Baratza Encore vs Encore ESP: which one do you need?

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Buy the Encore ESP if you make espresso, and the Encore if you do not. Both are 40 setting conical burr grinders, but the ESP splits its range so that settings 1 to 20 are fine micro steps for dialling in espresso and settings 21 to 40 are larger macro steps for everything else, and it ships with a dosing cup for the portafilter. That difference costs $199.95 for the ESP against $149.95 for the Encore. For pour over, French press, and drip alone, the extra $50 buys you nothing.

Encore vs Encore ESP, head to head

Prices from baratza.com; Encore burr size, hopper capacity, and dimensions from the Seattle Coffee Gear listing; ESP range split and included dosing cup from the SCG ESP listing. Checked August 2026.

What the range split actually buys you

Espresso lives in a narrow band of grind sizes, and the difference between a good shot and a choked one can be a fraction of a step. A general purpose grinder spends its 40 settings covering everything from Turkish to cold brew, so each click at the fine end moves too far. The ESP takes half its range and spends it on espresso, which means a click is a small change instead of a big one. That is the entire upgrade, and for anyone dialling in shots it is a large one.

The cost is at the other end. The ESP's filter half moves in bigger steps than the standard Encore, so if French press and pour over are your whole life, the Encore gives you more useful resolution where you actually work.

The dosing cup is not a throwaway accessory

The ESP ships with a dosing cup so ground coffee lands in a container you then tip into the portafilter, rather than trying to grind straight into a basket that is the wrong shape for the chute. It sounds minor. In practice it is the difference between a clean workflow and grounds on the counter every morning. It also lets you weigh the dose before it goes in, which is the single habit that fixes most inconsistent shots.

If you already own an Encore and want espresso, Baratza's own settings charts are the fastest way to find your starting point: Encore chart and Encore ESP chart.

Who should skip both

If you brew only French press and drip and you are on a tight budget, a good hand grinder gets you similar particle quality for less money, at the cost of arm work. If you are running a double boiler machine and chasing the last few percent of clarity, both of these are entry level and you will outgrow them. The Encore ESP sits in the useful middle: enough resolution to dial espresso properly on a single boiler machine, small enough to live on a normal counter. Alternatives at the price are covered in best budget burr grinder.

Check current prices

Both sit in the same family, so buy on what you brew rather than on the spec sheet.

Related reading

• Baratza Encore grind settings chart
• Baratza Encore ESP grind settings chart
• Fellow Opus vs Baratza Encore ESP
• Coffee gear guides hub

FAQ

Is the Baratza Encore ESP worth the extra money? If you pull espresso, yes. The ESP gives fine micro steps across settings 1 to 20 for dialling in shots and includes a dosing cup, for $199.95 against $149.95. If you only brew filter coffee, the standard Encore is the better buy.

Can the regular Baratza Encore grind for espresso? It can technically reach the range, but its 40 settings are spread across every brew method, so each click at the fine end moves too far to dial a shot reliably. That is exactly the problem the ESP was built to solve.

Do the Encore and Encore ESP use the same burrs? Both are conical. The standard Encore uses a 40mm conical steel burr and the ESP uses Baratza's M2 conical burr, paired with the reworked adjustment mechanism that creates the espresso range.