Jura Z10 Review: 7 Surprising Things I Learned After 1 Month of Daily Use

Quick Answer: I’d only recommend the Jura Z10 if you want to make a lot of iced coffee drinks. If you aren’t that bothered about these types of drinks then you’d get better value from the Jura S8 than the Z10.

You’ve probably seen the Jura Z10’s hefty price tag (even by Jura’s standards) and wondered just how an espresso machine can justify costing the best part of $4,000.

In this Jura Z10 review I’m going to assess whether the Jura Z10 justifies this cost by looking at:

• Whether the coffee machine’s cold brew coffee and cold milk foam (drinks unique to the Z10) are actually any good.
• If its infinite grind settings and product-recognizing grinder allow you to make better espresso than other Jura machines.
• Whether other high-end super-automatic espresso machines are as good as the Jura Z10.

Let’s get started.

Should I Buy the Jura Z10 (Quick Verdict)?

I’d only recommend the Jura Z10 if you specifically want a super-automatic espresso machine that can make iced coffee drinks.

The Jura Z10 brews the joint best-tasting espresso of any super automatic and is also one of only two super automatics that can make cold milk foam for iced lattes. Its touch screen is also a cut above any other super automatics user interface. 

Jura Z10 Overall Rating

• Quality of Espresso: 8/10
• Quality of Milk-Based Drinks: 9/10
• Functionalities: 10/10
• Ease of Use & Cleaning: 9/10
• Design & Build Quality: 10/10
• Value for Money: 7/10

If you still want a high-end Jura machine, but aren’t that bothered about making iced coffees with it then I’d recommend the Jura S8 instead of the Jura Z10.

The Jura S8 still has a touch screen and the ability to dispense hot and foamed milk (just like the Z10). 

It lacks the Jura Z10’s ability to make cold brew coffee/cold milk foam and the product-recognizing grinder. The Jura S8 costs around $800 less than the Jura Z10 to make up for these omissions, however.

For more information on the Jura S8, please see my Jura S8 review.

Jura Z10: An Overview

The Jura Z10 is a super-automatic espresso machine. This means that all you need to do to make a coffee is to fill the machine with whole coffee beans and water and press the touch screen button that corresponds to the coffee that you want to make.

The Jura Z10 will grind your coffee beans and dose out your ground coffee for you.

The Z10 also has an automatic milk frother. You need to attach the machine to an external container of milk via a silicone tube (the tube comes with the machine but the external milk container does not).

You can see a photo below of my Jura E8 which uses the same basic milk frothing system as the Jura Z10.

The Jura Z10 is operated by a touch screen and also has a click wheel on top of the machine to help you navigate the touch screen. 

While having a touch screen and a touchpad might seem unnecessary, this is actually a really smart design (I’ll explain later why I think this).

The Jura Z10 has 32 items on its menu, which includes:

• 10 hot black coffee drinks
• 11 hot milk-based coffee drinks
• 2 cold black coffee drinks
• 6 cold milk-based coffee drinks
• Plain hot milk and two temperatures of plain hot water

Below is a table of the Jura Z10’s specifications and the machine’s pros and cons

Jura Z10 Pros

Its cold brew coffee and low milk temperature settings are excellent for iced coffee.

It has the best user interface of all Jura coffee machines.

You don’t have to pay extra to use it remotely (unlike most other Jura machines)

It makes the best espresso and frothed milk of all super-automatic espresso machines (this is true of Jura machines generally)

Jura Z10 Cons

Its “Product Recognizing Grinder” is a pointless feature.

It’s overpriced if you aren’t going to use its full range of cold coffee drinks.

Jura Z10: Feature Breakdown

I’m now going to run through each of the Jura Z10’s key features, along with my assessment of how well they are executed.

I’m going to start with the coffee machine’s unique features and then move on to features that are common to all Jura espresso machines.

What Drinks Can you Make with the Jura Z10?

The Jura Z10 has 32 menu options which break down into:

• 10 hot black coffee drinks
• 11 hot milk-based coffee drinks
• 2 cold black coffee drinks
• 6 cold milk-based coffee drinks
• Plain hot and plain foamed milk and two hot water options

Here is the Jura Z10’s full menu. I will put an asterisk next to drinks that are not available on cheaper Jura models:

Hot black coffee drinks

• Espresso
• 2 x espresso
• Filter coffee
• 2 x filter coffee
• Caffe Barista (similar to a lungo)
• 2x Caffe Barista
• Americano
• 2x Americano
• Espresso doppio
• Jug of coffee*

Cold black coffee drinks

• Cold brew espresso*
• Cold brew filter coffee*

Hot milk-based coffee drinks

• Cortado
• Macchiato
• Caffe latte
• Caffe latte extra shot*
• Cappuccino
• Cappuccino extra shot
• Flat white
• Flat white extra shot
• Latte macchiato
• Latte macchiato extra shot

Cold milk-based coffee drinks

• Cold brew cortado*
• Cold brew macchiato*
• Cold brew caffe latte*
• Cold brew cappuccino*
• Cold brew flat white*
• Cold brew latte macchiato*

Other drinks

• Portion of milk foam
• Portion of hot milk
• Hot water
• Hot water for green tea

You can also customize each drink in the following ways

• Coffee grind size (5 options per drink)
• Weight of ground coffee used (10 settings ranging from 5 grams – 16 grams per shot)
• Volume of water used in your coffee (to the nearest 5 milliliters)
• How much milk is dispensed (to the nearest second of dispensing time)
• Coffee brewing temperature (3 settings)
• Milk temperature (10 settings)

Milk temperature customization is unique to the Jura Z10. This was added to the coffee machine to allow you to make cold foam to go on top of your cold brews.

It’s hard not to be impressed by the Jura Z10’s enormous menu and a vast array of customizations.

The only customization option that I think the machine is missing is the ability to toggle between hot and steamed milk on the fly while a drink is being brewed. 

The Jura S8 has this functionality, and it gives you an extra level of control when making layered milk drinks like latte macchiato.

Still, this is a small nitpick, and Jura has smashed it out of the park with the Z10’s menu and customization options.

Unique Feature: Cold Brew Specialty Coffee

The main differentiator between the Jura Z10 and other Jura machines is the Z10’s ability to make cold-brew coffee.

It follows then that a key factor to whether the Jura Z10 is worth the money or not lies in how well it makes these cold drinks.

First I have to say that the name “cold brew” is misleading.

Cold brew refers to coffee that has been steeped for 12 hours at room temperature or colder. 

This produces a mild, slightly sweet, and super caffeinated coffee that has gained popularity in the last decade mainly due to it having higher levels of caffeine than coffee brewed in more traditional ways.

Jura’s cold brew is not what I’ve just described.

The Jura Z10 instead makes cold brew by grinding your coffee beans a bit coarser than normal and then brewing it at room temperature under lower-than-normal pressure for around two minutes.

Although this sounds a bit strange (and not in a good way), the general consensus among Jura Z10 users is that its cold brew espresso is a bit watery when drunk alone, but that it’s really versatile and can be used to make some excellent iced coffee drinks.

As one Redditor puts it in his Jura Z10 review on Reddit:

“The cold coffee seems to be cold espresso watered down. So for a true ice coffee I add an additional shot in there then pour over ice. This gives it that cold brew taste and is so good.”u/trickybucs

Another Redditor commented in this thread:

“cold brew genuinely makes an amazing espresso martini”u/dhdhdhdhd123

I think that Jura should have just called their cold brew “iced coffee”.

Their cold brew is essentially a better version of the iced coffee functionalities on Ninja coffee machines – a decent (but not amazing) coffee that is dispensed at room temperature.

Unique Feature: Milk Temperature Control

The Jura Z10 has ten temperature settings for its steamed and frothed milk.

The main use for this is to make “cold foam” to add to your cold brew drinks. This allows you to easily make an iced latte (or similar iced milk drink) without your ice melting into a watery, milky mess.

There are two things to note about the Jura Z10’s milk temperature settings:

• Its lowest temperature setting is still slightly higher than room temperature. You’ll therefore want to add quite a lot of ice if you are going to make an iced latte or similar.
• The Jura Z10’s “cold foam” is not going to be as thick or as sweet as what you’d get in coffee shops. Coffee shops tend to make cold foam from half and half and usually add sugar to it. Jura’s frothed milk in a low-temperature setting won’t be significantly sweeter than un-frothed milk as there is not enough heat to break down its lactose into simpler, sweeter sugars.

The Jura Z10’s highest milk temperature settings are still not that hot, but that’s not a bad thing.

Milk starts to develop an unpleasant “burnt egg” smell and taste once it reaches 150 Fahrenheit. 

The Jura Z10, therefore, does not froth milk at a higher temperature than 150 Fahrenheit. For reference, this is roughly the highest temperature that you can drink a liquid at without burning your mouth.

Unique Feature: Touch Screen with Click Wheel Operation

The Jura Z10 is operated by a touch screen but also has a click wheel on top of the machine which allows you to slide between fine-grained settings like coffee strength and size.

You can see a video of someone showcasing the Jura Z10’s touch screen and click the wheel below (watch from 30:01 – 31:12).

While the click wheel and a touch screen might seem like overkill, I actually think that it’s a really cool idea.

In my comparison of the Jura E8 vs S8, I complained that the Jura S8 (which only has a touch screen) often requires you to swipe its touch screen and that its touch screen could be very jumpy and oversensitive when you swipe it.

Well, the Jura Z10’s click wheel solves this problem. You can use the touch screen when you need to press something (like selecting a menu option), and then use the click wheel when you need to swipe something (like customizing a drink).

Its swipe wheel is really smooth and responsive without being overly sensitive so it makes the machine significantly easier to use compared to models that only have touch screens.

Unique Feature: Product Recognizing Grinder

The Jura Z10’s “Product Recognizing Grinder” just refers to the fact that it:

• Offers you five possible grind sizes for each menu item
• Changes what these grind sizes are for each menu item

Jura’s reasoning behind this feature is that shorter drinks like espresso should be brewed with finer ground coffee and long drinks like caffe barista and filter coffee should be brewed with coarse ground coffee.

While I sort of agree with this principle (espresso demands a finer grind than filter coffee or cold brew, for example), I don’t think that slight changes in coffee size necessitate a different grind size.

Rather, it’s changing your coffee beans that demands adjusting your grind settings.

In fact, when I first heard the term “Product Recognizing Grinder” I assumed that the “product” that it would recognize would be your beans rather than your chosen menu item. That would genuinely be useful (although nearly impossible to implement).

While some drinks do demand a finer grind size than others, I think that offering the five available grind sizes for each drink is more than enough customizability and that this “Product Recognizing Grinder” is just a marketing gimmick.

Unique Feature: Unlimited Grinder Settings

Jura boasts that their grinder has “unlimited grinder settings”.

Again, even if this is the case (and I think it’s too vague to be true, how can it literally have an infinite amount of grind settings), I don’t see how it would improve the machine’s coffee.

Super-automatic espresso machines cannot tamp your coffee puck with any level of precision. This means that it can only work with a very small window of grind sizes.

You can see a video of someone explaining why this is in greater detail below (watch from 1:10 – 3:15):

This makes a grinder with loads of grind sizes pointless on a super-automatic espresso machine as you’ll only be able to use a small fraction of its available grind sizes.

Again, this is nothing more than a marketing gimmick to try and differentiate the Jura Z10 from Jura’s cheaper machines.

Unique Feature: Wifi Connectivity

The Jura Z10 can connect to the Jura App on your phone via Wifi.

You can then use the machine’s control panel on your phone. This allows you to do the following remotely:

• Make a coffee
• Customize the machine’s menu
• Put the machine into rinse and descale mode
• Access the machine’s manual

Personally, I don’t think I’d ever use this feature. 

You cannot truly make a coffee remotely because you still need to be there to put a cup under the machine’s spout. I always think that you might as well program the machine with its control panel when you place your cup under its spout.

Still, the Jura Z10’s Wifi connectivity is a step up from most other Jura’s which connect to the app via Bluetooth only and which require an additional transmitter (costing around $40) to work.

The Z10 can connect to your app without the need for this additional transmitter.

Non-Unique Feature: Menu Customization (Jura Z10 and S8 Only)

The Jura Z10 allows you to make your own coffee drink based on its customization parameters (strength, volume of coffee and milk, temperature of milk, etc).

This can then be saved to overwrite an existing menu item so it can be accessed with one touch in the future.

These self-created drinks can still be further customized each time you make them.

You can see a video of someone building their own drink below:

This feature is only available on the Jura Z10, Jura S8, and Jura’s (even more expensive) GIGA series.

It’s particularly useful for a large household or office where everyone likes their coffee in a slightly different way.

Non-Unique Feature: Pulse Extraction Process

Jura’s patented Pulse Extraction Process means that Jura espresso machines make better espresso than any other super-automatic espresso machine.

Since super-automatic espresso machines cannot prep your puck properly, they tend to brew espresso too quickly. A lack of compression means that there are too large gaps between each grind, so your brewing water runs through your ground coffee bed too quickly.

This leads to a sour-tasting espresso.

Jura’s Pulse Extraction Process overcomes this by brewing your coffee with pulses of water, rather than one solid stream of water. This slows down the brewing process and creates a better-balanced drink than other super automatics.

Bear in mind that since all Jura machines use this technology, the Jura Z10 does not make significantly better espresso than cheaper Jura machines.

Non-Unique Feature: Automatic Milk Steaming System

Jura machines have an oddly designed automatic milk steaming system where an external container of milk attaches to the machine via a silicone tube.

I cannot fault this system’s performance. Jura machines make the best-frothed milk of any super-automatic espresso machine.

I’m not a huge fan of the design, however. It takes up a lot of space and can be quite messy if your silicone tube falls out of the container (milk will drip everywhere).

It’s also very cheeky that, despite its huge price tag, the Jura Z10 doesn’t come with an insulated container for your milk. 

Constantly having to remove the silicone tube from your own milk container (say, when you have to put your milk back in the fridge because the container isn’t insulated) greatly increases the frequency that you’re likely to have milk dribble onto your counter.

Non-Unique Feature: Intelligent Water System

“Intelligent Water System” is Jura’s marketing-speak to refer to their machine’s use of Jura’s own Claris water filters, and the fact that their machines do not need to be descaled if you change their filters when prompted.

When you first use the Jura Z10 the machine will tell you to take a water hardness test (a test strip comes with the machine). This will then determine how often the machine prompts you to change its filter.

I think that this “no need to descale” promise is just a way for Jura to make extra money from their coffee machines.

Claris water filters are $10 a pop and generally need to be replaced every 3 months – about as regularly as you would otherwise have to descale the machine.

Jura descaling tablets are around $1.50 per tablet, so it’s far more expensive to replace the machine’s filter than to descale the machine.

The Jura Z10 still has a descaling mode, however, Jura recommends that you do not use the machine without a water filter. This, for me, defeated the purpose of the Intelligent Water System and the promise of not having to descale the machine.

Non Unique Feature: Self Cleaning and Descaling

The Jura Z10 has modes in its menu to run the following cleaning and maintenance procedures automatically:

• Quick rinse cycle
• Cleaning the milk system
• Deep cleaning
• Descaling

You can see a video on how the Jura Z10’s deep cleaning procedure works below.

The espresso machine’s other cleaning and maintenance procedures are all accessed in the same way as this, meaning that they take a little more effort than a few clicks of the machine’s control panel.

Now that I’ve run through the Jura Z10’s features and functionalities, I am going to assess the machine across the following criteria:

• Quality of espresso
• Quality of milk drinks
• Functionalities
• Ease of use and cleaning
• Design and build quality
• Value for money

Quality of Espresso

The Jura Z10 makes the best espresso of all super-automatic espresso machines. Its espresso is not significantly better than other Jura machines, however.

Jura espresso machines make the best-tasting espresso of all super automatics due to Jura’s patented Pulse Extraction Process. I spoke earlier about how this overcomes many of the limitations that super automatics face when it comes to brewing espresso.

In his video comparing the most popular super-automatic machines, coffee YouTuber James Hoffmann said that the Jura Z10 makes better espresso than the top-of-the-line machines from Delonghi, Miele, Gaggia, Siemens, and Melitta. 

You can see his thoughts on the Jura Z10’s espresso below (watch from 11:50 -14:40):

Since all Juras use this Pulse Extraction Process, the Jura Z10 does not make significantly better espresso than other Jura coffee machines. This is why I think that if you are only going to make black espresso drinks then you should opt for a cheaper Jura model.

Even though the Jura Z10 makes better espresso than other super-automatic espresso machines, its espresso is not even close to as good as what you can get from a high-quality portafilter-driven machine.

Quality of Espresso Rating: 8/10

Quality of Milk Drinks

The Jura Z10 can froth milk better than any other super-automatic espresso machine. Again, its milk froth quality is matched by other Jura machines.

In his comparison of superautomatic espresso machines, Hoffmann concluded that the Jura Z10 makes the best-frothed milk of all machines tested. You can see his comments on the Jura Z10’s milk foam below (watch from 22:20 – 24:09).

Since all Juras use the same milk-steaming system, you can get the same quality of milk drink from all these machines. 

The Jura Z10 does allow you to make a greater range of milk drinks compared to cheaper models, largely because of its ability to make cold foam and to dispense hot untextured milk as well as foamed milk.

Quality of Milk Drinks Rating: 9/10

Functionalities

The Jura Z10 can make pretty much any specialty coffee drink that you can think of.

The Jura Z10’s menu is huge and it can let you customize your drink in pretty much whatever way you want.

It’s one of only three super-automatic espresso machines that let you make cold foam (along with Jura’s GIGA series).

In short, it’s hard to find any faults with the functionalities that the machine offers.

Functionalities Rating: 10/10

Ease of Use and Cleaning

The Jura Z10 has one of the most intuitive user interfaces of any super-automatic machine and automates the vast majority of its cleaning processes.

I really like the Jura Z10’s user interface and workflow. Its combination of a touch screen and a click wheel is really clever and makes the machine a big step up from more affordable Jura models like the Jura E8 and Jura Z10.

The fact that you can make custom drinks from scratch and then add them to your menu really simplifies Z10’s workflow. You can often make your drink exactly the way you want it with one or two clicks of its touchscreen.

The machine will automatically run rinse and milk cleaning cycles after every coffee that you make, you just need to remember to put a container under the machine’s spouts to collect the water used in this.

Less regular cleaning is turned on with a few button presses. The only manual cleaning you need to do with the Z10 is to empty its drip tray and remove its used coffee grounds container when full. 

Unfortunately, its drip tray fills up quite quickly. If you use the machine every day you’ll probably have to change its drip tray once every couple of weeks.

You can find a balanced discussion on the amount of effort it takes to keep the Jura Z10 clean in this Reddit thread.

Ease of Use and Cleaning Rating: 9/10

Design and Build Quality

The Jura Z10’s design and build quality are flawless.

Everything about the Jura Z10, from its touch screen to its bean hopper, to even its drip tray, feels well-built.

I could find very few reports online of the machine succumbing to technical faults, which is a testament to its high internal build quality.

Even though the machine is very expensive, I don’t think you will feel short-changed by it, that’s how good its build quality is.

Design and Build Quality Rating: 10/10

Value For Money

The Jura Z10 only delivers good value for money if you will drink its cold brew menu items regularly.

Although Jura espresso machines are expensive, you get what you pay for. 

They have a very high build quality (both in terms of their brewing/milk-steaming system and their exterior) and generally last a long time without succumbing to technical issues.

The main reason why the Jura Z10 is more expensive than most other Jura machines is because of its ability to make cold brew coffees and cold foam. 

If you aren’t going to drink these coffees, then you’re going to find better value with a cheaper Jura machine.

If you want a machine that can make iced coffees as easily as making a hot coffee, then you will get good value from the Jura Z10.

Value for Money Rating: 7/10

Product Alternative: Jura S8 – Better Value for Non-Iced Coffee Drinkers

The Jura S8 is like the Jura Z10, minus the following features:

• No cold brew options
• No milk temperature settings
• No click wheel (touch screen only)
• No product-recognizing grinder

The Jura S8 can still make 15 specialty coffee drinks, has a customizable menu, and uses the same basic brewing and milk steaming system as the Jura Z10.

The Jura S8’s quality of drinks will therefore be the same as the Jura Z10. Its user interface is only slightly worse than the Z10’s due to a lack of a click wheel.

The Jura S8 is around $800 cheaper than the Jura Z10. Therefore if you are not interested in the Jura Z10’s cold brew and cold foam functionalities then you’ll get more for your money with the Jura S8 than the Jura Z10.

Jura Z10 Review: Final Verdict

The Jura Z10 justifies its large price tag by making excellent espresso and hot and cold milk-based coffee drinks.

Although I think it’s overkill if you aren’t going to use its “cold brew” features, if you want a machine that can make hot and cold coffee drinks then you cannot get better than the Jura Z10.

Overall Rating

• Quality of Espresso: 8/10
• Quality of Milk-Based Drinks: 9/10
• Functionalities: 10/10
• Ease of Use & Cleaning: 9/10
• Design & Build Quality: 10/10
• Value for Money: 7/10

To find out more about Jura coffee machines, please see my roundup of the best Jura coffee makers.