In this review, we’re going to be comparing two popular Keurig coffee makers: the K50 and K200. There are a couple of features that these two coffee makers share. These include the ability to dispense hot water and a descaling indicator.
Other than that, the K50 and K200 are quite different brewers, even though they’re from the same Keurig 1.0 product line.
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If you’re wondering which of these Keurig coffee makers to get, then we’re here to help. In this article, we’ll be taking a close look at the features, performance, ease of use and design of both the K50 and K200.
The Pros and Cons: Keurig K200 vs K50
Here’s a brief summary of the advantages and disadvantages of buying each coffee maker:
Keurig K50 Review
The K50 is a brewer from Keurig’s older 1.0 product line. It features a removable 48-ounce water tank, which gives you about six cups per refill. That’s plenty for a small home.
It also comes with an energy-saving Auto Off feature and a drip tray that can be removed in order to accommodate larger mugs.
The K50 allows you to brew in three different K-cup pod sizes, which are 6 oz., 8 oz., and 10 oz. This brings us to one of the biggest downsides of the K50: it’s not carafe compatible. So if you want to be able to brew larger batches, the K200 is the better option.
Like all Keurig brewers, the removable water filter will need to be changed about once every two months. However, this is a fast and easy process.
Keurig-compatible removable water filters are quite inexpensive and can be purchased through Amazon. We recommend getting a charcoal filter every time. They’re very effective at trapping impurities.
Plus, the K50 is a bit slow to brew coffee and is known to have a few performance issues.
The Pros
- It’s less expensive when compared to the Keurig K200
- Compact and easy to store
- Fitted with a removable drip tray
- Comes with an Auto Off feature
The Cons
- A bit slower at brewing coffee than some newer Keurig models
- Doesn’t have a touchscreen
- No strength control or temperature settings
- Known to have a few performance bugs
- Only compatible with three K-cup pod sizes
- Can get a bit noisy
Keurig K200 Review
This Keurig model has a slightly smaller water reservoir that the K50 (40 ounces). This just means you’ll get about one less cup of coffee per refill.
However, there are a couple of pros:
First of all, it is compatible with 10 brewing sizes, which includes K-mug and K-carafe pods.
Secondly, the K200 comes with a black and white touchscreen which allows you to pick your brewing preferences with great ease. It’s not just brew size you’re able to select but also strength (whether you want it mild, strong or extra strong). That is a feature which is missing in the K50. The touch display
It also displays prompts to help you with certain actions.
Like the K50, the K200 is also slow to brew coffee. This is because you have to preheat the K200 before you start the brewing process.
The Pros
- It also comes with a removable drip tray
- Auto Off feature
- Black and White Touchscreen
- Comes with strength control
- It’s compact
- You can use a carafe with it
The Cons
- Takes more than a minute to produce coffee
- Lacks temperature controls
K50 vs K200: A Detailed Comparison
In this section, we’re going to be taking a closer look at the similarities and differences between the two Keurig coffee makers.
Appearance
Appearance-wise, the K50 and K200 are quite different from each other. The former features more of a classic look. This is due to the fact that its interface has regular buttons instead of a touchscreen.
The latter sports more of a sleek, modern look and will definitely suit kitchens with contemporary aesthetics. Plus, the K200 comes in a much wider variety of colours.
One thing that the K50 has over the K200 is the fact that it’s more compact. So if you have a cluttered kitchen countertop, then the K50 might be easier to store.
Pod Compatibility
One of the biggest differences between the K200 and K50 is the number of brew sizes each is compatible with. The K50 only allows you to brew in three K-cup pod sizes. This is fine if you don’t have that many coffee drinkers in the house.
However, if you need to make large batches of coffee every day, then the K200 is more suited for you. It’s compatible with 10 different brewing sizes. This includes the largest K-carafe pod which is 30 ounces (or four cups of coffee at once).
Coffee isn’t the only beverage that these machines are capable of brewing. They can also handle tea, hot cocoa and cold beverages as well.
Both brewers are compatible with Keurig’s My K-Cup Reusable Ground Coffee Filter.
Water Reservoir
As stated above, the K50 has a slightly larger reservoir. Honestly, this doesn’t make much of a difference as the additional 8 ounces equal to just one or two cups of coffee.
The water reservoirs in both models are removable, making cleaning easier.
Controls
The interfaces of the two coffee makers are quite different. The K50’s is only made up of buttons which keeps the brewing operation simple and streamlined.
On the other hand, the K200 comes with a touch display and even offers strength control. You can even configure the display on the K200 to give you alerts about what is going on with the machine.
Neither the K50 nor K200 gives you the ability to manipulate the brewing temperature. Instead, it is set at 89 degrees Celsius.
If you like adjusting your coffee’s flavour by changing up the temperature, then you should look at some of the newer generation Keurigs.
The Auto Off feature that’s present in both models can come in handy if you’re big on saving electricity. It automatically shuts down the coffee maker if you don’t interact with it for about one and a half minutes.
Performance: Keurig K50 vs K200
Both the K50 and K200 take more than 60 seconds to brew a cup of coffee. This puts them among the slowest Keurig machines. Moreover, the K50 is known to have a few issues with its performance.
If you go through customer reviews on Amazon, you’ll find some reports of K50s breaking down after only a few months of use.
In comparison, the K200 is a more reliable machine.
Both coffee brewers are unfortunately a bit noisy.
Cleaning
The K50 and K200 are both fairly easy to clean. This is largely owing to the fact that both are fitted with removable drip trays and reservoirs. As with all coffee makers, regular descaling is a must in order to get rid of mineral deposits that build up inside.
As mentioned before, the removable water filter in each machine needs to be replaced every two months or so.
How Much Do These Coffee Makers Cost?
Unfortunately, the Keurig K50 is a discontinued model, which means you’ll have to buy one second-hand. You’ll most likely be able to buy one in good condition for the reasonable price of $90. In contrast, a brand new K200 has a base price tag of $115 with some colours options costing you extra.
Our Verdict: K50 vs K200 Keurig
Either coffee maker is bound to make the average coffee drinker happy. Neither is too expensive and they’re easy to work with and maintain. Plus they can also brew hot cocoa and tea.
However, when we dig into the features, the K200 clearly has an edge over the K50. It’s compatible with a much greater number of brew sizes (including carafe) and has a touchscreen. Also, it doesn’t have performance issues like the K50.
In Conclusion: Which Coffee Maker Should You Get?
Even though we picked the K200 as our winner, we’d still recommend the K50 to some people, based on their preferences. So which one is better suited for your kitchen?
You Should Buy The Keurig K50 If:
- You don’t want to spend extra for a K200
- You like the simplicity of an interface with only buttons
- You want the slightly larger reservoir
- You only use K-cup pod sizes.
You Should Buy The Keurig K200 If:
- You like having multiple color options to choose from
- You prefer having a touch display on your coffee maker
- You don’t want to deal with performance issues
- You like having a bit more control of the brewing process
- You don’t mind the higher price.
