If you’re a big fan of coffee you likely already know that making a cup of coffee at home can be just as good as the one you’d buy at your local coffee shop.

Whilst coffee shops spend thousands on expensive equipment, brewing a cup at home doesn’t need to cost anywhere near that amount (unless you want to of course). But if you don’t have expensive equipment, how can you reach the same level as your favourite coffee shop?

We’ve put together a few tips and tricks that will hopefully elevate your coffee game to the next level regardless of how fancy or basic your coffee equipment is. Read on to find out more.

Tip 1: Buy Fresh

A cup of coffee will only ever be as good as the beans you’ve bought. If you’re buying pre-ground coffee that’s been on the shelves of a supermarket for months, chances are, you’re not going to have a great tasting coffee. Coffee is a perishable item and will reach its peak taste a few days after it’s been roasted and tends to go stale after about 6 weeks.

Bear in mind that the coffee you’ll find on the shelves of your supermarket has probably been there a long time.

The solution: buy fresh whole beans and invest in a grinder (it doesn’t have to be expensive) if you don’t already have one. It’s best to buy your beans from a roaster who will specify the roast date on their packaging. Also look out for roasters who roast little and often – this means they’re roasting their beans when they need them and it’s likely you’ll get fresh ones.

Tip 2: Keep your coffee fresh

Buying and consuming fresh beans within a month is the best way to ensure you’re drinking it at its peak taste. Our next tip is related to this – keep your coffee as fresh as you can for as long as possible.

The secret here is how you store your coffee. Air tight jars are our go-to as they minimise the effects of oxidation. A simple trick is to move your coffee beans to a smaller jar as you go through them.

Tip 3: Grind before you brew

When the coffee beans have been ground, they’re immediately exposed to the oxidation process. This essentially means they start to lose their freshness and flavour after just 30 minutes. Now imagine a bag of coffee that’s been pre-ground and has been sitting on a supermarket shelf for months…

With that magical 30 minute number in mind, our next tip is to grind your coffee just before you’re ready to make it. Of course, this might be seen as being a bit pedantic. But every little helps when it comes to making the perfect coffee.

Tip 4: Find your perfect measurements

One of my favourite aspects of coffee is how everyone consumes it in their own unique way. With that in mind, our final tip is to find the perfect measurements for YOU.

Always measure your coffee by weight rather than volume and then use these ratios as a rough guide:

Ultra strong coffee – 1 part coffee to 12 parts water

Medium strength – 1 part coffee to 20 parts water

Very light coffee – 1 part coffee to 30 parts water

As mentioned above, use this only as a rough guide. Experiment with different ratios to find your perfect brew.