For an 8 oz cup of coffee, use about 13 to 16 g of ground coffee. The low end follows the Specialty Coffee Association's Golden Cup guideline of 55 g per liter, and the high end is a stronger 1:15 ratio. Before you work out grams of coffee per cup for a drip machine, though, check what that machine calls a cup, because it's usually smaller than 8 oz.
| Cup size | Water | SCA (55 g per liter) | 1:16 | 1:15 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 5 oz | 148 g | 8.1 g | 9.2 g | 9.9 g |
| 6 oz | 177 g | 9.8 g | 11.1 g | 11.8 g |
| 8 oz | 237 g | 13.0 g | 14.8 g | 15.8 g |
| 10 oz | 296 g | 16.3 g | 18.5 g | 19.7 g |
| 12 oz | 355 g | 19.5 g | 22.2 g | 23.7 g |
| 16 oz | 473 g | 26.0 g | 29.6 g | 31.5 g |
What counts as a cup
This trips up a lot of people. There are at least three different cups in coffee:
- A measuring cup: 8 fl oz, about 237 ml.
- The classic coffee cup: 6 fl oz. The National Coffee Association's rule of thumb and Peet's brewing guide are both written per 6 oz.
- A coffee maker cup: often smaller still. Mr. Coffee and OXO machines count a cup as about 5 oz, and CoffeeGeek notes many manufacturers define one as 100 to 120 ml.
So a 12 cup coffee maker may hold closer to 60 oz than 96 oz. Check your manual, or measure the water at the full line once and write it down.
Grams of coffee per cup for a full pot
For drip machines, weigh or measure the water once and do the math from there. Say your carafe holds 50 oz at the 10 cup line, which is about 1,479 g of water:
- At 55 g per liter, the SCA guideline, you'd use about 81 g of coffee.
- At 1:16, you'd use about 92 g.
If you'd assumed 8 oz cups and used 13 g for each of 10 cups, you'd add 130 g, far too much for 50 oz of water. Measuring the real water amount avoids that mistake.
Where the guidelines come from
- Specialty Coffee Association: 55 g of coffee per liter of water, give or take 10%. That's about 1:18.
- National Coffee Association: 1 to 2 tablespoons of ground coffee per 6 oz of water.
- Peet's Coffee: 2 tablespoons, or 10 g, per 6 fl oz (180 ml). That's 1:18 too.
Many roasters and home brewers go a little stronger, at about 1:15 to 1:17. Stumptown, for example, suggests about 1:17 for pour over. For a 6 oz cup that means about 10 to 12 g of coffee, and for 8 oz about 14 to 16 g.
How to dial in your cup
- Measure how much water your mug or carafe really holds.
- Pick a starting ratio. 1:16 is a friendly middle.
- Divide the water grams by 16 to get your coffee grams.
- Brew, taste and change by a gram or two next time.
A practical tip: a MeasureMate digital measuring spoon scoops and weighs in one step and reads in 0.1 g steps, so you can scoop exactly 14.8 g for an 8 oz mug. It switches between grams and ounces too. For more on getting grounds right, see how to measure coffee grounds for more consistent coffee.
Quick questions
How many grams of coffee for 12 oz of water?
About 20 to 24 g. That's 19.5 g at the SCA guideline and about 23.7 g at 1:15.
How many grams is 2 tablespoons of coffee?
About 10 g if the spoons are level, according to Peet's. Heaped spoons weigh more.
Is 1:16 a strong coffee ratio?
It's right in the middle. The SCA guideline is lighter at about 1:18, and 1:15 is on the stronger side.
Ratios based on the Specialty Coffee Association Golden Cup guideline, the National Coffee Association, Peet's Coffee, Stumptown Coffee Roasters, CoffeeGeek and Clearly Coffee.