Our tough tests revealed three Best Buy grinders that are easy to use and leave you with consistent coffee grounds ready for brewing.

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The best coffee grinder turn your beans into perfectly even grounds, whether you're using an espresso machine, cafetiere or any other coffee maker.

Burr coffee grinders have a small gear-like mechanism inside that crushes coffee beans to produce ground coffee. Because they crush rather than chop the beans, they don’t exert the same kind of force and heat that a blade grinder might.

It should never be complicated, uncomfortable or difficult to use your coffee grinder. It should be simple to load up your coffee beans and get the perfect grounds you're looking for.

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A ceramic burr is likely to last longer than a steel burr, provided that it doesn’t encounter any rogue materials, such as a small fragment of stone, that could cause it to chip.

If you really like to be adventurous with your coffee, you might consider a stepless grinder. To get your hands on one you'll have to venture off the high street and you’ll be spending quite a bit more money too. A stepless grinder has no pre-set grind levels. Instead, you can tinker with it to produce the exact grind you want. While a stepless grinder can offer you even more options for customisation, it does require an experienced hand to get good results.

Date tested: February 2024. Page last checked: September 2024. We are not able to show every retailer and cheaper prices may be available.

Which one is best for you depends on what type of coffee you like to make, how much you make, and whether you want the flexibility of being able to achieve different grounds tailored to different coffee types.

We assess the coffee bean grinders on the quality of their coffee grounds, how easy they are to use and how noisy there are.

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If you're only grinding small quantities at a time, they can be a good option, as you have total control over how much you want to grind. Most electric coffee grinders grind a minimum of two cups of coffee at a time.

Both of these materials will handle grinding the coffee beans equally well, the main difference being in the durability of the grinding burr.

We've tested the most popular coffee grinders from DeLonghi, Sage, Krups, Melitta and more, sold at leading retailers including Lakeland, John Lewis and Amazon.

A precise, even grind is essential for making tasty coffee at home. Choose a poor coffee grinder, and you may end up with uneven grounds and a badly extracted, watery brew.

Blade grinders (like the one in the picture below) have a spinning blade inside that cuts the beans into smaller pieces, similar to a blender.

Other key features Detachable bean hopper, non-slip base, detachable bowl, cleaning brush, integrated digital scale, LCD display panel

Other key features Detachable bean hopper, detachable bowl, lid safety lock, cleaning brush, two portafilter supports, non-slip base

We purchase bestselling coffee grinders from leading UK retailers and put them through tough tests to find the best. We regularly revisit the coffee grinders on sale to see if there are any more popular models that need testing - and when we find them we do.

You may see coffee aficionados extolling the virtues of either a flat burr (pictured below left) or a conical burr (pictured below right).

Coffee bean grinders often have several grind settings to choose from, as different coffee makers require differently sized grounds. A cafetiere, for example, needs a coarser grind, whereas an espresso requires very finely ground coffee.

The image below shows the difference between grounds from an electric blade grinder (left) and a burr coffee grinder (right).

Also, flat burr coffee grinders will usually be much pricier than their conical burr counterparts. For most people, a coffee grinder with a conical burr is going to be good enough for the job of grinding beans for your coffee machine.

Other key features Detachable bean hopper, detachable bowl, lid safety lock, cleaning brush, two portafilter supports, LCD control panel, non-slip base

Other key features Detachable bean hopper, detachable bowl, lid safety lock, cleaning brush, portafilter support, non-slip base

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A stepped coffee grinder will have pre-set grind options for you to choose from, from a fine to a coarser grind. Most electronic burr coffee grinders in retail shops such as John Lewis or Argos will be stepped.

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Hand grinders grind coffee thanks to your own arm muscles. Most hand grinders come with a burr in them, which is a cheap way to get a good-quality grind for your espresso coffee maker.

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