25–30 seconds for a double espresso with an 18 g dose yielding 36 g. Faster means under-extracted (sour, thin); slower means over-extracted (bitter, woody). With light roasts, baristas sometimes intentionally pull longer shots.

How long should an espresso shot take?

25–30 seconds for a double espresso with an 18 g dose yielding 36 g. Faster means under-extracted (sour, thin); slower means over-extracted (bitter, woody). With light roasts, baristas sometimes intentionally pull longer shots.

Why that is

The extraction time is not a goal in itself, but an indicator. It shows how long the water was in contact with the coffee grounds under 9 bars of pressure — and therefore, how much was extracted from the coffee.

In 25–30 seconds, at a 1:2 ratio (18 g in, 36 g out), about 18–22% of the soluble compounds are dissolved from the grounds. This is the sweet spot where sweetness, fruitiness, and body are perfectly balanced.

Under 20 seconds: The water shoots through too quickly. It mainly dissolves the easily accessible fruit acids and sugars, but not enough to fill out a balanced cup. The espresso tastes thin, watery, and unpleasantly sour. The crema is pale and thin. The solution: grind finer.

Over 35 seconds: The water stays in contact with the grounds for too long. After the acids and sugars, it increasingly dissolves bitter and harsh astringent compounds. The espresso tastes bitter, dry, woody, or ashy. The crema gets dark and spotted. The solution: grind coarser.

Modern, light roasts in the specialty scene are a bit of an exception. Some baristas intentionally pull longer extractions (30–40 seconds) using higher temperatures and finer grinds, just to coax more sweetness and complexity out of these dense, highly acidic beans. This is a deliberate stylistic choice, not a mistake — and it requires experience and excellent equipment.

Crucially: time alone tells you very little. A 25-second shot can still taste awful if your dose is completely wrong. That’s why you always look at all parameters together: dose, ratio, time, and ultimately, taste.

In practice at Green Wall Coffee

At Sophienstraße 27, our typical shot time is around 27–28 seconds for an 18 g double. With particularly light, fruity single origins, I sometimes stretch it to 32–33 seconds — deliberately longer to tease out the sweetness. Our machine’s timer runs on every single shot. If you don’t have a built-in timer at home: the stopwatch on your phone does the job perfectly.

Related questions

• How do I make the perfect espresso?
• What is the ideal espresso ratio?
• My espresso gushes through — what to do?

You can find more in-depth information in the article How to make perfect espresso. Or drop by Sophienstraße 27 — Mon–Fri 8am–5pm, Sat 10am–5pm.