Is it Bad to Use a Cheap Coffee Grinder? 

Using a cheap coffee grinder to grind your own whole coffee beans is infinitely better than buying pre-ground coffee.

I really appreciate this video style - informational and to-the-point! When shopping for a coffee maker, one of my main requirements was an integrated burr grinder for simplicity and consistency. Thanks again for this content!

April 2022, I bought the Krups blade grinder at Walmart for $19. It's been a good purchase & my 1st coffee grinder. I'm not a picky coffee drinker. I just wanted to up my coffee game just a bit.

I use a blade grinder that was not in the review from Hamilton Beach. It has 5 cup settings and 5 grind settings. The grinding is in a stainless steel chamber topped with a clear plastic top. The beauty of this unit is that it runs in an auto mode and shuts off when done. The coffee is excellent whether it's ground for auto drip or even French press. And it's easy to clean. I saw really nothing like it in this report.

You guys made my week - I bought that 'winning' inexpensive blade grinder about two years ago, and use it just about every day.

i use a blade grinder, and do drip brews and also use a moka pot sometimes. the biggest mistake people make with a blade grinder is standing it vertically on a table while grinding. this is incorrect and will always give you an inconsistent grind. you have to hold it with both hands and keep it moving around during grinding to get a consistent grind. with enough practice you can get a uniform grind comparable to what you get with a burr grinder.

The best cup of coffee is one with a couple shots of high quality bourbon in it.

Finally a video they get straight to the point without all the extra BS

Still new in the grinding coffee beans, after experimenting with different settings and finding it. Using the same filter with a different batch of the same blend of coffee, Roasted Specialty Coffee to order, I can say that each batch has similar tastes but not exactly the same.

Is it bad to snort the ground coffee?

This is why i love you people and blind tests ❤

I think you'd really have to be a coffee connoisseur, (snob), to appreciate the difference in grinds between a burr grinder and a blade grinder. I have both; bought into the rhetoric, and have no preference for one over the other. Often, I'll grab a Mc'D's coffee which I find very satisfying!! Thanks for the objective review, Hannah!

Shes right, theres definitely 2 kinds of coffee drinkers.

I use a blade grinder for my pour using a simple method. 10 seconds with a couple of short stops and shaking the machine. Works every time. For espresso, I use a Hario hand grinder which works great every time and cost less than my car.

Kinda odd that this video was posted a day after the Equipment Review on coffee grinders which basically said the same thing.

Me, a man who can barely tell a dark from a blonde roast: ah yes I will buy a burr grinder because it will affect the extraction of the coffee and I'll totally be able to notice

Here in Utah, my LDS Bishop found out Amazon had delivered a coffee grinder to my house--My house got raided & I was excommunicated. 🥵

Interesting result. Consistency/repeatability favor the burr grinder. I own a burr grinder and appreciate the ability to change the settings based on the beans.

When blade grinders are compared to entry level burr grinders for methods where grind size isn’t as detrimental blade grinders tend to do somewhat better. But with espresso, where blade grinders are compared with higher end grinders then it’s obvious burr grinders evidently win

Ugh, finally! I admit burr grinders are better, but they're not THAT much better. Another point people ignore is that coffee has oils which can go rancid. Blade grinders are much easier to clean than taking apart a burr grinder... and most people don't even clean their grinders. So yeah, a burr grinder is a bit better but definitely not if you're not regularly cleaning the thing.

🤣 the latte sip and look! Thanks for the vid!

I was agonizing over buying a cheap Hamilton Beach coffee grinder and a spendy 1Zpresso. Saved me $150 dollars. Thank You!!!

Just a Fantastic video. I am amazed by the succinct yet informative style of this channel.

After only used three grinders: Both kinds give a good grinding. Coffee brews the same way. The only difference I found is the more consistent appearance of the particles ground with manual burr grinders compared to the electric grinder with blade. The electric blade grinder more easily allowed for finer grinding particles' size.

This seems like a well-researched piece but unfortunately you guys missed the obvious here. The coffee people who have always sung the praises of burr grinders are *espresso people*. In the making of espresso, the composition of the "puck" -- the tamped disc of coffee grounds through which water is passed under pressure -- is *everything*. Very slight differences in puck density result in big differences in coffee output. You actually do need pretty fine control over the grounds to produce a consistently good shot of espresso. A blade grinder truly sucks in the making of espresso -- it will never ever give you the control you want if you're an espresso geek. It's not physically capable of doing it. But you know what? Not every coffee fan is an espresso nerd. If, like me, in your pre-espresso life you became a fan of the simplicity and excellence of coffee produced in a french press, you know that method requires coarsely-ground coffee -- too fine a grind and you will plug the steel filter. For french press, a ten dollar blade grinder is perfectly functional and is , in fact, superior to most burr grinders (because a burr machine would require adjustment, sometimes a fussy operation with burr grinders.) These are the REAL reasons for preferring one grinder to another. Unfortunately, we've seen way too much journalism that never skims past the surface of these things. The result is what we've seen: after many years of repeating the same mantra of "burr grinder burr grinder burr grinder" the actual reason for preferring one to the other is separated from reality and it's grown to a myth, the origin of which people have no idea. It's got nothing to do with the generalized claim of particle size being critical to extraction. It's not mysterious at all, it's simple. But you've got to know the truth. Unfortunately, we didn't get the truth here. I'm sure the people from George Howell could have set you straight if you'd let them, but you only used them here to signify quickly that they like the coffee you made for them. Talking about grinder preference without mentioning preparation method at all? Just more coffee mythologizing, I'm sorry to say.

Do blade grinders make grinds small enough for espresso or bialetti express

We have both- blade for spices, burr for coffee. The blade is a lot louder, which may be a problem if people are sleeping

I got an old 70's avocado green burr grinder from Ebay so I can be a snob on the cheap.

Solid advice. I use a small manual burr grinder for my own coffee, but when I have people over, I’ll use my cheap blade grinder (I’ve never been able to tell the difference).

Form England I use instant as I can't make a decent cup of tea with lukewarm water at work.

Great video, I just ordered my blade grinder

Blade grinders are fine for home use. The snobs hate it but who cares. As she said, "You can really get a good cup of coffee from a blade grinder."

this was GREAT! and what i have suspected, but doubted myself. one thing i do wonder, which i wonder if anyone here knows, is do you need to get a new blade or blade grinder periodically? do they dull and does that matter? thanks for the honest no snobbed out review.

I use my "Vitamix Grinder" -- Works great!

I'm a Folgers light roast guy, but Hannah made this topic go from meh to incredibly interesting!

A blade grinder can be used for grinding other things and is easier to clean afterwards.

I've been using the blade grinder you've been recommending for years and I can't stand the fact that it always builds up one giant lump of overly finely ground coffee in the bottom of one side no matter how much I shake or pulse it which clogs up my filters, please recommend a new one

Oh, man... Coffee is just coffee, unless you have something special kind of beans to try. Very good review.

A good burr grinder is necessary for espresso. I was using the 60 dollar Cuisinart grinder with my Krups 15 bar espresso machine for a long time and drank watery espresso with nice crema for many years. Last year, I bought a Sette 30, which grinds finer than the finest setting on the Cuisinart and can now drink a proper espresso using the Krups espresso machine. For drip coffee, I agree that the grinder does not really matter.

try making espresso with a blade grinder and get back to me

I got the Capresso Infinity Conical burr grinder cuz Test Kitchen had such great reviews on it. But the metal part of the burr on my grinder has gotten many spots of erosion on it and I am really disappointed that the metal can degrade like that after a year. I called their customer svs and they said the coffee beans' oil can do that. Wow........

Any way you can do a blade vs ode burr grinder? I'm a little shocked by this because there definitely seems to be a flavor difference with the two grind qualities

For me personally, freshly ground coffee is way better than pre ground. And burr grinders are better than blade, but specifically for French press. I have used a blade grinder for drip and espresso just fine. But I have had a very hard time using a blade grinder to get my grounds actually ground, but not so fine that I have a ton of crap at the bottom of my cup of French press coffee.

it's better to use a good coffee grinder over an expensive coffee maker. I know this for a fact, because my rancho silvia espresso machine needed service every ten or so years and I used my old espresso machine that is total crap when that happens, I've got it stored away nice and dry and clearn, but keep it just for when my good machine needs serving. even with my rancho rockey grinder, I made some really amazingly not bad coffee from a total peace of it machine. better then I did with my old grinder that I thought was good grinder but clearly no up to the task when it comes to a real espresso machine's needs to turn that coffee to gunpowder.

Really informative and useful video! Thanks!

I've always had both. And I'm saving this video for all the coffee snobs who insist on burr only. Way to go $19 Krups! Thanks

The choice of coffee is much more important than the grinder. We used to use blade grinders back in the 1970's as a big step above pre-ground. We got our first burr grinder in the early 1980's (a simple Phillips purchased on spec at a clearance sale). We were converted. We have had a variety over the years We had a number of Brauns since they ground fine enough for espresso. We now have a Cuisinart for day-to-day and a built in grinder on our Breville Barista espresso machine. We still have a blade grinder around mostly used for spices.

There are some bad blade grinders. These are the ones that heat up so bad they cook the beans while grinding. Or have a huge gap under the blade causing over grinding to get all the chunks broke up.

Everyone's got to start somewhere. Preground vs cheap krups grinder ... still more control with a cheap krups. :D

I saw one series of America's Test Kitchen and the two types was tested and the results of the test. I am not a coffee drinker, but could not afford the burr grinder even though I got my brother and sister-n-law one of the newest coffee makers.

I think the difference appears when u make espresso

Many years ago I worked for a local boutique roaster, and we had some REALLY nice vintage grinders. They were temperamental as hell, and would throw a fit if you didn't clean them properly, but that was the only time I've ever personally seen a 000 Turkish grind done right. Since that job I've never been able to stomach coffee that was roasted more than a couple weeks ago, and can't stand any grinder that involves blades, lol.

Others have said it I use a blade for French press and a burr for espresso

I got a manual grinder, a blade grinder now I must buy a burr? Fuk this...I am done....I am sticking with my blade grinder and moving on.

Thanks for making this very useful video. This question is no different than: best wine, best audio speaker, best phone, best car, ... It really boils down to how thick is your wallet. My gripe about burr grinder is that it is too expensive compared to the blade grinder. I can buy a blade grinder for $10, where as the burr grinder costs $100+. So, this is exactly what I was looking for.

Only coffee snobs were surprised by this result.

Drip coffee is different than espresso. For espresso you must have a burr grinder

Should have tried with espresso. Blade is probably OK with a less demanding brew method as you did. But espresso generally has a 20 to 30 second exposure to hot water. Grind has to be right or result will be bitter or sour. So, you did half the needed job.

Were any of those cheap hand burr grinders tested?

Is it bad to use a cheap meat thermometer?

Drip brew is more tolerant of variability - mostly anything will do. With espresso machines you HAVE to use burr grinders to be able dial in the correct size geind to equal correct brew volume/time.

Try a higher end burr grinder (like a Mahlkonig EK43, or most Ditting's) and run this same test. The lower end grinders, especially the conical style burr grinders (like the Encore you showed here) aren't in the same league as the better ones. Futhermore, coffee quality, days past roast, roast level, water chemistry, etc... all make a big difference. High end/quality is surprisingly hard. There's almost an uncountable number of ways for it to go wrong and get lower quality cup.

Yes it is!

Those coffee elitists must hate, that a 10$ maschine is the same as their 300$ maschine. Just look around any other youtube video, they will still defend the 300$ as "expensive, but if you want the -best- reasonable". Talking about self-dillusion here.

This grinder grinds coffee but oh the mess. It takes the joy out of freshly ground coffee. Grounds everywhere. Should be used outside.

0:05 Why are you not recognised as the greatest ventriloquist on the planet? Only kidding, thanks for the advice. Just ordered my first grinder: a cheap(ish) blade variety.

Do I need a blade grinder if I have a magic bullet? How does a magic bullet compare to a blade grinder?

Just get the moccamaster grinder no fuss mount it on your kitchen wall and nothing to clean or take up counter space best investment I ever made to go with my moccamaster coffee machine

It's all about what the drinker wants.

So the thought is that the cheapest coffee grinder is best. Not really, cheaper grinders use block burrs that produce high amounts of fine. And also sound like vacuums. Spending 100+ on a burr grinder would be sufficient.

Coffee and tea geeks are the worst. Just how stupid someone needs to be to think that he is a better individual because he drinks some liquid "proper" way?

So then cheap burr grinder?

They did the same comparison on TV the other day.

Using a blade grinder is like throwing darts blindfolded. Can you hit the bullseye? Yes, technically you *can*. Are you going to do it reliably? Not without a ton of practice and luck.

If you really want to poke the hornet's nest, compare french press to pour over to drip, to (gasp!) instant.

What about the breed of coffee cherry itself? Does the extra caffeine from a Robusta variety add to the flavor of a great cup of coffee or does Arabica's slightly less caffeine content make the flavor smoother?

Lisa McManus from America’s Test Kitchen already did this review and without any of the horrible background music that Hannah is shouting over: ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-O7LAzSKgeoQ.html It’s a much more thorough review.

Your test can't be too conclusive. First, I'm sure your people who use the blade to grind the coffee *know* how to grind coffee for consistency. There's method to achieve this that requires the person who grinds to be attentive. Pulse, stop, shake, examine ground... So your result of the ground using the blade is probably not much different than the grounds going through the burr. But at home, for common folks, it's probably too much work to grind the coffee with the blade grinder that would achieve accuracy and consistency. So the burr grinder should be the way to go.

1:37 got foam?

Some grocery stores have grinders so you can grind their house coffee. What do you think they are blade or burr or either?And is it ok to use those?

Yes it's bad unless you are making drip coffee. For espresso you need at the very least a Baratza Vario (around $450).

Because all the grounds are a much more consistent size, I would think that using a burr grinder is also more efficient, using less coffee beans per cup. Over time, that would add up, using less coffee beans and, therefore, saving money.

As a coffee geek this is very interesting.

When I saw that other video about grinders I got a bit irritated when it made me realize that it was pretty much done product specific perhaps the sponsored product being chosen. Choosing a grinder is not really all that hard. It all comes down to cleanliness. Depending on what kind of blade grinder you get I suppose, it is possible to be able to detach the blade and storage cup for an easily clean up. Rinse with hot water wipe with a paper towel and you are done. From what I can tell that can not be done with a burr grinder. You may be getting coffee grounds that are a year old. Not to mention the fact that if gluten in introduced into it you may never get it out. For me that is a big problem. As was said in both videos you can not in any way whatsoever tell the difference in the taste between the two. So what is comes down to is basically laziness on your part. You do not want to have to stay present and hold the grinder to that it stays engaged. You would rather "set it and forget it" as the old saying goes. But OMG you can not wait a total of about 30 seconds to grind your coffee? The other video said you had to grind then shake then grind and shake to ensure that you get a good blend. That is a total lie. Granted I am sure there are some bladed grinders that this would be necessary but not all just as I am sure there are some burr grinders are a waste of money. I use a MR. Coffee bladed grinder and it works beautifully. The blades are low, the spin is plenty fast, it has several presets for length of blade spin so there is no guess work on if you did it long enough which was another lie told by I think both of the videos. Now some people like me appreciate a finely ground coffee such as a espresso ground. You stated that if the ground is too small that it will be bitter. That was another lie. If you coffee is ever bitter no matter what grind you have either something is wrong with your coffee or your brewing method. I use a Black and Decker single cup (actually about 2.5 cups) coffee maker and I have not ever had a bitter coffee because of my coffee being too finely ground. I drink up to 6 cups of coffee a day. Just because you may have had sponsored content from the two coffee houses does not make the people used in the testing experts in any way. They could have been just college kids needing a job or perhaps a business person that does not know the first thing about coffee. This is done on you tube a lot. Sometimes the independent judging panel or person I have personally seen is just a friend of the host and does not actually know the first thing about what it is they are testing. The information they get is from what was told to them, which is usually incorrect and product specific. All that being said I will have to say that you and the other video were so incorrect about a burr grinder being better. Because it is not. First off burr grinders are more expensive and as stated by you the do the EXACT same job as a bladed grinder except the burr grinders are harder or in fact not even able to be cleaned. Which is the second reason burr grinders are not better. It actually should have been the main focus of your judging, but it was not even mentioned. Like I said who is going to want year old coffee grounds in their coffee.

How many takes did that milk mustache require..

Well I mean hand grinders exist

Overuse of a burr grinder will cause it to heat the coffee beans up I think a blade is the way to go

Maybe the blade grinder is okay for drip coffee, but this doesn't hold true for espresso.

And some people swear by pounding coffee with a pestle and mortar. It is a technique that takes practice but was the traditional method in places like Egypt and Yemen.

sounds like you just tested cheep bur grinders. the difference should be obvious.

the only reason to grind at home is if you are drinking it straight up, most ppl load their coffee w sugar, milk, cream, etc... at that point the subtle diffs will be gone

Can I grind green tea into macha? 🙄🤔😀

one iota, two iota, three iota...

Before I watch : If by cheap, you mean a blade grinder, the answer is : No -- But. Blade grinders are less convenient, harder to use, and harder to get consistent results. And notice I say consistent results, NOT a consistent grind. A consistent grind may be preferable, but it's not that important. Having a setting and mechanism that assures you get the same grind each time you grind your coffee is important.

Love your videos but I think ya'll need to talk with one another. The same review was done yesterday by another ATK representative with the same results.

Why bother with a blade grinder? Just use a food processor.

man, this is so amateurish. There is no simple answer to that question because it completely depends on the brew-method. The more soffisticated the coffee machine, the better the grind has to be. That's why the grinder should always cost around 50% of the coffee machine, with lower percentages the more expensive the coffee maker gets. But it's a fucking huge science and absolutely not possible to answer that question properly in 3 minutes. Just go ahead and use the trashy coffee grind with a la pavoni and see how much crema you get out of it. Yeah, there's your fucking answer.

Maybe try making proper coffee :P you'll see the difference then

it's better to use a good coffee grinder over an expensive coffee maker. I know this for a fact, because my rancho silvia espresso machine needed service every ten or so years and I used my old espresso machine that is total crap when that happens, I've got it stored away nice and dry and clearn, but keep it just for when my good machine needs serving. even with my rancho rockey grinder, I made some really amazingly not bad coffee from a total peace of it machine. better then I did with my old grinder that I thought was good grinder but clearly no up to the task when it comes to a real espresso machine's needs to turn that coffee to gunpowder.

As a coffee geek this is very interesting.