "espresso-style" drinks (especially if you want milk drinks) with your aeropress, or maybe getting a cheap mokapot, and if you want to spend some money to improve your coffee, spend it on a burr grinder.
If you are set on trying to get up and running with "true" espresso, look for used manual lever machines like a Flair or a Rok, and get coffee ground at the store, and get a pressurized basket.
What about a moka pot?
Seconding this. Moka pots are the classic Italian way for a reason. I keep a small one at home and it makes a lovely espresso.
Honestly, you won't find any electric espresso machine at that 100$ price point that's capable of producing decent espresso, and they're usually a pain to use. They are plastic, disposable and cobbled together with the absolute cheapest parts as possible. Heating is bad, pressure is all over the place and build quality is inexistant.
Your best bet at that price point for real espresso would probably be a (used) Flair or Cafelat Robot. Of course these come with their own workflow and caveats and they are hard to master, but short of spending at least 5 times your budget on a well maintained, second-hand mid-range Gaggia or Lelit or equivalent, you won't find anything remotely as capable at producing real espresso.
I'm not sure that a $100 espresso machine even exists.
My humble opinion is you'll be hard pressed to find something that's less work than an aeropress, let alone anything that takes even less space than that.
If you're just looking to froth milk, maybe just get an electric milk frother.
I didn't realize you could use an Aeropress for espresso! That would certainly solve my problem of trying making my own espresso to see if it's something I would enjoy/ do frequently. Would I need to buy a custom filter? The holes in the plastic seem too large to use it without the paper filter.
It's not "really" espresso but the AeroPress does make great small, strong coffees. There's a James Hoffman video on it. You'll want to use the inverted method (aeropress upside down, mug on top) for a short brew time, a large dose of coffee, and relatively little water.
IIRC I used 18g coffee, stir immediately after pouring 90g of water, then after 90s I flip the AeroPress + mug and press. You don't want to use a ton of force or you'll end up with a really bitter taste.
I’m not an espresso drinker but the biggest difference between cheap crap and cheap decent is whether or not it uses a pump to generate pressure or they cheaped out and just use boiler steam pressure.