Coffee to Water Calculator
Here’s a quick calculator we created to make the process really simple. All you have to do is pick the following: your brewer of choice, how much coffee you want, and how strong you want it.
We’ve created brew strength presets for every method that will provide a good starting point. If you want to skip our recommendations and play around with your own ratios, you can do that as well.
One last step — tell our calculator your favored way to measure coffee and water. The result? A brew recipe that’s tailor-fit to your preferences!
Set your preferred brew strength by choosing from the preset ratios below, or create a custom ratio.
CALCULATING
Cold brew is the perfect coffee drink for a hot summer day. If you’ve been to a café recently, you’re likely familiar with the cold brew coffee craze. But you don’t need to go to a café to get in on the trend – making excellent cold brew coffee in your own home is easy.
Why is Cold Brew Better Than Iced Coffee?
Iced coffee is regular coffee brewed with hot water and then chilled. Cold brew is prepared differently. Cold brew coffee is never heated – it is slowly brewed in cold water over several hours, which gives the coffee a much less acidic and smoother flavor.
Not only is it smoother, but cold brew coffee also has a much higher caffeine content than traditionally brewed iced coffee. This makes cold brew the perfect morning pick-me-up. Cold brew also stores great in your fridge and can stay fresh for 5 – 7 days after brewing. Make a batch for the week, and you’ll have a tasty cup of coffee ready to go every morning.
Check out this complete list of all the amazing benefits of cold brew.
How Do I Make Cold Brew?
You don’t need any fancy equipment to make a great cold brew at home. All you need is a container, a filter, coffee, and water. Take a look at our step-by-step cold brew recipe here.
After experimenting with a few batches, you might find that your coffee is too weak or too strong. Don’t fret; we’ll give you tips on measuring the perfect cold brew coffee ratio.
What is the best ratio for cold brew coffee?
The best way to make cold brew coffee at home is to make a cold brew concentrate – a very strong brew that you can dilute to your liking. Cold brew concentrate makes it easier to make a larger batch, but it is much too strong to drink straight for most people.
When preparing your cold brew concentrate, an ideal ratio is 1:4, meaning 1 gram of coffee for every four grams of water. Once you’ve made a concentrate, you can dilute it with water or milk to your preference. A 1:1 ratio of concentrate is a good starting point. Pour equal parts of concentrate and water into a cup of ice and enjoy. You can easily adjust this ratio to your liking if it’s too strong or not strong enough.
Cold Brew Coffee to Water Ratio Calculator
Measuring your ratios by weight is the most precise way to consistently make cold brew concentrate. But what if you don’t have a kitchen scale at home? We’ll break down some common coffee-to-water measurements so you don’t have to do the calculations yourself.
Coffee to Water Ratio in Grams
The easiest and most accurate way to get your cold brew concentrate right is by weight. As an example, I’ll show you how I measure out my own home cold brew setup using my French Press.
For my concentrate, I measured out 49.1 grams of coarsely ground coffee and placed it in my French Press. Remember, we are going for a ratio of 1:4 coffee to water, so I’ll add 196.4 grams of water.
I slightly overshot here, but a few grams won’t hurt you. Now it goes in the fridge to brew!
Weight of Coffee in Tablespoons
Don’t have a scale at home? Let’s see how much a tablespoon of coffee weighs.
On my scale, a tablespoon of ground coffee weighed out at 4.9 grams. Let’s make it an even 5.0 grams to make things easier.
Weight of Coffee in Teaspoons
A quick measurement shows a teaspoon weighs about 2.0 grams.
Coffee to Water Ratio in Cups
Now that we know how much a spoonful of coffee weighs, we can measure our cold brew concentrate ratio by volume. One cup of water weighs about 237 grams. So to measure your perfect cold brew concentrate, you’ll need the following:
59.25 grams, 30 teaspoons, or 12 tablespoons of coffee per cup of water.
Cold Brew Coffee to Water Ratio in Fluid Ounces
Let’s say you want to fill your whole container with concentrate. The most common mason jars used for making cold brews are 32-ounce containers. For a 32-ounce batch of cold brew coffee, you’ll need the following:
237 grams, 119 teaspoons, or 47 tablespoons of coffee per quart of water.
Cold brew coffee to water ratio in Metric Units
Can’t stand US units? We’ll use the mason jar example again in liters and milliliters of water. A mason jar is approximately one liter or 1000 milliliters. This means you’ll need to measure out the following:
237 grams, 119 teaspoons, or 47 tablespoons of coffee per liter of water.
How to Adjust your Ratio
Although this is our recommended cold brew ratio, it all depends on your personal preferences.
If you find your concentrate too strong or too bitter, you can adjust to a ratio of 1:5 or 1:6. Would you prefer a stronger brew? You can increase your ratio to 1:3. The most important thing is consistency – ensure you accurately weigh your coffee recipe to get the ratio you want every time.
Once you’ve made your cold brew concentrate, you can adjust it simply by adding more or less water. If a 1:1 ratio is too strong, try diluting your cold brew concentrate more. A ratio of 1:2 concentrate to water might be preferable. Is your cold brew too weak? Try a ratio of 2:1 concentrate to water for a stronger flavor.
Prefer to make a ready-to-drink cold brew? Instead of concentrating, you can adjust your coffee-to-water ratio to brew a cold brew that you can drink as-is without diluting. A ratio of 1:8 coffee grounds to water will produce a delicious coffee that is ready to drink without diluting. We’d recommend this method, especially if you don’t want to add any milk or ice to your finished brew
Cold Brew Coffee Makers
If you’re really serious about making cold brews, you might want to get a dedicated cold brew maker. Brands like Bodum and Toddy have excellent cold brew makers to make smooth and strong cold brew concentrate. If you use these products, you won’t have to worry about filtering your concentrate into another container – saving you some time and mess.
Check out our guide for the best cold brew coffee makers money can buy.
Happy Caffeinating!
