The Best Electric Coffee Grinder in the UK: Shopping Guide and Recommendations (03/23)

Andrew James Electric Coffee Grinder, Seed, Bean, Nuts, Fine Spice Grinders, Black or Red, 70g, 150W (Black)

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18.99 GBP

Melitta Molino Coffee Grinder, 1019-01, Electric Coffee Grinder, Flat Grinding Disc, Black/Red, CD – Molino – red mat

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39.99 GBP

Kabalo 150W Electric Coffee Grinder Bean & Nut/Spice Grinder Kitchen Accessory (Silver)

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12.44 GBP

VonShef Coffee Grinder Electric 60g – Coffee Bean Grinder 2500RPM for Coffee, Nuts and Spices, 150W, Safety Lock-In Transparent Lid, Stainless Steel Blades, One Touch Button – Black

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19.99 GBP

SQ Professional Blitz Coffee Grinder – Spice Grinding Mill – One-Touch (Red)

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13.98 GBP

DR MILLS DM-7441 Electric Dried Spice and Coffee Grinder, Blade & Cup Made with SUS304 stianlees Steel(Black）

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25.92 GBP

Buying and evaluation criteria for electric coffee grinders

The criteria you can use to compare electric coffee grinders include:

Capacity
Performance
Number of grinds
Dishwasher safe

Below we will show you which aspects you can use to decide between the many possible electric coffee grinders.

Capacity

The capacity of the electric coffee grinder would only be important for you if you intend to prepare coffee for several people. If the preparation is intended for several people, it is advisable to consider the number of cups of coffee that will be prepared with the electric coffee grinder when deciding on a purchase.

Kaffeemühle elektrisch-3 — Most electric coffee grinders are suitable for preparing more than 2 cups of coffee.
(Image source: unsplash.com / Nathan Dumlao)

Of course, there are also alternatives that allow you to grind up to 18 cups of coffee. Whether and how many cups you need is therefore up to you and can be taken into account when buying the grinder. Anything that exceeds this number is more likely to be used in the catering industry.

Performance

As mentioned in the above section, the power and thus the speed also play a role in the selection. Electric coffee grinders with a disc grinder or impact grinder usually have a high speed (up to 1400 rpm), which results in rapid heat generation. This is detrimental to the aromas of the coffee. Cone grinders, on the other hand, are able to grind the coffee at a low speed of 400 rpm, thus preventing rapid heat build-up.

Grinder type	revolutions
Impact grinder	approx: 1350/min
Disc grinder	approx. 700-1400/min
Cone grinder	approx: 400/min

Number of grinds

If your coffee preparation is intended for several types of coffee, from espresso to Turkish coffee, the electric coffee grinder should have several grinds. This is because these types of coffee require a fine grind.

Coffee grinders where the grind cannot be adjusted are often the result of uneven coffee powder.

If the coffee grinder has a percussion grinder, the grinding degree cannot be adjusted, so the coffee beans have to be ground until the powder is fine. This should be taken into consideration when buying a coffee grinder. So if you mainly drink espresso or place a lot of value on the fineness of the powder when preparing your coffee, a disc or cone grinder might be more suitable.

These usually offer over 10 grind settings.

Dishwasher safe

With many electric coffee grinders, the bean container cannot be placed in the dishwasher and must be cleaned by hand with a brush or brush. On others, the container and lid can be removed and placed in the dishwasher.

A dishwasher-safe coffee grinder would of course save you time and effort.

If you also use your coffee grinder to grind nuts or other spices, the container and lid of the grinder should be cleaned immediately, as coffee beans can very quickly absorb other aromas and thus change the taste of the coffee. If you want to save yourself the time and effort of cleaning, make sure that the containers and lids of the grinder are dishwasher-safe.

Decision: What types of electric coffee grinders are there and which is the right one for you?

Basically, a distinction is made between 3 types of electric coffee grinders:

electric coffee grinder with impact grinder
electric coffee grinder with disc grinder
electric coffee grinder with cone grinder

These grinders differ mainly in their grinding mechanism and of course all have their advantages and disadvantages. In addition, the type of coffee you want to prepare is important in the decision-making process. In the sections below, we have compared the alternatives with their advantages and disadvantages to help you make your decision.

What distinguishes an electric coffee grinder with impact grinder and what are its advantages and disadvantages?

With an impact grinder, the coffee beans are broken down by a propeller, just like in a blender. However, this means that the small coffee particles are not uniform in size. As a result, electric coffee grinders with a percussion grinder are only suitable for preparing normal filter coffee or French press coffee.

In addition, the blades of the propeller heat up very quickly. As mentioned in the section above, this can cause the coffee to lose its aromas. However, coffee grinders with a percussion grinder are the cheapest to buy and are relatively easy to clean, as the lid of most of them can simply be removed. Another plus point is that they are also suitable for grinding nuts, herbs and spices, for example.

Advantages

Cheap
Easy to clean
Suitable for grinding nuts and spices

Disadvantages

Uneven coffee powder
Rapid heat development
Loud when grinding

What are the features of an electric coffee grinder with a disc mill and what are its advantages and disadvantages?

Coffee grinders with a disc grinder are found in many of today’s grinders and are suitable for all types of coffee. With this alternative, two discs grind the coffee beans. The distance between the discs can be adjusted to determine how finely the coffee beans are ground. Disc grinders are also mostly used for preparing espressos, as they are able to produce very fine and uniform coffee powder.

They also have a variety of grinds, which allows you to adjust the fineness of your coffee powder according to your personal preferences and the type of coffee. However, as already mentioned with the impact grinder, the coffee beans are ground at a high speed.

If you want to avoid this problem, you should make sure that the grinder discs are made of ceramic when buying a coffee grinder. Ceramic has the property that it does not heat up as quickly as stainless steel. However, this is of course a somewhat expensive alternative.

Advantages

More evenly ground coffee
Suitable for espresso
Variety of grinds
Ceramic discs prevent rapid heating

Disadvantages

High speed
Ceramic discs more expensive
Loud when grinding

What are the features of an electric coffee grinder with a cone grinder and what are its advantages and disadvantages?

Compared to other grinders, a cone grinder requires much fewer revolutions to grind the coffee beans. Because of this feature, not too much heat is produced and the flavours of the coffee are thus preserved. In addition, it has a variety of grinds, which allows the preparation of different types of coffee.

In this grinder, as the name suggests, a cone ensures that the coffee beans are ground evenly, so that the particles fall to the bottom and need a certain size to leave the grinder. This results in the coffee being ground very evenly. So if it is important for you to be able to prepare different types of coffee without losing any of the coffee’s aromas, a cone grinder could be the right choice for you. Cone grinders are generally of a higher quality, which is why the prices are in a slightly higher price segment.

Advantages

More consistent coffee powder
only requires low speed
Flavours are preserved

Disadvantages

Relatively most expensive variant

Guide: Questions you should ask yourself before buying an electric coffee grinder

In order to be best prepared for the purchase of an electric coffee grinder, we would like to answer a few important questions in detail.

What is an electric coffee grinder?

An electric coffee grinder helps you to grind your coffee beans into a fine powder for a delicious and fresh coffee taste. Depending on the type of grinder, the beans are ground in different ways. Grinding the coffee beans shortly before preparing the coffee ensures that the coffee retains as many of its aromas as possible.

Kaffeemühle elektrisch-1 — Electric coffee grinders save you the physical effort of grinding the coffee beans.
(Image source: unsplash.com / crew)

Most electric coffee grinders also allow you to adjust the grind of the coffee beans to suit your personal needs.

What to look for when buying an electric coffee grinder?

Before buying an electric coffee grinder, you must first decide what type of coffee you generally want to prepare with it. For a classic espresso drinker, it is important that the coffee grinder is able to grind the beans as finely as possible, whereas for the preparation of filter coffee, it is sufficient if the grinder can grind the beans coarsely.

The type of grinder has a great influence on the quality of the coffee.

The next thing to look for when buying a grinder is that it is able to grind the beans uniformly so that the particles are as evenly sized as possible. This ensures that the aromas are extracted evenly when they come into contact with the water.

The heat generated by the motor also plays a significant role, because if the coffee beans are heated too much, they can lose their aromas and the coffee tastes too bitter as a result. If you want to prevent heat build-up, you can make sure that the grinder is able to grind the coffee beans at a low speed.

How much does an electric coffee grinder cost?

Depending on the quality, budget or frequency of use, prices vary from 15 euros to over 500 euros. The price of the electric coffee grinder depends greatly on the type of grinder. The cheapest alternative is the coffee grinder with an impact grinder, here the price is between 15 and 30 euros.

Electric coffee grinders with a disc grinder, on the other hand, start at around 25 euros and can be purchased for up to 60 euros. The discs are often made of stainless steel or ceramic and are often also suitable for preparing an espresso. If the discs are made of ceramic, the price can be well over 60 euros. For coffee grinders that use a cone grinder, the price range is approximately between 60 and over 500 euros.

Grinder type	price
Impact grinder	approx. 15-30 euros
Disc grinder	approx. 25-60 euros
Cone grinder	approx. 60-500 euros

Why should you prefer an electric coffee grinder to a manual one?

Before answering this question, we would like to mention that this answer is relative and that, above all, preferences or the frequency and quantity of your coffee preparation play an important role. There are certainly many people who prefer the vintage style of old hand coffee grinders and also enjoy making their own coffee by hand.

However, it must also be said that especially for espresso drinkers or, for example, the preparation of Turkish coffee, an electric coffee grinder is more suitable because it is able to grind the coffee beans very finely, which is probably not possible to this extent with a hand grinder.

Kaffeemühle elektrisch-2 — An evenly ground coffee ensures that you get all the flavours of your coffee as deliciously as possible
(Image source: unsplash.com / Daniel Klaffke)

In addition, a hand coffee grinder can usually only make one to three cups of coffee. So if you have frequent visitors or many coffee drinkers in the house, you might want to go for an electric coffee grinder, as they have a much larger capacity and also save time.

What are the alternatives to an electric coffee grinder?

As mentioned in the section above, a hand coffee grinder would be an alternative to an electric coffee grinder. The coffee beans are ground by hand using cranking movements and are more suitable for preparing filter coffee, as it is already sufficient here if the coffee beans are coarsely ground.

How do I set the optimum grind for an electric coffee grinder?

The grind setting differs depending on how you prepare your coffee, what type of coffee you want to make or how you like your coffee. In addition, no specific number can be given here for the grind level, as these differ from grinder to grinder.

However, you can still choose how coarse or fine you want the coffee beans to be ground. First of all, you need to be clear about the type of coffee you are preparing and the method you are using. The contact time with the water must also be taken into account.

Nevertheless, everyone has different tastes and preferences, so it would be best to try out the different grinds to find the one that works best for you. Basically:

French press: coarse grind
Filter coffee: medium to coarse grind
Espresso: fine grind
Mocha: very fine grind

The above grinds should serve as a guideline.

How do I clean an electric coffee grinder?

Each coffee grinder may have instructions on what to look for when cleaning and how the electric coffee grinder should be cleaned. For this reason, we cannot explicitly tell you which is the right method. However, as mentioned in the section above, the bean container and lid of many electric coffee grinders can be removed to clean them with a brush.

With a few, it is even possible to put the lid and container in the dishwasher, which is of course an advantage. However, you should make sure that the bean container does not contain any detergent residue or moisture. So be sure and dry it thoroughly. You can vacuum the grinder with a hoover to remove coffee residue.