Grind size chart
Which grind for which brewer, from Turkish to cold brew.
Cold Brew Ratio Calculator
Set your batch size, choose concentrate or ready-to-drink, and get exact coffee and water weights plus the finished yield after filtering.
Dose → water
Coffee
g
Ratio (1 : X)
1 : 8.0
Water needed
0 g
Coffee-
Water-
Cups (250 ml)-
GrindExtra coarse (sea salt)
Water temp20 °C
Brew time12–18 h
Steep in the fridge, not on the counter. Filter twice — mesh first, then paper — for a clean concentrate.
Concentrate ratios are not cup ratios
Cold brew is normally made as a concentrate and diluted when served, so the numbers look extreme next to hot coffee. A 1:8 concentrate diluted 1:1 lands near 1:16 in the cup — the same strength as a normal pour-over.
Ready-to-drink cold brew is brewed at the strength you actually drink, 1:15 to 1:17. It uses more grounds for the same volume but removes the dilution step and the guesswork.
Cold brew ratios by style
| Method | Ratio | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Concentrate, strong | 1:4 – 1:5 | Dilute 1:2 with water or milk. Cafe-style iced latte base. |
| Concentrate, standard | 1:7 – 1:8 | Dilute 1:1. The usual home recipe, 12–18 h steep. |
| Ready to drink | 1:15 – 1:17 | No dilution. Steep 14–16 h, then chill and drink as-is. |
| For milk drinks | 1:5 | Designed to be cut 1:3 with milk without going flat. |
| Nitro style | 1:6 | Slightly stronger so carbonation does not wash out the body. |
A cold brew schedule that works
For 100 g coffee at 1:8 (800 g water), fridge-steeped:
- Grind extra coarse. Sea-salt texture. Fines are what make cold brew muddy; a coarse, consistent grind filters in one pass.
- Combine in a jar and stir gently until every ground is submerged. Do not agitate — you want extraction, not emulsion.
- Steep in the fridge for 12–18 hours. Fridge, not counter: warm rooms double the extraction rate and invite bacteria.
- Filter twice. Mesh strainer first, then paper. The paper pass is what turns cloudy concentrate into something clear.
- Dilute 1:1 with water or milk before serving. Store the concentrate sealed in the fridge for up to a week.
Frequently asked
What is the best cold brew coffee to water ratio?
1:8 by weight for a concentrate that gets diluted 1:1 before drinking, or 1:15 to 1:17 for ready-to-drink cold brew. Most cafe-tasting home recipes use the 1:8 concentrate.
How much cold brew concentrate per cup?
Dilute 1:1 with water for black cold brew, or 1:2 concentrate to milk for an iced latte. A 240 ml drink is roughly 120 ml concentrate plus 120 ml of the other liquid.
How long should cold brew steep?
12 to 18 hours in the fridge. Under 10 hours tastes sour and tea-like; past 20 hours starts pulling harsh, woody compounds. Temperature matters more than time.
Does cold brew use more coffee?
Yes, per finished cup. Concentrate needs about twice the grounds of hot coffee for the same volume, partly because of dilution and partly because cold water extracts less efficiently. In return it keeps for a week.
Coffee ratio chart
Nine brew methods, dose and water in grams. Printable.
Basket size chart
Correct dose for every espresso basket size.
Brewing hot coffee instead?
The espresso ratio calculator does dose to yield in grams for a 25–32 second shot.