There’s nothing more I enjoy doing in the warmer months than loading the car with all the necessary camping gear and driving for a few hours with the kids to one of our favourite camping destinations.
It’s great to just get away from everything and spend some quality time with the family and friends as well.
No doubt you’ll be bringing some coffee with you when you go camping.
The best option is always to grind your beans fresh, because you’ll appreciate the aroma from the fresh grind, as well as the taste, compared to pre-ground coffee beans (or instant coffee, but who drinks instant, right?).
There’s many possible options for coffee grinders, but what’s the best coffee grinder for camping? Let’s take a look.
Best cheap coffee grinder for camping
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It’s definitely worth watching the video to get a better understanding of why each grinder received the score that it did.
Here’s the scores that he gave each grinder for price, build, portability, usability and grind quality.
| Title | Price | Build | Portability | Usability | Grind Quality | Total | Price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rhino Gear | 3 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 15 | See on Amazon |
| TopPorlex Mini | 2 | 5 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 21 | See on Amazon |
| Hario Mini Slim | 4 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 3 | 18 | See on Amazon |
| JavaPresse | 1 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 10 | See on Amazon |
At the time of writing this, the Henry Charles coffee grinder is unavailable for purchase from Amazon, so I haven’t included it on this list.
It’s worth mentioning that although the Porlex Mini got the highest score, it also has the smallest capacity.
Not a deal breaker, but worth mentioning, as you may be looking for a larger capacity coffee grinder.
If you enjoyed James’ video above, but would like to get a coffee grinder that’s better quality and don’t mind spending a bit extra for it, he reviewed a few more premium hand coffee grinders.
He even carried over the winning Porlex Mini from the last video to see how it compares to the more premium models.
The coffee grinders reviewed in this video are:
In the end, James’ pick was the Kinu M47, but he stresses several times that it’s very expensive.
What makes a coffee grinder suitable for camping?
There’s various factors to consider when trying to find a suitable coffee grinder for camping, such as:
- size,
- easy to take apart and store,
- durability,
- electric or manual,
- capacity,
- brewing method and
- consistency of grind.
We’ll quickly look at each of these points and why you should consider each of them before making a purchase.
Size
You’ll want something that is small and compact. When you’re camping, space is a big issue and any space that you can save is worth saving.
Choosing a coffee grinder that is compact will save room in your car for other belongings. There’s a variety of small coffee grinders available, but they may not all fit the category of best coffee grinder for camping.
Easy to take apart and store
It’s important to make sure that you can easily take apart your coffee grinder and store it in a way that will see that it doesn’t get damaged.
For instance, most hand coffee grinders will allow you to remove the handle, so it can be stored quite easily.
Durability
Considering you’ll be packing the coffee grinder into your car with a lot of your other gear and it may get pretty full, durability should also be looked at.
Avoid choosing a coffee grinder that has any parts that can easily be broken or seem fragile.
Electric or manual
Unless you go camping with a powered caravan or you have some solar panels to use for an electric coffee grinder, you’ll want a manual coffee grinder.
You might hear these referred to as “manual coffee grinders”, “hand coffee grinders”, or even “hand crank coffee grinders” – they’re all the same thing.
Hand coffee grinders are also likely to be more compact and easier to take apart than electric coffee grinders.
Capacity
This one’s more up to you. Coffee grinders come with various grinding capacities, so you’ll need to think about your specific needs.
Do you want to be making a large grind for a few people, or is it going to be just for yourself?
Again, thinking about the size of the coffee grinder, in my opinion, the more compact the better.
Grind size
Are you going to be using the coffee grinder for various brewing methods or just one?
If it’s for various methods, you’ll want a coffee grinder that can be easily adjusted for different grinds to suit the different brewing methods.
When I go camping, I bring my AeroPress coffee maker. Read my review to find out more about the AeroPress.
Consistency of grind
While this may not be directly applicable to camping, you should always consider choosing a coffee grinder that gives a consistent grind.
Overall, it will produce a better brew and a more enjoyable cup of coffee for you.
Conclusion
The best coffee grinder for you may not be the best coffee grinder for someone else. Everybody is going to have different needs when choosing the right coffee grinder.
Hopefully I’ve been able to show you enough options to help you make an informed decision.
Have you tried any of these coffee grinders yourself or have I left out a coffee grinder for camping that you’d like to recommend? Let me know in the comments below.
Stay caffeinated!
