Sboly Conical Burr Coffee Grinder: A Brutally Honest Review
The Sboly conical burr grinder sits at the very bottom of the burr grinder market, usually priced between $40-60. And honestly, for that price, it does more than you'd expect. It won't compete with a Baratza Encore or a Fellow Ode, but if you're upgrading from a blade grinder and you need to keep spending under $50, the Sboly gets the job done.
I bought one to test it against other budget grinders, and I used it daily for three weeks. Here's exactly what worked, what didn't, and whether it's worth your money.
What You Get for the Price
The Sboly uses stainless steel conical burrs (not ceramic). The hopper holds about 8.8 ounces of beans. There are 19 grind settings accessed by a dial on the hopper, and the grounds drop into a small plastic container at the bottom.
Build quality is what you'd expect at this price point. The body is mostly plastic with a brushed stainless front plate. It feels light, about 2.5 pounds, and it can slide around on the counter during grinding if you don't hold it down.
In the box, you get the grinder, the grounds container, a cleaning brush, and a basic instruction sheet. No measuring scoop, no fancy accessories. Straightforward.
Design and Footprint
The grinder is small. It takes up about as much counter space as a tall coffee mug. If you live in an apartment or have limited kitchen real estate, that's a genuine advantage. It tucks into a cabinet easily when not in use.
The grounds container is clear plastic, which lets you see how much you've ground. But the lid doesn't seal tightly, so grounds can escape if you tip it. I learned to be careful when pulling it out from under the grinder.
Grind Quality Across Settings
Here's where things get interesting. The Sboly actually produces decent grinds in the medium to medium-coarse range. For drip coffee, French press, and cold brew, the particle consistency is acceptable. Not perfect, but a massive step up from any blade grinder.
Medium Grind (Drip Coffee)
Settings 10-13 work for standard drip machines. I tested it with a basic Cuisinart drip brewer and the results were noticeably better than pre-ground coffee. The flavor was cleaner, with less bitterness and more of the coffee's natural character coming through.
Coarse Grind (French Press)
Settings 15-19 give you a coarse grind suitable for French press. There are some fines mixed in (small dusty particles), which is typical of budget conical burr grinders. You'll get a slightly muddier cup compared to a more expensive grinder, but it's still better than a blade grinder chopping beans into random sizes.
Fine Grind (Espresso)
This is where the Sboly falls apart. Settings 1-5 are marketed for espresso, but the grind is nowhere near fine or consistent enough for real espresso. If you're using a pressurized portafilter basket (like on a Breville Bambino), you might get an okay shot. But with a standard basket on a proper espresso machine, the Sboly can't produce the fine, uniform particles you need.
Don't buy this grinder for espresso. Period.
Noise Level and Speed
The Sboly is louder than I expected for such a small motor. I measured it at around 75-80 decibels during grinding, which is comparable to a loud conversation or a vacuum cleaner from across the room. It won't wake the neighbors, but grinding at 6 AM while someone sleeps in the next room will probably cause tension.
Grinding time is slow. About 30 grams of medium grind takes roughly 45-50 seconds. A Baratza Encore does the same amount in about 20 seconds. If you're making one cup at a time, the speed is fine. If you're grinding for a full pot (60+ grams), it starts to feel tedious.
The motor also heats up if you run it continuously for more than a minute. Sboly recommends grinding in 30-second intervals with breaks in between. For everyday single-cup use, this isn't an issue. For batch grinding, it's annoying.
How It Compares to Other Budget Options
The budget burr grinder category has a few real contenders. Here's how the Sboly stacks up.
| Grinder | Price | Burr Type | Settings | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sboly Conical Burr | $40-50 | Stainless conical | 19 | Drip, French press |
| JavaPresse Manual | $35-45 | Ceramic conical | Stepless | Travel, single cup |
| Bodum Bistro | $80-100 | Conical | 12 | Drip, pour-over |
| Baratza Encore | $150-170 | Conical | 40 | All methods (except espresso) |
| Oxo Brew | $100-110 | Conical | 15 | Drip, pour-over |
The Sboly wins on price. If you have under $50 to spend and you want an electric grinder, it's one of the very few burr options available. The JavaPresse manual grinder is the main alternative at this price, but it requires hand-cranking for 2-3 minutes per cup.
If you can stretch to $100, the Oxo Brew or Bodum Bistro offer meaningfully better grind consistency. And at $150, the Baratza Encore is the clear jump in quality that most coffee enthusiasts recommend as the entry point for serious brewing. You can find more options in our best burr coffee grinder roundup.
Common Issues and How to Fix Them
After three weeks of daily use and reading through hundreds of user reviews, here are the problems people run into most often.
Static Cling
Ground coffee sticks to the plastic container like it's magnetically attached. This is a static issue common to all plastic grind chambers. The fix is simple: add a few drops of water to your beans before grinding (the Ross Droplet Technique). Just dip a spoon in water, stir your beans, and grind. The static drops by about 80%.
Inconsistent Grind at Fine Settings
As I mentioned, the fine settings produce uneven particles. There's no real fix for this. It's a hardware limitation of the burr design and motor speed. If you need fine grinds, you need a different grinder.
Grounds Retention
About 1-2 grams of coffee get stuck in the grind path between sessions. For a $50 grinder, this is normal. You can tap the side of the grinder after each use to knock loose grounds into the container. Some people also run a quick burst of the motor while empty to clear the chute.
Motor Stalling
If you fill the hopper to the max and set it to a fine grind, the motor can stall. Feed beans in smaller batches, especially at finer settings. This keeps the motor from being overwhelmed.
Who Should Buy the Sboly?
This grinder makes sense for a specific type of buyer:
- You're currently using a blade grinder and want a real upgrade under $50
- You brew drip coffee or French press (not espresso or pour-over)
- You make 1-2 cups at a time, not full pots
- You want something small that stores easily
If any of those describe you, the Sboly is a reasonable buy. It's not going to last 10 years like a Baratza, and it won't grind as well as anything over $100. But it'll make your morning coffee taste noticeably better for less than the price of a bag of specialty beans.
For those ready to spend a bit more, our best burr grinder guide covers the sweet spot options that balance price and performance.
FAQ
How long does the Sboly conical burr grinder last?
Based on user reports, the motor typically lasts 1-3 years with daily use. The burrs themselves hold up longer, but the motor is the weak link. At $50, most people consider it disposable and upgrade when it dies.
Can I grind spices in the Sboly coffee grinder?
Sboly doesn't recommend it, and I wouldn't either. Spice oils will flavor your coffee for weeks afterward, and the burrs aren't designed for hard spices like peppercorns. Get a separate blade grinder for spices.
Is the Sboly better than a manual hand grinder at the same price?
For grind quality, a good manual grinder like the JavaPresse or Hario Skerton actually produces more uniform particles. The Sboly's advantage is convenience: push a button instead of hand-cranking for 3 minutes. It's a trade-off between quality and effort.
Does the Sboly have a timer or auto-shutoff?
No timer, but it does have an auto-shutoff that triggers when the hopper runs empty. You control the amount by how many beans you put in the hopper.
The Verdict
The Sboly conical burr grinder is the cheapest real burr grinder you can buy. It makes drip and French press coffee that tastes better than blade-ground coffee. It fails at espresso and anything requiring a true fine grind. If your budget is firmly under $50 and you drink drip coffee, it's a solid starting point. Just know that you'll probably outgrow it within a year and find yourself shopping for something better.