How much coffee for a 12, 16 or 20 oz mug
Fill the mug with water, then divide by 16. A 12 oz mug takes about 22 g of ground coffee, a 16 oz mug about 30 g and a 20 oz mug about 37 g. That is a ratio of 1:16, a medium-strength cup. In spoons it is roughly 4, 6 and 7 level tablespoons.
Coffee by mug size
Grams of ground coffee for water filled to the size shown, at three ratios. The last two columns turn the 1:16 amount into level tablespoons (5 g each) and into 2 tablespoon scoops. Each 1:16 amount links to the calculator.
| Mug | 1:18 | 1:16 | 1:14 | Tbsp at 1:16 | Scoops at 1:16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 oz 237 ml |
13.1 g | 14.8 g | 16.9 g | 3 | 1.5 |
| 10 oz 296 ml |
16.4 g | 18.5 g | 21.1 g | 3.7 | 1.9 |
| 12 oz 355 ml |
19.7 g | 22.2 g | 25.3 g | 4.4 | 2.2 |
| 14 oz 414 ml |
23 g | 25.9 g | 29.6 g | 5.2 | 2.6 |
| 16 oz 473 ml |
26.3 g | 29.6 g | 33.8 g | 5.9 | 3 |
| 20 oz 591 ml |
32.9 g | 37 g | 42.2 g | 7.4 | 3.7 |
Use 1:14 for a stronger cup, 1:18 for a lighter one. The sizes are the amount of water, which can be less than the brim of the mug.
Why the ratio is a range
Seattle Coffee Gear describes the Specialty Coffee Association standard as 55 grams of coffee per liter of water, "roughly 1:18", giving a cup between 1.15 and 1.35 percent dissolved solids. That is the lightest column in the table.
CoffeeGeek adds that the standard was designed for large commercial batches, and that "the smaller the batch, the tighter the ratio has to be". Its starting target for most brews is 1:14, or 7 g per 100 ml, or 7 g per 100 ml. A single mug is a small brew, so 1:16 to 1:14 is a fair place to start, and 1:18 can taste thin.
The spoon is the shakiest part. Brew Coffee Home weighed a tablespoon of ground coffee, all at a medium grind, at 4.4 g for dark roast, 5.2 g for medium and 6.4 g for light, and says most scoops hold two tablespoons. I use 5 g throughout, so a light roast gives you more coffee per spoon than the table shows. The tablespoon table has all three.
Rules based on volume can disagree with the gram figures. Majesty Coffee calls 2 tablespoons per cup the most common method (its list pairs a cup with 8 oz of water), which is about 1:24 at 5 g per tablespoon and weaker than any column above. Some rules of thumb give only a couple of tablespoons for a big mug. Weigh the coffee once and you can stop guessing.
Worked example
You have a 16 oz travel mug and take milk, so you fill it with 14 oz of coffee. Water is 14 x 29.57 = 414 ml. At 1:16 the coffee is 414 / 16 = 25.9 g, or 5.2 level tablespoons. Milk makes the cup taste weaker, so you might go to 1:15, which is 27.6 g.
The same mug filled to the brim with 16 oz of water takes 29.6 g. Check your mug by pouring in water from a measuring cup. In my experience, mugs sold as 12 oz can hold anywhere from 10 to 14 oz, so measure yours.
Calculate your own mug
Starts at 22.2 g and 1:16, a 12 oz mug. Change the coffee or the water to see the ratio move. The copy button gives you a link to your own recipe.
Change any field and the others update. A 12 oz mug is about 355 ml of water.
Water: 12 fl oz, 1.5 cups
What's next
I'm thinking about a brew log that saves your recipes with a note on how each cup tasted. It isn't built yet. The button below only adds one to a counter, so I can see if enough people want it.
Thanks, counted.
Method matters for a mug
- Pour-over or a single-cup dripper: weigh the dose and pour the full water amount. Grind medium-fine.
- French press: one small press makes a big mug or two, and the French press size chart shows how many mugs each size fills.
- Drip machine: its "cup" is only 5 oz, so a 12 oz mug is 2.4 machine cups. The 12 cup coffee maker table does that sum for a full pot.
- Pod brewer with a reusable basket: a full basket suits about 8 oz, so read how much coffee fits in a reusable pod before brewing 12 oz or more.
Counting in cups rather than mugs? See how much coffee per cup or how many scoops of coffee.