Coffee brewers are generally categorized by brew volume or the vessel into which the beverage is brewed. For example, decanter types brew into glass decanters, thermal coffee brewers brew into large servers, and satellite or shuttle brewers brew into non-thermally insulated servers.

Coffee cafes, although dominated by Starbucks, include national and regional chains and have become a fixture in American society. With the advent of nitro and cold brews, coffee brewers continue to adapt to keep up with the evolution of beverage concepts in this segment. For example, advanced automatic coffee centers make it easier for cafes to serve barista-quality specialty coffee beverages that don’t require highly-trained staff.