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☕ How much coffee per cup?

About 1 to 2 level tablespoons of ground coffee (roughly 7–11 grams) per 6-ounce cup — the SCA “golden ratio” of about 1:16 by weight. A coffee-maker “cup” is 5–6 oz, not a mug, so a full 12-cup pot (~60 oz) wants roughly 19–24 tbsp (99–127 g). Set your pot size and strength below for the exact amount — and see what a cup actually costs.

How much coffee to use

111 g
ground coffee
≈ 21 tbsp
level tablespoons
60 oz
water (1774 g)

Coffee-maker “cups” are 5–6 oz, not a full mug — a 12-cup carafe holds about 60 oz. Tablespoons are approximate (grounds vary in density); weigh in grams for repeatable results.

What a cup actually costs

Your grounds
$0.27 / cup
$198 a year at 2 cups/day
K-Cups / pods we track
$0.31–$0.64 / cup
$465 a year at the median pod price

Brewing from grounds instead of pods saves about $266 a year at 2 cups a day — the same coffee, a fraction of the cost per cup. 171 pod options are ranked by real cost per cup below.

Coffee for a full pot, at a glance

Pot size (5-oz cups)Ground coffeeTablespoons
4 cups33–42 g6–8 tbsp
6 cups49–63 g9–12 tbsp
8 cups66–84 g12–16 tbsp
10 cups82–106 g15–20 tbsp
12 cups99–127 g19–24 tbsp

Range is mild (1:18) to strong (1:14) by weight, for 5-oz coffee-maker cups. Most drip carafes call a 5-oz serving a “cup,” so a 12-cup pot is about 60 oz of water. Adjust to taste and keep the ratio as you scale.

Cheapest K-Cups & pods right now

Live from the catalog, ranked by real cost per cup — cheapest first.

Keep going

How much coffee per cup — ratios by brew methodRead Cheapest K-Cups & pods by real cost per cupOpen

Frequently asked

How many tablespoons of coffee per cup?▾

About 1 to 2 level tablespoons of ground coffee per 6-ounce cup — 1 for a milder cup, 2 for a stronger one. By weight that is roughly 7 to 11 grams. The catch is that a coffee-maker "cup" is 5–6 ounces, not a 12-ounce mug, so a full mug wants about 3–4 tablespoons. Weighing is more repeatable than scooping because ground coffee varies in density.

How much coffee for a 12-cup pot?▾

For a standard 12-cup coffee maker (about 60 oz of water) use roughly 19–24 tbsp of ground coffee — 99–127 g — from mild to strong. Start near the middle and adjust to taste; the ratio stays the same as you scale the pot up or down.

What is the golden ratio for coffee?▾

Around 1 gram of coffee to 15–18 grams of water (written 1:15 to 1:18) — the SCA "golden cup" range. Stronger brewers go toward 1:15, milder toward 1:18. Because it is a ratio it scales cleanly, and it lines up with the tablespoon rule: about 2 level tablespoons per 6-ounce cup lands inside the golden ratio.

Is it cheaper to brew from grounds or use K-Cups?▾

Grounds win by a wide margin. The K-Cups and pods we track cost about $0.31 to $0.64 per cup, while a cup brewed from a normal bag of ground coffee usually costs well under $0.20. Over two cups a day that gap is $200–$300 a year for the same caffeine — pods buy convenience, not value.