Coffee Ratio Calculator
Calculate coffee and water by weight for pour over, French press, AeroPress, espresso, cold brew and batch brewing, with bloom volume, pour schedule and yield after absorption.
Last reviewed by the Radiatus Cloud team
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Brewing is a ratio, not a scoop
Coffee strength is set by the ratio of coffee to water by weight, and everything else, grind, temperature, time, is about extracting that coffee evenly. A scoop is not a unit: whole bean coffee varies in density by roast level, so a level scoop of a light roast weighs noticeably more than the same scoop of a dark one. Weighing removes the variable that causes most of the cup to cup inconsistency people blame on their equipment.
The ratios that different methods want
Pour over sits around 1 to 16 or 1 to 17 by weight, French press around 1 to 15 because the longer immersion needs a slightly lower concentration to avoid bitterness, AeroPress varies widely by recipe, cold brew concentrates between 1 to 5 and 1 to 8 and is diluted afterward, and espresso is a different regime entirely at roughly 1 to 2 measured as the liquid yield rather than the water used. Batch brewers usually target the same 1 to 16 as pour over but scale it to litres.
Absorption changes the yield
Ground coffee retains roughly twice its own weight in water, so a 60 gram dose in a 1 litre brew keeps about 120 grams of liquid in the bed and delivers under 900 millilitres into the cup. Recipes that ignore this consistently come up short. The calculator reports the brewed yield after absorption alongside the water you actually pour, which is what matters when brewing to fill a specific carafe.
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Frequently Asked Questions
What is the golden ratio for coffee?
Around 1 gram of coffee to 16 or 17 grams of water for filter brewing, which corresponds roughly to the Specialty Coffee Association standard. It is a starting point: adjust toward more coffee if the cup tastes thin and less if it tastes heavy.
Why weigh water instead of measuring volume?
Because one millilitre of water weighs one gram, so weighing is both more accurate and easier than reading a jug. It also lets you use one scale for both sides of the ratio, which is why every published recipe is given by weight.
How much water does the bloom use?
About two to three times the weight of the coffee, poured first and left for thirty to forty five seconds. It wets the bed evenly and lets carbon dioxide escape, which otherwise pushes water away from the grounds and causes uneven extraction.
Why is my brewed volume less than the water I poured?
Absorption. Spent grounds hold roughly twice their weight in liquid, so a 60 gram dose retains about 120 grams. The calculator subtracts this so the yield figure matches what ends up in the carafe.
Does the ratio change for espresso?
Yes, and it is measured differently. Espresso ratios describe the dose against the liquid in the cup, typically 1 to 2 for a modern shot, rather than the water passed through the puck. The calculator switches to that convention when espresso is selected.
Privacy & Security
Everything runs in your browser; nothing is uploaded.
How to Use
Choose a brew method and set either the water or the coffee, and the other is calculated at the right ratio.
Disclaimer: This tool is provided "as is" without warranty of any kind. Results are for educational and utility purposes.
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