All-Grain Brewing vs Extract Brewing — What's the Difference?

What is the difference between all-grain brewing and extract brewing?

Extract brewing uses concentrated malt extract (liquid or dried) as the base fermentable, bypassing the mashing step. All-grain brewing starts from whole malted grain, requiring a mash to convert starches to sugars before boiling. Extract brewing is significantly simpler and faster; all-grain gives complete control over the recipe but requires more equipment and time — a typical all-grain brew day is 4–6 hours versus 30–60 minutes for extract.

What is extract brewing and is it worth doing?

Extract brewing uses liquid or dried malt extract as the base fermentable, combined with steeping specialty grains for colour and flavour, plus hop additions for bitterness and aroma. It's the ideal next step after kit brewing — far more control over your recipe without the complexity of all-grain. You can brew almost any style and produce genuinely excellent beer. Read our malt extract guide for ingredients.

Should a beginner try all-grain or extract brewing first?

Extract brewing is the right first step beyond kit brewing. It teaches recipe formulation, hop usage, and fermentation control without the complexity of mashing. Most experienced all-grain brewers started with extract and recommend it as the best transition. When you're comfortable with extract brewing and want maximum control and authenticity, all-grain is the natural next step. Browse malt extracts, hop pellets, and yeasts at BrewCo UK to start building your own recipes. Also see our hop guide and yeast guide for ingredient choices.