Choosing a burr coffee grinder is crucial to the quality of your brew, but with more grinders than ever to choose from, the search can be overwhelming. Burr coffee grinders come at different prices, with different levels of quality and various features to choose from. Whether you are brewing filter coffee in a coffee maker, as a pour-over, in a French Press, or using other brew methods, you’ll want a grinder that delivers precision in its grind quality. Here are my top recommendations for your next burr coffee grinder.

Burr Grinders vs. Blade grinders

Choosing the right burr coffee grinder makes a big difference in your brewing game – make sure you choose a grinder that fits your needs and budget and can last for years to come.

Blade Grinders

First, let’s address blade grinders. Blade coffee grinders are extremely prevalent on the market and at a great price point – so why don’t we like them for brewing coffee? Blade grinders cut up coffee beans with two to three blades but have no means of ensuring consistency. A consistent grind is crucial to an excellent brew – you want an even extraction from each coffee grind (which means that all coffee grounds receive an equal amount of hot water during brewing) in order to extract the right flavors and have the best taste in your cup. For this reason, blade grinders don’t make for the best coffee grinders, so let’s focus on burr grinders!

Burr Grinders

Burr grinders feature two burrs – discs with sharp edges that cut down coffee beans into consistent particles. This ensures a consistent grind size, which aids in an even, well-extracted brew.

The burr type in your grinder is the largest aspect of your grinder, with an effect on the price and overall quality of your brew. If you haven’t already, check out my article, An Expert’s Guide to Burr Coffee Grinders.

To give a brief summary, the way that the grinder grinds or cuts your coffee makes a huge difference in the overall quality of your brew. Blade grinders cut the coffee beans into extremely inconsistent sizes, which results in an uneven extraction and an undesirable brew. Burr grinders are much more consistent because they have a way to regulate the size of the grind or particle. Conical burr grinders tend to be less expensive but give a less consistent grind than flat burrs, which are more consistent but are pricier.

Features, Features, Features!

Features can have a large impact on how easy your grinder is to use but not necessarily on the quality of your brew. Select features that are important to you, keeping in mind that more features generally mean a higher price tag.

• Number of grind settings: The more grind settings, the more you can fine-tune your brew. For example, you can dial in a French Press or pour over by playing with grind settings that are slightly finer or slightly coarser, which will make a difference in the overall flavor of your brew – see if you can pick out different flavor notes in your cup!
• Digital timer: Having a digital timer is a convenient feature that allows you to program your grinder to grind for a specific amount of time. If you know it takes your grinder 32 seconds to grind enough coffee for your pour-over, you no longer have to grind some coffee, weigh it, and potentially grind more to reach your desired ground coffee weight.
• Anti-static technology: Coffee can be quite messy when ground due to friction causing static, especially on a coarse grind setting. Some grinders feature anti-static technology in the grind chamber or the collection cup to avoid the mess!
• Noise insulation: If you are preparing your morning brew, you might be concerned with how loud your coffee grinder is if you have other people in the house. Look for grinders with noise insulation to make your morning workflow as quiet as possible.

Top Picks of Burr Coffee Grinders

1. Overall Top Pick Burr Coffee Grinder: Fellow Ode Brew Grinder

If you are a coffee enthusiast looking for a high-quality, robust grinder that gives an excellent cup profile, look no further than the Fellow Ode Brew Grinder. Featuring 64mm flat steel burrs and 31 grind settings, this grinder packs a punch while keeping a small footprint on your counter at a relatively low price point.

While working in coffee for 9 years, I was constantly searching for a brew grinder that would grind consistently enough for a pour-over with as few fines as possible (in order to avoid choking your brew) – a challenging task unless you purchase a commercial grinder for your home. When Fellow came out with their very first grinder, the Fellow Ode, I knew I found what I was looking for. This grinder is crucial to brewing a clean, quality cup of coffee for any brew method. It features a single dosing hopper, so only add enough coffee beans for your current brew and an intuitive sensor that automatically turns the grinder off after it stops sensing resistance in the grind chamber.

Things to Consider: This grinder may not grind fine enough for some brewing methods, such as Aeropress or espresso. Fellow does offer different burr sets that can easily be swapped in to allow for finer grinds, or you can purchase other standard 64mm burrs from makers such as SSP.

2. Top Budget Burr Coffee Grinder: Cuisinart Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill

If you’re looking to step up your brew game but want to stay on budget, the Cuisinart Supreme Grind Automatic Burr Mill is a superb option for a burr coffee grinder. Featuring 18 grind settings, this conical burr grinder is suitable for pour-over, drip coffee, French Press, cold brew, and more. The Supreme Grind also features an electric timer that you can set for the number of cups you are brewing - a convenient feature to avoid over or under-grinding the amount of coffee for your brew!

Things to Consider: This grinder can produce a relatively large amount of fines (tiny particles that aren’t the size that you intended), but they tend to accumulate towards the top of the collection chamber for easy removal. The built-in timed grind setting also isn’t adjustable and may not grind the right amount of what you need – you may have to weigh your coffee amount after grinding and adjust to your desired amount.

3. Top Mid-Range Burr Coffee Grinder: Baratza Encore Coffee Grinder

A tried and true coffee grinder, the Baratza Encore is easily the most well-known and prevalent coffee grinder out there. I would bet that over 50% of professional baristas use this grinder in their homes for good reason. It’s dependable, has an incredibly consistent grind quality, is easy to use, isn’t messy, and just gives you a great cup of coffee. Baratza excels in the home consumer grinder market, and the Baratza Encore is a shining example of their craft. Conical burrs and plastic housing allow this grinder to slide into a mid-level price point, but the quality of coffee from this grinder rivals more expensive home grinders.

Things to Consider: While the Baratza Encore does have excellent grind quality, it’s still a conical burr grinder and may not give you the consistency of a flat burr grinder. You may be left looking for more cup clarity on lighter roasts or roasts with a more delicate flavor profile.

4. Top High-End Burr Coffee Grinder: Eureka Mignon Brew Pro Coffee Grinder

If you’ve read my Top Espresso Grinders article, you’ll know how much of a fan I am of Eureka grinders. Made in Italy and a powerhouse commercial grinder manufacturer, Eureka’s home grinders keep all of the commercial integrity and commercial-grade components in a compact, lightweight home grinder.

Featuring large, 55mm stainless steel flat burrs and aluminum housing, the Eureka Mignon Brew Pro Coffee Grinder has features and specs that easily make it a top choice for a home brew grinder. While most brew-specific home grinders feature stepped grind settings, this grinder features stepless settings, meaning you can fine-tune your brew as specifically as you want. This grinder also features a sleek touchscreen, where you can program a dosing timer down to the tenth of a second for ease of programming your perfect daily coffee dose. Like its espresso counterparts, the Mignon Brew Pro contains insulation against noise, making it the quietest home brew grinder on the market.

Things to Consider: This is a serious home brew grinder – but keep in mind that brew-specific grinders aren’t meant for espresso because they aren’t able to grind fine enough and consistently enough at that grind setting, and this grinder is no different. In addition, the Brew Pro features stepless grind settings, which can be great for perfectly fine-tuning that pour-over – but if you switch brew methods frequently, it can be difficult to find the exact setting that you were using previously.

Find the Right Burr Coffee Grinder for You

If you’re searching for your next burr coffee grinder for home or a gift for the coffee drinker in your life, the grinder market has become saturated with choices that can be difficult to sift through. By focusing on budget, features, and specs such as burr type and size, you can narrow down your search – or choose from one of my top picks for a burr coffee grinder.

Our experts are standing by, ready to help you along that journey! Connect with me or another Coffee & Espresso Expert here on Curated for free, personalized recommendations for your new espresso grinder.