Reviews
Best Coffee Grinder Under 100 Dollars: 2 Incredible Grinders Reviewed!
Explore top-rated, budget-friendly coffee grinders in my comprehensive guide. Discover the best coffee grinder under 100 that suits your brewing needs.
Expert Consulted: Carl. Utilizing my 6 years of experience in the coffee industry, I’m able to provide accurate and concise information, helping you make informed choices about beans, brewing methods, and equipment, thereby elevating your coffee experience. In this article, I’ll share my knowledge and experience to help you find the best coffee grinder under 100 dollars.
Since I don’t actually own these products, I have been analyzing the customer reviews for these grinders and have put together a very in-depth guide on each one for you. You won’t find a review this detailed anywhere else.
In this guide, I will be covering the good, the bad, and the ugly of each grinder while explaining my reasoning on why I believe them to be worthy of being on this list.
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The 2 Best Coffee Grinders For Under $100
Let’s just cut to the chase and start things off with what I believe to be the best coffee grinder under $100 (Price is subject to change of course). If you don’t like the look of this first grinder, don’t give up just yet! Try reading about the other one I have listed because you may just fall in love with it!
#1: 1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal – My Best Pick
If you’re looking for a manual hand-grinder that can be used to brew any type of coffee and is $100 or less, this is likely the best choice for you.
Expert Score 1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal |
Grind Setting Weight Size Brewing Variety Quality of Grind Grind Setting: There are 10 numbers on the dial with 30 clicks per round. This allows for quite a wide range of customization for dialing in and when using different brewing methods. Weight: Due to its small size, the 1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal is a very light and compact grinder. More information on this further down.
Size: This grinder barely takes up any space at all, so you will have no problem finding a space for it. If you're someone who wants espresso on the go, you can easily fit this in a decent-sized bag or backpack. The 1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal can contain about 15-20 grams of beans.
Quality of Grind: This grinder can easily go fine enough for a perfect espresso and coarse enough for a brilliant pour-over. More information on these in the rest of this review. |
1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal: Recommended For
This product won’t be for everyone, so this should help you decide whether or not you would like to choose this one!
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1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal: Not Recommended For
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1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal Pros and Cons
Let’s go over the pros and cons of this highly capable grinder, because nothing is perfect.
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1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal In-Depth Review
This is the place for the most important information about this grinder and what it’s really like.
Being the most expensive grinder on this list, you would expect it to be the best-performing, and it does just that.
This grinder is truly amazing for how much you’re paying. For just $100 (Price is subject to change) it’s a bargain.
What Can I Make With This?
Although it is listed as a pour-over grinder, I have seen many people brew brilliant espresso using this grinder, so don’t be put off by what Amazon says! I should mention if you’re using this for espresso, it may take slightly longer than usual to grind your beans to the very fine size needed.
The main shining feature of this grinder is how it will fit perfectly into the plunger of your Aeropress!
Don’t worry, you can also brew using a Moka Pot or French Press!
Extra Features
The 1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal comes equipped with a foldable crank handle, which just aids in making this even more portable and size-saving!
Don’t worry, there’s more! You can easily disassemble this grinder for simple and thorough cleaning without any tool or re-calibration!
It’s not necessarily a feature, but this grinder has a threaded base to stop the grinds from spilling out.
Feel
I have yet to see a single person complain about the actual feel of this magnificent grinder.
It has premium anti-slip leather which allows for a nice hand feel, and this grinder is all aluminum built with a stainless-steel conical burr inside.
Another nice thing is the handle doesn’t wobble when in use either, everything is precise and sturdy.
Before we move on to the next grinder, if you’re looking for a budget espresso machine to go with your relatively budget grinder, check my article ranking two budget espresso machines here!
#2: OXO Brew Conical Burr Coffee Grinder: The Automatic Option
You should be able to achieve much better consistency from the OXO coffee grinder’s stainless steel conical burrs, allowing you to brew coffee that’s more well-rounded and complex, this will be most apparent if you’re using a Chemex, French press, or a drip coffee maker.
Below I have included a quick summary and rating of each main feature on this grinder. As always, there will be much more information in my in-depth review later.
My Expert Score Oxo Brew Conical Burr |
Grind Setting Weight Size Brewing Variety Quality of Grind Grind Setting: There are 15 grind settings on the dial with room for micro adjustments in between. This allows for quite a wide range of customization for dialing in and when using various brewing methods. Weight: Due to its small size, the Oxo Brew is a very light and compact grinder, much like the 1zpresso but just slightly bigger. More information on this later.
Size: This grinder doesn't take up much space so you won't have any issues finding somewhere to place it. One of the best features of this grinder is the bean hopper, it has a 12-ounce capacity, is uv tinted, AND even has an airtight lid!
Quality of Grind: This grinder features 40mm stainless steel conical burrs and although it cannot reach the level of fine-ness that espresso requires, it works extremely well in a moka pot or Aeropress for example. More information on these in the rest of this review. |
Oxo Brew: Recommended For
Who is this grinder really for? Read on to find out if this is the one for you!
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Oxo Brew: Not Recommended For
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Oxo Brew Pros and Cons
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Oxo Brew In-Depth Review
Time to find out what this grinder is all about. Below is just a table with a quick summary for those who don’t have much time.
So, this is the electric grinder that I felt was worthy of making it on this list.
The Oxo Brew is a really amazing grinder considering how much it costs, usually you will not find any electric grinders for under $100 that can even do the job. But this grinder is different.
Key Features
Bean Hopper
Let’s start with the bean hopper.
It can hold 12 ounces of coffee beans, which can equate to a whole bag in some cases!
Another great feature of this hopper is that it’s UV-tinted, and also has an airtight lid to keep your coffee fresh! Talk about value!
Timer
Next is the handy built-in timer, you can set it to go anywhere from 0 – 30 seconds. You’re going to have to do some experimenting to find the right option for your optimal time/dose setting.
Fortunately, the Oxo Brew will actually remember the previous settings so once you’ve got it dialed in, you won’t need to change anything.
However, it’s worth mentioning that if you change coffee beans or your brewing method, you will have to start all over again because all beans are different. You can check my article for a little more information on beans here.
Stainless Steel Grounds Bin
Now, from what I’ve heard, this grounds bin does not reduce static/retention in the grinder as advertised.
The coffee grinder actually makes quite a bit of mess, because the static affects the chute where the coffee is dispersed, so make sure to keep a brush around to clean up.
Noise Level
As Coffeeness says in his article reviewing this grinder, at the finest setting this produced about 85 decibels and went up to around 100 at the coarsest setting.
He also mentions a slightly unpleasant whine, but you may have a different experience to him so don’t let this deter you from purchasing this grinder.
Verdict: Which Grinder Will Be The One For You?
I hope that by making it this far, you have all the information needed in order to aid you in purchasing your next coffee companion (or first!).
If you felt that was all a bit much, I’ll quickly summarise some of my main points on each grinder.
1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal Summary
This is the manual grinder I chose for this list, and it also happens to be my top pick.
There are many reasons why I believe this to be the best coffee grinder under 100 dollars, but I would say that the main one is the fact that it is capable of making espresso.
Many people drink espresso and will be disappointed when they realize that not every grinder can make every drink. That’s why I was careful when making this review, I had to make sure to include a grinder that could grind for great espresso, and here it is.
Some great features of the 1zpresso Q2 Heptagonal are as follows:
- Foldable Crank Handle
- Very Light and Compact
- Grinds Very Consistently
- Fits Perfectly Into Aeropress Plunger
- Can Grind For Espresso
Now let’s move on to the Oxo Brew.
Oxo Brew Conical Burr Summary
So, as you know, this is the automatic/electric grinder that I chose for this list.
In my opinion, this is the best option for an automatic burr grinder for under $100, here’s why:
Although it cannot produce grounds that are fine enough for espresso, this grinder will shine when grinding for basically any other method. Some examples are a Chemex, French press, or a drip coffee.
The bean hopper is very useful as it can hold up to a full bag of beans, and also keeps them fresh at the same time! Here are some of the key features.
- It is Automatic
- 12-ounce UV Tinted and Airtight Bean Hopper
- Stainless Steel Conical Burrs
- Stainless Steel Grounds Bin
- Affordable and Quite Compact
- Built-in Timer
Image Attribution and Licensing
Main Image: ‘Coffee Grinder’ by Bluebearphotographer. (Canva Pro/Getty Images)
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