I would say espresso making at home is an expensive hobby unless you are willing to tolerate variability in the output. A decent stable machine is going to be c

I would say espresso making at home is an expensive hobby unless you are willing to tolerate variability in the output. A decent stable machine is going to be close to 1k and the really nice home machines starting at 3k. A good grinder is also expensive. I got all the gear (buying stuff used where I could) and I have spent maybe $1500 on components. I love it, but I wouldn’t recommend it to someone who isn’t willing to put in time to learn and money for decent tools.