Keurig K200 Review 2024 – Is This The Best Beginner Keurig?

My office space is quite cramped, and so when I’m looking for a new coffee maker I need to strike quite a tricky balance.

First, I need a machine that’s discrete enough to not get in the way. At the same time I also need a decent amount of coffee flowing as I glug my way through the day!

There are lots of Keurig machines aimed at this area of the market, and it can be hard to work out exactly which one is right for you.

In our Keurig K200 review we’re taking a deeper look at one of the most popular coffee machines in this category. Towards the bottom we’ve also highlighted some alternatives you might want to consider as well.

(Head back to my massive home coffee brewing guide when you’re done for more help with this side of kitchen life!)

All in all, the K200 is a great choice if you want a reasonably priced Keurig machine, don’t want to have to refill the thing constantly, but don’t necessarily need fancier brewing features either. A single tank delivers about as much coffee as I need in a day and I’m happy with that performance.

I think it’s a great choice for a small kitchen, home office, student dorm, or anywhere else where space is at a premium. You get the full Keurig experience, but from a device that doesn’t clutter up the room.

Pros of the Keurig K200

• Lots of color options
• Affordable
• Makes other drinks like tea and hot chocolate
• Adjustable coffee strength
• 40oz water reservoir
• Descaling / Filter Change notifications
• Basic but clear touchscreen
• Detects Keurig 2.0 pods and brews them optimally

Cons of the Keurig K200

• No Auto Off function
• Cannot be programmed to start at a certain time
• K-Carafe, K-Mug and reusable ground coffee filter purchased separately
• Restricted to using Keurig 2.0 K-Cups
• Brewing time of two minutes (compared to one minute on many Keurigs)

Key Features Of The Keurig K200

Let’s take a closer look at the K200’s main features, and what they’ll mean for you.

Touchscreen Display Controls

The touchscreen display on the K200 is basic but it’s clear and it gets the job done. You can navigate the options easily enough, although it is black and white. Fancier Keurigs have color touchscreens, but you pay a premium for this.

At around 2” the touchscreen on the K200 is big enough to view clearly, and also find the brew size and strength that you want.

Brewing & Strength Control Options

You’ve a number of different brew size options with the K200. A single-cup serving can be set as 4, 6, 8 or 10oz, and each individual cup takes around two minutes to finish. That’s not the fastest I’ve seen with a Keurig but I can wait that long.

Furthermore you can tweak the strength of the individual brew. If – like me – you need something punchy first thing in the morning like, you can dial up the intensity.

As I get older though I find I need to calm down my caffeine intake the longer the day wears on. When that happens I just reduce the brew strength on my maker.

If you want to make other drinks like tea or hot chocolate, there’s a simple but effective hot water function on the K200 too.

Here all the brew sizes, depending on the pod types you’re using:

• K-Cup: 4, 6, 8, 10oz
• K-Mug: 12, 14oz
• K-Carafe: 2-3, 3-4, 4-5 cups

40 Ounce Water Reservoir

The K200’s water reservoir has a capacity of 40oz. That should be enough to get you 5 or 6 cups of coffee before you need to refill it.

Although there are no indicator lights on the water reservoir itself, it’s very easy to see when the machine’s in need of a top-up.

It’s also really easy to clean. Just detach it, empty any water left in there, then give it a light rinse. When you dry it, make sure you put it upside down on the drying rack so that any excess moisture runs out.

If you’re a very light coffee drinker then you’ll want to do this at least once every week. After that point the water will become quite stale, which is not going to help the taste of your coffee!

Size & Dimensions Of The K200

The K200 isn’t the smallest machine in the Keurig collection, but neither is it the bulkiest. There’s always a trade off here when it comes to fitting in a decent sized water reservoir.

The machine’s dimensions are 15 x 9 x 13.7 inches. Just make sure you have another 5-6 inches spare on the height so you can actually open the thing to add and remove pods!

At 7.5lbs when fully assembled it’s a long way from being a truly portable machine, but it’s really not designed for that purpose. It’s pretty light all things considered.

Color Options For the Keurig K200

Not all Keurig machines have a lot of colours to choose from, but I really like the options available with the K200.

There’s the usual black, grey and white for traditional kitchens, so you don’t have to worry about it blending in with your existing kitchenware. My own space is pretty vanilla, so I had no trouble finding a color to match.

If on the other hand you have a bright and breezy kitchen, I don’t think you’ll struggle to find a color that livens things up a bit!

Here are all of the options you can choose from:

• Matte Black
• White
• Plum Grey
• Strawberry Red
• Turqoise
• Sandy Pearl

Optional Upgrades For The Keurig K200

What I like about the Keurig 2.0 K200 is that as a standalone coffee maker it works really well on a cup-by-cup basis.

Although it might have been nice to get a K-Mug and K-Carafe with the machine itself, I just don’t need them myself and so would rather not pay the premium.

You can, however, “upgrade” the machine with extra accessories if you’re likely to use it for occasional entertaining. See if you can fit your current, non-branded carafes or mugs in first though, so you don’t spend money needlessly.

If you do buy the K-Carafe, you simply need to remove the drip tray (which slides out very easily), then place your carafe under the spout. Line it up with the notch that’s built into the machine and you’re good to go.

You can’t use regular K-Cups though, and so you’ll need to buy K-Carafe Cups instead. If you’re only entertaining occasionally, just make sure you have a stash of these somewhere.

The same advice applies to the K-Mug. If you decide to use your own travel mug, make sure it’s not taller than around seven inches. Otherwise you’ll struggle to fit it in.

I try to be as environmentally responsible as possible, and it’s a shame that the K-Cup reusable coffee filter isn’t available out of the box. Still it’s not particularly expensive to add one to your collection. Expect to pay around $10.

Cleaning & Maintenance The Keurig K200

The K200 Keurig is a doddle to clean. The plastic shell means you just need to run a damp cloth over the unit to get it cleaned up.

There’s also a descaling / filter change alert function on the machine. Don’t ignore these, as they’ll both seriously affect the flavor of your coffee.

Descaling is simple, and Keurig sells a branded descaling solution just for that purpose. If you want to save a bit of money, you can make your own by mixing vinegar and water. Be warned though that it can be quite smelly!

Alternatives To The Keurig K200

There are plenty of single serve coffee makers out there! If you’re not sure if the K200 is for you, have a look at some of these alternatives instead.

KEURIG K475

Consider the K475 if you think the K200’s reservoir is going to be too small for your needs. The K475 has a capacity of 70oz instead of 40oz.

Additionally it has features like automatic on and off, so you can set your machine up the night before, and also have it turn off when it’s not in use.

There are also a few extra brewing settings to help you tweak your cup of coffee just how you want it.

Use the link above to check it out on Amazon, or have a look through our review if you’d like a deeper dive on what to expect.

KEURIG K55

The K55 has a slightly bigger reservoir at 48oz, but note that it doesn’t offer a 4oz cup size serving.

The first brew of the day is a little bit slower, and the machine takes around four minutes to get up to speed. Subsequent cups don’t take much longer than the K200 Keurig though.

You’ve less color options with the K55, so you’ll need to be comfortable with owning a standard black or dusky red version of the machine.

We’ve got a K55 review elsewhere on Viva Flavor which contains an in-depth look at the machine’s pros and cons.

KEURIG K15

If you don’t need a water reservoir at all, the K15 is one of the smallest Keurig machines you can buy, yet it still enjoys positive reviews.

Brew sizes are smaller and you can only fit a 5.2” travel mug under the spout. It is a truly portable Keurig though, and so suits very small spaces well.

Have a look at our K15 review if you want to learn more about this particular Keurig coffee maker.

Final Verdict On The Keurig K200

I’m pretty impressed with the Keurig K200 coffee maker overall. These things exist to get Keurig-quality coffee in you very quickly, and in that sense it delivers on its mission perfectly.

I like being able to tweak the strength of the coffee it brews throughout the day, and I find that water reservoir ample for my own needs. It’s also small enough to fit anywhere I need to place it.

Click here to find out more about this popular Keurig machine, and read more user reviews on Amazon.