Bonavita and Melitta are not the same company, but their histories are intertwined.
Melitta is a German company founded in 1908 by Melitta Bentz, the inventor of the paper coffee filter. Over the years, Melitta has grown into a global brand, producing pour-over cones, paper filters, electric drip brewers, whole bean and ground coffee, and coffee accessories. The company’s #4 paper filters are widely used and fit many third-party brewers. Melitta serves a mainstream audience with affordable, accessible products and is generally not positioned within the third-wave specialty coffee movement.
Bonavita, by contrast, is a much newer brand. It was launched in the early 2010s, initially distributing brewers designed by Melitta for the US market. Over time, Bonavita developed its own designs, focusing on high-quality, SCA-certified automatic brewers and variable-temperature kettles. Bonavita brewers continue to use Melitta-style #4 cone filters as a legacy of their design roots.
Today, Bonavita targets home coffee enthusiasts who want specialty-quality brewing gear at a moderate price point. Their brewers are frequently recommended by reviewers for their simplicity and excellent brewing performance.
While the two companies are now independent and unrelated in ownership, the early influence of Melitta on Bonavita’s product line remains visible in both design elements and filter compatibility. They now serve different audiences: Melitta remains a broad-based consumer brand, while Bonavita is more focused on specialty home brewing.