Best Coffee Grinders 2023

If you love fresh coffee, a good grinder is an essential piece of equipment to have in your home brewing setup. The best coffee grinders blitz beans into uniform grounds that yield delicious full-bodied cups, whether you use a traditional coffee maker, a French press or something else. After spending a month testing 10 popular models, a process that entailed sifting through pounds of grounds and drinking many cups of coffee, I believe the Fellow Opus Conical Burr Grinder to be the best multipurpose grinder overall. Not only does it turn out impressively consistent grounds, but it’s also sleek, quiet and intuitive.

The following is a list of all the winners from my testing process:

• Best Coffee Grinder Overall: Fellow Opus Conical Burr Grinder
• Best Upgrade Coffee Grinder: Baratza Virtuoso+
• Best Value Coffee Grinder: OXO Conical Burr Coffee Grinder
• Best Manual Coffee Grinder: Timemore Chestnut C2 Manual Grinder

It’s true you can buy pre-ground coffee from your local grocery or coffee shop, but when you do so, you lose the chance to tweak the grind size for the brewing method you prefer. Furthermore, high-quality grinders yield the most uniform grounds, which in turn brew the freshest, most flavorful cups. “If you chop your own vegetables, you should be grinding your own coffee,” says Josey Markiewicz, La Colombe’s senior director of coffee quality/experience. But that doesn’t mean you have to immediately sink your life savings into a coffee grinder. Several $100-and-under burr grinder models I tried worked perfectly for drip and pour-over coffee. Specifically, I liked the affordable OXO Conical Burr Coffee Grinder, a user-friendly machine that offers unmatched convenience. And if you’re looking for something more compact, whether you’re short on counter space or you like to brew fresh coffee while camping, my pick for the best manual coffee grinder is the Timemore Chestnut C2 Manual Grinder.

Of all the grinders I tested, the Fellow Opus is the one I’d want to wake up to every morning: It’s a delight to use, even in the under-caffeinated early hours of the day. On each of the grind settings, it yielded impressively uniform grounds that brewed delicious, full-bodied cups. Adding to its appeal, it’s notably quiet for a grinder, clocking in between 77 and 79 decibels during operation. (Rainfall, for reference, typically measures around 50 decibels.) For these reasons, the Fellow Opus earned the highest marks in my testing, easily securing the title of best coffee grinder overall.

The newest coffee grinder in Fellow’s lineup, the Opus is also the most affordable and versatile, as it can grind for both espresso and filter coffee. It has a sleek matte black exterior with a large dial at the top that allows you to easily adjust your coffee ground fineness, as well as a magnetically aligned catch cup that ensures all the grounds go into the container—and not all over your counter. In my testing, it yielded even grounds on the four settings I tried. When I pours the grounds through my Kruve sifter (a sieve that filters out uneven particles), I noticed only a few too-fine and too-large pieces. Plus, using it the machine a cinch: Simply press the button once to operate it for 30 seconds, twice for 60 seconds, three times for 90 seconds or hold it down for 2 full minutes of grinding.

That said, the Opus has a few flaws, mainly related to its otherwise smart design. Rather than stainless steel, the body and catch cup of the grinder are both made out of plastic, which isn’t nearly as durable nor high-quality of a material. (Plastic grinders can also generate static buildup, though I had no such issue with the Opus, as it’s designed with antistatic technology.) The location of the Opus’ operate button, too, could be improved: It’s on the bottom right corner of the machine and therefore easy to accidentally hit when you’re trying to move the grinder or wipe down your countertops. One last potential downside worth noting: With a hopper capacity of 3.9 ounces, this isn’t the kind of grinder that you can store a half or full bag of beans in.

These small issues aside, the Opus is a great multipurpose grinder that is guaranteed to serve most households who brew coffee in a variety of ways. It’s also a relatively compact and light grinder, clocking in at just 4 pounds, making it easy to move between the countertop and the cabinet. Considering the machine’s modern, attractive look, though, this isn’t the kind of grinder you want to hide away in storage.

Baratza is among the most trusted names in the coffee grinder space—and after spending a few weeks with the Virtuoso+, it’s easy to see why. Out of all the grinders I tested, the Virtuoso+ proved to be the most consistent, producing perfectly uniform grounds across the grind-size spectrum. While it does carry a relatively high price tag, it’s worth it if you like to fine-tune your grinding for each cup of coffee you brew.

Aside from consistency, what sets the Virtuoso+ apart is its precision. Not only does it boast 40 grind settings, but it also has a 40-second digital timer that allows you to adjust—down to a 10th of a second—how long you want the grinder to operate. This means that once you dial in the exact amount of beans you want to grind each morning, you don’t have to bother with measuring them each time. I also like that the Virtuoso+ has a larger bean hopper than the Opus, which can come in handy if you ever need to grind a lot of coffee at once (or you like to store beans in the hopper). Another cool feature: The grounds bin is backlit by LED, allowing you to watch the machine while it works.

Price aside, the Virtuoso+ has few weaknesses. While it’s a quiet machine overall, it is slightly louder than the Fellow Opus; additionally, when setting up the grinder, you have to fit a silicone gasket over the burrs to seal the bean hopper to the rest of the machine, which takes a bit of finesse. In the grand scheme of things, those downsides are minor. (For more details, check out my full Baratza Virtuoso+ review.)

If you’re ready to welcome a quality conical burr coffee grinder to your home but you’d rather not shell out $200, this popular model from OXO is a great affordable option. Though it may not be as precise as the Fellow Opus or the Baratza Virtuoso+, this grinder boasts tons of user-friendly features that make it a great entry-level option—plus, it makes a full-bodied cup of French press or drip-style coffee. (Read my full review of the OXO Conical Burr Coffee Grinder here.)

What I love most about this grinder is its set-it-and-forget-it design. While baristas warn against storing coffee beans in a grinder’s hopper, many of us do so out of laziness. OXO kept this behavior in mind: Not only is the grinder’s hopper large (it can hold 12 ounces of beans), but it’s also UV-blocking to prevent beans from degrading in quality. And the convenience doesn’t end there. Once you determine your ideal grind setting and adjust the timer (up to 30 seconds), you can leave the machine on those settings. That means brewing your coffee every morning is as simple as pressing the on button, removing your grounds from the static-fighting stainless steel container and dumping them in your coffee maker. And if you ever decide you want to swap out your beans, no problem: The hopper has a nifty trapdoor on the bottom that makes for easy, mess-free emptying.

All that said, while the average coffee drinker will be happy with this machine, it’s not for everyone. In my testing, the OXO produced largely uniform grounds on the medium-coarse and coarse settings, but it wasn’t nearly as consistent with finer grinds. Therefore, if your favorite brewing method is an espresso machine or an AeroPress, this isn’t the grinder for you. But if you typically rely on coarse grinds, the OXO is a great machine at an excellent price point.

If you’re a frequent traveler or camper who likes to take your coffee game on the go (or you simply like to do things the old-fashioned way), you might consider investing in a manual coffee grinder. As the name implies, these compact devices require you to hand-crank the burrs to grind coffee beans—and the best of their kind yield grounds just as uniform and flavorful as their electric counterparts. And the best option for most people, based on my testing, is this model from Timemore.

While all manual coffee grinders demand a light arm workout, the Chestnut C2—which is comparable in size to a pepper grinder—makes hand-cranking much less of a chore than other popular manual grinders, thanks to its double ball bearing system that aids in the grinding process. (Grinding 20 grams of beans took me about 90 seconds—not a horrible time suck at all.) Better yet, the grind size is easy to adjust via a dial at the bottom of the grinder, and the grounds themselves came out as uniform as they did in the Fellow Opus. And because the Timemore is a smaller device with fewer moving parts, I found that it was remarkably easy to clean; all you have to do is run the catch cup under warm water and give the gears a swipe or two with a pastry brush.

Other Coffee Grinders Tested

I tested six other grinders that didn’t earn quite as high marks as my winners.

Baratza Encore: The Encore is a solid grinder that provided very consistent grounds, but you have to hold down the button for it to grind, making it less user-friendly than the Virtuoso+. In my testing, I also found it to be slightly less precise than my winning picks.

Breville Smart Grinder Pro: The Breville has the option to grind directly into a portafilter, a bonus for anyone who makes espresso at home, but I found it more cumbersome to use and less precise than my top or upgrade pick.

Cuisinart Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill: This was the grinder that I owned before I started my testing, so I was rooting for it—the $60 price tag is very appealing. It does a decent job at coarse and medium-coarse grinds, but it was very inconsistent with anything finer than that.

Krups Adjustable Burr Grinder: Though I appreciated the user-friendly setup and the extremely reasonable price, I found that every grind setting I tried on the Krups produced a lot of fine particles, resulting in sour cups of coffee.

Hario Skerton Pro Ceramic Coffee Mill: This manual grinder produces consistently sized grounds but takes a lot more effort to operate than my pick, the Timemore. I also found that the hourglass shape made it more difficult to grip while I was grinding.

1Zpresso JX Manual Coffee Grinder: To its credit, this hand grinder is both consistent and easy to use. But the price tag is pretty hefty, and if you’re going to spend over $100 on a grinder, I’d point to some of my other picks.

How I Tested The Best Coffee Grinders

Both coffee experts I consulted emphasized that a reliable coffee grinder is an essential part of any setup for brewing quality coffee at home. But which grinders, exactly? In my quest to determine the best on the market, I immediately discounted blade grinders because, while inexpensive, they yield a very inconsistent product, resulting in a lot of uneven coffee rubble. I also opted against testing espresso-specific grinders, as I sought to determine the best all-purpose grinders. After much research, I narrowed down my contenders to seven electric burr grinders and three manual burr grinders, all calibrated to grind for a variety of coffee styles.

To test the grinders, well, I made a whole lot of coffee. For consistency, I used the same medium-roast beans for all my tests: Stumptown’s Holler Mountain, a quality coffee that’s fairly easy to get your hands on. For the first stage of testing, I relied heavily on a barista-favorite tool, recommended by Kappler: a Kruve Sifter, which is essentially a high-tech sieve that allows you to filter out particles of coffee that are too large (known as “boulders”) or too small (known as “fines.”) Crucially, the Kruve comes with different sized sieves for different types of grinds, as well as a “Brewler,” a handy tool that helps you measure your coffee grind size. In each grinder, I blitzed coffee beans on at least four grind settings: very fine, medium-fine, medium and coarse. As the grinders worked through the beans, I used the Decibel X app on my phone to observe how much noise each grinder made. Then, to test the uniformity of the grounds, I ran them through the appropriate Kruve screens, noting how many boulders and fines got caught in the filters.

Next up, I brewed the coffee beans using three brewing methods: a French press, which requires a coarse grind (and an electric kettle); a drip coffee maker, which requires a medium grind; and an AeroPress, which requires a medium-fine grind. Then, I tasted the cups, noting how well the coffee was extracted from the beans. Throughout testing, I also took note of how easy the grinders were to use and clean. Lastly, I factored in the weight and maneuverability of each; while a little heft keeps the machine from moving around during the grinding process, some people might want a model they can easily move between the counter and the cabinet.

How To Pick A Coffee Grinder

Whether you’re shopping for your first coffee grinder or looking to ditch your imprecise blade model for a shiny new conical burr grinder, here are the factors worth keeping in mind as you consider your options.

Blade Type (Flat Burr Vs. Conical Burr Vs. Blade)

There are three main types of coffee grinders: blade grinders, burr grinders and manual grinders. You’ll notice that in this guide, no blade grinders were considered. While blade grinders are much less expensive, they’re also considerably less consistent; you really can’t control how fine or coarse the grind is with them. Burr grinders, on the other hand, force coffee beans between two ridged surfaces to smash them into uniform particles for brewing coffee. And within the burr category, there are two subtypes: conical burrs and flat burrs. The former consist of a ring with a ridged cone in it, whereas flat burrs are made of two rings that lie flat on top of each other. (Baratza has a good visual guide that shows the difference between them.) Both flat and conical burrs are capable of producing consistent grounds and full-bodied coffee; the difference is often a matter of personal preference. Flat burrs offer even more precision and consistency, so they’re usually employed in espresso grinders, where that exactness really matters.

Grind Settings

When picking out a coffee grinder, consider how much coffee you drink, your preferred type of coffee and how you like to brew it. If you primarily drink drip, French press or pour-over coffee, you want a grinder that has a good range of coarse, medium-coarse and medium settings so you can fine-tune your cup. If you typically make yourself a small amount of finely ground coffee every morning, perhaps in an AeroPress, a manual coffee grinder might do the trick for you. If you’re experimenting with at-home espresso making, you want a grinder that has a lot of settings on the very fine end. This review covers grinders that are the generalists of the grinder world—they can do a little bit of everything, and masterfully. But if you only drink coffee a certain way, it’s worth doing a bit of research into the grinders that are best suited to that specific method. Those who exclusively drink espresso should consider a dedicated espresso grinder, which has many more settings on the fine end of the grinding scale to dial in espresso shots exactly to taste.

Price

Coffee grinders generally range in price from $25 to $350 (or more), with the top-of-the-line options offering you the most control and consistency. While you don’t need to shell out hundreds on a grinder, you should expect to spend over $100 if you want one that produces consistent grinds, especially on the finer settings.

Maintenance

Like any kitchen appliance, a coffee grinder occasionally needs some care and maintenance. Coffee beans, particularly darker roasts, leave oils behind that can build up and affect how well the machine works. To clean your coffee grinder, disassemble it and use a pastry brush and a can of compressed air to clear out any grounds that may have gotten stuck in the machine. You can also run grinder cleaning tablets like Urnex Grindz through the machine to remove any buildup.

My Expertise

I’m a coffee enthusiast, food writer, editor and occasional recipe developer. For more than 7 years, I’ve covered the home cooking and kitchen space; I’ve worked on the editorial side at Food & Wine and Food52 and currently work as the deputy food editor at the Philadelphia Inquirer. For Forbes Vetted specifically, I’ve tested and reviewed my fair share of items, including the best nonstick pans, the best meal kits and the best juicers. To aid in my research for this piece, I consulted two coffee experts: Josey Markiewicz, La Colombe’s senior director of coffee quality/experience, and Genevieve Kappler, Roasting Plant Coffee’s director of coffee.

What Is The Best Coffee Grinder On The Market?

If you’re in the market for a consistent, versatile grinder from a reputable coffee-gear brand, the Fellow Opus is your best bet. Featuring a sleek matte black exterior, the compact grinder is easy to use and quiet, yielding complex cups of coffee, whether they’re brewed in a French press or a traditional coffee maker. For those who are willing to spend a little more, the Baratza Virtuoso+ is a premium grinder that offers unmatched consistency.

What Is The Advantage Of A Burr Coffee Grinder?

Compared to inexpensive blade coffee grinders, burr models are significantly more precise. When you use a blade grinder, which literally chops up beans like a food processor, it’s almost impossible to end up uniform coffee grounds. Burr grinders, on the other hand, yield much more even pieces, which produce full-bodied, perfectly extracted cups of coffee.

How Much Does A Good Coffee Grinder Cost?

Burr coffee grinders typically range in price from $50 to $300—and generally speaking, the more expensive the grinder, the more precision it offers. If you regularly brew a wide variety of coffee styles at home, buying a high-end grinder will up your coffee game considerably. “For coffee lovers, investing in the right grinder is the best move you’ll ever make,” says Kappler. The best of their kind allow you to dial in a more consistent flavorful cup of coffee, no matter which brewing method you prefer.

If you tend to drink coffee only occasionally—and mostly out of the house—investing in a high-end coffee grinder might not make sense for you. The good news is, you don’t have to splash out to get a reliable model. The OXO Conical Burr Coffee Grinder runs about $100, and the Timemore Chestnut C2 Manual Grinder is even less.