Cold Brew At HomeTwo very different approaches
The Toddy and the Takeya solve the same problem — cold brew concentrate without a machine — in almost opposite ways. Toddy is a slow immersion drip system; Takeya is a steep-and-strain pitcher you shake and pour through a built-in filter.
Toddy Cold Brew System
- Yield: 2 quarts per batch
- Method: immersion brew through a felt filter, 12–24 hour steep
- Price: $44.95
- Best for: larger batches, smoother concentrate, daily drinkers
Takeya Cold Brew Maker
- Yield: about 1 quart (32 oz) per batch
- Method: steep grounds directly in the pitcher, then pour through a fine-mesh filter built into the lid
- Price: around $19.99
- Best for: budget buyers, smaller households, fridge-door storage
The real tradeoff: price vs. yield and clarity
Takeya is less than half the price of the Toddy, and for someone brewing a single quart at a time, that’s a legitimate reason to choose it. But the built-in mesh filter lets more fine sediment through than Toddy’s felt filter, so the concentrate tends to be slightly grittier. Takeya’s slim pitcher shape also fits standard fridge doors better than Toddy’s wider glass decanter.
If budget is the deciding factor, Takeya is a perfectly reasonable cold brew maker. If you want twice the yield per batch and a cleaner-tasting concentrate, and don’t mind the extra $25, the Toddy is the better long-term buy — especially since the felt filter is reusable for months before it needs replacing.
Read the full Toddy review for details on setup and cleanup.