After coffee brewer, a coffee grinder holds an important role while brewing fresh coffee. A reliable coffee grinder extracts ample flavours to make the most out of your beans.
If you're still wondering to invest in a coffee grinder, here's something to remember - whole beans store the coffee oils and flavours a lot better than pre-ground coffee. When we store pre-ground coffee for longer, it causes the coffee compounds to evaporate. These compounds are responsible for the aroma and flavours that we enjoy.
This brings us to an important question- which grinder is the best choice for your home brewing journey? The classic manual grinder or the convenient electric one?
Here is a comparison of the two major types of grinders.
A Brief Overview
Manual Grinders: Manual coffee grinders require you to stimulate the grinding burrs. In a manual grinder, we add the beans in the grinder, turn the crank and crush them mechanically.
Electric Grinders: In an electric grinder, we simply have to add the beans and press a button. After which, the machine uses electricity to produce fresh ground coffee.
Manual Grinder vs Electric Grinder - A Quick Comparison
On one hand, we have the manual grinder whose history dates to the 17th century. On the other, we have the electric coffee grinder, which was first manufactured during the 20th century.
Both come with their own set of pros and cons, here are some comparitives with some simple yet important parameters.
- Speed - With a manual grinder, you need to spend time grinding the beans. Whereas an electric grinder takes very little time to grind the beans. It takes only a few seconds for it to turn whole beans into freshly ground coffee.
- Convenience - Manual grinder requires you to put some physical effort into grinding the coffee. On the other hand, an electric grinder grinds coffee for you at the push of a button.
- Power Consumption - Manual grinders do not need any electric connection. Electric grinders, however, need electric connection to function.
- Portability - Manual grinders are small, they weigh less and do not need any socket connection to function. So, manual grinders are more travel-friendly than electric ones since they need socket connection. They are also quite inconvenient to carry.
- Precision - Although manual grinders promise proper grinding of coffee beans, they may not always be as precise as electric grinders. Electric grinders grind coffee more precisely as they produce a more uniform grind size.
- Pricing - Manual coffee grinders are usually less expensive than electric grinders. The pricing for electric grinders usually will be on the higher side since the equipment are usually sophisticated.
Which Coffee Grinder is the Best Choice for You?
Both manual and electric grinders perform the same function: crush your whole beans into freshly ground coffee beans. Their key difference, however, lies in speed and portability.
To decide which one suits our need best, we need to understand the key objective. Let's break it down together.
A manual coffee grinder will be a great choice for you if:
- you want to have an enhanced and slow coffee brewing experience
- you have a smaller budget for investing in your coffee accessories
- you want a grinder that you can take wherever you go
An electric coffee grinder will be a good choice for you if:
- you prefer to save time and have ground coffee within seconds
- you want to be able to micro-adjust your coffee grind sizes
- you want a grinder for home use only
Closing Thoughts
Manual grinders offer portability and affordability while electric grinders offer quick grinding.
Both grinders have something valuable to offer and if you are unable to choose, you can invest in both. Whichever you choose, you need to make sure to invest in a high-quality grinder.
