The Eletta Explore suits anyone who wants hot and cold drinks from one machine for around $1,500. The PrimaDonna Soul suits a household that goes through a lot of coffee and wants the biggest hopper, a second heating system and the largest screen, for around $400 more, without the cold-drink modes.
Both are 19-bar De'Longhi automatics with Bean Adapt, LatteCrema milk, a touchscreen and app control. The Soul is the heavier-duty machine; the Eletta is the more versatile one.
De'Longhi Eletta Explore
LatteCrema Hot and Cool carafes, cold extraction for cold brew in minutes, 3.5-inch touchscreen, Wi-Fi with the Coffee Link app. 26cm wide, 15.3kg. Owners rate it 4.7 from nearly 120 reviews at The Good Guys.
Standard 250g-class hopper and a single thermoblock, so back-to-back milk drinks queue behind the heater.
What We Like:
- Cold brew and cold foam
- 3.5" screen, app
- Around $400 cheaper
What We Don't Like:
- Single heating system
De'Longhi PrimaDonna Soul
A 500g bean hopper, a thermoblock plus a second heating system so milk and coffee don't wait on each other, adaptive grinding that adjusts itself to the bean, a 4.3-inch colour touchscreen, app control, and a long recipe list including flat white, cortado, long black and over-ice. 26cm wide, 18kg. Owners rate it 4.7 from more than 250 reviews at The Good Guys, one of the largest review pools among premium automatics.
No cold extraction and no cold-foam carafe; "over ice" pours hot espresso onto ice.
What We Like:
- 500g hopper
- Dual heating
- 4.3" screen, 250+ reviews
What We Don't Like:
- No true cold brew or cold foam
Side by side
| Eletta Explore | PrimaDonna Soul | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | $1,400–1,500 | $1,800–2,000 |
| Pump | 19 bar | 19 bar |
| Heating | Thermoblock | Thermoblock plus second heating system |
| Hopper | Standard | 500g |
| Grinder | Bean Adapt | Bean Adapt plus adaptive grinding |
| Milk | LatteCrema Hot and Cool | LatteCrema Hot |
| Cold brew | Yes, cold extraction | No (over ice only) |
| Screen | 3.5" | 4.3" |
| App | Yes | Yes |
| Size (W×D×H) | 26 × 45 × 38.5cm | 26 × 48.5 × 39cm |
| Weight | 15.3kg | 18kg |
| Warranty | 2 years | 2 years |
| Owner rating | 4.7 (119) | 4.7 (257) |
Owner ratings are from The Good Guys.
What actually differs
Cold drinks. The Eletta makes real cold brew and cold foam; the Soul pours hot coffee over ice. If summer drinks are half the year, this decides it.
Throughput. The Soul's second heating system and 500g hopper are built for a household that makes six or eight coffees a morning. The Eletta refills more often and pauses between drinks slightly longer.
Screen. 4.3 inches against 3.5. Both are touch; the Soul's is easier to read across a kitchen.
Depth. The Soul is 3.5cm deeper. On a standard 60cm bench it still fits, but the tank access at the back needs room.
Both have been overtaken at the top by the Eletta Ultra, which adds 50 recipes, quiet grinding and both cold modes for around $1,700, and by the PrimaDonna Aromatic, which adds cold brew to the Soul formula for around $2,150.
FAQs
Is the PrimaDonna Soul quieter?
No. De'Longhi's Silent Technology (claimed up to 65% quieter grinding) is on the Eletta Ultra, not the Soul or the Eletta Explore.
Can the Eletta Explore use two carafes at once?
You swap between the Hot and Cool carafes; both come in the box, and only one docks at a time.
Which one lasts longer?
Both carry a two-year warranty and share the same brew unit design. The Soul's larger review pool over more years gives a slightly clearer reliability picture, and it is positive.
