De'Longhi Eletta Ultra review: A premium upgrade over the Eletta Explore

Over the last few years, De’Longhi has become one of the biggest names in premium bean-to-cup coffee machines, producing models that demonstrate how good the brand is at combining convenience with impressive coffee results. Now, the company is back with its newest machine – the De'Longhi Eletta Ultra.

Launched earlier this year, the Eletta Ultra adds a quieter design, upgraded milk frothing, smarter drink recommendations and one of the largest automatic drinks menus I’ve seen on a coffee machine so far.

I’ve been using it for several weeks to see whether it really justifies its premium price tag, and whether it’s actually worth the upgrade.

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Price and availability

The De'Longhi Eletta Ultra has an RRP of £1,149.99, making it one of the the brand’s most premium coffee machines yet. It comes in a stylish metallic finish and is available directly from De'Longhi as well as Amazon.

Unboxing and set up

Setting up the Eletta Ultra was very simple and fully guided through on-screen instructions, meaning you barely need to touch the paper manual if you don’t want to. The process involves attaching the water spout, filling the water tank and bean container, and running the initial rinse cycle. The machine then asks you to complete a water hardness test before inserting the filter into the tank, after which it runs through one final rinse and a quick walkthrough of the interface before you’re ready to start.

There are also fewer loose accessories and attachments to worry about compared to some other premium machines. For example, unlike the De'Longhi Eletta Explore, the Eletta Ultra doesn’t include the takeaway cup and ice cube tray. However, I actually preferred this approach because it makes the overall experience feel cleaner and simpler.

Design and features

Visually, the Eletta Ultra features a large glossy touchscreen display at the centre, framed by brushed metallic finishes and clean edges. Measuring 49 x 30 x 52cm, it’s fairly similar in size to the Eletta Explore, so you’ll still need a decent amount of counter space. De’Longhi also says its new Silent Technology makes the Eletta Ultra up to 65% quieter than previous models.

One of the biggest highlights is just how many drinks the Eletta Ultra can make automatically. It offers an enormous menu of both hot and cold drinks, including espresso, cappuccino, flat white, latte macchiato, iced coffee and cold brew-style drinks. De’Longhi has also leaned heavily into personalisation, allowing users to adjust coffee strength, milk texture, temperature and drink size before saving favourites to individual user profiles.

Another standout feature is the new Collections system, which suggests drinks depending on the time of day, your previous choices or even the kind of coffee mood you’re in. For example, the Intense and Energising collection focus on stronger espresso-based drinks, whilst Discover and Explore introduce recipes inspired by coffee styles from around the world.

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The Eletta Ultra also uses De’Longhi’s updated LatteCrema milk frothing system, which automatically textures milk directly into your cup. It supports both dairy and plant-based milk settings and comes with redesigned carafes that are compact enough to fit neatly into a fridge door. Internally, the machine also features an integrated grinder with multiple grind settings, allowing you to fine-tune coffee strength and extraction depending on your beans and preferred drink style.

Many components, including the drip tray and milk system, are removable and dishwasher-safe, whilst automatic rinse and descaling programmes help keep maintenance easy to handle. There’s also app connectivity, allowing you to customise drinks remotely, receive maintenance alerts and browse recipe inspiration from your phone.

Performance

I’ve reviewed a number of De’Longhi machines over the years, and it’s immediately clear that the Eletta Ultra fits perfectly into the lineup. To me, it feels like a refined and upgraded version of the Eletta Explore, improving an already excellent machine with a more polished overall experience.

Before testing, I filled it with Wood Fired Coffee's organic coffee beans, which I’d highly recommend. They’re sourced from certified organic farms and slow-roasted over a range of hardwoods, resulting in a rich and full-bodied espresso that worked brilliantly with the machine.

Straight away, the biggest thing that stood out during testing was the sheer number of drinks available. It was almost difficult to know where to start, which is exactly why the new Collections feature worked so well. I loved being able to narrow things down depending on my mood or time of day, which meant I looked forward to using the machine and trying different drinks.

I also found the overall design much more thoughtful than previous models. Instead of having open storage space on top, there are now dedicated carved-out slots for the water spout and scoop, which made everything feel tidier. The upgraded LatteCrema carafes also felt improved, and despite being thoroughly impressed with the tube-free system on the Philips Café Aromis Series 8000, the Eletta Ultra’s system still worked extremely well in practice.

The actual coffee results were excellent too. If you’ve read my reviews before, you’ll know cappuccinos are always my benchmark drink, and the Eletta Ultra delivered one of the better examples I’ve tested recently. The milk froth was thick and creamy, with two texture settings available depending on how dense you want it. I personally preferred the richer foam setting, whilst the espresso underneath produced a strong crema and full-bodied flavour. I was also impressed by how hot the milk came out, even on the default setting.

The 1.8-litre water tank (that's accessible from the front) and 300g bean container also lasted much longer than expected, and it’s probably the longest I’ve gone testing a machine without constantly needing to refill something. The user profiles returning from previous De’Longhi models is another small touch I really liked too.

Finally, I loved just how much of the maintenance process the Eletta Ultra handles for you. The milk carafes clean themselves, the machine runs automatic rinse cycles, and it constantly keeps you updated on water and bean levels. If something needs cleaning or attention, the screen walks you through it step-by-step, making the whole ownership experience feel much less intimidating than many other bean-to-cup machines.

Verdict

The De'Longhi Eletta Ultra successfully builds on everything that made the De'Longhi Eletta Explore so popular, whilst refining the experience with a noticeably more premium and polished feel throughout. For me, the standout addition is easily the new Collections feature, which cleverly simplifies the enormous drinks menu and makes the machine feel far more intuitive to use day to day. Combined with consistently excellent coffee results, impressive milk frothing performance and hands-off maintenance, the De'Longhi Eletta Ultra feels like a luxury coffee setup that’s been designed to slot effortlessly into everyday life.

Alternatives to consider

If you want to stay with De’Longhi, the obvious alternative is the De'Longhi Eletta Explore. The two machines are very similar overall, with the Ultra essentially acting as the newer, quieter and more feature-packed version.

Another comparable option is the Philips Café Aromis Series 8000, which offers a similarly premium experience at a slightly lower price point. That said, the Eletta Ultra definitely feels more luxurious overall, particularly thanks to its drink collections system and upgraded interface.