You can’t beat the comforting taste of hot chocolate in the colder months, and now the winter staple is even easier to make at home. While there’s always the option of adding a few spoons of hot chocolate powder to frothed milk, this can often be underwhelming compared to a cup of cocoa from a coffee shop. The good news is that there are now dedicated hot chocolate makers that help you to make barista-perfect drinks from the comfort of your kitchen.
The most famous of these is the viral Hotel Chocolat velvetiser, which launched in 2018 and quickly went viral. It was updated this summer to incorporate a cold chocolate function. The velvetiser is arguably the most popular hot chocolate maker, but it’ll set you back £150. Now there are a handful of similar models on the market, and one in particular has caught my attention: Salter’s the chocolatier electric hot chocolate maker, which costs a fraction of the price at £35.
Both machines combine chocolate flakes with milk to make hot chocolate, while Salter’s appliance can also froth milk to different consistencies, which you can add to your coffees. There’s a chunky £115 difference in price between the two, so having tested countless kitchen appliances over the years, I was intrigued to see if the budget-friendly alternative was as effective as its premium counterparts. All in the name of a decent cup of cocoa, I got my hands on Hotel Chocolat’s velvetiser and Salter’s chocolatier electric hot chocolate maker to see if it’s worth spending more.
Read more: Best coffee machines for 2025, tried and tested for barista-quality cups
How I tested
I used both machines to make a cup of hot chocolate with milk chocolate flakes and dairy milk. Nowadays, you can get lots of exciting hot chocolate varieties, from orange chocolate to peppermint, but I stuck to a classic flavour for this test. I followed the instructions, assessing key factors including ease of use, taste and ease of cleaning. These appliances are often left out on kitchen countertops, so I made notes on appearance, too. You can read my full testing criteria at the end of the review.
