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HUB 03 · Grinders

Baratza Encore Review

The grinder everyone's first grinder is measured against — reviewed on what made it the default, and where its limits actually sit.

By Stephen V.Updated How we research
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Ask "what grinder should I buy first?" anywhere coffee people gather and the answer has been the same for over a decade: the Baratza Encore. The reasons are unglamorous and correct — 40mm conical burrs that grind uniformly across the drip and pour-over range, one knob, no presets to fight, and a build that treats repair as a feature: Baratza sells every part and publishes the fix-it guides, so an Encore is routinely a ten-year grinder.

For drip, pour-over and press brewing, it simply does the job a grinder exists to do: turn the dial, get that grind, every time. The step up from any blade grinder is night-and-day (why); the step up from cheap burr grinders is consistency at the ends of the range.

The honest limit is espresso. The standard Encore's adjustment steps are coarse right where espresso lives, so it can brush the territory but not dial a shot properly — that gap is exactly why the Encore ESP exists. Below, the Encore sits against the ESP and the OXO conical that undercuts it.

The short answer

Quick picks

#ProductBest forScorePrice
01
Baratza Baratza Encore
Baratza Encore

The filter-coffee workhorse that's been the default recommendation for over a decade.

Filter, French press, and pour-over
7.6
$149.95Amazon
02
Baratza Baratza Encore ESP
Baratza Encore ESP

The grinder to buy first. It does espresso AND filter, and Baratza will sell you every part.

The best all-round first grinder
8.4
$199.95Amazon
03
OXO OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder
OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder

The budget burr grinder that gets filter coffee right. Not for espresso — and honest about it.

Cheapest sensible filter grinder
7.0
$109.95Amazon

#ad · Live prices from the Amazon Product API, as of Jul 26, 2026. Where we have no verified live price, we show none — we would rather leave a gap than print a number that has rotted.

In detail

The picks, in full

01
Baratza Baratza Encore

Filter, French press, and pour-over

Baratza Encore

Conical burr40 grind settingsFilter-range focusRebuildable
7.6/10

The filter-coffee workhorse that's been the default recommendation for over a decade.

Grind consistency
8
Grind range
6
Ease of use
8
Build quality
7
Value
9

Pros

  • The long-standing answer to 'my first burr grinder' for drip and press — consistent where blade grinders are chaos
  • Same Baratza repairability: parts on the shelf, not landfill
  • Simpler and cheaper than the ESP if you never touch espresso

Cons

  • Doesn't grind fine enough for good espresso — that's what the ESP version is for
  • Basic looks and a plastic body that feels its price

Don't buy this if…

…there's any chance you'll get into espresso. The plain Encore can't grind fine enough for it — spend a little more on the Encore ESP and keep the option open.

$149.95View on Amazon

Price as of Jul 26, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to Baratza Encore

02
Baratza Baratza Encore ESP

The best all-round first grinder

Baratza Encore ESP

Conical burrEspresso + filter range40mm burrsFully rebuildable
8.4/10

The grinder to buy first. It does espresso AND filter, and Baratza will sell you every part.

Grind consistency
8
Grind range
9
Ease of use
8
Build quality
8
Value
9

Pros

  • Unlike the plain Encore, the ESP has the fine range to actually grind for espresso — one grinder covers both worlds
  • Baratza's whole model is repairability: every part is sold individually, so this grinder is a decade-long purchase
  • Consistent enough to make the machine, not the grinder, your limiting factor at this price

Cons

  • Not a single-dose grinder — a little retention means a few stale grams between beans
  • For espresso-only use, dedicated espresso grinders offer finer adjustment (at a higher price)

Don't buy this if…

…you will only ever make filter coffee. Then you don't need the espresso range — the cheaper plain Encore does the filter job just as well.

$199.95View on Amazon

Price as of Jul 26, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to Baratza Encore ESP

03
OXO OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder

Cheapest sensible filter grinder

OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder

Conical burr15 settings + micro-adjustTimer12 oz hopper
7.0/10

The budget burr grinder that gets filter coffee right. Not for espresso — and honest about it.

Grind consistency
7
Grind range
5
Ease of use
8
Build quality
6
Value
9

Pros

  • A real burr grinder for less than the Baratza — a massive upgrade over any blade grinder for drip and press
  • The timer makes repeatable dosing easy for daily drip
  • Simple, tidy, and does exactly what a filter drinker needs

Cons

  • Doesn't grind fine or consistently enough for good espresso
  • Not repairable like a Baratza — it's an appliance, not a platform

Don't buy this if…

…you make espresso, now or soon. It can't grind fine enough — the Baratza Encore ESP is the entry grinder that does both.

$109.95View on Amazon

Price as of Jul 26, 2026. Prices change — Amazon's is the one that counts.

#ad · we may earn a commission from this link to OXO Brew Conical Burr Grinder

Who the Encore is still right for

Buy it if you brew by gravity — drip, pour-over, press, cold brew — and want the last grinder decision you make for years. It is the definition of buy-once-cry-once at the entry level, and the repairability genuinely pays: burr sets and drive parts cost little and install with a screwdriver.

Skip it if espresso is anywhere in your plans — spend the modest premium for the Encore ESP and get the espresso-capable adjustment range, or you will be buying twice. And if the budget is genuinely tight, the under-$100 field (hand grinders included) covers gravity brewing surprisingly well.

How we picked

We do not run a testing lab

We compiled published manufacturer specifications, computed what each option costs to run where relevant, and cross-referenced aggregated owner reviews, then scored each product against a published rubric. The scores are judgments from documented research — they are not measurements we took, because we do not have a lab and we are not going to pretend we do. Where a number came from a manufacturer or a standard, we name it in Sources.

Questions

Frequently asked

Can the Baratza Encore grind for espresso?
Not really — and Baratza says as much, which is why the ESP variant exists. The standard Encore's steps are too coarse in the espresso zone to dial a shot: you land between "gushes" and "chokes" with nothing usable in the middle. For moka pots and everything coarser it's excellent; for real espresso, buy the ESP.
Is the Encore worth it over a $40 burr grinder?
Yes, for two reasons that show up daily: grind consistency (cheap burrs produce a wide spread of particle sizes, which brews muddier cups) and longevity (the Encore is fully repairable; the $40 grinder is disposable). Amortized over its realistic lifespan, the Encore is usually the cheaper machine.
Encore or a good hand grinder at the same price?
Grind-quality-per-dollar, a good hand grinderoften wins — steel burrs punch above the Encore's at the price. The Encore wins on effort: zero cranking, larger batches, half-asleep mornings. Decide how much your forearm's labor is worth at 6am; that's genuinely the whole question.

Keep reading

Related

Receipts

Sources

We do not run a testing lab, and we do not pretend to. Where a measured number came from a manufacturer spec sheet or a published standard, we name it and link it. Where we could not verify something, we say so on the page rather than quietly leaving it out. Read our full method.