Quick Answer: “Brio ice maker” actually points to two different products. The 740i ($199.99-$249.99) is a standalone countertop nugget ice maker — fill its 2.66-liter tank with tap water and get up to 44 lbs of soft, chewable ice a day, per Brio’s own product specs. The 520 ICE series is a bottom-load water cooler with a built-in bullet-ice dispenser (about 24.6 lbs/day) that only works with 3- or 5-gallon bottled water, not a tap-water fill. If you just want nugget ice, the 740i is the simpler, cheaper buy; the 520 only makes sense if you’re also replacing a water cooler.
That split matters because the two products solve different problems at different ongoing costs. Here’s what each one actually is, what it costs, and which one matches what you’re searching for.
The Brio ice maker lineup at a glance
| Model | What it is | Ice type | Output | Water source | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brio 740i | Standalone countertop ice maker | Nugget | 44 lbs/day | Tap water (2.66L tank) | $199.99-$249.99 |
| Brio 520 ICE | Bottom-load water cooler + ice dispenser | Bullet/nugget | 24.6 lbs/day | 3- or 5-gallon bottle | Varies by retailer |
Brio 740i Countertop Nugget Ice Maker
- First batch of soft, chewable nugget ice ready in 10-15 minutes, per Brio's own product page.
- Refillable 2.66-liter (86.9 oz) water tank — no water line or bottled water needed, just tap water.
- One-touch self-cleaning cycle and a stainless-steel exterior with an included scoop.
- Sold through Costco and directly at Costco.com, plus Brio's own site — not a Costco-exclusive SKU, despite Costco being where most shoppers first see it.
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The 740i: a real standalone nugget ice maker
The 740i is the product most people actually mean when they search “Brio ice maker” — a countertop nugget maker in the same category as the Euhomy and GE Profile Opal models covered elsewhere on this site. At 44 lbs/day, its output matches or beats most countertop competitors, and its 2.66-liter tank means it only needs a tap-water fill, not a water line or bottled supply. Brio recommends descaling every two to three weeks depending on local water hardness to keep output consistent — the same maintenance rhythm as any hard-water-exposed countertop unit, covered in our ice maker maintenance guide.
The 520 ICE: a water cooler that also makes ice
The 520 is a different appliance wearing the same brand name. It’s a bottom-load water cooler — the kind that takes a 3- or 5-gallon bottle — with a built-in bullet-ice dispenser that produces about 24.6 lbs of ice a day, with fresh ice cycling every 9 to 12 minutes. The catch is the water source: unlike the 740i’s tap-water tank, the 520 only runs on bottled water, which means an ongoing bottle-delivery or big-box refill cost that never shows up in the unit’s sticker price. It also adds UV self-cleaning for the cold-water tank and hot/cold dispensing — features aimed at replacing a standalone water cooler, not just adding ice to a kitchen counter.
Which one should you buy?
- Just want nugget ice, no plumbing, no bottled water: Buy the 740i. It’s cheaper, simpler, and solves exactly one problem.
- Already buying or replacing a bottled-water cooler: The 520 ICE bundles a water cooler and an ice dispenser into one purchase — reasonable if you’re paying for bottle delivery anyway, but a bad deal if you’re not, since you’d be taking on a recurring bottled-water cost just to get ice.
- Want the highest daily output: The 740i’s 44 lbs/day beats the 520’s 24.6 lbs/day by a wide margin.
For nugget makers that don’t carry the water-cooler tradeoff at all, our best nugget ice maker roundup and Euhomy review cover tap-water-only alternatives across a wider price range.
Brio vs. the competition
- vs. Euhomy (tap-water countertop nugget): Euhomy’s lineup and the 740i solve the same problem at similar price points — see our Euhomy ice maker review for a direct spec comparison.
- vs. GE Profile Opal 2.0 (premium countertop nugget): The Opal costs roughly double the 740i but adds Wi-Fi/app control and a longer track record — see our GE Profile Opal 2.0 review.
- vs. a standalone water cooler + separate ice maker: Buying the 520 only saves counter space if you genuinely need both a water cooler and an ice dispenser; buying them separately (a plain bottom-load cooler plus a 740i) often costs less overall and doesn’t force you into one brand’s service cycle for both appliances.
Brio ice makers by the numbers
| Metric | Figure | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|
| 740i output | 44 lbs/day | Per Brio's own product specs — beats the 520's ice-dispensing rate by nearly double. |
| 520 ICE output | 24.6 lbs/day | Fresh ice cycles every 9-12 minutes, but capped well below the 740i since ice is a secondary feature on a water cooler. |
| 740i first-batch time | 10-15 minutes | Comparable to other countertop nugget makers on this site — no meaningful wait advantage or penalty. |
The bottom line
Brio’s name covers two genuinely different appliances, and confusing them means buying the wrong ongoing cost structure. The 740i is a straightforward, tap-water countertop nugget maker at $199.99-$249.99 that competes fairly against Euhomy and Opal on output and price. The 520 ICE is a water cooler first and an ice maker second, and it only makes financial sense if you already want the bottled-water cooler part of the deal. Most shoppers searching “Brio ice maker” want the 740i — check the water source before buying either one.