# Automatic Drip Coffee Maker

Source: https://dailyextraction.com/methods/automatic-drip/
Last updated: 2026-10-19

> Use about 55–60 g of medium-ground coffee per litre of water, the SCA's Golden Cup ratio, with fresh, filtered cold water in the reservoir. Rinse the paper filter, level the coffee in the basket and start the machine. A good machine heats the water to about 90–96°C and finishes in 4 to 8 minutes. Serve it fresh, and clean and descale the machine regularly.

## At a glance

- Ratio: 55 g per litre (55 g coffee : 1000 g water)
- Grind: Medium (sand)
- Water temperature: 90–96 °C
- Brew time: about 6:00
- Category: Pour-over & Drip (Percolation)
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Origin: Germany, 1954
- Also known as: filter coffee machine, drip coffee maker, coffee machine, Mr. Coffee, filter coffee maker

## Steps

1. **Fill the reservoir**: Fill the reservoir with fresh, cold, filtered water, measuring it by the jug's markings or by weight.
2. **Rinse the filter**: Put a paper filter in the basket and rinse it with hot water, if you can, to remove any papery taste.
3. **Add the coffee**: Add medium-ground coffee, about 55–60 g per litre of water, and shake the basket gently to level it.
4. **Brew**: Put the jug in place and start the machine. A good machine finishes in about 4 to 8 minutes.
5. **Stir and serve**: Stir the coffee in the jug, as the first and last parts taste different, and serve it fresh.

The **automatic drip coffee maker**, or **filter coffee machine**, is the most common way to brew coffee at home in much of the world. It heats water, sprinkles it over ground coffee in a **filter basket**, and lets the coffee drip into a jug. It's really an automated [pour-over](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/melitta/). The machine does the pouring, so what's left to you is the **coffee, the grind, the ratio and the water**, and that's where most of the difference between a good pot and a dull one lies. Here's how to get the best from one.

## The short version

- **About 55–60 g of coffee per litre** of water: the SCA's Golden Cup ratio.
- **Medium grind**, a touch finer for cone baskets.
- **Fresh, filtered, cold water** in the reservoir.
- **A good machine** heats to about 90–96°C and finishes in 4 to 8 minutes.
- **Drink it fresh**, and clean and descale the machine.



## How does a drip coffee maker work?

1. **The reservoir** holds cold water.
2. **A heater** warms the water and carries it up to a **shower head** above the basket.
3. **The water drips onto the coffee** in a paper or permanent filter, seeps through it, and drips into the **jug**.
4. **A hot plate or a thermal jug** keeps the coffee warm.

It's **percolation**: each drop of water passes through the coffee once, as in a pour-over. Machines differ mainly in **how hot** they get the water, **how evenly** the shower head spreads it, and **how long** the brew takes.

## How much coffee should I use?

The **SCA's Golden Cup standard** is **55 g of coffee per litre** of water, plus or minus 10%. That's roughly **1:18**. Many people like it a little stronger, at **60–65 g per litre**. SCA-certified machines must print a recommended grind and this 55 g per litre ratio in their instructions, so check your manual too.

| Water | Coffee at 55 g/L | Coffee at 60 g/L |
| --- | --- | --- |
| 500 ml | About 28 g | 30 g |
| 1 litre | 55 g | 60 g |
| 1.25 litres | About 69 g | 75 g |

Weigh the coffee if you can: scoop sizes vary a lot.

## What grind size should I use?

**Medium**, like coarse sand, for most flat-bottomed baskets. Go a little **finer for a cone-shaped basket**, and a little **coarser** for a big batch with a high dose. If it's bitter, go coarser; if it's thin and sour, go finer.

![Chart of coffee grind sizes from extra fine to extra coarse, with medium highlighted for the drip coffee maker](https://dailyextraction.com/diagrams/grind-size.svg#medium "Most drip machines suit a medium grind.")

## How do you make better drip coffee, step by step?

1. **Fill the reservoir** with fresh, cold, filtered water.
2. **Rinse the paper filter** with hot water if you can.
3. **Add the coffee**, about 55–60 g per litre, and **level it**.
4. **Start the machine** and let it run.
5. **Stir the jug** and serve fresh.

Brew mode on this page times a typical brew for you.

## Why does my drip coffee taste bad?

| Problem | Likely cause | Try |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Weak, sour | Too little coffee, too coarse, or water not hot enough | More coffee or a finer grind; consider an SCA-certified machine |
| Bitter | Too fine, or left on the hot plate | Coarser grind; use a thermal jug or drink it sooner |
| Flat, stale | Old coffee, or a scaled-up machine | Fresher coffee; descale the machine |
| Slow to brew | Scale build-up | Descale, following the maker's instructions |

## How do you clean and descale a drip machine?

**Wash the jug and basket** after every use. **Descale** the machine regularly, following the maker's instructions: how often depends on how hard your water is and how much you brew. Filtered or softened water slows scaling down.

## What about batch brew in cafés?

**Batch brew** is drip coffee in bulk: café brewers make a large batch at once into an urn or airpot. The Ministry of Coffee suggests about **55–65 g of coffee per litre**, coarsening the grind slightly as the dose goes up. The Ministry of Coffee's Moccamaster recipe uses **100 g of medium-ground coffee with 1.5 litres of water**, and the water has run through the coffee after **about 5 minutes**.

## A short history of the drip coffee maker

- **1908:** **Melitta Bentz** patents her paper coffee filter system on 20 June, the basis of the [Melitta](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/melitta/) pour-over.
- **1954:** **Gottlob Widmann's Wigomat**, patented in Germany, is usually credited as one of the first electric drip coffee makers. CoffeeGeek notes it wasn't a commercial success.
- **1968:** the **Technivorm Moccamaster** goes on sale; CoffeeGeek argues it was the first automatic drip brewer to use a Melitta-style cone filter.
- **1971:** **Mr. Coffee** is developed in Cleveland, by a company hoping to make the [percolator](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/stovetop-percolator/) obsolete. By April 1974 it had sold a million machines, about 10% of the US coffee-maker business, and made the drip machine mainstream.
- **By 2014:** the SCAA calls its **Certified Home Brewer** programme for drip machines "longstanding" as it renews its testing partnership with the European Coffee Brewing Centre (see [SCA-certified brewers](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/sca-certified-brewer/)).

*General guidance only. Unplug the machine before cleaning it, never run it without water, and follow the maker's instructions for descaling.*

## Drip machine vs other methods

- **[SCA-certified home brewers](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/sca-certified-brewer/):** drip machines tested to brew to the Golden Cup standard.
- **[Melitta](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/melitta/):** the hand-poured filter the drip machine automates.
- **[V60](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/v60/):** a pour-over with full control.
- **[Stovetop percolator](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/stovetop-percolator/):** the pot Mr. Coffee set out to replace.

Explore every pour-over method in the [pour-over chapter](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/pour-over/).

## Words used in this guide

- [Immersion vs percolation](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/immersion-vs-percolation/): Immersion brewing steeps all the coffee in all the water at once, as a French press does.
- [Pour-over](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/pour-over/): Pour-over is a way of making filter coffee by hand: you pour hot water over ground coffee in a filter cone and let it drip through into a cup or jug.

## FAQs

### How much coffee do I put in a drip coffee maker?

The SCA's Golden Cup standard is 55 g of coffee per litre of water, plus or minus 10%. Many people go up to about 60–65 g per litre for a stronger pot.

### What grind should I use in a drip coffee maker?

Medium, like coarse sand, for most flat-bottomed baskets. Go a little finer for a cone-shaped basket, and coarser if you're brewing a large batch with a high dose.

### What temperature should a drip coffee maker brew at?

The SCA's Golden Cup target is about 93°C, give or take 3°C, at the point the water reaches the coffee. Cheap machines often don't get the water hot enough.

### How often should I descale my coffee maker?

It depends on how hard your water is and how often you brew. Follow the maker's instructions, and descale sooner if the brew slows down or the coffee tastes flat.

### Who invented the automatic drip coffee maker?

Gottlob Widmann's Wigomat, patented in Germany in 1954, is usually credited as one of the first electric drip coffee makers, though it wasn't a commercial success. Mr. Coffee, developed in Cleveland in 1971, made the drip machine mainstream in the US: by April 1974 it had sold a million machines.

## Sources

- [Wigomat](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wigomat)
- [Pour over history and development](https://coffeegeek.com/opinions/history-technology/pour-over-history-and-development/)
- [SCA Standard 310-2021: home coffee brewers](https://coffeegeek.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/SCAGoldCupStandard.pdf)
- [Achieving the Gold Cup standard](https://www.seattlecoffeegear.com/blogs/learning-center/achieving-the-gold-cup-standard-your-guide-to-brewing-excellence)
- [Batch brewing](https://theministryofcoffee.com/blog/batch-brewing)
- [North American Systems, Inc.](https://case.edu/ech/articles/n/north-american-systems-inc)
- [SCAA and European Coffee Brewing Centre renew home brewer program cooperation](https://dailycoffeenews.com/2014/01/27/scaa-and-european-coffee-brewing-centre-renew-home-brewer-program-cooperation)
- [The Golden Cup standard](https://roastopedia.com/golden-cup-standard/)