Is a cheap espresso machine worth buying?

It depends entirely on what you expect from it, and the honest answer splits in two.

What a cheap machine actually is

Under roughly $200 you get pressurized baskets — a valve behind the mesh that builds pressure artificially — and usually a panarello frothing sleeve.

That combination means the machine works on day one with supermarket pre-ground coffee and no grinder. It produces something recognizably espresso-shaped from almost any input.

Where it is a good buy

As a first step, to find out whether you enjoy making espresso before spending real money.

In a tiny kitchen, where a 15 cm (6 in) machine fits and a 30 cm (12 in) one does not.

For milk drinks, where the milk covers a lot.

Where it is a false economy

If you already own a grinder or intend to buy one, a cheap machine wastes it. Pressurized baskets make grind size nearly irrelevant, so a good grinder changes almost nothing.

Spending $250 on a machine with non-pressurized baskets and $200 on a grinder produces vastly better coffee than $200 on a machine and $250 on beans.

The trap

Buying a cheap machine, being disappointed, and concluding that home espresso is not worth it. The machine was the compromise, not the idea.

What to avoid entirely

Machines with a built-in grinder under about $300. Both halves are compromised.