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Coffee grinders that are of great quality are expensive. A manual blade coffee grinder or electric blade grinders are inexpensive but do not produce a high-quality grind.
It is the electric burr coffee grinders or manual burr grinders that are expensive and which produce the highest quality grind. With these burr grinders, you can be assured a more even grind and a better cup of coffee as a result.
With a more even grind comes a more natural tasting coffee that is less bitter and acidic tasting.
So why are these nicer burr grinders more expensive? Much like anything, you pay for quality, but it also has a lot to do with the complexity of something that can grind beans into so many different grind sizes! Of course you also are paying for the design of the unit as well.
Quality of the grind
Recently, I took a class to learn more about coffee and how to make coffee, and I continue to be surprised how incredibly important it is to have a good coffee grinder. It’s even more important than the coffee maker itself, or even the coffee itself.
That is why you will notice so much care being put into the quality of the coffee grinder you are looking at. They use quality materials, and quality craftsmanship to give you the best quality grinder you can buy.
Amount of different adjustments
Most burr grinders have many, many different adjustments that can be made to get different coarseness levels of the grind. Expresso needs finer grinds, while cold brew needs the largest grind you can get.
A machine that at a click of a button can easily do this for you, needs a lot of ingenuity and engineering to be put into it.
Design of the unit
It costs a lot of money to build a coffee grinder from the ground up, and to make sure it is reliable, effective, yet also something people aren’t afraid to keep on their counter.
This time and effort ends up going into the final product, causing the price to raise, the more difficult the task.
During the design phase, they even have to solve small issues like keeping heat away from the ground coffee, which will start the extraction process before the brew even starts.
Paying for the industry
I think this actually heavily affects the price of coffee grinders as well. For the longest time people didn’t really make high quality coffee at home, and instead went to coffee shops!
This meant that coffee shops would buy these expensive (understandably so) coffee grinders for their shops. Then when people started finding out they could make this coffee at home, they would buy these same coffee grinders.
From then on, the industry never really tried to bring the price down much, as the customer base would actually buy them.
That said, Fellow Products recently launched the Ode Brew Grinder that is one of the best, but yet reasonably priced coffee grinders on the market today. You can find it here.
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Different types of coffee grinders
Now that we have talked a bit about why coffee grinders do cost so much, let’s dig into the different types of coffee grinders, and a bit more reasoning behind their price.
Burr grinders
Burr grinders and especially the electric ones cost the most. These consist of conical or plates that truly grind the coffee, unlike the blade grinders that just pulverize the beans.
These burr grinders make an even grind to lessen the chance of a bitter or acidic tasting coffee. Both the electric and manual burr grinders can be quite pricey but you should be able to get one starting at around 100 dollars.
A quality burr grinder will be made of metal and stand firmly to avoid shaking during grinding. This also enhances the ability of the grinder to grind evenly and thoroughly.
You can expect to spend about $300 or more on a quality electric burr grinder for your kitchen at home.
Blade grinders
Blade grinders are usually the least expensive grinders available. They come in manual and electric versions.
These types of grinders basically brake open the coffee beans at high speeds, and actually don’t really grind.
This means that it grinds the coffee beans unevenly in that some of the grinds are not the same size as the rest.
With an uneven grind, when the hot water is added to it, some of the coffee becomes over extracted or under extracted depending on the size of the piece.
This produces an acidic or bitter taste that is generally not wanted in your coffee. You can avoid this by purchasing a burr grinder.
Blade grinders like this one can be bought for under $30, making it the easiest coffee grinder to buy at a great price. Not the cheapest though, as that would go to the manual coffee grinder.
Tips for blade grinders
With how inexpensive blade grinders are, it is something that most people will end up opting for! So here are a couple tips to get the blade grinder closer to a more expensive grinder.
- Try to shake the electric blade grinder and it will give a more even grind.
- Try to pulse the electric blade grinder while it’s grinding in order to make a more even grind.
Manual grinders
Manual grinders, can be inexpensive starting at around $25.
Grinding with a manual grinder will give you a little workout in the morning but it will be worth it especially if it’s a manual burr grinder that will give you fresh grinds to brew your coffee.
Manual burr grinders can also get pricey and it is also important to get one that stands firmly, usually made of metal to avoid movement during grinding to get the most even grind possible.
These manual coffee grinders are actually going to be the best alternative to an electric burr grinder, as they use similar burr technology, yet you can buy them for under $25.
This one right here is cheap, but should work awesome for really any coffee you plan on making.
How much should you budget for a coffee grinder?
So you have read through this article and are still wondering really how much you either need to spend now, or save up for.
Honestly, what I would do, is buy yourself a cheap manual burr grinder to hold yourself over until you can save up around $300 to buy the last automatic burr grinder you will ever need.
That budget should get you a quality grinder that works well, but that you aren’t wasting your money on something that you don’t need.
Conclusion
Coffee grinders can be expensive but it all depends on how much you want to spend to enjoy the perfect cup of coffee. If you are like most people you will be content with a 100 dollar burr grinder.
It might not last as long as the expensive ones or maybe you will have to change the burrs more often but that’s the price you pay for a good cup of coffee.
If you buy an electric blade grinder because 100 dollars is too expensive, try the tips suggested and you should find a difference in the final grind.
