Keurig K45 Elite Review: Still Worth it in 2021?

Update: This model has now been discontinued. It has been replaced by the Keurig K55.

Have you been looking for a single-cup coffee maker that filters your water before it brews each cup? This particular feature is tricky to find, as many basic single-cup brewer models simply don’t offer it.

Thankfully, I’ve discovered that the Keurig K45 Elite does. If you live in a place with questionable city water and don’t want to pour expensive bottled water into your coffee maker, then you’ll appreciate this feature as much as I do.

This coffee maker uses K-cups to make a wide variety of brews, which means that I’m not stuck with a pot full of one type of coffee – useful when I have guests over who each like a different style of roast.

The Keurig coffee maker also works with reusable coffee pods, so I’m not limited to only using brands that make K-cups (although this doesn’t matter much, as there are so many types to choose from).

I can also make hot chocolate, iced tea, hot tea, and a number of other warm beverages with the machine, making even my non-coffee-drinking guests happy.

The Keurig brewer comes with a small pack of K-cups, as well as a water filter handle and a charcoal filter. These charcoal filters have to be replaced every two months or so, as they tend to lose their effectiveness and sometimes end up full of unpleasant-looking things.

They’re good to have though since I think that coffee tastes better when it’s made with filtered water. The filters are fairly inexpensive, but they are something that needs to be stored with my other coffee-making items, and sometimes making room for them can be kind of difficult. With that said, I like that the Keurig K45 Elite has them.

Features of this Keurig coffee maker

• Measures 14.9 x 12.2 x 14.2 inches
• Weighs 15.8 pounds with an empty water reservoir
• Can fill three different cup sizes – 6 ounces, 8 ounces, and 10 ounces
• Heats the water in a few minutes
• Comes with a removable drip tray
• Automatic on-off feature
• Accommodates a number of different cup sizes

Advantages

• Comes in several different colors, including blue, white, red, and black, making it an easy match to my other appliances
• Handy water reservoir means that I don’t have to head to the sink in between cups
• Wide variety of K-cups available, although the machine will work with a reusable refillable pod
• The drip tray is removable and easy to clean
• Beverage choices aren’t just limited to coffee – the machine makes hot chocolate, iced tea, and other things as well
• The water holder comes off of the machine, making it easy to clean as well as refill

Disadvantages

• The short lifespan of the water hoses means that a replacement will be needed in about two years
• Charcoal water filters will need to be replaced on a regular basis
• The machine doesn’t turn itself off automatically, leaving the heating component subject to burn out
• Only accepts a maximum mug height of 7 inches, meaning that most large travel mugs won’t fit
• Made of plastic that feels kind of flimsy

Comparison

The Keurig K45 and its more advanced model, the Keurig K55 Elite, are very similar. However, the Keurig K45 is not programmable like the K55 model. The latter also allows for bigger cup sizes, and turns itself off automatically within two hours, unless you program it to do otherwise.

On top of this, the K55 has a special feature that provides nothing but hot water, useful for brewing bagged tea leaves. With that said there is little difference between the two besides price. Both use K-cups, have charcoal water filters, and come with removable drip trays.

Comparing this coffee maker to the Ninja Coffee Bar Self-Service System is more effective, as these are two drastically different coffee-making machines. The Keurig model makes basic cups of coffee, which is good if you’re looking for something simpler.

The Ninja Coffee Bar Self-Service System, on the other hand, can produce cups that look they came straight out of a coffee house, thanks to their frothing tool. It all comes down to what you’re looking for, and I know that I prefer the former. When I want a cup of coffee, I don’t need anything fancy.

Verdict

Thanks to the 48-ounce reservoir (do the math – that’s 6, 8-ounce cups of coffee) the Keurig K45 is a winner in my book. I like the fact that I don’t need to fill the machine every day, and almost always have some water waiting for me when I need a cup of coffee.

This coffee maker comes in a number of different colors, which meant that I had to make an important decision while at the store.

The blue one contrasted nicely with my toaster, but you might want one that matches better. Thankfully, the machine comes in three additional colors – black, white, and red – practically guaranteeing that it will match any kitchen décor.

Although I need to be careful when placing the water trough back onto the machine, as it fits very precisely onto pegs on the side of the machine, it’s a handy feature, and it makes refilling the device a breeze.

When I owned a previous model, I had to get out the measuring cup and pour water into the coffee maker, sometimes making a mess. At least with this one, if I make a mess refilling it, it’s over the sink and therefore easier to clean.

I do like the features of this coffee maker, as well as its extreme versatility as far as the types of beverages it can brew. It does have a few downsides, such as those pesky filters and the feel of the exterior plastic, and has since been replaced by more advanced Keurig coffee makers.