If you’re the kind of girl or guy who loves staying at home and messing around with the food supplies, you’ve just landed in the right place, as today’s piece is about the best kitchen scale money can buy. Back in the day, your grand-grand-mother probably used measuring spoons to bake the perfect cake and whatnot, but given the current technological developments, high precision digital kitchen scales have become dirt cheap and readily available, so anyone can afford one of those gadgets.
On top of that, a digital kitchen scale is like 3 levels up compared to, let’s say measuring cups, also known as ancient technology, so why bother with low-tech, right?
How to Choose the Best Kitchen Scale
Buying the best kitchen scale is not exactly rocket science, as in it doesn’t require a PHD in internet research; however, if you’re looking for the best deal and/or you’re on a limited budget, it’s worth reading this little “how-to”, as we’ve already done the research and combed internet for the best stuff, so you won’t have to. So here it comes, buying the best kitchen scale 101: regardless of what you’re going to use your kitchen scale for, whether we’re talking gourmet stuff like a 5-course dinner or just baking a ton of bread, these instruments are great for taking the strain out of weighing and measuring.
If you’re regularly cooking from scratch, digital scales are essential items in one’s cooking kit, and here’s the first clue: size matters, and before you ask, no, bigger is not necessarily better, especially if you want your kitchen scale stored away, that provided you’re not using it compulsively. Size is one thing, but precision is another matter altogether, and here the digital stuff comes into play. Digital kitchen scales are precision tools by definition; also, it’s easier to work with a digital scale than with an analogic variety, especially if you’re a millennial or beyond, i.e. you’re familiarized with digital gear.
Another factor to contemplate for a home-chef is ergonomics, as in how easy to clean the respective kitchen scale is, because we all know cleanliness is next to godliness, especially in the kitchen. It’s also worth mentioning that digital high-precision scales are excellent when it comes to measuring small and precise amounts of, ahem, food, and they’re indispensable if you’re on a strict diet or you’re cooking something gourmet-like, as in very complicated, and you don’t want to mess around with quantities.
Here’s what to look for: capacity (3 to 5 kilograms should be enough for home users), weighing platform (it should be large enough to accommodate your ingredients), tare and continues weighting (tare resets the scale to 0, while continuous weighting allows you to weigh a new item without having to remove the old one via resetting the scales), weighting bowl (look for a light variety with a pouring lip, a wide rim and a small base footprint), both imperial and metric measuring system, bench stability/no-slip base, liquid measure feature, display quality in the digital versions (legibility, as in easy to read displays with clear labeling), and/or easy to read increments in mechanical scales.
Best Kitchen Scales
Escali Primo P115C Precision Kitchen Food Scale
The Best Digital Kitchen Scale
We’ll start with one of the most popular kitchen scales in the galaxy, the Escali Primo P115C respectively, and we’re not joking either. Why is this oval-shaped kitchen scale so popular among chefs world-wide, you asked? First and foremost, it costs reasonably, it’s well designed, light-weight, has a digital display, it’s pretty accurate, has a capacity of 5 kilos or 11 lbs (it really hits the sweet-spot), and delivers weight readings in 1-gram/0.05 oz increments.
And that’s not all: the Escali Primo P115C comes with a lifetime warranty, which is amazing to say the least, not to mention the fact that its display and buttons are sealed, i.e. you won’t ruin your kitchen scale if you accidentally drop water or whatever liquid on it. Another good thing about the Escali Primo is that even if it has a large enough capacity to meet almost anyone’s demands in the kitchen, it’s compact enough (8.5 by 6 inches) to store it virtually anywhere, in the cupboard or in a drawer for example.
Moreover, this scale is very quick when it comes to measuring weights (it takes about one second) and it boasts one of the longest auto-off times in the industry. If you are wondering what we are talking about, well, most digital kitchen scales turn themselves off automatically after a designated period of time due to inactivity, and that can be annoying to some, especially if the respective period is too short; with the Escali Primo, you won’t have this problem, as it’s set-up to turn itself off after 4 minutes, which is almost double compared to other scales on the market.
Design wise, this kitchen scale comes with 3 rubber feet which hold it firmly into place and an elevated weigh-platform, in order to allow you to read the LCD display with ease when you’re using large bowls. Operating the Escali Primo is very easy, due to its intuitive and easy to use “interface” which consists of 2 buttons: one of them is used to tare and to turn it on and off, while the other switches between ounces, grams and pounds plus ounces. Bottom line, if you’re shopping for an affordable no-nonsense digital kitchen scale, the Escali Primo will not disappoint you.
- Well designed, compact, lightweight and grippy on all types of surfaces
- Intuitive controls, very easy to use, spill proof, simple to clean
- Comes with lifetime warranty, quick and very precise
- A tad small if you’re operating with large quantities
OXO Good Grips 11 Pound Stainless Steel Food Scale
Great Stainless-Steel Kitchen Scale
Next in line, we have the OXO Good Grips 11, a premium looking and feeling kitchen scale, and also significantly more expensive compared to the Escali Primo. The OXO Good Grips 11 features a stainless steel chassis, which is tough as nails (literally) and also smudge-resistant, and it’s capable of measure up to 11 pounds of food. What’s interesting and rather unique about this kitchen scale is its pull-out display; this special design trait is aimed at protecting the display from getting damaged or from shadowing from large bowls or plates.
Another advantage of using stainless still is that it makes the kitchen scale very easy to clean/disinfect, thanks in big part to its removable platform. The OXO Good Grips 11 runs on four AAA batteries, measures 9.5 by 7.25 inches, and features a big enough LCD display with decent legibility. Operation is pretty simple, as there are only 2 buttons to manage: an on/off button and a conversion unit button, which switches between oz, lb, g or kg.
However, despite its clean looks and good ergonomics, this unit has one major flaw: if you try to weigh small quantities, in the range of 1 to 3 grams for example, you’ll get flawed readings. Also, compared to the Escali Primo, the OXO is a tad slower at giving measurements, but this is not a deal breaker. It’s worth mentioning that the OXO Good Grips 11 makes weighing food individually a child’s play: all you have to do is to weigh 1 item on the plate, then zero out and quickly add another item, and so on and so forth. Overall, if you’re looking for a sleek stainless-steel made premium digital kitchen scale, this OXO unit is definitely worth the stretch.
- Well designed, decently accurate and easy to operate
- The slide-out panel is pretty cool and works as intended
- Easy to read, easy to clean
- Doesn’t do well on very small amounts (1-3 grams,1/8 oz)
My Weigh KD8000 Kitchen Scale
The Best Kitchen Scale For Baking
The My Weigh KD8000 costs almost double compared to the Escali Primo, and it’s also much larger, yet it comes with a few extra features that will make bakers happy. In terms of accuracy and rapidity, the My Weigh KD8000 is similar to the Escali Primo, which is great, but offers 17 pounds of capacity, i.e. more than 50 percent increase, and features baker’s percentages, provided you want to bake by ratio. Yes indeed, this is a feature for advanced chefs so to speak, but it’s nice to have especially if you want to scale recipes up and down.
Another great thing about the KD8000 is that it allows you to disable the auto-off feature, which is kind of rare in this segment. To make it really simple for our readers, this kitchen scale is aimed at advanced bakers, runs on 3 AAA batteries or you can power it separately via AC, comes with a backlit and legible display, and it’s relatively compact given its huge capacity, i.e. it measures 9.8 x 7.5 x 3.5 inches, so yeah, it’s not bigger than a pop-up toaster.
By advanced bakers, we mean people who want to bake a lot of bread at once or large batches of food, but don’t worry: despite its generous capacity, this baby is capable of delivering highly accurate readings, and its angled display is easy to read in any circumstances.
It’s also worth mentioning that the KD8000 is professionally calibrated from factory, can weigh ounces, grams and pounds, the tare function is easy to use, has rubberized legs, laminated buttons for protection and comes with a removable stainless steel platform for easy maintenance. What else can you ask in this world if you’re a baker?
- Big and legible display, easy to switch between modes, arrives with hinged gunk shield
- Professionally calibrated from factory, accurate to the gram, granularity and function
- Ergonomic design, solidly built, versatile, comes with AC power cord
- Possible quality control issues
GreaterGoods Nourish Digital Kitchen Scale
Perfect Balance of Style and Substance
The GreaterGoods Nourish is a very interesting choice if you’re looking for a smart kitchen scale, as it offers comprehensive nutritional information in order to help you with your specific health goals. Basically, with the GreaterGoods Nourish you’ll also get a nutritionist on the side, and on the cheap we may say, as this kitchen scale retails for around $50. The nutritional facts for approximately 2000 foods (we didn’t even know there are so many) including custom entries (99 of them) are displayed on the side of the kitchen scale in the shape and form of food-codes which provide detailed and specific results.
If you can’t find your desired food type, don’t worry, as the information required can be solicited via custom entries. This is what makes the GreaterGoods Nourish very special and any nutritionist’s wet dream, but since we’re not all obsessed with nutritional values and facts, we must also mention that this kitchen scale is very accurate, an important metric to look after in such a gadget, as it will deliver almost instant and accurate measurements within one gram or 0.1 ounce.
The buttons are high quality and touch-sensitive, and we must mention the tempered glass platform, which looks very classy and it’s fairly easy to clean, plus the fact that the scale can hold up to 5 kilos or 11 pounds, with no less than 4 sensors for improved accuracy and speed.
- Easy to clean, excellent display, touch sensitive buttons
- Looks and feels premium, low profile, comes with scratch resistant feet
- Offers several measurement options, calibrates automatically
- None really
Etekcity Smart Nutrition Scale
Smart Kitchen Scale for Fitness Enthusiasts
This is another nutrition-enabled kitchen scale, and, on top of that, is as smart as it comes, but more on that a little bit later. To begin with, the Etekcity Smart Food scale covers all the basics with flying colors, providing accurate and quick measurements between 3 and 5000 grams (5 kilos/11 pounds) in measurements increments of 1 gram or 0.04 oz. So, as far as kitchen scales go, this is (almost) as good as it gets.
But then, the Smart part comes into play, as this Smart Food scale is Bluetooth enabled and capable of syncing via your smartphone with various fitness apps like Apple health and Fit Bit, and we’re talking about exchanging data like vitamins, calories and minerals. From this point of view, it doesn’t get any better for nutrition enthusiasts, right? Moreover, this smart scale provides you with instant access to FDA’s food D-base, which means more than 270,000 foods, and yes, you can customize your own data as you see fit.
The Bluetooth module works with any Android or iOS running smartphone via the company’s proprietary VeSync app, and there’s also a barcode scanner mode, which allows you to add food intake by using the UPC barcode. But wait, there’s more: the Etekcity Smart Nutrition Scale can track macros, thus helping you make progress for healthier living by setting your goal of diet, Keta, or balanced, calculate calorie intake, store nutritional log and track square meals. The scale can effectively measure multiple units, has a tare function, and is well designed and easy to clean, as it’s built using high-quality stainless steel.
Amazingly enough, this tech marvel costs well under $50, so yeah, we’re totally sold on the concept. Maybe you should too.
- Smart design and uber-smart features
- Solidly built, looks and feels premium
- Sharp and legible screen, accurate and quick measurements
- App-syncing issues reported
Ozeri ZK14-S Kitchen Scale
Great Value for Money
If you’re on a very tight budget and looking for a dirt cheap kitchen scale, the Ozeri ZK14 comes to mind. Despite of its under $20 price tag, this kitchen scale is shockingly robust and well made, accurate as it gets, elegant and very easy to use. Now, even if the Ozeri ZK14 is compact and lightweight, it can accommodate your smallest as well as your largest cooking projects, being capable of weighing up to 5 kilos/11.24lbs in 1 gram/ 0.05 oz increments.
The philosophy behind the Ozeri ZK-14-S is immediate response, simplicity and accuracy, and its 1 gram graduation, i.e. the degree of precision of this little fellow, is comparable to more expensive models. As an interesting factoid, this cheap scale was used by the Harvard Medical School as part of a scientific study, so there you go, if it’s good enough for scientists, it will probably do a good job in your kitchen too. The tare net weight feature is available via the Precision Tare Button; this feature works by automatically subtracting the weight of any bowl or container, and the second Automatic Unit Button is used to convert between five units of measurement.
- Easy to clean, compact design, small footprint
- The display is large and easy to read
- Perfect for granular measurements, well built and durable
- The auto-shutoff function is set at 2 minutes and can’t be deactivated
Accuweight AW-KS001BB Digital Kitchen Scale
Great Kitchen Scale For The Price
The Accuweight AW-KS001BB is another interesting choice if you’re looking for a cheap digital kitchen scale, which, unlike other affordable gadgets, comes with 3 years warranty; and yes, getting 3 years of peace of mind for under $20 is nothing to scoff at. The scale features an elegant yet minimalist design, with a beautiful tempered glass surface which is fairly easy to clean, and comes with 4 high precision sensors for accurate measurements.
Speaking of measurements, the Accuweight AW-KS001BB does a decent job, being capable of providing you with readings between 5g to 5000g/11 lbs (max capacity) in pounds/ounces, grams/ML. Since this is an electronic device, you’ll also get a couple of useful features, including an auto shut off function to save battery and a zero/tare function; by the way, this digital scale comes with a legible backlit LCD display (1.89’’ wide) plus 2 AAA batteries included in the retail package.
Bottom line, if you’re looking for an elegant, small and portable kitchen scale to help with losing weight and/or portion control, the Accuweight AW-KS001BB will fit the bill.
- Looks and feels great, easy to clean and to store
- Sensitive buttons, good customer service
- 3 years warranty
- Accuracy issues reported
- Slow readings
AmazonBasics Stainless Steel Digital Kitchen Scale
The Best Kitchen Scale For Coffee
Last but not least, here comes the cheapest digital kitchen scale in our round-up, the AmazonBasics Stainless Steel respectively. Retailing for literally peanuts money, the AmazonBasics kitchen scale would make for the perfect addition to your baking paraphernalia, as it makes for a no-nonsense digital scale that’s capable of getting the job done with zero drama. To make a long story short, you’ll get advanced sensor technology for accurate and quick responses, a widescreen LCD display, a tare button and a unit button that switches between ounces, grams, and pounds, plus 2 AAA batteries included in the retail package for a bump-free ride.
This cheap kitchen scale is great for coffee, as it can weigh up to 11 pounds/5 kilos with a minimum of 2 grams, which is basically a tsp of coffee, and can be powered-on even if you already have something on the scale, i.e. it automatically tare. The tare feature comes with a history function, and the auto shut-off thing is long enough to not get on your nerves, which is kind of rare.
- Well designed, easy to use, reliable and inexpensive
- Amazing value for money
- Compact size, easy to clean, quick and accurate readings
- None really at this price
Conclusion
Whether you’re looking for a “posh” kitchen scale like the Escali Primo, or you’re just shopping for a quick bargain (read AmazonBasics), today’s article should help you make the right decision. Some scales are better than others, obviously, and some are more expensive, but after all’s said and done, just go read the article thoroughly and then choose the kitchen scale that suits your specific needs. Look at the Pros and Cons of each item that caught your eye, then at your budget and just go for it.
