Breville Barista Pro vs De'Longhi Stilosa EC230
The Stilosa at $99 is a budget beginner machine with a clear ceiling. The Barista Pro at $899 is a genuine all-in-one setup with room to grow. Unless $99 is a hard limit, the Barista Pro is the better investment from day one — it won't leave you wanting a grinder within three months or frustrated by pressurized baskets within six.
Spec face-off
Bars scaled to the higher value. Coloured = wins that spec.
Full specifications
Strengths & weaknesses
Full comparison
The De'Longhi Stilosa costs $99. It has a metal pannarello steam attachment, a 51mm portafilter with pressurized baskets, and no built-in grinder. At under $100, it's one of the cheapest functional espresso machines available. The Barista Pro costs $899 — nine times the price — and includes a 30-setting conical burr grinder, non-pressurized baskets, a shot timer, and 3-second heat-up.
The Stilosa's pressurized baskets produce drinkable espresso from pre-ground coffee, which is its entire value proposition. If you want to try espresso before committing more money, it works for that. But the moment you buy a standalone grinder, the Stilosa's other limitations — pannarello wand, single boiler, 51mm basket, no shot feedback — become the next frustration.
The Barista Pro eliminates the need for that upgrade path. The built-in grinder, proper steam wand, and extraction feedback tools are all included. You're not stacking purchases or working around hardware limitations.
The Stilosa does have an upgrade path: switch to non-pressurized baskets and pair it with a decent standalone grinder, and it can produce reasonable shots. That route can work on a tight budget stretched over time. But the total spend often approaches or exceeds the Barista Pro once a grinder is added.
Choose the Stilosa only if $99 is a genuine hard ceiling and you want to test whether espresso is worth pursuing before investing more. In every other scenario, the Barista Pro is the right starting point.