Best Kitchen Scales Cook’s Illustrated & America’s Test Kitchen For 2021

A food scale can be a useful tool in your kitchen when it helps you to measure ingredients precisely and create amazingly delicious dishes. However, It is quite hard to tell exactly which one is the best kitchen scale because there are many scales with fairly good quality on the market. 

If you are about to purchase this device but don’t know which one to choose, don’t worry. You have just found the right page.

This post will show you what you need to consider when buying a food scale and recommend the best pick for you.

Reviews Of Best Digital Kitchen Scales America’s Test Kitchen

#1. AmazonBasics Stainless Steel Digital Kitchen Scale – Best Price

If you are interested in a basic kitchen scale with great quality but are on a tight budget, we will highly recommend this handy product from AmazonBasics. 

Of all the scales mentioned in this article, this product is one the most affordable. It is hardly half the price of a high-end product, yet it offers more than a mere standard set of features often found in products with similar cost. What a bargain!

The 7-inch diameter weighing platform can handle ingredients up to 11 pound/5 kilograms in weight. Whenever you scale something or make any adjustment, numbers will be displayed clearly on the LCD screen, so you can easily read them even when weighing large foods.

The scale is simply designed with two buttons on two sides and an LCD in the middle. The right button zeros out the container’s weight so you can measure things you want accurately every time. Also, the left one helps you convert flexibly between three measuring units, namely ounces, grams and pounds. This unit feature is really useful in case you have to deal with liquids.

However, this device shuts off automatically after every 2 minutes so you need to turn it on over and over again for continuous use. Also, the platform is not detachable, which would make it hard to completely  clean some certain ingredients containing oil.

Pros

• Sensitive tare feature
• Clear LCD display
• Affordability

Cons

• Continual auto-off after 2 mins
• Hard cleanup because of undetachable platform

#2. OXO Good Grips Food Scale – Best America’s Test Kitchen

The type of scale is said to be top-of-the-line according to many positive feedback of customers. This premium food scale never lets you down with its exceptional properties below.

The OXO scale has a weight limit of 11 lbs but don’t be fooled by its compact sizes. It is totally capable enough for taking on even the most bulky ingredients, taking up half a tray of your fridge and still displays their precise weight.

The product can do all of this thanks to the taring button. This wonderful feature allows you to measure a great deal of foods at the same time. All you need to do is press the button to set the screen back to zero and then then weigh whatever you want. 

The innovative characteristic of this product line, however, lies in the pull-out display. In case you need to measure any large item, take the display out so you can see the numbers. Also, thanks to the detachable platform, cleaning becomes much easier.

Of course, not every appliance is 100% perfect, the OXO device also has some demerits besides these mentioned merits. To be specific, the display is quite large, though; it doesn’t demonstrate digits clearly enough at times.

Pros

• Innovative pull-out display
• Large weight limit
• Tare function

Con

• The screen is dim sometimes.

#3. Ozeri Pronto Digital Kitchen Scale – Best Accuracy

This device from Ozeri delivers a very high level of precision owing to the sensor technology. With the weight limit of 5100 grams and the 1-gram graduation, it is great for both the smallest and biggest recipes.

In terms of ability, this device offers a comparatively big weighing capacity when it can measure things as heavy as 11.24 pounds, so it has no problems when measuring heavy food items like chicken, fruits or nuts. 

As for the disadvantages of the scale, the producer has, sadly, given it poor waterproof features. Plus, sometimes it’s kind of slow when doing calculations.

Pros

• Accurate operation
• Compatible with 2 AAA batteries
• Big weighing capacity
• Many colorful version

Cons

• Not waterproof
• Slow calculation

#4. My Weigh KD-8000 scale – Best America’s Test Kitchen

Are you a serious baker or just a home cook who loves making cakes? Whatever your answer is, My Weigh KD-8000 scale is what you’re looking for. So what special trait does it own to support both professional bakers and newbies?

The unique characteristic lies in percentage mode that enables bakers to calculate the proportion of each ingredient in their whole recipes. The benefit of this amazing function is that anyone can adjust the quantities of materials to match their recipes.

In general, it has a large measuring range from 1 gram to 8 kilograms so apart from flour or other regular baking ingredients, this measuring tool can easily handle raw food and vegetables, even those with bones inside.

On the downside, this tool is not so sturdy and durable so you should be careful when operating.

Pros

• Percentage weighing feature
• Backlit display
• Detachable platform
• Up to 30-year warranty

Cons

• Not very well-made construction
• Showing result slowly sometimes

#5. CAMRY Digital Kitchen Scale – Best Multifunctional

The most outstanding characteristic of this oven is its versatileness. In terms of scaling function, the gadget has a wide weighing range up to 11 pounds, so it can even deal with a medium-sized bird, for example. Plus, the product supports four different weighing modes like grams, kilograms, ounces, and pounds so you can effortlessly change among these units for various purposes. 

Last but not least, the scale from Camry has an absolute difference from all products above about design with a large bowl for weighing and mixing as well. This 2.5L steel bowl can be taken off effortlessly so you can replace it with your own container if you wish.

Pros

• Large capacity
• Tare feature
• Room temperature sensors

Con

• The bowl may break after some time using it.

#6. GreaterGoods Digital Food Kitchen Scale

Supposing that you are going on a diet but you usually have to travel for work, how can you know the exact amount of nutrients you take in your body? 

No worries since this kitchen scale from GreaterGoods can solve the problem because it’s so convenient that you can bring it with you everywhere you want. As it is only 0.6 pounds in weight, this object will not occupy too much space and can be easily tucked away in your package, luggage, and anything else.

However, don’t let yourself be fooled by its compact appearance, it can do more than that actually when it can measure things up to 11 pounds.

What we are most interested in about this product is the zero-out feature. You only touch the button once after turning it on, then you can scale things as much as you want constantly.

Its only drawback is the letter on the buttons, which can be hard to read.

Pros 

• Portability
• Sleek metallic appearance
• Ease of clean
• Zero-out feature

Con

• The letter on the buttons can be faded after a short time using.

#7. Nicewell Food Scale – Premium Pick

We would like to say this product line is the best of the best because it owns everything you need on a smart scale. 

At first, looking at its appearance, we know why this lightweight tool is popular with so many customers. It has a simple but stylish pattern. With the material of tempered glass and stainless steel, the scale can brighten up your counter. 

As for remarkable features, a wide range of measurements enable it to weigh things from 0.1 oz to 22 pounds. This means it can give precise measurement of anything from herbs to a whole chicken. In addition, the gadget operates very quickly and provides incredible accuracy thanks to highly precise fixed sensors. So, whenever something is put on the platform, its weight is demonstrated immediately on the clear screen.

The touch screen is integrated with three buttons, on/off, unit, and the most special one, tare. This feature helps exclude the weight of the holder and demonstrate the net weight of all food materials. So, all you need to do is place them on the device then press the tare button, it shows you the exact result of these ingredients.

There’s one more thing that you need to know about this item. It would be great if you stored it in safe and dry places; otherwise, its effectiveness will be affected.

Pros 

• Practical design
• Amazing precision
• Good sensitivity

Con

• Not waterproof

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How Do I Choose A Food Scale?

If you intend to buy a food scale, this is what you need to take into your consideration to find out your best food scale.

Durability

When shopping for any product, all consumers expect for the quality of being sturdy and not easily damaged. Before opting for a scale, you had better consider its durability because once in a while you would be able to drop it on the ground when using.

Precision

There’s no doubt that accuracy is the most important feature of a food measuring device. It would help if you asked some cooks or chefs for their recommendation of good products. You can test the scale by putting a couple of things on it to see how precise it is before making a purchase. 

Ease of use

A good scale should be friendly-user so that everyone can operate it effortlessly. 

Capacity

Weight limit varies between many types of kitchen scale. In case you usually have to deal with large food items, a scale with high capacity may be suitable for you. You can make up your mind to choose the right one that meets your demand.

Stylish look 

If you want to plan a kitchen with a modern style, you should not ignore the scale’s design which should blend well with other appliances to create a beautiful space.

What Are The Three Types Of Scales?

Today, buyers can easily find loads of scales with great performance. In general, they can be divided into three main categories: digital, mechanical and balance.

Balance scales

The scales of this type are said to be one of the oldest models. Their design is quite similar to a seesaw. A plate on one side holds ingredients while another one on the other side holds masses. These traditional scales are not as popular as they have been before, but many families in the countryside still use them daily. The reasons for why they are no longer widely used are their unreliability and lack of modern features.

Mechanical scales

People also call them spring scales because they include a spring inside. These gadgets have a relatively good quality. One disadvantage is that they can only work well with large portions of foods rather than small quantities owing to their high weight limit. Also, they are a little bit costly.

Digital scales

This kind is the most popular among the three models for the time being. It is a completely innovative invention when many sophisticated features like touch-sensitive buttons are integrated into this modern type. They help bring the most optimal experience for users.

How Much Is A Food Scale?

These products from different brands are sold with a lot of price levels. It normally costs you about 10 to 20 dollars for a mechanical scale, or you can pay even more than 30 dollars for a digital one if you wish.

What Is The Best Kitchen Scale?

Now we will tell you our three top picks for this product line based on feedback from customers. If you want a good scale with a low price, then the AmazonBasics kitchen scale may be a smart choice. In terms of quality, we can say the tools from Ozeri and GreaterGoods will definitely satisfy you.

Final Words

We give you a better understanding about some sorts of best kitchen scales. Hopefully, this post will help you to some extent to make a final decision before making a purchase.

If you have any questions or need further information, feel free to leave us a comment below. We are always eager to support you.

Good luck!

Joost Nusselder, the founder of BistroSK is a content marketer, dad and loves trying out new food, and together with his team he's been creating in-depth blog articles since 2019 to help loyal readers with recipes and cooking tips.