Grams of coffee per tablespoon and scoop
A level tablespoon of ground coffee weighs about 5 g, so a 2 tablespoon scoop is about 10 g. Real spoons land anywhere from 4 to 6 g, which is why the tables below show all three. Water is worked out at 1:16, the middle of the usual range, and a mug is 12 oz.
Tablespoons to grams
| Level tbsp | 4 g per spoon | 5 g per spoon | 6 g per spoon |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 4 g 64 ml water | 5 g 80 ml water | 6 g 96 ml water |
| 2 | 8 g 128 ml water | 10 g 160 ml water | 12 g 192 ml water |
| 3 | 12 g 192 ml water | 15 g 240 ml water | 18 g 288 ml water |
| 4 | 16 g 256 ml water | 20 g 320 ml water | 24 g 384 ml water |
| 6 | 24 g 384 ml water | 30 g 480 ml water | 36 g 576 ml water |
| 8 | 32 g 512 ml water | 40 g 640 ml water | 48 g 768 ml water |
| 10 | 40 g 640 ml water | 50 g 800 ml water | 60 g 960 ml water |
| 12 | 48 g 768 ml water | 60 g 960 ml water | 72 g 1152 ml water |
Say you use 4 level tablespoons and your spoon holds 5 g. That is 20 g of coffee, which takes 320 ml of water and fills 0.9 of a 12 oz mug. If your spoon holds 6 g, the same four spoons are 24 g, and the pot comes out noticeably stronger.
Scoops to grams
Most coffee scoops hold 2 tablespoons. This table uses 5 g per tablespoon, so 10 g per scoop. If your scoop came with the machine, weigh one level scoop once and use that number instead.
| Level scoops | Coffee | Water | 12 oz mugs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 10 g | 160 ml | 0.5 |
| 2 | 20 g | 320 ml | 0.9 |
| 3 | 30 g | 480 ml | 1.4 |
| 4 | 40 g | 640 ml | 1.8 |
| 6 | 60 g | 960 ml | 2.7 |
| 8 | 80 g | 1280 ml | 3.6 |
| 10 | 100 g | 1600 ml | 4.5 |
Grams back to tablespoons
If a recipe gives grams and you only have a spoon, read the row for the dose.
| Dose | At 4 g per spoon | At 5 g per spoon | At 6 g per spoon |
|---|---|---|---|
| 15 g | 3.8 tbsp | 3 tbsp | 2.5 tbsp |
| 20 g | 5 tbsp | 4 tbsp | 3.3 tbsp |
| 30 g | 7.5 tbsp | 6 tbsp | 5 tbsp |
| 40 g | 10 tbsp | 8 tbsp | 6.7 tbsp |
| 60 g | 15 tbsp | 12 tbsp | 10 tbsp |
Why the number moves
Sources do not agree on one figure. Cumbre Coffee gives 5 to 6 g for a level tablespoon of medium-roast ground coffee and 4 to 5 g for dark roast or whole beans. The Honest Coffee Guide converter uses 5.13 g. Both are rough, and I take 5 g as the middle.
Three things change the weight. Dark roasts are lighter and take more room per gram. Finer grounds pack tighter than coarse ones. A heaped spoon holds 20 to 30 percent more than a level one, per Cumbre. That makes a heaped spoon about 6.3 g, so "2 heaped tablespoons" is closer to 12 g than 10 g.
Whole beans and ground coffee take up about the same space in a spoon, according to a one-cup test by the Honest Coffee Guide. My guess is that beans leave gaps, so a spoon of beans can weigh less than a spoon of grounds. Grind first, then measure, if you go by volume.
Check your own spoon
- Grind the coffee you normally use, fill your spoon, and level it with a knife.
- Weigh it. Do this three times and take the middle value.
- Find that number in the column headers above, or enter it in the calculator to get the water.
- Switch to grams when you can. A scale removes the guesswork, and a kitchen scale is enough.
Counting by cups instead? See how much coffee per cup. Brewing a full pot? The 12 cup coffee maker table has scoops per pot.