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Breville Smart Grinder Pro vs. Baratza Preciso, What’s Best for you?
Baratza is well known for their innovative, high-quality coffee grinders that are competitive with the Italian classics.
Breville is another brand that isn’t afraid of new ideas. In fact, this company has been known for innovation, both inside the coffee market and beyond it, inventing the world’s first sandwich toaster and other appliances with global followings.
The Final Shot: For espresso lovers the Breville Smart Grinder is going to bring heaven to your kitchen. The small batch dosing, finer grind levels and programming set it apart for this type of brewing. For coffee drinkers who like to experiment or need a coarser grind, the Preciso will serve you better.
As coffee drinkers are becoming more discerning and adventurous with their tastes, there is an increasing demand for high-quality coffee grinders and brewers.
Which means, better appliances from great companies designed for home use. Lucky us.
Already experienced with household appliances, Breville has entered the coffee grinder market with competitive, economical machines to rival the innovative Baratza designs and the higher end grinders.
This comparison will match the Baratza Preciso against the Breville Smart Grinder Pro, so we can see which features they share and how they differ.
Contents
Baratza Preciso vs Breville Smart Grinder Pro Head to Head
 |  |
|
|---|---|---|
| Name | Baratza Preciso | Breville Smart Grinder Pro |
 Dimension | 5.3 x 5.1 x 13.8 in | 8.5 x 6.2 x 15.2 inches |
 Item Weight | 7.9 pounds | 6.4 pounds |
 Grind Settings | 440 | 60 |
 Automation | No | Auto-dosing |
 Hopper Size | 8 oz | 16 oz |
 Grinder Type | Conical Burr | Conical Burr |
 Hands Free | Yes | Yes |
Similarities
The Breville and Baratza machines both use the same grinding technology. The conical burr grinder mechanism is known for producing consistent, high quality coffee grounds by protecting the beans from excessive heat and friction.
By slowing the grinder’s gears, burr action results in more precise grounds with superior flavor and aroma.
Both grinders are easy to disassemble and clean, with the Breville having the edge with a magnetic grounds catcher. The burrs on both machines are easy to lift out, and no tools are required to disassemble the grinders.
Both models also have a wide variety of settings for different grind coarseness levels, along with portaholder adapters for convenient espresso brewing right into the filter basket.
The top-loading designs on these machines are typical of coffee grinders, and both are easy to assemble.
The design aesthetics are sleek and will look stylish on any countertop. The Breville’s digital display might edge out Baratza’s simple presentation, but this is a matter of personal preference.
Shared Features:
- Conical burr technology for consistent grounds and superior flavor
- Multiple settings: Baratza model has 40 different settings while the Breville has 60 grind settings
- Easy to clean-burrs that lift out easily
- Portaholders for loading espresso grounds easily
- Sleek, modern designs
Differences
Both of the machines produce a high-quality and most importantly, consistent grind.
While it seems that the variety of settings are comparable for each machine, there is a difference in the final grind that speaks to personal preference.
Read on to learn about what each machine offers and how those features might enhance or improve your home brewing experience.
Design
An obvious difference between these two grinders can be seen in their designs. The Breville has a high-tech digital display and a see-through grounds bin so you can check the fill level when not brewing into the portafilter.
The Baratza’s design is much simpler, and more manual. The grounds bin is opaque and there’s no screen and no digital tech. Programming is minimal – you’re really only determining grind coarseness and speed with this machine and using manual dial controls only.
Hopper Capacity
The hopper on the Breville has a significantly larger capacity, holding up to 16 ounces of beans compared to Baratza’s 8 ounce capacity.
This is a great mid-range size and not so large that your dosing will be thrown off due to a too-full hopper.
Controls
Very clearly, the Breville has an advanced control system. With its Precision Electronic Timer you can adjust the grind time in 0.2 second increments. There is also a dose pause function and you can grind small amounts for shots or cups with just a slight adjustment to the settings.
The pause function is a really nice feature that a lot of machines, even in the higher price ranges (we’re looking at you Mazzer!) just don’t offer. I think this is a must if you’re not grinding for a family and just need a quick shot for yourself before work.
The Baratza does have a timer on it, but not all of the programmable settings and dose options that the Breville does. You can change the speed on the Baratza using the manual side knob.
So while the controls on the Baratza are not quite as fancy as those on the Breville, you do have more control over the speed. This might be better for those who prefer coarse grinds that need a short, high speed grind, rather than the fine espresso grounds.
Size
Since the hopper on the Breville holds twice as many beans as the Baratza, it makes sense that the machine stands taller. In fact, the Breville is a good three inches taller than the Baratza, which is a big deal for those with small kitchens.
Even though the Breville’s hopper can hold a lot more, like I mentioned earlier, you can control the dosing so this machine can work well for those who need big or small batches,
While the Baratza is more compact, you have less control over the amount of coffee ground so the dosing may not as precisely meet your needs.
Range of Grind Settings
It would seem that with the Breville’s 60 settings you would get a wider range of coffee grounds, but this isn’t necessarily the case.
While this machine is great for high-quality espresso grounds, it just can’t produce the coarse grounds that trendy manual brewing methods require.
So, if you’re more adventurous and like to try out new methods, the Baratza might be better for you. The Preciso can handle fine and course settings, although it doesn’t have quite the same fine precision granule range for espresso as the Breville does.
So, the finicky espresso drinker will appreciate the Breville, while the experimenter will likely enjoy the Baratza.
Summary
Both the Breville and Baratza are solid investments for quality grinding, but there are small differences that can actually be significant to the user.
The Breville is better suited for those who need to grind smaller amounts for espresso shots, and who are exacting about fine grinds. With the many settings available, you can find your perfect shot, then program it for consistent results.
For the adventurous coffee drinker who likes to experiment with trendy methods and beans, the Baratza might be a better fit. This machine can produce the coarse grounds required by a lot of the manual brewing methods.
You also can’t control the dosing for smaller grinds on the Baratza, which also makes it a little less desirable for espresso grinding.
All things considered, both of these machines produce solid coffee grinds and have durable designs. Both manufacturers are leaders in their field, with Baratza being the innovative young gun and Breville bringing decades of engineering experience to their designs.
Deciding which one of these is better for your use really comes down to personal preference. Keep your habits in mind when considering which features you need and which ones you don’t.
Questions? Leave a comment below!
Chatting about coffee is my passion! Leave me a question in the comments, I answer each and every one and would love to get to know you better.
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4-Week Free Espresso E-mail Course!
Week 1 - Home Espresso Machines
Week 2 - Coffee Beans
Week 3 - Types of Drinks
Week 4 - Advanced Brewing
Join Mike (me) and learn all the basics of making great tasting espresso!
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About the Author Michael York
I am a die-hard espresso fan. I love every form of the drink from straight espresso shots to lattes and cappuccinos. I currently use a Breville BES870XL Barista, it is an awesome machine. BUT, my dream machine is definitely an Italian Quickmill Andreja. Those bad boys make badass espresso. I love answering your questions, leave a comment or question below!
