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4 best luggage scales to help you avoid excess baggage, tried and tested
Don't let an overweight luggage fee ruin your holiday
Let’s be honest: even though holidays are meant to help you relax, the actual act of travelling can be stressful. Especially these days, when there are so many hidden fees associated with flying, which means the cost can skyrocket. On top of that, you can get charged even more if you accidentally pack too much.
While we unfortunately can’t help you with the hidden ticket fees, the Good Housekeeping Institute's collection of the best luggage scales below can help reduce the chance of surprise costs.
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Luggage scales are a cheap investment that are not only extremely simple to use, but easy enough to take with you wherever you go (meaning you’ll know exactly how many souvenirs you can bring home).
Our tech experts over in the Good Housekeeping Institute lab in the US tested out nine different luggage scales to determine which ones are worth their weight. Here's their verdict.
Travel Inspira Digital Luggage Scale
Travel Inspira Digital Luggage Scale
Pros
- Comfortable grip for holding heavy weights
- Pre-installed battery
Cons
- Requires a unique battery that you may not have at home
The highest rated scale we tested, this is easy to use, with an extremely accurate reading. The screen lights up, so it's very easy to read and also self-dims when not in use.
It's comfortable to hold in your hands, even when lifting a full 22-kilo suitcase. You can adjust the units between kilograms and pounds, and even get the temperature in either Celsius or Fahrenheit. The scale can also measure up to 50 kilos, if you're interested in figuring out how much you can stuff in your luggage.
We like that it comes in a range of colours, too. The one downside to this scale is the battery. While it does come with it pre-installed, it uses a coin cell battery, which you may not have on hand at home.
| Max Weight Capacity | 50 kilos |
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Travel Inspira Battery-Free Luggage Scale
Travel Inspira Battery-Free Luggage Scale
Pros
- Completely battery-free
- Charges quickly
Cons
- No backlight
This unique luggage scale tends to be a little more expensive than the others on this list, but that’s because it's digital and battery-free. That’s right — this digital luggage scale doesn't need batteries to run.
So how does it work? There’s a little switch on the side; you slide that side to side a couple of times and voila! You now have a working luggage scale. This makes it easy to travel with because you never have to worry about finding a battery in a foreign country. Plus, it's fun to be able to turn it on so easily and not have to worry about draining the battery.
There’s a single button that allows you to zero the device as well as switch the units between kilograms and pounds. While it is a digital scale, there's no backlight so the reading can be a little difficult to see. It's comfortable to hold in use, though.
| Maximum Weight Capacity | 50 kilos |
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Pros
- Single button to press
- Multiple units to weigh by
Cons
- Tiny scale can be difficult to hold
It doesn't get simpler than this budget luggage scale. There’s a single button to control each part, whether you’re changing the units, turning it on or off, or zeroing the device. It’s also very easy to read the scale thanks to the bright green backlight.
After using it to pick up the luggage, it only took a few seconds for it to register the weight, which was surprisingly only 59 grams off. The units vary between grams, ounces, kilograms and pounds, too. While the smaller units may not seem necessary for luggage, it does mean you can use it to weigh other things if you wish, such as a package you're sending out.
It's a fairly tiny scale, which made it awkward to hold while carrying our luggage. The scale itself comes in three different colours: red, silver and black. It also contains a coin cell battery, and comes with a screwdriver in case you need to swap the battery.
| Maximum Weight Capacity | 50 kilos |
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Fosmon Digital Luggage Scale
Fosmon Digital Luggage Scale
Pros
- Green backlight makes it easy to read
- Accuracy of less than 1% difference
Cons
- Can be complicated to grip effectively
A cinch to use, this is another great pick that makes things as simple as possible. It uses a strap to loop around your luggage handle, which you then hook back onto itself to allow you to lift the scale.
With an easy-to-read display, accompanied with a green backlight, you’ll never have to worry about misreading your luggage weight. It uses a single button press for everything from turning it on to adjusting the units. Its size allows it to be easily stowed away while travelling as well.
The biggest issue with this scale is the placement of the strap. It's slightly to the side, which makes it more difficult to grip with two hands, and not many people can lift a maxed-out checked bag with one hand. Aside from that, the accuracy of the scale was great. There was less than 1% difference between the actual weight and what the luggage scale weighed.
| Maximum Weight Capacity | 50 kilos |
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How we tested the best luggage scales
Each luggage scale went through the same testing protocols. First, we judged the ease of setup. Did it require batteries? Did it come with batteries? Was there anything that was needed outside of what came with it in order to get it to work?
On top of that, it’s important that the luggage scale is easy to hold with a simple-to-read display. Most scales require a couple seconds of holding the luggage before the result can be read properly. If it’s too difficult to hold for a long time, then you’ll never get an accurate reading.
We made sure to also verify the accuracy and check the capacity of each scale. Using a properly calibrated bench scale, we filled a hard-sided suitcase to a weight of 22.52 kilos (49.65 pounds). We then used the luggage scale and gave it a rating based on how accurate it was to what the bench scale read.
We also rated how easy it was to pick up and how comfortable it was to hold in your hands.
What to look for in a luggage scale
When purchasing a luggage scale, make sure to pick one you can comfortably hold and decide whether you want a manual or a digital scale as there are perks to both.
✔️ Grip type: Some luggage scales have handles, while some ARE the handle. Our testers tended to prefer the ones where the luggage scales were the handle, as those that have handles tend to be quite small and tricky to hold. When you're already holding up to 22 kilos of weight, that's not ideal.
✔️ Manual vs. digital: There are two main types of scales: digital or manual. Digital scales have digital readouts and use batteries (although we do have one digital pick that doesn't need batteries). Manual scales don’t have a digital display, and have an analogue dial instead. While digital scales tend to give more accurate measurements, with a manual scale, you don’t have to worry about running out of battery. Since the batteries used in these tend to be CR batteries vs. something like an AA battery, it could pose a problem if you’re travelling to a country where you don’t speak the language.
How does a luggage scale work?
Luggage scales are quite simple to use. They typically come with either a strap or hook that you attach to the luggage handle. By lifting and raising your case with the scale, you'll be able to get a readout of how much it weighs.
Do keep in mind that some of the digital luggage scales require you to hold it in the air for a few seconds for it to fully register the weight; until then, the numbers may bounce around.
Why trust the Good Housekeeping Institute?
The Good Housekeeping Institute has been a trusted source of information for over 100 years, and we've rigorously tested all the best luggage brands in our lab, so it made sense to turn our hands to luggage scales.
These results come from our sister lab in the US, but have all been verified by our UK experts and we've checked the specs to ensure the products are identical in the UK.
Testing was carried out by Alec Scherma, whose experience as a mechanical engineer lends him a unique perspective and a different way of looking at everyday products. He’s reviewed all different types of electronics, from laptops to photo printers.
Alec Scherma (he/him) is the Good Housekeeping Institute’s test engineer, where he helps to create and implement new product testing methodology across home, cooking and cleaning appliances, wellness, tech products and more. He graduated from Drexel University’s College of Engineering with a B.A. in mechanical engineering.
