If you’re an espresso lover—and, frankly, a coffee lover in general—then there’s one thing you need to know: freshly ground coffee makes for the ultimate espresso. Ask your barista today what you can do to make better coffee at home, and they’ll say the same thing: get a grinder.
So in this article we’ll go over what’s the best type of grinder for espresso, covering some of the basics and what you should be looking for in a grinder.
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Best Type of Grinder for Espresso: The Good, The Bad, and More
Blade Grinders – The Bad
Sometimes marketed as “coffee grinders”, blade grinders are anything but. They come equipped with a set of blades—much like those in a food processor.
Does it grind? No. It minces, unevenly.
Blades are just not fit for coffee because you need to be able to adjust the setting.
You might need coarse grind today, fine grind tomorrow.
Blades give you absolutely no options!
The verdict?
Blade grinders are bad for grinding coffee.
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Burr Grinders – The Good
The only viable option, burr grinders consist of two dented discs which rotate in opposite directions, thus grinding the beans down to a powder.
The size of the actual grind will be determined by how far apart the discs are from each other.
And that’s how settings work with coffee grinders: one is very close together with almost no space, while 10 would be far apart enough for coarse grind to go through.
In other words, the closer they are together the finer the grind—and vice versa.
This is how mills work and it’s how they make flour and such.
It’s the same principle but on a smaller scale!
Automatic Grinders – The Classic
The classic—and for many years, the only—choice for a coffee grinder. Automatic grinders are equipped with a powerful motor that will rotate the burrs at high speeds and with consistency, doing all of the work for you.
In general, automatic grinders are big. They’re roughly the size of a blender, but usually much chunkier and heavier.
They come with bean hoppers, which is a compartment that stores beans so you don’t have to refill it every single time you want to make a cup of coffee.
The hopper should be in a conical shape, be tinted (to protect the beans from UV rays) and have a good lid.
Automatic grinders are a great choice, particularly for beginners.
They are very noisy, however, so beware of this.
Manual Grinders – The Odd Choice
The next choice is manual grinders, a type of grinder that has gotten really popular in the last decade.
Manual grinders depend on you to move the burrs, meaning that it has a handle or crank which you have to manually operate.
Because of this, there’s no need for a motor, and manual grinders are way smaller as a result.
Think small like an Aeropress—and almost as light.
At first, manual grinders were a novelty and could not produce a grind as good as automatic grinders.
This has changed with time though, and today you can find very high-quality manual grinders that offer the same or even better quality.
If buying a manual grinder, you must get one with a good system for changing settings.
The click system is very popular right now and works by having pre-set settings for you to alternate between—much like an automatic grinder.
This is key for consistency and a vital feature for manual grinders.
Conclusion
Let’s recap.
Blade grinders: very bad.
They are much cheaper, but I assure you that you will regret that purchase. Instead, save just a tiny bit more money and get a burr grinder.
In fact, manual grinders today can be found for the same price and are infinitely better.
Automatic grinders are great but costlier, heavier, noisier.
And manual grinders are ideal but keep in mind you will have to crank it yourself, and they aren’t great for brewing more than two or three cups at a time, otherwise you’ll be grinding beans for 5+ minutes.
With that in mind, find the grinder that best suits you!
