Ease of refill: Some mills and grinders have a narrow opening that makes it harder to smoothly funnel peppercorns into the chamber. Look for models with a large and easy-to-open access point. Some salt and pepper grinder sets don’t include the actual spices. You’ll need to buy your salt or pepper separately.

Manual vs. electric: To use a manual pepper mill, you'll fill a chamber and then turn a portion of the mill to grind the pepper. For electric grinders, you’ll fill a hopper and then push a button to grind. An electric grinder can be a good choice for those with dexterity or hand-strength issues, as the repetitive motion of grinding can get tiring with manual models.

While the thought of freshly ground salt or pepper at the press of a button might sound appealing, the reality can be different. We tested 15 pepper mills for this story. We filled each grinder to determine its maximum capacity and noted the weight of the full grinder. We compared the performance by grinding each mill for a controlled amount of time on the fine, medium and coarse settings. We weighed the output of each setting to help gauge how long it would take to season foods and measure for recipes. We tested salt and pepper grinder sets that are popular and sold at major retailers. We bought and paid for every mill set we tested. It has six fixed grinding settings that are easy to select and clearly labeled on the base of the mill. The grinding action was smooth. But it was somewhat difficult to refill, since it's designed with a center post to drive the grinder, and you must add the peppercorns around it.

It’s good practice to use a dry brush or cloth to fully clean out your grinders before refilling them. Creation Consumer Finance Ltd is authorised and regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (Register no. 311518). Salt and pepper grinders are every cook's staple, but we've tested the most popular from Joseph Joseph, Le Creuset, ProCook, Peugeot, Salter and more, and found a big difference in how easy they are to fill and operate. With plenty in our kitchenware range, you can create a dining room to show off with pride. Start with our table cloths—from plain and understated to bold and beautiful, we offer cloths for various occasions. We also have wipe-clean options—perfect when little ones make a mess. Make sure you have plenty of placematson hand to minimise spillages to the table. They also keep hot plates off the table, helping protect sensitive tabletops.We assessed whether there was a differentiation between the size of the fine, medium and coarse grinds for each as well as how the sizes compared across models. Look for a grinder with multiple coarseness settings, as some of your guests may prefer their salt or pepper finely grounded, while others like it a bit more coarse. Typically, grinders offer between two and three adjustable settings, with the third being a medium coarseness. With its ceramic grinding mechanism on top, this pepper mill won’t leave a ring of ground pepper on your surfaces every time you put it down. A simple twist of the collar adjusts the coarseness depending on the recipe of the day. We rated each mill on how easy it is to use with oily hands and dry hands. It tend to be the pricier grinders that are easy to use if you have oily hands. Time to grind a teaspoon