How to Dial In Grind Size for Pour Over Coffee

When I started getting into pour overs, grind size was always something that intimidated me. With so many variables to consider, I thought I’d need to go through some intensive barista training to finally crack the code. 

While there are a couple of technicalities to dialing in grind size for any brewing method, it becomes pretty straightforward once you know what you’re looking for. 

Stick around to the end to find out how.

How does grind size affect coffee flavor?

Put simply, grind size affects the solubility of your ground coffee beans. Grind coarser and your beans are less soluble when subjected to water. Go finer and your beans are more soluble. 

But if that’s the case, why don’t we just grind as fine as possible to get the coffee to be as soluble as possible? 

That’s because coffee has inherent flavors we want to get out of it because they taste really good. But there are also bitter and astringent flavors inherent to a coffee that we don’t want to extract.  

Those desirable flavors can only be extracted up to a certain point. After which, you’ll start extracting all the unwanted flavors. So while grinding fine will extract all the good flavors faster, you will also get the bad flavors much faster. This is called over-extraction. 

On the flip side, if you grind too coarse you won’t be able to taste your coffee at its full potential. When this happens, often you’ll get a cup that tastes weak or watery. This is called under-extraction. 

In short, when dialing in a grind size, you’re setting your brew up for how much flavor you want to extract. You’d want to find the right balance to extract the right amount and get your coffee to taste as good as possible. 

What is the best setting for grinding coffee? A helpful chart

Now that we know how grind size affects your brew. It’s important to know that different grind sizes work for different brewing methods because they are constructed differently. Hence, they have different grind size requirements to properly extract flavors.  

Note: to be able to properly adjust your grind size, you’ll need a quality burr grinder to ensure the beans are ground as evenly as possible. Otherwise, you’ll have a whole range of large and small particles that will make your brews inconsistent.   

Here’s a comprehensive list: 

Grind setting	Particle size in millimeters	Particle size in microns	Consistency similar to	Recommended for
Coarse	1.5	1400 – 1699	Rock salt	French press, cold brew
Medium-coarse	1	1100 – 1399	Coarse sea salt	French press, Chemex, drip machine
Medium	0.75	800 – 1099	Beach sand	Pour-over, drip machine, syphon
Medium-fine	0.5	500 – 799	Table salt	Moka pot, Aeropress, syphon brewer, pour-over, drip machine
Fine	0.3	200 – 699	Granulated sugar	Espresso, percolators, moka pot
Super fine	0.1	200 – 499	Flour	Turkish coffee

You might also notice that different brewing methods can accept a wider range of grind sizes. Example, pour over grind sizes can vary from medium-fine to medium-coarse (since Chemex is still a pour over method). We’ll fully cover why this is later. 

But, for now, just note that these are general guidelines to go by. You’ll still need to adjust your grind size depending on how the coffee tastes. Sometimes that means going against these guidelines. 

How to measure grind size

The most accurate way to measure grind size is really to go by microns. Kruve has a helpful chart that helps reference grind size by microns. 

You can also lay out the grounds and measure using the millimeter side of a ruler. Just note that it will be messy. 

The challenge with measuring, however, is that not everybody has a sifter or a special tool that can measure microns. So, while you can get precise with measuring grind settings this way, that measurement will still be just a number to most people. 

Other ways to measure grind size

Outside of comparing the grind consistency to salt and other materials, many baristas and home brewers like using popular grinders. Normally the Mahlkonig EK 43 or the Comandante C40, and sometimes even the Baratza Encore come as references for grind size. 

When should you adjust your grind size?

There is a lot of information on what grind size to use. But hardly anybody talks about when to adjust your grind settings. 

This is an important thing to know because dialling in grind settings depends on so many factors. We know from earlier that, even with the same coffee, your grind setting will change with different brewing methods. 

The reverse is also true, different coffees will need different settings even with the same brewing method. 

To make things even more complicated, the same coffee and the same brewing method will still need a different grind setting depending on the age of the coffee! 

In the next sections, I’m going to go through each variable to consider when dialling in the right grind size. This might get a bit technical, but I’ll try to explain everything in the simplest way possible. 

Also, keep in mind that most of what I’ll be discussing is based on pour overs. But the general knowledge can be applied to the other methods. 

Brewing method

We’ve seen in the chart earlier that different brew methods call for different grind settings. But what about for different grind settings on the same brewing method? 

Take pour overs for example. You’ll need a different grind size when brewing with a V60 versus a Kalita Wave, even if they’re both the same brewing method.

This boils down to construction. The beauty (and challenge) of pour over is that each brewing device has subtle differences that change up the brew. 

In general, cone brewers (like the V60) drain faster than flat-bottom brewers (like the Kalita). Meaning, you can get away with finer settings on cones than on flat-bottoms. 

That’s why most recipes for the V60 will call for a medium to medium-fine grind. While most Kalita Wave recipes will call for a medium to even a medium-coarse grind. 

Origin

When it comes to single origin coffee, we know that different origins produce different flavor characteristics. These also extend to the physical characteristics of the beans. This is because coffees across the world are grown under different conditions.  

If we geek out further, even coffees from the same origin will require different grind adjustments. Again, for the same reason that different farms have different growing conditions. 

To simplify this, we can go by elevation and bean density. These normally go hand-in-hand. But let’s look at both aspects individually. 

Elevation

Most specialty coffee roasters provide the altitude the coffee was grown in. Usually this is between 1,000 to 2,200 meters above sea level (MASL). 

The higher a coffee’s altitude, the more time it has to absorb the sugars of the coffee fruit. That means beans from high altitudes are usually packed with flavor. 

In general, this is what you’ll normally see:  

• High-elevation (above 1,700 MASL): Ethiopia, Kenya, Burundi, Bolivia, Panama, Colombia, Tanzania
• Medium-elevation (1,300 to 1,600 MASL): Honduras, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Mexico
• Low-elevation (1,000 to 1,200 MASL): El Salvador, Brazil, Philippines, Indonesia 

As far as grind size goes, you’d want to go a bit fine (usually medium-fine) on high-altitude coffees so you can really bring out all those flavors packed in the beans. If you don’t grind fine enough, you’ll get quite a sour/acidic brew because these coffees are naturally fruity. Grinding too coarse will only bring out the acids but not the full fruit flavor.

With low-elevation coffees, you’d want to do the opposite and grind coarser. Going coarser with these can add a bit more acidity to these coffees and bring out a bit more excitement to them. 

These beans are also not as packed with flavor as their high-elevation counterparts. So, if you grind too fine you might start getting bitter flavors.

Density

The rule of thumb for density is the same for elevation. Dense beans are quite hard and are packed with flavor. To get those flavors out, you’ll need to grind finer. 

I separated elevation and density because not all high-elevation coffees are the same in density. I’ve had a couple of Colombian coffees that were grown pretty high up. But they weren’t as dense compared to most Ethiopian and Kenyan coffees. I’ve also had some medium-elevation coffees be quite dense. 

In these cases, get a feel of the coffee by trying to press down on a bean. The denser the bean, the harder it is to crack. When your beans are not conforming to the usual characteristics of its elevation, set your grind size based on density. 

Roast profile

In terms of roast profile, it’s pretty straightforward. The darker the roast, the coarser you’ll need to grind. 

This is for the same reason as low-elevation coffees. It’s easier to extract bitter flavors with these roasts so you’d want to go coarse to prevent getting any bitter flavors. 

That’s why recipes like the 4:6 method recommend coarse grinds since Japanese roasts are usually between medium to dark. 

Age of coffee

This one is a bit counter-intuitive. The common knowledge I hear floating around is that, the older the beans get, the finer you’ll need to grind because it’s harder to extract flavor from them. 

Actually, what you should be doing is the reverse. The older the beans get, the coarser you’ll need to grind. 

When a coffee’s been sitting around for a while, it will start to taste stale. Grinding finer will mean extracting more flavors – including the bad, stale, ones. The result is usually a brew that’s quite hollow. 

With aged coffee, you’ll have to accept that the flavors won’t be as intense as when the coffee peaked. But that doesn’t mean you can’t get a good brew out of it.

Since coarser grinds drain faster, you’ll just have to slow down your pouring to delay the extraction. This way, you’ll be able to get the good flavors out while minimizing on the unwanted flavors.  

Taste preference 

What we just went through about adjusting grind size was quite technical. But did you notice a pattern yet? 

Grinding finer = more flavor :: Grinding coarser = less flavor 

While everything we talked about is important to consider in adjusting grind size, the most important question you have to answer is “do I want this coffee to taste this way?” 

If you want your coffees to be light and tea-like, grind coarse. Even if you’re dealing with a dense bean, if you like how it tastes on a coarse setting, stick with that. 

Let your taste buds guide you on how to dial the coffee and not the other way around. 

Final thoughts

While dialling in grind size for pour overs (and in general) can get technical, remember that these are just guides to give you a well-extracted cup. 

But, remember. Grind size isn’t the only way to get more or less extraction out of your brew. 

Don’t also feel that if you didn’t dial the exact grind size, you’ve completely compromised your brew. You can adjust your agitation, pouring, water temperature, etc. to alter extraction levels to get a good brew. 

As long as you understand what you’re doing, you’ll know how to adjust all these variables to make great coffee.   

Frequently asked questions

Can I grind my beans in a blender?

No. Most blenders are not suited for grinding material as dense as a coffee bean. Even with a more durable blender, the next big concern will be the consistency of grind size. Since they don’t have specific settings suited for coffee, there is no guarantee that you’ll get any consistency from one brew to the next.  

How do I know I’m using the right grind size?

It’s a bit of trial and error. But go by taste. Many like to use brew time as a rough guideline. For pour overs that’s usually between 2 and a half minutes to 3 minutes. But not all beans behave the same way. Some will take even longer to brew to taste great and vice versa. 

If you’re satisfied with how your brew tastes, keep the same grind size. If it tastes weak/watery/sour, go finer. Go coarser if it’s bitter/astringent/dry. 

Does coffee always need to be ground fresh?

As much as possible, yes. Over time, the flavor of coffee beans loses intensity. Pre-grinding will accelerate that. So you’d want to grind fresh as much as possible to prolong the shelf life of your beans. 

How quickly does ground coffee lose its freshness?

It depends on how freshly roasted the coffee is. Coffee fresh off the roast will taste gassy since the carbon dioxide from roasting hasn’t settled yet into the beans. 

If you grind that fresh roast and leave it for about 30 minutes, you’ll get a similar brew to letting those same beans rest for a week. If you leave it for 2 hours, you’ll get a brew similar to if those beans rested for 2 to 3 weeks. 

Can you regrind ground coffee beans? 

It depends. There are some recipes out there that recommend double-grinding to get more consistency. This involves grinding coarse first then going finer. For us, the jury is still out if it makes brews that taste that much better. 

But, if you’re working already with the right grind size for your brewing method, there’s no need to re-grind.  

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