The Krups GVX231 is a compact, electric burr coffee grinder designed for people who want fresher-tasting coffee without spending a fortune. With a 200g bean hopper, adjustable grind and cup selector, it’s a clear step up from cheap blade grinders while still very much in the budget-friendly camp.
Krups is a well-known name in home coffee gear, and this model focuses on the basics: consistent grinding, simple controls and a small footprint that suits UK kitchens. Priced under £50, it sits at the value end of the grinder market, making it an appealing upgrade for anyone just getting into grinding their own beans.
With a strong 4.6 out of 5 rating from well over 300 owner reviews, it’s clearly doing something right, especially for the money.
The Krups GVX231 is ideal for coffee drinkers who are ready to move beyond pre-ground coffee or basic blade grinders, but don’t want to spend barista-level money. If you mostly brew using a filter machine, cafetière or drip brewer, the range of grind settings and cup selector will suit you nicely.
It’s a good fit for small to medium households. The 200g bean capacity is enough to fill a standard 10–12 cup filter jug, but the machine itself is slim and fairly tall, so it won’t hog worktop space. If you make a few cups a day, it will feel perfectly sized.
This model suits beginners and casual enthusiasts more than hardcore espresso hobbyists. With 17 grind settings and a simple dial system, it’s straightforward to use and adjust, but it doesn’t offer the ultra-fine, highly tuneable control that serious home baristas often look for.
If your budget is firmly under £50 and you want fresher, more flavourful coffee at home, this grinder hits a very comfortable sweet spot.
The big plus here is that the Krups GVX231 uses burr grinding rather than blades. Burrs crush the beans more evenly, helping your coffee taste smoother and more balanced compared with the harsh, inconsistent grind you get from many cheap grinders.
The 17-step grind adjustment gives a decent spread from coarse to relatively fine, so you can move from cafetière to filter and moka pot by simply twisting the dial. This flexibility is especially handy if you use more than one brewing method.
The built-in cup selector is another genuinely useful touch. You can set roughly how many cups you’re making and let the grinder portion out the right amount of coffee, reducing waste and guesswork.
Owners rate it highly for the price, and the 2-year manufacturer warranty adds welcome peace of mind on what is already a budget-friendly purchase.
At 110 watts, the motor is on the modest side, which is fine for small batches but may feel slow if you regularly grind at the coarser end for big pots of coffee. It’s built for everyday home use, not heavy-duty grinding sessions.
While 17 grind settings sound generous, the adjustment is stepped rather than infinitely variable, so getting the exact sweet spot for more demanding espresso setups can be tricky. If you’re a serious espresso enthusiast, you may find it a bit limiting.
There’s no mention of anti-static treatment or noise reduction features, so you should expect some clinging grounds and a fairly typical grinder noise level. It’s not likely to be outrageously loud, but it won’t be whisper-quiet either.
Finally, the overall feature set is quite basic: no timer, no digital display and no advanced dosing system. That simplicity is part of how it stays affordable, but some buyers may miss those extras.
Living with the Krups GVX231 is largely about convenience. Its tall, slim design (around 26cm high and just 13cm wide) means it tucks neatly into a corner of the worktop or under most wall cabinets, and it’s easy enough to move around if you prefer to store it in a cupboard.
Using it is straightforward: fill the 200g hopper with beans, pick your grind level with the side dial and set the cup selector to the number of cups you want. Once you’ve used it a few times, it becomes a quick, almost automatic part of your morning routine.
Cleaning is fairly simple for this type of grinder. The grounds container can be removed and rinsed, and while you’ll still want to brush out the burr area every so often to keep flavours fresh, there’s nothing overly fiddly in the basic design.
Because this is a budget-friendly burr grinder, you should expect the usual background whirr when it’s running. It’s brief rather than constant, so most households will find it perfectly acceptable for a morning grind.
For everyday brewing, the Krups GVX231 performs solidly. The 110-watt motor drives a burr grinding mechanism designed to give a more even particle size than spinning blades, which helps your coffee extract more predictably and avoids the dust-and-chunks mix that often leads to bitterness.
The 17 grind settings cover a useful range, from coarse for cafetières down through medium for drip and pour-over, to fine enough for moka pots and some basic espresso machines. The steps between settings are noticeable but not huge, so you can dial in a preferred grind for each brewing method and leave it there.
The 200g bean hopper and 12-cup rated capacity mean you can grind for a full family breakfast pot in one go. The cup selector acts as a simple dosing aid, saving you from weighing beans every time if you’re not inclined to be ultra-precise.
There are no digital frills here: no LED display, Bluetooth or smart controls. Instead, you get mechanical dials and an on/off control, which many users will actually prefer for their reliability and ease of use. The 2-year warranty underlines that this is a machine built for day-to-day domestic use rather than specialist coffee experiments.
Overall, the feature set is focused firmly on the core job – turning beans into reasonably consistent grounds with minimal fuss – and it does that credibly at this price point.
As a coffee grinder priced under £50, the Krups GVX231 represents strong value for money. Burr grinders at this level are often a mixed bag, but this model delivers consistent grinding, a sensible capacity and practical controls without wandering into premium pricing.
The combination of a 200g hopper, 17 grind settings and a cup selector would typically cost more, especially from a recognised brand. The high owner rating of 4.6 out of 5, backed by hundreds of reviews, reinforces the feeling that most buyers are pleasantly surprised by how much they’re getting for the outlay.
If you want ultra-precise espresso control or a heavy-duty metal build, you’ll need to look to more expensive grinders. But for anyone after a straightforward, reliable step into burr grinding, the GVX231 offers a lot of everyday usability for a modest spend.
The Krups GVX231 is a very capable entry-level burr grinder that hits the sweet spot between price and performance for most home coffee drinkers. It offers a noticeable upgrade in flavour over pre-ground coffee or cheap blade grinders, while staying compact, easy to use and affordable.
Its 17 grind settings, 200g capacity and cup selector make it versatile enough for cafetières, filter machines and moka pots, and the strong user reviews suggest it’s a dependable choice for daily use. The compromises are mainly around power, fine-tuning for serious espresso and the lack of premium extras.
If you’re a budding coffee enthusiast looking for your first proper grinder, or you simply want better-tasting morning coffee without overcomplicating things, the Krups GVX231 is a smart buy. Demanding espresso fans may want to invest in a more advanced grinder, but for most households this one will do the job very nicely.
