Last Updated on January 22, 2022 by John Moretti
Coffee filters can affect the taste of your favorite cup of coffee, and you will be surprised that there is a lot to deal with. Get to know the 8 best coffee filters and choose which will suit your liking.
There are many options for coffee filters available for all kinds of coffee brewing. The Cafelissimo Stainless Steel Pour Over Filter, Melitta Paper Basket filters, Mr. Coffee Filters, Yeosen Reusable Cone filter, Gold Tone Reusable filter, Cold Brew Cloth filter are a few of the best ones.
When you’re putting a fresh pot of coffee on to brew, you might not pay much attention to the coffee filter. You should know coffee filters can significantly affect the taste of your coffee. Let’s talk about which coffee filters are the best filters.
1. Mr. Coffee Paper Filters
The Mr. Coffee paper filters are made for most drip coffee machines and are available in basket shape with 8 to 12 cup sizes.
When you are brewing a lot of coffee like in an office and use many filters, it makes sense to look for the best value for money coffee filters.
2. Cafelissimo Stainless Steel Pour Over Coffee Filter and Brewer
The Cafelissimo pour-over cone-shaped coffee filter is made from stainless steel and comes in one to two cups. It gives you brewing control and provides an aromatic heavy-bodied rich coffee. The Cafellissimo Paperless Pour Over coffee brewer and filter is our top pick.
This excellent coffee filter was designed by three baristas and a designer from Portland. The Cafellissimo is a 2-in-1 brewer and filter designed to make great-tasting coffee quick and easy. The cone-shaped filter is designed for brewing 1 or 2 cups at a time which is the same size as the number 2 filter.
The bottom part of the brewer is made from ultra-fine double mesh, making sure no sediments end up in your cup. The 4-inch-wide base fits comfortably on any mug.
You can take your Cafellissimo coffee filter with you on hiking and camping trips. It is lightweight at only 3.3 ounces and, unlike other pour-over drippers, durable enough to be stuck in a backpack. It is both a brewer and a filter and produces no waste.
3. Yeosen Reusable Number 4 Cone Filter
The Yeosen Stainless steel cone-shaped filter is made for pour-over or drip coffee machines and is available in the number 4 size.
This conical filter scores durability, price, and functionality and is reusable, giving it an environmental advantage over single-use filters.
The Yeosen coffee filter has no plastic parts and is made entirely from food-grade materials. With its excellent health certifications of BPA-free, lead-free, and DEHP-free, you don’t have to worry about any compounds leaching into your coffee,
The number 4 size is perfect for making 8 to 12 cups of coffee. It is compatible with most coffee machines like Cuisinart, Ninja, OXO, and Hamilton Beach, as well as your home pour-over brewer.
4. Melitta Paper Basket Filters
Most drip coffee machines use Melitta paper basket filters that are basket-shaped and available in 8 to 12 cup sizes.
These coffee filters were first invented in 1908 by Melitta Bentz, the founder of the German coffee company Melitta.
Their premium, high-quality paper, and thicker than most standard papers make it very popular. Their excellent paper quality ensures the filters never tears or flop over in the coffee maker. Well-designed, well-made coffee filters by years of experience make the Melitta paper coffee filters our best paper filter pick.
They are available in 8 to 12 cup sizes and are compatible with all coffee makers. You can purchase them in unbleached or bleached. Our preference is the unbleached natural brown kind because it has a smaller environmental footprint and compost.
5. Cloth Coffee Filters for Cold Brew Systems
Cloth coffee filters are used for cold brew coffee systems. Cold brew coffee is made without any heat. This way of coffee brewing provides a smooth taste with low acid content.
In a large brewing container, cold water and ground coffee are brewed without heat. These cloth coffee filters are washable and convenient and are available in a 5-gallon size that fits most cold brew systems.
6. Unbleached Natural Brown Paper Coffee Filters
The unbleached natural brown paper cone coffee filters are made from 100% wood pulp and bleach-free for most drip coffee makers. They provide a smooth taste and filter out all coffee grounds. It is available in a 200 pack and suitable for 2 to 4 cups of coffee.
7. PureHQ Reusable K Cups Coffee Filters
The PureHQ is made from stainless steel and BPA-free plastic made for single-serve brewers. These coffee filters are a great solution to K Cups’ negative environmental impact. The stainless-steel pod-shaped filters are compatible with any K Cup machine as well as the Keurig 2.0 models.
The mesh is micro-etched, which prevents clogs and leaks while providing excellent coffee extraction.
These reusable, environmentally friendly refillable pods can save as much as 80% on the cost of buying traditional K Cups. When you use your favorite ground coffee, you will be sure your coffee is not stale. Cleaning is a little more complicated than simply throwing a used K Cup away. It will only take a minute to clean, and the planet will thank you.
8. Goldtone Re-usable Coffee Filter
The Goldtone reusable coffee filter is made from stainless-less steel used for drip coffee. The basket-shaped coffee filter is available in 8 to 12 cup sizes.
This coffee filter fits most 8 to 12 cup coffee makers and is made in the US from surgical-grade metal woven mesh and BPA-free plastic. It is very durable enough for a lifetime.
It is straightforward to clean; it just needs a rinse under running water or wash in the dishwasher. It has a foldable handle that makes it easy to remove from the coffee machine.
Different Types of Coffee Filters
The materials of these coffee filters affect the outcome of your brewed coffee. Here are the different types of coffee filters available for all kinds of coffee brewing techniques.
1. Paper Coffee Filters
Paper filters remove most of the coffee sediments and oils, giving you a crisp, light, and clean cup of coffee. Paper coffee filters are made to fit specific shapes and sizes and shapes of coffee makers like flat-bottomed or cone shapes. Paper filters are made of unbleached or bleached paper and can vary in thickness.
Some cheaper coffee filter brands use thinner paper that does not filter coffee oils very well. These are often sold in bulk and for single use only.
If you buy high-quality coffee and want to taste the light-bodied flavor of your favorite coffee beans, then using a paper filter is the best option. Using paper filters makes cleaning up quick and easy.
- Cons: The negative side of using paper filters is that their waste damages our environment. In the United States alone, over 200 million paper coffee filters are discarded each year, which is 11,000 trees per day.
2. Metal Coffee Filters
Stainless-steel coffee filters are typically made from a fine woven wire mesh material. Some stainless-steel coffee filters are gold-plated and referred to as gold-tone coffee filters.
This coffee filter produces a more robust flavored coffee because it filters out the coffee sediments but not the flavor-packed oils. Fruity and sweet coffee flavors are found in the oils that are absorbed by paper filters. Using a metal filter, you end up with a more aromatic and richer coffee.
Metal filters are available in cone-shaped or flat styles that will fit most coffee makers. These filters are reusable and last a lifetime if properly cleaned and maintained.
Metal filters create no waste, unlike paper filters. Even though throwing a paper filter away might be easier, it takes only a minute to rinse a metal filter, and they are dishwasher safe.
- Cons: However, some micro-sediments might end up in your cup.
3. Nylon Coffee Filters
The fine nylon mesh-type coffee filters are mounted to a plastic basket. The nylon filter has the same filtering qualities as a metal filter. They are available in flat-bottomed or cone styles and are usually cheaper than metal-type coffee filters.
- Cons: However, they are less durable than metal filters, but if you properly clean and handle them with care, you will get good use from them.
4. Cloth Coffee Filters
These coffee filters are made from natural fabric like muslin or cotton cloth. When placed into a filter basket, they allow more coffee grounds to pass through than paper filters.
Cloth filters remove more sediments than a metal filter giving you a clean cup and maintaining the oils a paper filter would absorb. This gives you an aromatic and flavorful coffee with a medium body.
If you take good care of the cloth filter, it can be reused about 100 times before changing it, making it a more environmentally-friendly choice.
- Cons: The only negative about using cloth filters is they are more challenging to maintain. They are not disposable like paper filters and lack durability. They require special care to be appropriately maintained should be thoroughly rinsed after use and stored in water in the fridge to stop mildew.
Unbleached or Bleached Paper Coffee Filters
Unbleached and bleached coffee filters are widely available; there is not much difference in the taste of coffee from both. The only difference that divides the two is the way they are made.
Bleached Paper Coffee Filters
Typically, bleached paper coffee filters are white. Unprocessed paper is brown, and white coffee filters have been bleached to become white. Natural, unprocessed paper is brown.
There are two ways these paper filters are whitened.
- The first method is chlorine bleaching which uses chlorine to remove the brown color. The chlorine bleaching method takes longer and has a negative environmental impact by increasing toxic waste, air, and water pollution.
- The second method is oxygen bleaching which doesn’t require much processing and is less impactful.
If you want to know which method was used on your coffee filters, there will be a label on the packaging. Coffee filters labeled with “TCF” have been processed without chlorine bleaching.
Unbleached Paper Coffee Filters
Unbleached paper coffee filters are unprocessed filters and easily recognizable in their natural brown color. No chemicals are used in the making of these coffee filters.
Some people say they can taste an aftertaste from these paper coffee filters, but that is easily solved by giving the filter a quick rinse with hot water before use. Unbleached paper coffee filters are the better choice.
Filter Shape
Most coffee filters are used either for a pour-over coffee maker or a drip coffee maker. The shape of the filter you require will depend on your coffee brewing method. Most coffee makers use a basket-shaped filter, whereas others require conical filters.
If you don’t already know and want to find out which shape you need for your coffee machine, just have a look at your coffee maker’s operating manual. Most Pour-over brewers use conical filters.
Coffee Filter Sizes
Generally, basket coffee filters are sized for 8 to 12 cups of coffee. This is the standard size for drip coffee makers. Some smaller coffee makers have smaller baskets that make 4 to 6 cups.
- Conical filters are available in different sizes, which are #1, #2, #4, and #6 sizes.
- The #1 filter is made for a single cup, in a single-serve coffee machine, or a one-cup pour-over.
- The #2 filter is a little bigger and used for 2 to 6 cup coffee makers or a 2-cup pour-over.
- The #4 is the most common and popular size that caters to 8 to 12 cups.
- The #6 is the biggest size and not widespread. Most coffee machines are not made to fit such a large filter. The number 6 size filter can be used for 10 cups of pour-overs.
Conclusion
It does not matter what kind of coffee roast you use. The taste of your coffee will be affected if you don’t use a good quality coffee filter. We hope you can choose between the metal, paper, cloth, or nylon coffee filters from the eight best coffee filters listed above.
