2026 is all about plastic-free coffee makers — and I tested out Simply Good Coffee's viral Plastic-Free Brewer so you don't have to

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)

The Coffee Lab

(Image credit: Tom's Guide)I'm Erin, and welcome to the twelfth episode of The Coffee Lab, the series where we forget coffee snobbery. The Coffee Lab is all about making coffee fun. Join me as I help you kickstart your coffee journey!Here at The Coffee Lab, I'm always trying to find the best coffee maker. With so many options out there now — Moccamaster, Ninja 12-Cup, Breville Luxe Brewer, Aarke Coffee Maker, Bonavita — it honestly feels like a headache just trying to remember all the brand names, let alone what makes each coffee maker unique.Thankfully, Simply Good Coffee literally put it in the name. This week, I've got the Simply Good Coffee Plastic-Free Brewer on the dissection table, so let's get stuck in. You guys hate plastic in your coffee. Personally, I'm not vehemently anti-plastic. While I was researching for this article, I discovered that BPA plastic is not banned in the U.S., which explains a lot. European food safety standards are pretty robust already — BPA plastic has been banned in the EU since 2025. Of course, minimizing plastic usage is the best course of action for the environment as a whole, so we should all be consciously choosing the eco-friendly option.Simply Good Coffee is trying to make one of the first "truly" plastic-free coffee makers... and it's kind of succeeded? I say "kind of", because the Plastic-Free Brewer has a plastic-coated exterior (for health and safety to prevent burns) and silicone tubing in the water lines. Are these dealbreakers for you, or would you still get the Plastic-Free Brewer? Let's get into it.Low plastic, not no plastic