A standard espresso is a 1:2 ratio: twice the coffee’s weight in liquid, so 18g of ground coffee makes 36g of espresso. A ristretto is shorter, around 1:1.5. A lungo is longer, around 1:3. All three use the same dose; what changes is when you stop the shot.
That is the whole idea, and it is why espresso is weighed rather than measured by eye. This guide gives you the yields for any dose, shows how to pull each style so it tastes right, and helps you pick one for your beans and your drink. The ratio calculator starts at 1:5 because it is built for filter coffee, so for espresso, use the chart below.
The three styles
| Style | Ratio | From 18g | Tastes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ristretto | 1:1 to 1:1.5 | 18–27g | Thick, syrupy, sweet, intense |
| Normale | 1:2 | 36g | Balanced; the reference point |
| Lungo | 1:2.5 to 1:3 or more | 45–54g+ | Lighter, thinner, more transparent |
The ratio is the weight of dry coffee to the weight of liquid in the cup. It does not count any water you add afterwards.
Shorter is stronger. A ristretto has the same coffee in less liquid, so it is more concentrated, heavier on the tongue, and usually sweeter. A lungo spreads it out: you taste more of the coffee’s lighter, more delicate notes, but it is easier to tip into bitterness.
Espresso yield chart
Find your dose on the left. Most home baskets are built for 14 to 22g.
| Dose | Ristretto 1:1.5 | Normale 1:2 | Lungo 1:3 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 14g | 21g | 28g | 42g |
| 16g | 24g | 32g | 48g |
| 18g | 27g | 36g | 54g |
| 20g | 30g | 40g | 60g |
| 22g | 33g | 44g | 66g |
Stay within the range your basket is made for, usually stamped on it or in the manual. An overfilled basket packs the coffee against the shower screen, and an underfilled one leaves the puck swimming in water. Change the ratio by changing the yield, not by forcing more coffee into the basket.
Why weigh it instead of measuring by volume
Crema is mostly gas, and it makes a shot look much bigger than it is. A fresh shot can be half foam, and the amount of crema changes with the beans, their age, and the roast. A shot glass marked in ounces or millilitres can be off by a third or more.
A scale under the cup reads the weight of the liquid whatever the crema is doing. One that reads to 0.1g and fits under the portafilter is all you need; the espresso page covers the rest of the gear.
How to pull each one
Stopping a shot early or late changes more than strength, because the coffee keeps extracting as water flows. Sour, bright flavours come out first, sweetness next, and bitterness last. So when you change the yield, you often need to nudge the grind to keep the shot balanced.
Ristretto. Stop the shot at about 1.5 times the dose. If it tastes sour, the shot ended before the sweetness arrived: grind a step finer, so the shorter shot runs a similar time to your normale.
Normale. The baseline recipe: 18g in, 36g out, in about 25 to 30 seconds. Dial this in first. The other two are easiest to find from here.
Lungo. Keep going to about three times the dose. With the same grind, the shot runs long and starts to taste bitter and drying. Grind a step coarser so the extra water passes through without over-extracting, aiming for roughly 30 to 40 seconds.
Taste wins over the clock in every case. How to dial in espresso explains why grind and yield are two separate levers, and the Espresso Compass turns a sour, bitter, or watery shot into one change for the next.
Which ratio for your coffee
Roast is the biggest factor.
- Dark roasts give up their flavour easily, and a long shot pulls out the ashy bitterness. Start at 1:1.5 to 1:2.
- Medium roasts suit the 1:2 default.
- Light roasts are dense and hard to extract. A short shot often tastes sour however fine you grind. Try 1:2.5, and up to 1:3.
Then think about the drink.
- For milk drinks, a ristretto or normale holds its own against the milk. A lungo tends to disappear into a latte. See how to make a latte.
- For drinking straight, use whatever tastes best with the beans. A sweet ristretto is a lovely way to drink a chocolatey dark roast; a light, floral coffee often shines as a lungo.
Lungo, Americano, and long black
All three make a longer drink from espresso, but they are not the same.
- A lungo pushes more water through the coffee. It extracts further, which adds bitterness as well as volume.
- An Americano is a normal shot with hot water added afterwards, usually 120 to 180g for a double. The shot is extracted normally, then diluted, so it is cleaner and less bitter than a lungo of the same size.
- A long black is the same drink made the other way round: hot water first, then the shot poured on top, which keeps more of the crema.
If you want a big cup from an espresso machine and a lungo tastes harsh, make an Americano instead. The added water is called bypass water, and the same trick makes a big cup from other small brewers.
When the machine sets the ratio
Pressurized baskets (double-walled ones, common on entry-level machines) are forgiving about grind, but they still let you choose when to stop the shot. Use the same yield chart. See pressurized baskets and pods.
Pod and automatic machines often use preset buttons. The “espresso” button is usually close to a normale or a little long; the “lungo” button pushes more water through the same pod. If the lungo tastes harsh, try the espresso button and top it up with hot water.
New to the words? Dose, yield, ristretto, and lungo are all in the glossary.