Follow every recipe to perfection with the GHI’s best kitchen scales
Accuracy is crucial in the kitchen. A few too many minutes in the oven, using the wrong setting on your mixer, or adding a little too much baking powder can all take your dinner from gourmet to the bin.
And while it’s often tempting to measure with your heart (garlic, we’re talking about you), with lots of ingredients adding the wrong amount makes that careful balance go awry. That’s why having a good set of kitchen scales is so important.
In fact, when it comes to baking it’s a must. Add too much flour and you’ll be faced with a dry mix. Add too little and you’ll have a gloopy mess on your hands… There’s certainly truth to the idea that baking is a science, not an art.
Luckily, the GHI has put lots of kitchen scales to the test to give you the confidence that your cakes and bakes will come out perfectly every time. Here are our top picks to shop now or read on for our full reviews of the best kitchen scales.
What to look for when buying kitchen scales?
There’s not masses of variety when it comes to kitchen scales, but there are a few subtle differences to look out for.
What are you weighing?
If you’re planning on using your scales to measure ground coffee, look for more sensitive ones. The Bodum BISTRO Barista Scale, for example, measures to a tenth of a gram, giving a level of accuracy that you don’t typically need when baking.
If you’re curious about what’s in your meals, some kitchen scales also boast smart capabilities, analysing the food you’re weighing and sharing nutritional information including calories, protein, carbohydrates and fat.
Digital versus mechanical
The simplicity of mechanical scales has made them a popular choice for bakers across the decades, however, they aren’t the most accurate or reliable, so we’ve focused on digital scales in this list. While traditional scales have that old-school charm, they tend to lack the speed of digital scales.
Of course, you can also use cup and spoon measurements when baking, but these rarely provide a good level of accuracy due to the different densities of ingredients.
Functions
Two helpful functions to have on your radar are the 'zero' and 'tare' buttons. The zero function does exactly what it says on the tin and resets the weight back to zero grams, helping to recalibrate the scales before you start weighing again.
Alternatively, the tare button is handy when you place a bowl or container onto the scales, and you don’t want to include it in the final weight reading.
Measurements
Before choosing your scales, look at which measurements they offer. All the scales on this list convert between metric and imperial measurements and most weigh liquid and solid ingredients.
Also note what the maximum weight is for your scales. Going over the specified weight limit could break the sensors and prevent an accurate reading. Most of the scales below weigh up to five kilograms, however some, like the Zwilling Enfinigy Digital Kitchen Scale, go up to ten kilograms.
How we test kitchen scales
To find the best kitchen scales, our testers use 50-gram, 500-gram and 1000-gram calibrated weights. They put them on each scale five times to assess its accuracy, noting down the results and calculating an average.
Of course, the chances are you won’t do this in your kitchen, so they then measure out the ingredients in this banana loaf recipe, using a separate set of scales as a control to make sure they’re weighing out the same amount of flour, condensed milk and banana each time. Our testers weigh everything three times, again calculating an average.
They also time how long it takes for the scales to settle and display the final weight, and score ease of use, design and instructions.
Digital Kitchen Scales
Score: 95/100
Our winning set of scales is a piece of kit everyone will love. Its unique design features a removeable and dishwasher-safe 1.8-litre bowl which neatly slots into place, automatically setting the scales to zero.
Each time we weighed ingredients, clear readings popped up on the digital display within just half a second. And it was amazingly accurate in our test kitchen, with just one reading coming up slightly out – and only by two grams.
It charges via a USB-C cable, so you’ll never have to worry about replacing batteries and a handy icon alerts you when the power is running low.
Digital Kitchen Scales
Score: 93/100
We were pleasantly surprised by this great value runner-up which excelled across our tests. It was one of the fastest models to display an accurate weight, taking under 0.9 seconds. And it lost just one mark when weighing the ingredients for our banana loaf recipe; it was one gram out when weighing the condensed milk (hardly a bake breaker).
The clear LCD display stayed on for two minutes before automatically turning off, giving us plenty of time to measure everything out. Some dirt stuck under the stainless-steel disk, but otherwise it was easy to wipe away any mucky fingerprints.
KS1S Smart Digital Kitchen Scales
Score: 92/100
This is the only smart scale on this list and works thanks to an accompanying app that tracks the nutrients and calories of each selected ingredient. It was easy to use and informative if you're looking for more detail on what you’re eating.
As a normal set of scales, it was amazingly accurate, out by 1.3 grams at worst in our tests. Results appeared in just 1.1 seconds on the easy-to-read display too.
Scale
Score: 91/100
Able to weigh to a tenth of a gram, this scale is for the coffee nerds among us. On test, it was excellent at weighing out smaller ingredients (like coffee beans and grounds) but less accurate with heavier weights. This wouldn’t be noticeable when cooking though – it was only 1.4 grams out when weighing 1000 grams.
There were a few dirt traps but otherwise testers loved the design; it’s easy to read, and sturdy with non-slip feet.
Good Grips Everyday Glass Food Scale
Score: 89/100
On average, this sleek, lightweight scale was never more than one gram out in test and took less than a second to confirm the measurement. It also impressed for overall ease of use – the glass surface proved no trouble to clean, and the low battery and weight overload message were helpful.
The countdown from three before the scale switched on was mildly annoying and the screen was difficult to read at some angles (clearest directly above) but those are little irks that won’t stop you from flexing your Bake Off muscles.
Dual Platform LCD Digital Kitchen Weighing Scales
Score: 88/100
We’re big fans of Ooni’s pizza ovens, so we couldn’t wait to get our hands on its kitchen scales and perfect our dough recipe too. There are two weighing platforms on it; the smaller of the two measures down to a tenth of a gram (ideal for salt and yeast) and the larger one has a maximum weight of 10 kilograms… That’s a lot of pizza dough!
Both were fantastic at their respective roles and were fairly speedy too, taking under 1.2 seconds to settle. Ideally, we’d like a weighing bowl but that’s just us being picky.
Enfinigy Digital Kitchen Scales With LCD Display
Score: 88/100
If speed is of the essence, this is the scale for you. It was one of the fastest on test, taking 0.8 seconds to show up results when tasked with weighing all the different cake ingredients. It didn’t disappoint in terms of accuracy either, proving fairly reliable.
We also liked that it’s not battery operated. Simply pop it onto charge with the USB cable after use and you’ll never run the risk of the scale switching off mid-weighing!
There was one notable bugbear though; the button to change the measurement units is on the underside of the scale, meaning in the (admittedly rare) situation that you need to switch them midway through use, it’s fiddly to do so.
SwitchScale Kitchen Scales
Score: 87/100
Ticking the boxes for both accuracy and speed, our testers loved this intuitive scale. The set’s USP is the accompanying bowl which flips, acting as either the weighing surface for whole ingredients or as a bowl for loose ones.
The bowl isn’t dishwasher safe, but testers wiped it clean swiftly and appreciated the compact design when popping it back in the cupboard.
Arc Pro Kitchen Scale
Score: 86/100
This sleek scale stood out for the way it displayed an accurate weight reasonably fast (under 1.4 seconds), nailing our tests with the 50-gram weight and when measuring self-raising flour. It struggled more with larger weights such as the 1000-gram weight, where it was out by almost four grams.
For quick baking tasks though, it would be an asset in the kitchen – it’s responsive, easy to read and the stainless-steel surface simply wipes clean.
Electronic Bake Of It Kitchen Scales
Score: 85/100
This scale will make a great sous chef for any avid baker. It features two rulers along the edge in millimetres and inches and a handy conversion chart between litres, cups, and pints.
On test, it was one of the most accurate sets when weighing actual ingredients – it was spot on with the bananas and self-raising flour. Technically, it was the slowest to display a final result, but this shouldn’t be noticeable, as it still settled in an average of 1.6 seconds.
Dry & Liquid Digital Glass Top Kitchen Scale
Score: 85/100
KitchenAid’s stand mixers are iconic, so we were excited to see whether this scale lived up to the brand’s reputation. Our results were mixed; it was accurate weighing our set weights but less consistent measuring actual food, coming in nearly three grams off when weighing bananas and self-raising flour.
Unlike most scales that have a button for switching units, there’s a control knob instead. This will suit if you want something more tactile, but note it created some dirt traps around the bottom. Overall, though, this premium scale was easy to use and reactive.
1036 SVSSDR Disc Digital Kitchen Scale
Score: 85/100
As one of the only scales to score full marks for its design, this disc-shaped design would make a fantastic addition to your kitchen. The controls were responsive, the display was clear, and testers loved the quality build. At times the lightweight design resulted in issues though – testers found that if you pressed the buttons along the front too hard, the scale would tip forwards.
In terms of accuracy, the larger weights proved a challenge at times – it was two grams off when weighing condensed milk – but it was one of the fastest scales in the lab, giving testers results in under 0.9 seconds.
Phantom Digital Kitchen Scale
Score: 84/100
Salter is well known for its kitchen scales, which is why we have three on our list. And this proved another reliable pick, performing reasonably well throughout testing.
It was just 1.2 grams out in our 1000-gram weight test but fell short when weighing condensed milk, coming in over 3.3 grams off. It was swift though, giving us a final weight too in 1.4 seconds.
Testers also liked the uncluttered display and the detailed accompanying instructions that helped them start baking in no time.
The verdict on kitchen scales
It was difficult to fault our winner for accuracy, speed, and design, making the Smeg Kitchen Scales a great accessory to have for prepping all food.
However, at such an affordable price, you can’t go wrong by opting for the Amazon Basics Digital Kitchen Scale instead, which also nailed our accuracy tests.
Why you should trust the Good Housekeeping Institute
Having tested products for the last 100 years, the GHI knows how to put a product to the test to see if it’s worthy of a place in your home. And baking and kitchen appliances are something we’ve a lot of experience in.
Our tests for kitchen scales were designed by Blossom Boothroyd, our homes testing manager, to ensure everything is fair and unbiased.
Our homes writer, Megan Geall, has helped to analyse the tests and bring you reviews which cover everything you need to know about the best kitchen scales to buy now.
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