Coffee Ratio Calculator
Get the coffee-to-water ratio for pour-over, French press, AeroPress, cold brew and espresso.
About the Coffee Ratio Calculator
Choose a brewing method, say whether you know the water or the coffee amount, and enter it. The calculator uses that method's standard ratio (or yours) and gives the other amount, plus an approximate tablespoon count.
The Specialty Coffee Association's Golden Cup standard is 55 g of coffee per litre of water (about 1 : 18) for brewed coffee. Immersion methods like French press often use 1 : 15–16; cold brew concentrate 1 : 4–8, diluted to taste. Espresso is described by output: 1 : 2 means 18 g of coffee yields 36 g in the cup.
The formula
Coffee = water ÷ ratio
Worked example
500 g of water for pour-over at 1 : 18.2
- Coffee = 500 ÷ 18.2 = 27.5 g
- About 5 level tablespoons of ground coffee
- For French press at 1 : 15, the same water needs 33.3 g
Questions people ask
Why weigh coffee?
Scoops vary by grind and roast; weight is consistent.
What grind?
Fine for espresso, medium for pour-over, coarse for French press and cold brew.
My coffee tastes bitter or sour: what do I change?
Bitter usually means over-extracted (grind coarser); sour means under-extracted (grind finer). Keep the ratio the same while you adjust.