How many grinders does a café need?

As many as the machine has groups, but no fewer than two: one for the house coffee, the other for decaf or a seasonal coffee.

Which La Marzocco grinder for high volume?

The Swift or the Vulcano Swift. Both grind, dose and tamp on demand, so every dose is the same whoever the barista is.

Which La Marzocco grinder for a specialty café?

The Jay, which grinds by weight with the La Marzocco scale and has retention under 2 g, or the Swan, which measures the dose by burr revolutions.

Does the Swift work with every La Marzocco machine?

Yes, the Swift works with all La Marzocco machines. For the KB90 it is available as a special order.

Can I lease a grinder together with the machine?

Yes. You can buy the machine and grinders outright or lease them as one set. We match them together to your volume and menu.

Espresso grinder: on-demand or doser?

Q: On-demand or doser grinder?

For espresso in a café we choose an on-demand grinder. It grinds each dose just before brewing, so the coffee is fresh and there is less waste than with coffee sitting in a doser chamber.

why the grinder matters as much as the machine

The machine delivers water at a stable temperature and pressure. How that water passes through the coffee depends on the grind: particle size, how even the particles are and whether the basket holds the same dose every time. An uneven grind or a drifting dose will spoil espresso even on the best machine.

That is why specialty cafés in Australia and the USA budget for grinders from the start, rather than buying them with whatever is left after the machine. When we help you choose, we always ask about the grinder along with the number of groups.

on-demand or doser grinder

A doser grinder grinds coffee in advance into a chamber, from which the barista portions doses with a lever. Ground coffee loses aroma quickly, so what sits in the chamber tastes different from a fresh dose after a few minutes. At lower volumes the coffee stays in the chamber longer and some of it has to be thrown away.

An on-demand grinder grinds a single dose just before brewing, straight into the portafilter. The coffee is fresh for every espresso and there is less waste. That is why on-demand grinders are now the standard in quality-focused cafés.

In the La Marzocco range, on-demand grinding is offered by the Swift, Swan, Jay and the Vulcano in its On Demand and Swift versions. We choose the Vulcano version to match how your bar works when we talk it through.

how many grinders a bar needs

The rule dealers use in the USA and Australia: as many grinders as groups. When two groups are working and there is only one grinder, baristas wait for each other to grind, and it is the grinder, not the machine, that limits the bar's output.

At least two grinders. One for the house coffee, the other for decaf or a seasonal coffee. Decaf from the same grinder risks caffeine from the previous dose ending up in the cup.
2-group machine. Two espresso grinders. If you also serve filter coffee, a filter grinder is a separate matter.
3-group machine and high volume. Three espresso grinders, including one for decaf or a seasonal coffee.

Work out the number of groups for your volume with the group calculator. The result also suggests how many grinders you need.

la marzocco grinders compared

Four grinders from the current La Marzocco range. The Swift works with all La Marzocco machines, with the KB90 as a special order.
Grinder	Burrs	How it measures the dose	Best for
Swift	64 mm flat ceramic	volumetric; grinds, doses and tamps at the press of a button	high-volume venues, rotating teams
Vulcano	63 mm conical (single-phase) or 67 mm (three-phase)	Auto, On Demand and Swift versions (grinds, doses and tamps)	classic bars and high volume, Mazzer technology
Swan	83 mm conical	by burr revolutions, started by the portafilter with no button	specialty, constant-speed operation, 2.5–4 g/s
Jay	68 mm flat, hardened steel	by time or by weight (with the La Marzocco scale and app)	specialty, frequent coffee changes, retention under 2 g

Swift: grinds, doses and tamps

At the press of a button, the Swift grinds the coffee, measures the dose by volume and tamps it in the portafilter. 64 mm flat ceramic burrs limit heat build-up during grinding. It is a grinder for high-volume venues where consistency matters whoever is behind the bar: the barista does not dose or tamp by hand, so every dose looks the same.

Vulcano: Mazzer technology

The Vulcano has 63 mm conical burrs in the single-phase version and 67 mm in the three-phase version, built with Mazzer technology, and its design draws on a Giuseppe Bambi design that won an award in Milan in 1968. It comes in Auto, On Demand and Swift versions. Like the Swift, the Vulcano Swift grinds, doses and tamps on demand.

Swan: dosing by revolutions

The Swan has 83 mm conical burrs designed by La Marzocco and runs at a constant speed, regardless of the coffee's resistance and the grind setting. It measures the dose by burr revolutions rather than time, and patented anti-static technology means the coffee falls into the portafilter without clumps. Grinding starts when you insert the portafilter, with no button. Output is 2.5–4 g of coffee per second.

Jay: grinding by weight

The Jay is new for 2025: 68 mm flat hardened steel burrs and a patented burr alignment system that keeps them perfectly parallel after replacement. It grinds an 18 g dose in under 5 seconds and keeps less than 2 g of coffee inside. Connected to the La Marzocco app and the La Marzocco scale, it can grind by weight.

dosing by time, revolutions or weight

A grinder can measure a dose in three ways, and this is one of the more important differences between models:

By time. The grinder runs for a set number of seconds. When the barista grinds finer, a different amount of coffee comes out in the same number of seconds, so after every adjustment you need to check the dose on a scale.
By burr revolutions. The Swan counts revolutions, and its burrs turn at a constant speed. The dose depends less on how hard the coffee is and how fine it is ground.
By weight. The Jay with the La Marzocco scale grinds to a target weight. It speaks the same language as a recipe in grams and as the drip tray scales on ABR machines, which we cover in the guide ABR scales or AV dosing.
By volume with tamping. The Swift and Vulcano Swift measure the dose by volume and tamp it straight away, which gives an even puck for every espresso.

how we match a grinder to your venue

High volume, rotating team, milk drinks. The Swift or Vulcano Swift. Grinding, dosing and tamping happen at the press of a button, so someone new behind the bar quickly serves consistent coffee.
Specialty café with recipes in grams. The Jay grinding by weight or the Swan dosing by revolutions. With several coffees on the menu, the Jay's low retention means less coffee thrown away when you change settings.
Classic bar, restaurant, hotel. The Vulcano On Demand: simple and durable for everyday use.
Decaf and seasonal coffee. The second grinder does not have to be the same model as the main one. A simpler one is often enough, as it grinds less.

We write more about choosing equipment for specialty in the guide specialty café: which espresso machine to choose, and about fitting out the whole bar in the equipment list for opening a café.

Tell us how many coffees you serve a day and which coffees are on your menu. We will match the machine and grinders as one set.

Ask about a grinder Group calculator

the grinder day to day: dialling in, cleaning, burrs

Dialling in each morning. The first doses after opening are for dialling in the coffee: taste, time, drink weight. After changing the grind, grind one dose and discard it: there is still coffee in the grinder ground at the old setting.
Bean hopper. Do not fill it with several days' worth of coffee. Fewer beans in the hopper means fresher coffee and an easier switch to a new batch.
Cleaning. Coffee oils build up in the hopper and the grinder's chute. Regular cleaning means consistent taste and less smell of stale coffee.
Burrs. Burrs wear with every kilo of coffee, and blunt burrs grind less evenly. We check their condition at each service, together with the machine.

We describe what a service of the whole setup involves in the guide espresso machine service. We show your team how to use the grinder at setup, as described in our guide on barista training.

espresso grinder for a café: on-demand or doser