Coffee for a bean-to-cup machine

A bean-to-cup machine takes whole beans, grinds them for each cup and brews under pressure, so the coffee decisions are fewer than for an espresso machine and different from a capsule machine. Three things matter: the beans you load, the strength setting, and the cleaning.

Beans in the hopper

Put whole beans only in the bean hopper; if your machine has a separate compartment for ground coffee, follow its manual. The 1 kg bags are the natural size, but the hopper is not a storage jar: it is open to the air and often warm. Load what you will use in a few days and keep the rest of the bag sealed in a cupboard. How to keep coffee fresh at home has the detail.

The dose is the setting

The machine decides how much coffee goes into each cup, and the strength setting moves it. As a guide, allow 7 g to 12 g per cup: about 7 g on a mild setting, 9 g on a standard one, 12 g on a strong one. Jura’s default settings dose 8 g to 10 g for an espresso and can be adjusted; De’Longhi and similar machines sit in the same band. For an americano, count an espresso dose plus hot water; automatic recipes vary by machine. An estimate at a typical dose. Your machine, grind and recipe will move it. At 9 g a cup, a 1 kg bag makes about 110 cups. More in How much coffee to use.

Which beans

Choose beans whose product page lists bean-to-cup among their uses, and check your machine’s manual for any restriction. For a fuller, more intense espresso, move up the Vergnano ladder: Espresso Classico 600, Ricco 700, Crema 800, Dolce 900, Mille 1000. The Riserva Torino 100% Arabica and Kimbo’s Aroma Gold are all-Arabica options; compare their tasting notes and strength scales on the product pages. For milk drinks, look for “with milk” in the product page’s best-for line. If the cup is not right, change one thing at a time: the dose setting first, then the coffee.

Cleaning and descaling

Follow your machine’s cleaning schedule and use the products its manual specifies; cleaning and descaling are separate routines, and a milk system has its own cycle. Jura’s phosphate-free 2in1 cleaning tablets come in packs of 6 and 25: they loosen coffee fat and grounds in the brewing unit and sieve, then leave a protective film. Jura’s descaling tablets come in two pack sizes. Follow the manual for water hardness and filter settings. Both products are on the Jura brand page.

In an office

For an office estimate, multiply cups a day by a starting dose and the number of opening days. The Coffee Finder for Business is the place to start for a workplace, and the usage estimate on the business page turns the numbers into kilograms a month. For a home machine, the Coffee Finder narrows the range to a few coffees.

Comparing the blends of one roaster? See Which Lucaffè coffee beans? and Which Passalacqua coffee?

Reviewed 7 September 2026.