Weigh It, Don’t Scoop It: Choosing the Best Kitchen Scale

Restaurant kitchens weigh far more than most home cooks do. Masa is weighed so every ball presses into a tortilla the same size, meat is portioned by weight so every plate gets the same, and big batches of salsa or rice are scaled up from a recipe written in grams. A cup of flour or masa harina can vary depending on how it is scooped; a gram is a gram.

A digital kitchen scale is one of the cheapest ways to bring that consistency home. This guide names eight scales worth buying, from a budget two-button model to a pull-out display, high-capacity and rechargeable scales, a dual-platform scale for small amounts and a coffee scale, and explains which features actually matter.

Julia’s earns a commission on purchases made through links on this page, at no cost to you. Recommendations are based on what a restaurant kitchen looks for, product specifications and verified buyer reports.

Quick verdict: which kitchen scale to buy

Five kitchen scales side by side

Our five standout picks, one for each kind of cook. All eight scales are reviewed in full below.

Product images from Amazon. Capacities, increments and power are as the maker or its listing states them.

Our picks for the best kitchen scale

The first three are everyday countertop scales; then come two 22-pound high-capacity scales, a scale with a removable commercial-style tray, a dual-platform scale for small amounts, and a coffee scale. Each review gives the specifications from the maker or the listing, who the scale suits and one honest reason to skip it.

Why a kitchen weighs instead of scooping

The National Institute of Standards and Technology puts it plainly in its culinary measurement tips: measuring ingredients by mass with a kitchen scale is a best practice for recipe accuracy, and using cups is a common source of error. In practice that matters most with ingredients that pack down or fluff up, such as flour, masa harina, sugar and grated cheese.

For tortillas, weight is how you get even rounds. Weigh the masa for each ball, roll them, and every tortilla comes out of the press the same size and cooks in the same time on the comal. Our best tortilla press guide covers the press, and tortilla making tools covers the rest of the kit.

How to choose a kitchen scale

Capacity

Eleven pounds (5 kg) covers most home cooking, including a bowl of masa for a family dinner. If you weigh stockpots, big batches of dough or heavy cast iron with food in it, the 22-pound Etekcity, Greater Goods and Taylor scales give you room. Remember the container counts toward the limit, even after you press tare.

Increments

One gram is the standard step and is fine for flour, meat, vegetables and masa. Ounce steps vary more: 1/8 ounce on the OXO, 0.05 ounce on the Escali and Etekcity, 0.1 ounce on the Greater Goods and Taylor. For yeast, baking powder, salt and spices you need finer steps; that is what the KitchenAid’s 0.01-gram platform and the Hario’s 0.1-gram readings are for.

Tare and hold

Every scale here has tare (zero), which lets you put a bowl on the scale, reset to zero and weigh each ingredient into the same bowl. A hold function, on the Etekcity, Greater Goods and Taylor, keeps the last reading on screen after you lift the load, which helps when a bowl is too wide to see around.

Display placement

A display on the front edge can disappear under a wide bowl or sheet pan. The OXO solves this with a pull-out display; the Greater Goods puts its screen beyond the platform. If you bake in large bowls, this matters more than any other feature.

Power

Most scales take AAA batteries. The Etekcity is rechargeable over USB-C, and the My Weigh can run from an adapter, which is useful if the scale lives in one spot on the counter.

Cleaning and water resistance

Only the Etekcity lists a water rating (IPX6, per its listing), and none of these scales should go in the sink. Sealed panels (Escali, My Weigh) and removable platforms (Taylor) make wiping up after raw meat or salsa easier.

Using a scale for masa, meat and baking

Put the bowl on the scale first, press tare, then add the ingredient. When portioning meat, place a tray or container on the scale and tare it, then build each portion to the same weight. For baking, write down your favourite recipe in grams once; from then on it comes out the same every time, and you can scale it up for a crowd. Baking sheets and pans to go with it are in our best baking pan sets guide.

How we picked these eight scales

We looked at digital kitchen scales from the makers most cooks ask about, including OXO, Escali, Etekcity, Greater Goods, My Weigh, KitchenAid, Taylor, Ozeri and Hario, and kept only those showing as in stock on Amazon when we checked. We chose a mix of capacities, power sources and features rather than eight versions of the same scale. Specifications come from the makers’ pages or manuals where we could read them (Etekcity, Greater Goods), otherwise from the Amazon listing, and for the My Weigh from Tom’s Guide’s review where the listing was thin. Where sources disagree, the review says so.

We left out the Ozeri Pronto, which was not shipping right away, and no-name scales with unverifiable claims. We have not used these scales for this guide, and we did not rely on America’s Test Kitchen, Serious Eats, Wirecutter, Consumer Reports or Good Housekeeping. The case for weighing over measuring comes from NIST.

Kitchen scale questions, answered

What is the best kind of kitchen scale?

A digital scale with a tare button, 1-gram increments and at least 11 pounds of capacity suits nearly every home kitchen. Mechanical dial scales are less precise for small amounts.

What is the best kitchen scale for home use?

The Escali Primo for most people, or the OXO 5-lb pull-out display scale if a wide bowl keeps hiding the numbers.

What are the best kitchen scale brands?

OXO, Escali, My Weigh, Greater Goods, Etekcity, KitchenAid, Taylor and Hario all publish their capacities and increments and are widely sold. Prefer a brand that states its specifications and warranty over an unnamed seller.

Which kitchen scale does America’s Test Kitchen or Wirecutter recommend?

We did not read or rely on their reviews for this guide, so we cannot speak for their picks. Our choices rest on maker specifications, listings and one named review (Tom’s Guide on the My Weigh).

How do I check that my scale is accurate?

Weigh something whose weight you know, such as an unopened package with the weight printed on it. Some scales can be recalibrated (the Taylor listing says it is field recalibratable); follow the maker’s instructions.

Can a kitchen scale measure liquids?

Yes. Weigh liquids in grams, or use the milliliter setting several of these scales offer for water and milk; other liquids weigh differently per milliliter.

The scale to start with

Start with the Escali Primo if you want a simple scale at a low cost, the OXO pull-out display scale if you work with wide bowls and smaller amounts, and the My Weigh if you bake by percentages. Add the KitchenAid or the Hario when small amounts start to matter.

For recipes written by volume, our guide to the best measuring cups covers dry and liquid sets.

More specific guides: the best kitchen scales for sourdough and the best cheap kitchen scales.

Weighing mostly flour and sugar? See the best kitchen scales for baking.

Related guide: Kitchen scale alternative.

A scale belongs with the rest of the basics in our guide to Mexican cooking tools. And on nights when nobody wants to weigh anything, see the menu or call to order.