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Best Coffee Tampers 

 January 8, 2024

By  Enda McLarnon

Most people buy a coffee tamper if they have purchased an espresso machine and quite often it can seem like a complicated thing to do. That is because there is just too much conflicting information out there. We hope we can make it a great deal simpler to understand.

When people buy a machine, in almost all cases it will come with some form of tamper, or at least it should have.

Unfortunately many of these are pretty flimsy, often made from plastic or some cheap metal. It will do the job of flattening the coffee but you have probably figured out that it doesn't do a great job.

A good quality tamper is meant to not just to compress or flatten the coffee, but it should do this evenly to ensure a smooth consistency in the coffee. When it comes to buying a better quality one the only real thing that you need to check is if the tamper will fit into the filter. After that it is just a matter of personal choice.

A lot of people state that 30 lbs of pressure is the perfect pressure to exert when tamping coffee. That is true, though you do not have to get over sensitive about doing that. Check out the video below for a fuller explanation.

Quick and Helpful Tamper Buying Guide

The most popular size is the 58 mm but some of the machines will use a slightly different size which could be 51 mm, 53 mm or 57 mm. Just make sure they you buy the right one for your own machine.

Which Type of Bottom do You Like?

Tampers come with either a flat bottom or a convex bottom. If you are a traditionalist you will probably stick with the flat option. I personally prefer the convex style as it gives a nicer and flatter base from side to side.

Most good tampers will have a stainless steel base and this is the part that touches the coffee grains.

The length of tampers do vary and the general rule is that the bigger your hand is, the taller or longer the handle should be for comfort purposes. The video below explains all of these features in some detail and is well worth a look.

Below we have picked out what we believe to be the top 5 coffee tampers currently available in the UK. This is based on the highest ratings given to these products by real life buyers over at Amazon UK, who have taken the time to leave a review.

Top 5 Coffee Tampers

There are quite literally hundreds of these to choose from and available on the UK market. In many ways it depends on which brand you prefer, and also the particular style.

To help just a little we have listed below our top 6 based on summarising all of the available online buyer reviews. Hopefully that will help narrow down your choices and make life that little bit easier.

De'Longhi DLSC058 Coffee Tamper

De'Longhi DLSC058 Coffee Tamper

96% buyer satisfaction based on 2,000 online buyer reviews

  • Rated 96% buyer satisfaction
  • Average Cost = £16-20
  • Measures 9.5 x 6 x 6 cm
  • 51 mm tamper
  • Weighs 0.63 lbs (285 grams)
  • Stainless Steel
  • Dishwasher safe and comes with a 2-year warranty
  • Great gift idea for coffee lovers

Motta Tamper

Motta Tamper - Flat Base 58mm

Motta Tamper - Flat Base 58mm

96% buyer satisfaction based on 500 online buyer reviews

  • Rated 96% buyer satisfaction
  • Average Cost = £19
  • Measures 5.7 x 5.7 x 9 cm
  • 57 mm tamper
  • Weighs 349 grams
  • Stainless Steel bottom with a wooden handle
  • Top can be unscrewed if you want to wash the base
  • Looks great sitting beside your machine

RSVP Terry's Tamper

RSVP Terry's Tamper

92% buyer satisfaction based on 6,000 online buyer reviews

  • Rated 90% buyer satisfaction
  • Average Cost = £21
  • Measures 7.6 x 7.6 x 7.6 cm
  • 2 sizes - 48 mm and 55 mm 
  • Weighs 118 grams
  • Designed by a barista
  • Made from a heavy cast alloy

Vicloon Espresso Coffee Tamper Review

Vicloon Espresso Coffee Tamper Review

94% buyer satisfaction based on 2,500 online buyer reviews

  • Rated 90% buyer satisfaction
  • Average Cost = £12
  • Measures 5.1 x 5.1 x 8 cm
  • Dual ended 51 mm and 35 mm
  • Weighs 581 grams
  • Stainless Steel 
  • Dishwasher safe

Kitchen Craft Le'Xpress Stainless Steel Coffee Tamper

Le'Xpress Stainless Steel Coffee Tamper

94% buyer satisfaction based on 300 online buyer reviews

  • Rated 94% buyer satisfaction
  • Average Cost = £12.50
  • Measures 13.8 x 8.6 x 6 cm
  • Dual ended 51 mm and 58 mm
  • Weighs 340 grams
  • Stainless Steel 
  • Dishwasher safe
  • Looks great sitting beside your machine

Very Expensive Choice - Espro Calibrated Convex Base

Espro Calibrated Convex Base

Espro Calibrated Convex Base 58mm Tamper

86% buyer satisfaction based on 200 online buyer reviews

  • Rated 84^5 Buyer satisfaction
  • Average Cost = £85
  • Measures 5.7 x 5.7 x 8.9 cm
  • Tamper is 58 mm
  • Weighs 340 grams
  • Crazy Price but the Ultimate Tamper
  • Dishwasher safe
  • Guarantees the perfect 30 lb pressure
  • Pretty good chance no-one has this one

Other Coffee Tamping Accessories

If you are buying a new coffee tamper, or looking to put together some coffee gift ideas for a friend, then there are a couple of useful accessories that I think you could have a look at.

One of these is a tamping mat, and the other one has the fabulous name of a "knock out box."

Tamping Mat

Silicone Rubber Coffee Espresso Tamping Mat

This is a silicone mat that you can use that will protect the work surface when tamping your coffee.

When you fill up your portafilter with coffee, then you have to tap that somewhere to get it level. You don't really want to be doing that on top of a normal kitchen worktop, or on top of your coffee machine.

This is where a tamping mat can come in very handy. It allows you to tap the filter, add more coffee and then use the tamper itself without damaging anything. These also catch any coffee grain spills and avoid any mess on your kitchen worktops.

These mats should be made from silicone to meet food safety standards. The one pictured above also has a raised outer edge to make sure no coffee grains get spilled. Do not be deceived by this image though as you do not get the tamper, and is the mat only.

These cost on average £10 and this one is the best seller and is called the Silicone Rubber Coffee Espresso Tamping Mat

Grindenstein Knock Out Box

Grindenstein Knock Out Box

I just love the name of this product and it creates any number of thoughts as to what this could be. You can see it in the image above. It is a red colour though also available in black or white and it sits on the coffee machine tray. 

This product costs around £15 depending on where you make your purchase. When your coffee has been made using a machine, then you are left with a portafilter full of used coffee grains.

Some people put those in the recycle bin or just toss them out somehow. This is a bin with a thick rubber sleeve inside designed to deal with that problem. When you need to empty the grains from the portafilter, then you just give it a few taps on this and they are kept inside.

The coffee grains can then be used for a whole range of purposes, which you can find out about by clicking here.

So as you can see a tamper along with a tamping mat would make a great gift idea for any coffee lover, or a tamper and bin, or indeed all three.

Enda McLarnon


Enda McLarnon has a Business Management Honour's Degree and applies his professional insight, to analyse and write helpful product reviews with tips and useful advice. I am also a coffee lover and enjoy tasting all of the coffee types the world has to offer.

Enda McLarnon

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