Our list mainly includes cone grinder. In a cone grinder, coffee beans are ground between two burrs to grind and grind the beans. You’ll get a much smoother, more consistent grind than with traditional blade grinders, even the prettiest ones.
Flat Grinder are similar, but they are usually more expensive. In it, ridges are placed on top of each other and beans will pass through them as they grind. The action of the grinder will push the grounds out of one end, instead of relying on gravity like a cone grinder and the beans will spend more time in contact with the burrs. This results in a more even grind, but for home brewers, cone blenders are fine too – even if they require more maintenance and don’t result in the right scale from small to microphone. .
Blade grinder has a blade that rotates around like a food blender. But the blade does not produce uniform results. Some of your coffee will be fine at the bottom and at the top you will have beans that are too large for a French press. The result is an inconsistent, unpredictable beer. These grinders are cheap, and yes, using fresh beans in a blade grinder is much better than buying pre-ground coffee. (You can learn how to shake the beans to grind them a bit. Watch the video of world barista champion James Hoffmann for more details.) hack blade grinder.)
If you can afford it, we strongly recommend one of the burr grinder options we’ve listed. There’s a reason why they’re a bit more expensive than a budget grinder. The machinery in a high-quality burr grinder is a bit more complex and built to withstand greater wear and tear. Cheap grinders often have burrs that will dull after regular use, or the motor is not powerful enough to meet the needs of daily use and may burn out in a few months.
