Digital scales

What features do you need to consider when buying a digital scale? We look at some of the bestselling digital scales - food, kitchen, bathroom, pocket and postal - and see how they rate.

What features matter?

Price, accuracy, reliability, units of measurement, readability, attractiveness, size, sturdiness, cleanability, batteries, level of difficulty and warranty.

In my mind, food scales are for people watching their food intake, while kitchen scales are used for baking and dividing bulk purchases into smaller servings before freezing.

However, it is not as cut and dried as that. When choosing a scale for food/kitchen and even for your postal needs, consider all four scales under Digital Food Scales and Digital Kitchen Scales because they are completely interchangeable.

Digital food scales

Ask any dieter and they will tell you a digital scale for food is a must if you want to successfully lose weight.

When it comes to digital scales for food, two popular scales are the affordable Escali Primo Digital Multifunctional Scale and the pricier Oxo Good Grips Food Scale with Pull Out Display.

Digital kitchen scales

The popular digital scales for the kitchen we look at are both reasonably priced - the EatSmart Precision Pro and the Kintrex SCL0625 Digital Kitchen Scale.

Digital bathroom scales

If you are swapping your old analog scale for a digital one, welcome to a whole new world. No more having wildly different readings each time you stand on it, or deciding which big number is closest. These digital scales for the bathroom measure to the nearest .2 lb so you know exactly what you weigh.

The scales featured are the EatSmart Digital Bathroom Scale with Extra Large Backlit Display and Oversize Platform, and the Health o Meter HDL820-18 Digital Scale with LCD.

Digital pocket scales

Ideal for anyone vigilant about their food intake, these pocket digital scales are small and light enough to fit in your purse or shirt pocket. More precise than food or kitchen scales, they would be equally handy in the kitchen for weighing herbs, spices, coffee beans and envelopes.

The small digital scales we look at are the Polder and Escali Liberta.

Digital postal scales

If you need a postal digital scale and send big packages, the UltraShip MyWeigh scale has a maximum capacity of 55 lb or 25 kg and would suit you.

We only feature one postal digital scale because for light duty use, any of the food or kitchen digital scales we already looked at, all with a maximum capacity of 11lb or 5 kg, would be ideal.

My choice

From all the scales we looked at, I would choose the three pictured at the top of the page:

For the kitchen I would get the EatSmart Precision Pro. I like its accuracy, consistency, that it measures in kg, is decimalized, it has rubber feet so won't go sliding across my counter, the three minute sleep function is time enough for my food preparation, it takes standard batteries, and costs $25.

For the bathroom I would get the EatSmart Digital Bathroom Scale. If I had difficulty switching it on, I would figure it out or phone EatSmart. I like the backlighting, large numbers which I can read without my glasses, good looks, consistent readout, non-slip platform, seamless easy to clean surface, the fact that it takes standard batteries, it costs less than $30 and the EatSmart after sales service is excellent.

As a pocket scale I like the Polder. It is compact, accurate, cute, well made and around $20. I measure in grams so the default suits me. A pity it take lithium batteries, but I guess it would be a bit much to expect a small digital scale to accommodate regular sized batteries.

For postage, although the UltraShip is a great scale when it works, I don't need the 55 lb capacity. Instead I would use my kitchen scale, the EatSmart Precision Pro.

But hey, what I need from digital scales is not necessarily the same as what you need.

Good luck with your decision, and thanks for visiting us.