What is a French press? How it works and what grind it needs

How does a French press work?

You steep, then separate. Wikipedia describes adding water at 93 to 96°C (199 to 205°F) to coarse grounds. It gives about 30 g of coffee to 500 ml of water.

After the steep, you press the plunger. The mesh pushes the grounds to the bottom of the beaker and holds them there while you pour. Nothing else filters the coffee, so what passes the mesh ends up in your cup.

The device goes by other names. Wikipedia lists cafetière in Britain and Ireland, and coffee plunger in Australia, New Zealand and South Africa.

What grind size does a French press need?

Coarse. Wikipedia says a French press works best with a grind "about the consistency of cooking salt." Perfect Daily Grind puts it as "granules rather than sand."

Too fine causes two problems. Perfect Daily Grind says fine grounds extract too quickly, and the mesh lets the fines through, leaving grit in the cup. Wikipedia adds that fine grounds make the plunger harder to push.

This is where your grinder shows. A grinder that makes an even coarse grind, with few fines, gives a cleaner press. See French press grind settings for your grinder, or our French press grind size and brew time guide.

How long should a French press steep?

Most guides land on about four minutes. Perfect Daily Grind gives a range of 3 to 5 minutes and calls 4 minutes "a safe starting point."

It suggests less time for darker roasts and more for lighter roasts. Wikipedia also notes that some writers suggest about four minutes, so treat it as a starting point, not a rule.

Do not leave the coffee sitting on the grounds after pressing. Wikipedia says it may turn astringent and bitter, though some people like that. Pour it all off, or decant it into another vessel.

Why does French press coffee taste so different?

Two reasons: the brew method and the filter. Coffee ad Astra explains that an immersion brew's chemistry tracks how abundant each compound is in the bean. A percolation brew over-represents compounds that dissolve fastest.

The filter matters just as much. Perfect Daily Grind describes French press coffee as "a viscous brew with a fuller body" because more oils remain. Wikipedia notes that metal mesh filters do not remove diterpenes, the oily compounds a paper filter catches.

Is French press coffee bad for cholesterol?

It may, if you drink a lot of it. Its metal mesh does not remove cholesterol-raising diterpenes, according to Wikipedia. A paper filter does.

A 2025 Uppsala University study compared French press, boiled, percolator and espresso coffee with workplace machines. Boiled coffee had the highest levels per cup. A paper-filter drip machine removed the diterpenes almost completely.

The researchers said that heavy daily coffee drinkers are better off with drip-filter or other well-filtered coffee. If you drink one press a day, this matters less than if you drink several.

Who invented the French press?

Its history runs through France and Italy. Wikipedia says Mayer and Delforge patented a device in France in 1852. Italian designers Attilio Calimani and Giulio Moneta patented a sealed design in the US in 1929.

Faliero Bondanini patented his version in 1958. Perfect Daily Grind credits him with the Chambord model that made the design popular. For a full walkthrough, read the French press brewing guide.