Electric grinders
Burr geometry, motor speed and retention: what actually separates a 100 and a 500 euro grinder.
Grinders
The component that matters more than the machine it feeds, and how to tell burr quality apart.
Spend the money here first. A modest machine with a good grinder beats an expensive machine with a bad one, every time.
All categories
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Manual grinders
Hand grinders that now out-perform electrics costing three times more.
Espresso grinders
Stepless adjustment, low retention, and why espresso is the hard case.
Filter grinders
Uniformity at the coarse end of the range, and the grinders that genuinely deliver it.
Grind settings
A dial-in reference for every method, grinder by grinder, with real click counts to start from.
Featured
Buying guides
What to buy, at every budget, and why.
Buying guides
The best hand grinder at every budget
Four hand grinders from about $89 to $289, sorted by budget and then by use: what the extra money buys, and what grinding by hand costs you.
Buying guides
Choosing a filter grinder
A filter grinder is judged at the coarse end: even particles, few fines, steps where you brew. What that means for burrs, loading and budget.
Buying guides
Choosing an espresso grinder
What espresso asks of a grinder that filter does not, from step size to retention, and three ways to answer it between about $199 and $449.
Buying guides
The best coffee grinders under $300
Burr geometry, retention and step size decide what a grinder is good for. Here is which one to buy for espresso, for filter, and for both.
Buying guides
Your first coffee setup, from scratch
What to buy, in what order, if you are starting with nothing. Four tiers, from a $60 kit to a full espresso bar.
Articles
Conical or flat burrs
The burr shape argument, with the marketing removed: what each geometry does to the grind distribution, and when it matters in the cup.
Dialling in a new bag
A repeatable routine for the first four shots from a new coffee: what to fix, what to change, and how to know when you are done.
Grind settings by brew method
From espresso to cold brew, what size each method needs and why. How to find a setting on an unmarked grinder, and how to adjust by taste instead of by number.
Grinder care: burrs, retention and when to replace
Stale grounds in the chamber and worn burrs both ruin a shot quietly. How to clean burrs without dulling them, and how to read the signs they are finished.
Hand grinders: when they beat an electric
A hand grinder buys you far better burrs for the money and almost no retention. Here is where that wins, and where an electric is worth every penny.
Grind size, explained properly
Particle distribution, fines, boulders, and why two grinders set to the same number produce different coffee.
Reviews
Hands-on tests measured on the bench, and first looks at kit we have not tested yet, marked as such and never scored.
First look
Baratza Virtuoso+: first look
The Encore's body with Baratza's M2 burr and a timer to a tenth of a second. What the extra money buys over the Encore, and who should pay it.
First look
Fellow Opus 2: first look
48 mm conical burrs, a stepless dial and a range from espresso to cold brew for $199.95. What the spec promises, and where the Ode Gen 2 still wins.
First look
Timemore Sculptor 064S: first look
64 mm flat burrs, a stepless dial and a variable-speed brushless motor in a single-dose grinder. What the spec promises for espresso and filter.
Reviews
Baratza Encore ESP review
Forty espresso steps, a repairable chassis and low retention for the money. Four weeks of testing on a single-boiler machine.
Comparisons
Comparisons
Grinder or machine: where the first $200 should go
We put the same budget into a Baratza Encore ESP and into a De'Longhi Dedica, then tasted the results blind. One of them is not close.