Real owners lean toward the Bonavita Variable Temp Gooseneck Kettle: 75% of 276 owners recommend it, vs 54% of 281 for the Fellow Stagg EKG Pro.
Verdicts aggregated from Reddit, enthusiast forums, and YouTube owner comments — affiliate reviews excluded. Sample sizes differ; judge accordingly. How we score
Owners who have lived with the Stagg EKG for years describe near-flawless daily reliability, precise degree-level temperature control, and a slow, restricted gooseneck pour that makes pour-over coffee and tea easy to control, all wrapped in a design people are happy to leave on the counter. A firmware update pushed in 2026 turned much of that goodwill sour, with a large group reporting the kettle now creeps toward its target temperature for what feels like forever compared to before. A separate, recurring minority reports base failures, rust spots, sticky dials, and other build lapses within a year or two of purchase, alongside gripes that the price buys more name and looks than substance. The same slow pour that pour-over fans praise frustrates anyone trying to fill a gaiwan, refill a Chemex, or make a quick cup of tea.
“It still gets up to temp as fast as it did. Can be a couple degrees off, but I've been extremely happy with it through the years.”— [deleted] on Reddit
“Bonavita gooseneck kettle at 198 degrees using a Hario v60. Once you start drinking good coffee you realize the burnt offerings of chain locations”— seoulbrova on Reddit
“compared to the Bonavita kettle that died on me. (Edit: They're good quality, but if you leave them plugged in 24/7 a fuse in the base tends to blow, at least in Europe.)”— joakims on Reddit
“I got my Fellow Stagg EKG used at a discount from a coworker. But now that I'm accustomed to the convenience, I probably would still pay full price for it now if I had to replace it.”— magus-21 on Reddit
“I recently made the switch to an electric kettle myself and it is so worth it imo, especially for how fast it heats up and being able to set a specific temperature. The one I have (Fellow Stagg EKG) you can even hold the set temperature for up to an hour”— magicalmarshmallows on Reddit
“Fellow Stagg EKG Kettle: I mean, it looks nice, sure. But my first one had a defective base that required email after email after email to convince the company to activate my warranty. Just get the Bonavita. It does the same thing and is often on sale.”— WowDotes on Reddit
Real owners lean toward the Bonavita Variable Temp Gooseneck Kettle: 75% of 276 owners recommend it, vs 54% of 281 for the Fellow Stagg EKG Pro.
Owners point the Bonavita Variable Temp Gooseneck Kettle at pour-over coffee brewers wanting pour control, and tea drinkers needing exact water temperatures.
Owners point the Fellow Stagg EKG Pro at pourover coffee brewers who want precise, controllable temperature and a slow, steady pour, and daily coffee or tea drinkers who value a hold function that keeps water at temp for later.
The most-cited downside of the Bonavita Variable Temp Gooseneck Kettle is rusts inside, especially with hard water. For the Fellow Stagg EKG Pro, it's a 2026 firmware update slowed the glide into target temperature dramatically, with a large wave of owners saying it now takes far longer to heat than it used to.