The Best Coffee Grinders for French Press. Personal Faves

Rancilio Rocky Coffee Grinder

Things we liked:

• Durability
• Quality materials and burrs
• Construction and design
• Wide range of grind size settings
• High performance
• Both doser and Rocky SD doserless options available

Things we didn’t like:

• Awkward operation
• Price
• Heavy weight

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While this grinder is crafted to operate alongside Rancilio espresso machines, it's also among personal faves for prepping beans for French press. The flexible grinder adjustment controls are easy to navigate, letting you experiment and find the right setting for every variety in your rotation.

I love this machine's minimalist design, though the hopper seems a bit over the top, fitting up to 0.65 lbs of whole beans. And it's clear, too, so don't keep your coffee in the hopper if you want it to remain fresh. Make sure you set up a jar or another container for the grounds instead of a portafilter, as Rocky was initially designed to work with espresso makers.

In the heart of the machine lie the commercial-grade 50 mm stainless steel burrs with the added bonus of antistatic technology to keep the grinder from accumulating the finest of coffee particles. The direct-drive motor is super quiet and extremely efficient at 1350 rpm, producing as much as 0.97 grams of ground coffee per second. While ensuring quality grinding and durability, these features ratchet up the price tag, making Rocky the most expensive model on my list (around $400).

To get ready for pressing, set your Rocky anywhere between 25 and 40. You'll have to zero in on the exact setting depending on the java variety of choice.

Baratza Encore Conical Burr Grinder

Things we liked:

• Highly capable grinder
• 40 coarseness settings
• Simple to operate
• Relatively quiet

Things we didn’t like:

• Grinds beans slowly
• Lacks any extra features: timer, screen or scale

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Say you're not ready to spend half a grand on a grinder. You can still get top-shelf quality and customer support with a machine three times cheaper than Rancilio Rocky. Encore has it all and is only around $140. For this price, you won't get the perfect grind for espresso or Turkish coffee, but your French pressed java will turn out divine.

Encore relies on a DC motor and 40 mm conical stainless steel burrs to grind the beans. And it offers forty settings for you to choose from. Start with 30 and move your way up, or vice versa, and you'll soon settle on the right setting for your blend. The machine will also accommodate other brewing methods, including Aeropress, Chemex, drip machines, and pour-over.

To make this model affordable, Baratza had to sacrifice build quality. For instance, the bean hopper can produce quite a mess when you take it off. And the outlet chute gets clogged at times because cleaning a 90-degree angle is a chore no one takes seriously. At least, their customer support is great, and you can easily get your hands on replacement parts instead of throwing away the machine. Treat it to regular maintenance and cleaning, and Encore will last a decade or more.

Porlex Hand Grinder

Things we liked:

• No electricity needed
• Sturdy stainless steel body and ceramic conical burr
• Removable handle for better storage
• Easily adjustable from fine powder to coarse grind
• Best for backpacking

Things we didn’t like:

• Slow grind

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If you can't imagine a single day without freshly ground coffee, even when you're away from your kitchen, getting a tiny manual grinder is an obvious solution. Porlex has you covered with a couple of minimalist options that differ in size and hopper capacity. The latter ranges from 20 to 30 grams, so don't expect this teensy device to work at the same speed as an electric grinder. Still, it only takes around 60 seconds to prep the beans for a single cuppa.

Despite its small size and affordable price tag (under $90), Porlex comes with conical ceramic burrs, unlike Rancilio Rocky or Baratza Encore. And the adjustment system is as intuitive as they come. Rotate the parts and count the clicks, each of which adjusts the distance between burrs by around 37 microns. Besides, the stainless steel body boats antistatic technology to speed up cleaning and maintenance. And the straightforward design lets you keep the burrs clean at all times with minimal effort.

While the overall build quality is at an all-time high, the plastic parts connecting the handle to the burrs cause many buyer complaints. The recent design updates seem to have resolved these issues, but you should still be careful when handling the grinder.

OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder

Things we liked:

• Quickly produces coffee grounds
• Simple interface
• Compact design makes it durable and reliable
• The airtight hopper is UV-tinted and enables you to hold whole beans in the grinder for storage

Things we didn’t like:

• No scale option available
• Most-fine grind is not suitable for the top-tier espresso machine
• The coarsest grind result tends to be slightly inconsistent

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If you're like me and believe coffee tastes best when it's shared with friends and family, Consider OXO instead of Porlex. For an even $100, you get an all-in-one grinder that fits 0.75 lbs of whole beans and 110 grams of ground coffee. That's enough for a large French press for your lazy Sunday brunch!

OXO is great for pressing coffee after grinding it at a setting above 13, but it can accommodate your other brewing preferences too, including espresso. FIfteen grind settings with micro-settings for extra precision will make a barista of you. And the one-touch start button will get the machine going using the last setting, which is great for the mornings when you're in a hurry to get out the door.

I love the UV-blocking tint on the bean hopper and the smart design that keeps the mess contained. However, the plastic hopper is prone to static, and the whole machine is a pain to clean because of the fine particles clinging to every surface. You'll need to be extra careful when using dark oily beans, as they tend to clog up the conical burrs and the outlet chute fast. OXO is a solid low-budget option, especially if you don't mind the noise.

Capresso Infinity Conical Burr Grinder

Things we liked:

• Price is cheap as it gets for an electric burr grinder
• Well enough grinding for most brewing methods
• Grinder is well-constructed and should last quite a while

Things we didn’t like:

• Coarse settings
• Poor grind consistency

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For such an affordable machine (around $120), Capresso Infinity is among the best coffee burr grinders for French press. The stainless steel conical burrs come with 16 settings that will satisfy your every caffeine need, from Turkish coffee to French press and cold brew. Besides, the hopper and ground coffee container are both large enough to let you brew a full pot of coffee to enjoy throughout the day or share with your loved ones.

The one drawback I've noticed is the accumulation of grounds inside the burrs and chute. While the removable upper burr makes it easier to clean out the machine, you'll need to do so after every grinding to prevent the buildup from going stale. You can still use these leftover grounds, though pouring them out may cause a mess.

And while we're on the topic of making a mess, I suggest you add stickers to the hopper lid or use a sharpie to mark it in some way. Otherwise, you might find yourself pouring the beans on top of the clear cover or forgetting to set it in place before turning on the grinder. Either of these scenarios is likely to make your mornings even less pleasant.

Cuisinart DBM-8 Automatic Burr Mill

Things we liked:

• Simple to use and clean
• Large grinding chamber with a capacity of 32 cups
• 18 grinding settings
• Uniform grinding without the blades
• Superior grind consistency
• Stainless steel construction and build
• Automatic grind with an electric timer
• 18-month warranty

Things we didn’t like:

• Extremely loud
• Unable to customize the coarseness of your grounds to brewing methods
• Not suitable for espresso
• Not suitable for multi-pound grinding

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If you don't expect this grinder to last you over a couple of years, you'll be happy with Cuisinart. It's among the best budget coffee grinders for French press (around $60) and relies on block burrs that have nothing in common with flat or conical burrs and aren't as good at producing uniform coarseness. While that's usually not a big problem for French press, if you love an occasional espresso shot, you'd better look into other options on this list.

On the plus side, you'll get 18 grind settings, automated measuring for 4 to 18 cups, as well as a grinding timer that will turn the machine off once it achieves the desired fineness. As always, I do not recommend keeping whole beans in the hopper, even if it fits half a pound of coffee. The grounds container is large enough to accommodate up to 32 cups of coffee, though the cup is usually only 5 oz, according to the electronics manufacturers.

I've found this grinder to be louder than other models, though I can't say for sure without measuring the noise output in decibels. If you don't want to wake up the household with your morning coffee routine, I suggest you grind the beans the day before brewing.

JavaPresse Manual Coffee Grinder

Things we liked:

• Inexpensive price
• Portable and good for travels
• Lightweight and small size

Things we didn’t like:

• Slow grind
• A bit hard to clean
• Hand crank can slip off during grinding

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The cheapest, the smallest, and the most portable–that's what you need to know about JavaPresse in a nutshell. I love that it fits into my Aeropress and lets me bring along a coffee maniac's kit whenever I'm away from home. And the brushed steel exterior with a see-through window is a nice touch.

Grind quality is on par (if not better) with affordable electric grinders thanks to conical ceramic burrs and 18-click adjustment options. Getting enough grounds for a full French press takes me a couple of sessions, as the machine only fits around one ounce of beans at a time. And one session lasts about a minute at settings 13 to 18 for a coarse ground. But if you're craving espresso, get ready to crank for up to 5 minutes per serving, which becomes problematic when you're entertaining.

Now for the boring part: cleaning and maintenance. True to its reputation as one of the best hand-held coffee grinders for French press, it's easy to disassemble and wash under running water. The plastic parts inside the burr chamber are prone to breaking, but you can easily get replacements from JavaPresse, and their customer service is exceptional.