# Grind size chart

Grind is the variable that changes the cup most. This chart gives starting points, not answers — every
grinder is calibrated slightly differently, and a bag of coffee moves as it ages.

## By brew method

| Method | Grind | Tandem EG-1 clicks | Looks like |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| Espresso | Fine | 1–8 | Powdered sugar, clumps when squeezed |
| Moka pot | Fine-medium | 9–12 | Table salt |
| Aeropress (short brew) | Medium-fine | 12–16 | Fine sand |
| Pour-over, flat bottom | Medium | 16–22 | Beach sand |
| Pour-over, cone | Medium-fine | 14–20 | Slightly finer than beach sand |
| Batch drip | Medium | 18–24 | Beach sand |
| French press | Coarse | 28–34 | Coarse sea salt |
| Cold brew | Extra coarse | 36–41 | Cracked peppercorn |

## What we grind if you ask us to

Choose at checkout, free:

| Option | Equivalent Tandem click | Intended for |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Whole bean | — | You own a grinder |
| Coarse | 30 | French press, cold brew |
| Medium | 20 | Drip machines, flat-bottom pour-over |
| Fine | 13 | Aeropress, moka pot |
| Espresso | 5 | Espresso machines |

Ground coffee stales in days rather than weeks. If you own a grinder, buy whole bean — it is the single
biggest quality difference available to you, ahead of water, ahead of technique, ahead of which coffee
you bought.

## Adjusting by taste, not by number

- **Sour, thin, salty, finishes fast** → under-extracted → grind **finer**.
- **Bitter, dry, hollow, lingers unpleasantly** → over-extracted → grind **coarser**.
- **Correct balance but weak** → the ratio is wrong, not the grind. Use more coffee.

Move one step at a time. Two clicks on the Tandem is a large change in the espresso range and a small one
in the press range — the steps are not linear across the dial.

## As coffee ages

A bag that tasted right at day 7 will often taste thin at day 25. Older coffee wants a slightly finer
grind. Go one step finer in the third week rather than concluding the bag has gone off.

## Related

- [Tandem grinder calibration](tandem-grinder-calibration.md)
- [Pour-over brewing](brewing-pour-over.md)
- [Espresso](brewing-espresso.md)
- [French press](brewing-french-press.md)