What's Up With Portafilter Sizes?

Written by Pat C
Content Creator
Published on Jan 3, 2025
Pat is an espresso machine enthusiast with a passion for perfecting every shot. With years of hands-on experience testing espresso machines, coffee makers and everything in between, Pat provides detailed, no-nonsense reviews to help coffee lovers find the right fit.
What's Up With Portafilter Sizes?

If you’ve ever gone shopping for an espresso machine then you know that different machines use differently sized portafilters. The most common sizes would probably be 58mm or 54mm portafilters, but sometimes you’ll encounter 49mm or 51mm. So what’s up with these differences? Is there one “best size?” Or are all of these sizings just randomly chosen? We’ve got the answer for you here!

Smaller Portafilters

Smaller portafilters (as measured across the top) such as the 54mm option that Breville uses tend to also be deeper. These portafilters are a bit more resistant to channeling and more commonly come with pressurized baskets. A pressurized basket is also called a “double wall” basket, and will be easier to dial in and work with, as it produces the extra back pressure needed to slow down extraction, meaning that they’re more forgiving for slightly unoptimized grind sizes. 

This makes a double wall, or pressurized basket, perfect for pre-ground espresso, or just a coffee you’re not confident with yet and might be having trouble dialing in. So if these portafilters are so easy to work with, why step up to a 58mm model?

Larger Portafilters

58mm portafilters are obviously a bit wider, and as a result are more shallow. This means that they are more susceptible to channeling, so you’ll need to carefully distribute your grounds to ensure that your water is evenly distributed during brewing. The reason you might want to use these portafilters is that they’ll also give you more control over your brew. The wider bed of grounds allows for more balanced extraction resulting in more delicate flavors coming through in your final shot.

These portafilters are the commercial standard, which also means that they have a wide range of accessories available for use, such as distribution tools and specialty tampers. Ultimately, many home baristas prefer these portafilters because of these facts, and because they want to get as close to that cafe experience as possible. 

Which is Right for Me?

This really depends on your level of experience. It can be hard to start learning how to brew espresso with the type of professional machine that typically comes with a 58mm portafilter. As such, if you’re just starting out then you might want to look into a machine that uses a simpler 54mm portafilter. With that said, you should really select your machine, then just get used to whatever kind of portafilter it comes with.

If you are shopping for an entry or mid-level machine, odds are it’ll come with a more forgiving 54mm portafilter. On the flipside, if you’re looking for a more professional, higher level machine then it’ll probably use a 58mm portafilter. It’s important to note that this is not something you can upgrade later, but we can’t stress enough that machine choice really matters more than portafilter choice. Pick out the best machine for you, and we’re confident it’ll use the best portafilter size for you too.


To learn more about portafilters be sure to check out our video below, and don’t hesitate to leave a comment if you have questions or advice!

 

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