Brew this month
The home brewing guide for adults 21+

Brew better beer at home

Home brewing gear from first kit to kegerator, compared by maker specs, plus free calculators that show their formulas: ABV, priming sugar, keg PSI, IBU, color, strike water and water salts.

Start your first batch Open the brew tools
  • 11gear categories
  • 859products compared
  • 11free brew tools
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Brew this month

What to brew right now

Lager season, Märzen in March, Big Brew in May, summer heat, cider harvest and gift season. Pick a cold-winter or hot-summer garage.

Full calendar
November

Learn & gift season

Learn to Homebrew Day and gift season

Learn to Homebrew Day opens November, then gift season for brewers 21 and over: first kits, upgrades and well-carbonated bottles.

  • Learn to Homebrew Day is the first Saturday of November How-to
  • Shop gifts for brewers 21 and over Gear
  • Price out a first setup with your own numbers Open tool
  • Brew a stout or winter warmer now for the holidays How-to

Garage and basement temperatures swing with your climate and each year’s weather, so treat these as reminders, not rules. Event dates come from the American Homebrewers Association; check their site each year. Full calendar and sources.

Shop the brewhouse

Everything a home brewery runs on

Every piece of a home brewery, from the first kit to the kegerator, plus the yeast, chemicals and sanitizer it runs on.

Start where you are

Shop by situation

Start from where your brewing is today.

All situations
Your first brew dayExtract kits for 1–5 gallons, the checklist and what a first batch really…Apartment & small-space brewing1-gallon stovetop batches, 120V electric systems, small fermentation…Going all-grainBIAB, electric all-in-ones and three-vessel setups, plus the mill, chiller…Switching to kegsKegerator or keezer, corny kegs, CO2 safety, the carbonation chart and…Temperature control & summerControllers, chambers, heat wraps, swamp coolers and kveik for hot garages.Wine, cider, mead & kombucha1-gallon kits, juice-to-cider, honey wine and kombucha, no beer gear needed.Gifts for brewers (21+)Gifts by budget for adults 21+: first kits, upgrades and gear for brewers…
Free brew tools

Numbers with the math shown

Each calculator prints its formula, the source and a worked example: Tinseth, Morey, Palmer, BYO, BJCP and maker tech sheets. US units with a metric switch.

All tools
ABV calculatorWork out ABV from OG and FG with the standard and high-gravity formulas, hydrometer…Priming sugar calculatorHow much corn sugar, table sugar or DME to prime homebrew: CO2 volumes by style, residual CO2…Keg carbonation chart and PSI calculatorKeg carbonation chart and calculator: regulator PSI by beer temperature and CO2 volumes, with…IBU calculator (Tinseth)Calculate beer bitterness in IBU with the Tinseth formula: add hop additions by weight, alpha…Beer color calculator (SRM, Morey)Estimate beer color from your grain bill: malt color units to SRM with the Morey formula, EBC…Strike water calculatorStrike water temperature and volume for your mash with Palmer's infusion equation, plus step…Brewing water chemistry calculatorBrewing water salt calculator: gypsum, calcium chloride, Epsom, baking soda, salt and chalk to…Yeast pitch rate calculatorYeast pitch rate calculator: cells needed for ales and lagers by volume and gravity, dry yeast…Dilution and boil-off calculatorDilute wort to a target gravity, and work out pre-boil volume from your boil-off rate, boil…Homebrew startup budget builderAdd up what it costs to start homebrewing with your own prices: 1-gallon kit, 5-gallon extract…Printable brew-day log and recipe sheetFree brew-day log: record recipe, water and salts, mash, gravities, yeast, fermentation…
Brew safe

Three rules for every garage brewery

Short, sourced reminders that apply from the first extract kit to a 240V brewhouse.

Propane stays outdoors

CPSC: keep jet burners out of the garage and off the porch. An open garage door is still not outdoors, so go electric inside.

Brew-day safety
Respect CO2 and pressure

Cylinders upright and chained, a regulator every time, never above a vessel’s rated pressure, and bottle only at a stable gravity.

Kegging safely
21+, and no distilling

Homebrew is for adults of legal age and can’t be sold. TTB: making spirits at home is a federal crime, so we never cover stills.

Is homebrewing legal?
On the bench

Picks worth a closer look

Products our rankings keep coming back to, from many brands.

All rankings
Rankings

Best picks for home brewers

Ranked by the job: first kit, 120V all-in-one, fermentation controller, kegerator and more.

All rankings
Best of

Best beer making kits for beginners (1 to 5 gallons)

The best beer making kit for beginners, compared by batch size, what's in the box and what you still need to buy, from…

Best of

Best homebrew kits: starter sets, bundles and automated brewers

The best homebrew kit for your space and plans: 5-gallon bundles with kettles, glass and stainless setups, 1–2 gallon…

Best of

Best 1 gallon beer kits for small-batch brewing

The best 1 gallon beer kit for a stove and a small kitchen: Craft A Brew, Northern Brewer and BrewDemon kits, refills…

Best of

Best gifts for home brewers (21+): kits, tools and upgrades

The best gifts for home brewers 21 and over: first kits, the Palmer book, a Tilt hydrometer, an Inkbird controller, a…

Best of

Best all-in-one electric brewing systems (120V and 240V)

The best all-in-one brewing system for your outlet: Anvil, Grainfather, BrewZilla and budget 35L units compared by…

Best of

Best brew kettles for homebrewing (5 to 16 gallons)

The best brew kettle for your batch size: 5 to 16 gallon stainless kettles compared by steel grade, bottom, ports,…

Close-ups

Single-product reviews

One product, its listed specs, who it suits, who should skip it and what to buy instead.

All reviews
Review

Anvil Foundry 10.5 review (with the 6.5)

Anvil Foundry review: the 10.5 gal all-in-one on 120V (1600 W) or 240V (2800 W), its 16 lb basket, GFCI rules and who…

Review

Grainfather G30v3 review (110V)

Grainfather G30 review: the 110V G30v3 at 1600 W, 3–7 gal batches, an 18 lb basket and Bluetooth app control, plus why…

Review

KegLand BrewZilla Gen 4 review

BrewZilla Gen 4 review: the 35L 110V all-in-one with RAPT Wi-Fi, a built-in pump, step mashing and a chiller, plus the…

Head to head

Comparisons

Two systems, two fermenters or two finings side by side, with a clear verdict.

All comparisons
Versus

Anvil Foundry vs BrewZilla: 120V/240V all-in-one compared

Anvil Foundry vs BrewZilla Gen 4: wattage on 120V and 240V, grain capacity, pumps, chillers and Wi-Fi, from listings…

Versus

Grainfather G30 vs Anvil Foundry: 120V all-in-ones compared

Grainfather G30 vs Anvil Foundry: 1600 W on 120V, grain capacity, app control, chillers and the 240V option, from…

Versus

Extract vs all-grain brewing: time, gear and control compared

Extract vs all-grain brewing: how much malt each needs for 5 gallons, the extra gear and time all-grain adds, and who…

Learn

Guides from first batch to all-grain

Brewing, fermenting, kegging, water and yeast, plus wine, cider, mead and kombucha, and the law and safety around them.

All guides
Guide

How to brew beer at home (extract, step by step)

How to brew beer at home with an extract kit: sanitize, steep, boil, chill, pitch yeast, ferment and bottle, with…

Guide

How to brew all-grain: BIAB and all-in-one

How to brew all-grain beer with brew-in-a-bag or an electric all-in-one: milling, strike water, mash temperature,…

Guide

Homebrew equipment checklist

A homebrew equipment checklist by stage: boil, chill, ferment, measure, clean and package, with what kits include,…

Guide

How much does it cost to start homebrewing?

How much it costs to start homebrewing, by tier: gear lists for 1 gal kits, 5 gal extract, all-grain and kegging, plus…

Guide

Cleaning vs sanitizing brewing gear

Cleaning vs sanitizing brewing gear: why you need both, which products do which job (PBW, OneStep, Star San,…

Guide

Fermentation temperature guide

Fermentation temperature guide for ales, lagers and kveik: maker yeast ranges in °F and °C, why beer runs warmer than…

What the catalogue covers

859 products from 265 brands, by category

Beginner kits & first brewBeginner kits & first brew: 7272Brewing systems & chillersBrewing systems & chillers: 132132Fermenters & temp controlFermenters & temp control: 8080Kegging & draftKegging & draft: 118118Bottling & cappingBottling & capping: 6363Hydrometers & metersHydrometers & meters: 5353Ingredients & millingIngredients & milling: 8383Yeast & nutrientsYeast & nutrients: 4646Brewing chemicals & waterBrewing chemicals & water: 5757Cleaning & sanitizingCleaning & sanitizing: 4444Wine, cider, mead & kombuchaWine, cider, mead & kombucha: 111111

Quick answers

Is homebrewing legal in the US?
Yes, for adults 21 and over in all 50 states. Federal law allows 100 gal a year for a one-adult household and 200 gal for two or more adults, for personal or family use and never for sale. State and local rules vary, and distilling spirits at home is a federal crime without a permit.
What do I need to start homebrewing?
A beginner kit sized for your space, a pot big enough for its boil, sanitizer, bottles and caps, and a hydrometer. Each kit on this site lists what it still leaves you to buy.
How long does it take to make beer at home?
About three to four weeks for an extract ale: a few hours on brew day, about two weeks of fermentation and about two weeks of bottle conditioning.
Can I brew in my garage?
Yes with electric gear on a GFCI-protected circuit, or a stovetop kit indoors. Propane burners belong outdoors in open air, away from the house; CPSC says to keep them out of the garage even with the door open.
How much does it cost to start homebrewing?
It depends on the path: a 1-gallon kit, a 5-gallon extract setup or an all-grain system. The startup budget builder lists every item for your path and lets you enter your own prices.

What PSI should my keg be at?

Pick your beer temperature and the CO2 volumes you want; the chart shows the regulator setting, with an altitude correction. Nothing leaves your browser.

Open the keg chart