Burr Grinders
If you read my article about extraction, you know that consistent ground size is critical to evenly extracted, delicious coffee. While immersion methods (French press, Aeropress, Clever) give you more leeway with uneven particles, percolation methods (drip machines, pour-overs) will really struggle to produce delicious, balanced coffee if the grind is uneven.
For an even grind, you need a burr grinder. That essentially means that the grinder has two opposing rings of blades with an adjustable distance between them. One of them moves while the other is stationary. The beans are drawn into the space between them, getting sliced up until the particles are small enough to fit between the rings, at which time they fall into the collection area (Many people own this kind of grinder for grinding pepper.). There is also a setup called a flat-burr grinder, but nearly all grinders for drip coffee are conical burr grinders, called that because the mobile central burr is shaped like a cone. Note that the design of the burrs means that the grinder will eliminate “boulders (grounds that are too large),” but not “fines (very small particles).” In general, the higher the quality of the grinder, the less fines will be produced, and the smaller the range of particle sizes will be.
For burr grinders, the main choices will be between electric grinders and doing the work yourself with a hand-grinder. Hand-grinders offer a much better grind for the money, as they are a smaller device with no motor, but many people prefer electric grinders for the convenience.
The least-expensive high quality hand-grinder I would recommend is the Timemore C2 at about $80, while an entry-level electric can be had for about $100 (Capresso Infinity). Because electric grinders are more complicated, they are more likely to need repairs, and I recommend getting the Baratza Encore if you can possibly afford it (Baratza does sell reburbished models for less.).
Baratza grinders do break, but they are made to break in a way that they can be repaired quickly and cheaply at home. They also have amazing customer service. I have had a Baratza grinder that has ground hundreds of pounds of coffee, and have paid maybe $20 in repairs over the years. After 4 years of use, the motor failed and Baratza sent me a new one (for free), which I installed in about 20 minutes.
Further up the scale, there are many great hand-grinders between $100 and $300 that will last many years and produce amazingly consistent grounds. Electric grinders of similar quality range from $250-$800.
Burr Grinder Recommendations:
Hand Grinders:
Timemore C2 - Great grind for the money from an up and coming company.
1zpresso JX - This grinder packs a lot of quality for the price. Very solidly built and very good grind quality.
1zpresso JX Pro - This version adds the ability to make finer adjustments so it can be used as an espresso grinder as well. Very good grind and build quality.
Lido 2 - The Lido is renowned for its grind quality. This is a top-level grinder.
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Electric Burr Grinders:
Baratza Encore - Classic, best entry into conical burr grinding. Consistently good grind quality, durability, and customer support. This grinder can also be upgraded with better burrs.
Capresso Infinity - A solid entry-level burr grinder. The grind quality is a notch below the Encore, but miles ahead of anything cheaper that has an electric motor. I have heard some mixed things about durability, but it has a one-year warranty.
Baratza Virtuoso+ - This is an upgrade from the Encore and worth it if you can fit it in your budget. The upgrades are in burr quality (so grind quality), noise, and a timer switch rather than an on/off switch. The Encore is upgradable to the same burr set, but will have noise issues. The timer is an advantage is two senses. First, if you fill the bean hopper (which I don’t recommend as it can cause freshness issues) you can use the timer to produce the same amount of grounds each time. Second, if you weigh your beans before adding them to the grinder each time (“single dosing”) you can turn on the grinder and have it go off without coming back to the machine. Since we often have to do other tasks while the coffee is grinding, I like that the grinder can shut itself off rather than continuing to churn while nothing else is happening.
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