Quick answer: The only difference between the Ninja CP301 and the Ninja CP307 is that the Ninja CP307 has a thermal carafe, whereas the Ninja CP301 has a glass carafe. I’d recommend the Ninja CP307 over the Ninja CP301 as thermal carafes keep your coffee warmer for longer, and are more durable than glass carafes.
This is my comparison of the Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307.
I have never owned either of these machines.
I have, however, spent five hours researching these two machines, and users’ experiences with them online, to put together this comparison.
Let’s get started.
Should I Buy the Ninja CP307 or Ninja CP301 (Quick Verdict)?
I would recommend buying the Ninja CP307 over the Ninja CP301.
The only difference between the two machines is that:
- Ninja CP307: has a thermal carafe made out of insulative stainless steel. This carafe can keep your coffee hot for around 90 minutes (which is quite poor by thermal carafe standards).
- Ninja CP301: has a glass carafe. This sits on a hot plate that can keep your coffee hot for 15 minutes. If it sits on its hot plate for longer than this your coffee will cook and become bitter.
The two machines are identical, other than this difference in carafe material.
I would always recommend buying a machine with a thermal carafe over a glass carafe for three reasons:
- Thermal carafes keep your coffee hotter for significantly longer than a glass carafe. Amazon reviews of the Ninja CP307 indicate that its thermal carafe will keep your coffee piping hot for around 90 minutes. Although this is pretty poor by thermal carafe standards, it is still better than a glass carafe which will not keep your coffee at a drinkable temperature for more than 25 minutes.
- Glass carafes rely on a hot plate to keep them warm which cooks your coffee. If you keep your carafe full of coffee on its hot plate for more than 20 minutes, the coffee will start to cook and become undrinkably bitter. Thermal carafes do not rely on a hot plate to stay warm so this is not a problem.
- Glass carafes are much more fragile than thermal carafes: Glass carafes can smash really easily, especially if you wash them in the dishwasher or if you are storing your machine in a cupboard. Glass carafes cost around $20 to replace which can increase the overall lifetime cost of your machine vs one with a near enough indestructible thermal carafe.
In short, even though the Ninja CP307’s thermal carafe is quite poor at keeping your coffee hot, I’d still definitely take it over the CP301’s glass carafe.
Better than the Ninja CP301
The Ninja CP307 is better than the Ninja CP301 because its thermal carafe is much more durable than the CP301’s glass carafe (which can smash really easily).
What are the Differences Between the Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307?
The only difference between the Ninja CP301 and the Ninja CP307 is in their carafe material.
- Ninja CP307: has a thermal carafe made out of insulative stainless steel.
- Ninja CP301: has a glass carafe.
Other than this, the two machines are identical.
This identicality extends to price, with Ninja listing the two machines as having the same price tag.
Although third-party retailers can sell any product for whatever price they want, I am going to assume that Ninja’s identical pricing means that the two machines have the same recommended retail price.
What are the Similarities Between the Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307?
The Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307 are identical in every way other than their carafe.
The Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307 are identical in the following ways:
- Quality of coffee: The two machines have identical brewing systems meaning that they make coffee in the exact same way. This means that the two machines brew coffee to the same quality standard.
- Functionalities: The two machines offer the exact same menu of coffee types and offer the same range of serving sizes. They also both have milk-frothing capabilities.
- Dimensions: The two machines are the exact same shape and size.
- Price: As of February 2023 the two machines have the same recommended retail price as per Ninja’s website. Most of the time, machines with thermal carafes are slightly more expensive than equivalent machines with glass carafes. The two machines will therefore likely be close in price, but if one is more expensive than the other it will be the Ninja CP307.
The table below shows the specifications of these two machines:
| Specification | Ninja CP301 | Ninja CP307 |
| Dimensions (width x depth x height, in inches) | 10” x 11.8” x 15” | 10” x 11.8” x 15” |
| Available coffee types | Classic, Rich, Over ice, Specialty, Cold brew | Classic, Rich, Over ice, Specialty, Cold brew |
| Available serving sizes | 4 oz – 50 oz | 4 oz – 50 oz |
| Control panel type | Button controlled with backlit icons | Button controlled with backlit icons |
| Carafe type | Glass | Thermal |
| How long can it keep your coffee hot for? | 25 minutes | 90 minutes |
| Can you brew with K cups? | No | No |
| Milk frothing functionality | Can froth but not heat milk | Can froth but not heat milk |
| Auto on functionality | Yes | Yes |
| Buy on Amazon | Get the Ninja CP301 on Amazon | Get the Ninja CP307 on Amazon |
I’m now going to compare these two machines across five criteria. They are:
- Quality of coffee
- Functionalities
- Ease of use
- Design and build quality
- Value for money
Quality of Coffee
The Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307 make coffee in the exact same way meaning that their coffee quality is identical.
These two machines make the exact same quality of coffee.
Their coffee quality can be best described as “good but not great”.
They are not SCAA certified, which means that they do not have good quality enough heating systems to brew coffee at a consistent temperature. This means that their coffee will be a bit bland compared to the best automatic drip coffee makers.
Still, from what I have seen from Ninja coffee machine users on Reddit, these two machines can make good coffee especially if you brew on the “rich” setting.
The machine’s iced coffee also gets rave reviews from its users on Reddit.
Quality of Coffee Winner: Draw
Functionalities
The Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307 can make the exact same types of coffee and have the same available serving sizes.
The Ninja CP301 and CP307 offer the exact same types of coffee. They are as follows:
| Coffee Type | Description |
| Classic | Brews 13 oz of coffee per serving. Coffee is brewed at 180 Fahrenheit for 2 minutes and 12 seconds |
| Rich | Brews 12 oz of coffee per serving. Coffee is brewed at 180 Fahrenheit for 2 minutes and 12 seconds |
| Over Ice | Brews 6 oz of coffee per serving. Coffee is brewed at 150 Fahrenheit for 1 minute and 30 seconds |
| Cold Brew | Coffee is brewed at 86 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes |
| Specialty | Brews 4 oz of coffee per serving. Coffee is brewed at 180 Fahrenheit for 2 minutes and 10 seconds |
Both machines can brew 6 different serving sizes of coffee. The actual volume of each serving size depends on the type of coffee that you are brewing (as shown in the above table).
Here are my thoughts on how both the Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307’s make their different types of coffee.
- Both machines take strength to mean brew ratio: Stronger types of coffee (like “bold” and “specialty”) are stronger than Classic purely because they are brewed with less liquid. Personally, I’m not a big fan of this system. Drip coffee should always be brewed at a 1:16 coffee-to-water ratio. Strength should be adjusted by adjusting coffee grind size or brewing time, rather than brew ratio.
- I would not want a cold brew from either machine: Cold brew needs to be brewed for at least 8 hours. You definitely cannot make it in 15 minutes. I can’t imagine the Ninja CP301 or Ninja CP307’s cold brew tasting like anything other than coffee-tinged warm water.
In short, the Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307 offer the exact same types of coffee and serving sizes. I wouldn’t recommend all their coffee styles, however (especially not their cold brew).
Functionalities Rating: Draw
Ease of Use
The Ninja CP307 is slightly easier to use than the Ninja CP301. The CP307’s use of a thermal carafe, instead of the CP301’s glass one, means you have to brew less often as your coffee will stay warm for longer.
Both the Ninja CP301 and Ninja CP307 are easy to use given their button-operated control panel with backlit signs and symbols that tell you exactly what type of coffee and serving size you are brewing.
The Ninja CP307’s use of a thermal carafe makes it slightly easier to use than the Ninja CP301.
Since a thermal carafe keeps your coffee warmer for much longer than a glass carafe, you have to brew fewer batches of coffee with the CP307 than with the CP301.
This is particularly important if you like to drink two cups of coffee in quick succession. The Ninja CP307’s thermal carafe will keep your coffee hot over the course of the time that it takes you to drink your first cup. With the CP301, you may well have to rush your first cup to make sure that your second cup is still hot when it comes to drinking time.
This increases the amount of work that goes into using the Ninja CP301 over the Ninja CP307 as you may well have to brew twice to have two hot cups of coffee in succession.
Ease of Use Winner: Ninja CP307
Design and Build Quality
The Ninja CP307’s thermal carafe means that it is a more durable machine than the Ninja CP301. Other than that the design and build of the two machines are identical.
The Ninja CP301 and CP307 have identical designs and build quality other than their carafes.
From what I have seen in reviews of these machines on Amazon and Reddit, Ninja coffee makers (including these two machines) have a reputation for poor craftsmanship and their machines have a tendency to leak from their reservoir and for their pump to deteriorate within two years of ownership.
I think that Ninja tries to squeeze too many functionalities (five coffee types and six preset serving sizes are far more functionalities than most similarly priced coffee makers) into their machines and that this creates unnecessary points of failure.
The more things a machine can do, the more ways it can break down, and this is why Ninja coffee makers are less reliable than many other premium coffee makers.
But back to the CP301 and CP307.
The Ninja CP307 is more durable than the Ninja CP301 due to the latter’s glass carafe shattering easily when dropped.
The glass carafe is easily one of the most fragile parts of coffee makers with glass carafes, and thermal carafes are virtually indestructible (the only way you can damage them is if they rust because you leave water in them for days without drying them out).
Therefore, even if the two machines have the exact same design and build other than their carafes, the Ninja CP307 is significantly more durable than the Ninja CP301.
Design and Build Quality Winner: Ninja CP307
Value For Money
Ninja themselves sell the two machines at the same price. I infer from this that their recommended retail price is the same.
However, retailers can price things as they wish.
Personally, I’d be willing to pay an extra $50 for a machine with a (not very good) thermal carafe over a glass one.
I have come to this figure based on two factors:
- $20 to cover the price of one smashed glass carafe (I am clumsy so would definitely smash my glass carafe at least once over the life of my machine).
- $30 to be able to keep my coffee warm for one to two hours after brewing (I feel like I’d make this back through a less interrupted work day where I only need to brew one pot of coffee rather than two).
Whether this applies to you depends on your coffee-drinking habits and (to a lesser extent) your level of clumsiness. If you regularly drink two cups of coffee on the spin then it’s likely then parting with an extra $50 or so for a machine with a thermal carafe will be worth it.
Value for Money Winner: Ninja CP307
Do I Actually Recommend the Ninja CP307?
I personally would not buy the Ninja CP307.
The machine makes ok, but not great coffee. Although it makes it easy to make lots of different types of coffee, if you dig into how they make each of these types of coffee, I refuse to believe that they execute any of them well, save for their “rich” and iced coffee.
I’m just not a fan of these jacks-of-all-trades, master-of-none machines that have a million presets.
Instead, I think you should just opt for a machine that makes one type of drip coffee really well and customise your drink manually according to what you want.
Product Alternative: Bonavita 8-Cup – A Better Option if You Want the Best Tasting Coffee
A Better Alternative to the Ninja CP301/Ninja CP307
The Bonavita 8-Cup makes much, much better coffee than the Ninja CP307. This plus a better build quality makes it a much better option than the similarly priced Ninja CP307.
The Bonavita 8-Cup offers you two main advantages over the Ninja CP307. These are:
- Bonavita 8-Cup makes much better coffee than the Ninja CP307: Unlike the Ninja, the Bonavita 8-Cup is SCAA certified meaning that it matches the brewing requirements set out by the Specialty Coffee Association of America for making the best possible drip coffee. This means that coffee from the Bonavita will taste very noticeably better than that made by the Ninja CP307 (or any Ninja coffee maker for that matter).
- The Bonavita 8-Cup carafe is much better insulated than the Ninja CP307’s: The Bonavita 8-Cup carafe can keep your coffee hot for 4-5 hours. This is over twice as long as the Ninja CP307’s “insulative” thermal carafe.
The main downside of the Bonavita 8-Cup compared to the Ninja CP307 is that the Bonavita 8-cup only offers you one type of brew style.
As I’ve said earlier, although the Ninja CP307 has five brew styles, only its “rich” and “over ice” are executed well, and even then I’d take the Bonavita’s standard coffee over the Ninja CP307’s “rich” coffee.
Losing the iced coffee functionality is a small downside of the Bonavita, but you can still easily brew a standard coffee with a higher than normal ground coffee-to-water ratio (measure this manually), let it cool for 15 minutes and then serve it over ice.
Making an iced coffee this way with the Bonavita 8-Cup will be much nicer than the Ninja CP307, due to the Bonavita’s longer brew time. This, in my opinion anyway, is well worth the extra effort.
The two machines are very similarly priced.
Final Thoughts
I’d recommend the Ninja CP307 over the Ninja CP301 because the former’s thermal carafe will keep your coffee hotter for longer and make the machine more durable.
That being said, I’d recommend the similarly priced Bonavita 8-Cup over both machines as it makes far superior coffee to the Ninja CP301, Ninja CP307, and any other Ninja coffee maker for that matter.
A Better Alternative to the Ninja CP301/Ninja CP307
The Bonavita 8-Cup makes much, much better coffee than the Ninja CP307. Since the Bonavita and Ninja are similar prices, I’d recommend the Bonavita over the Ninja every day of the week.
