13 best kitchen scales for delicious bakes every time

Score: 93/100

We love it when a bargain performs well, and 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. It lost just one mark when weighing the ingredients for our banana loaf recipe; it was one gram out on the condensed milk measurement (we don't think it will harm your loaf).

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.

Score: 93/100

You can also track the nutritional value of your food with this smart set of scales. Just scan the product’s bar code before weighing, and it will display 12 key metrics, including total carbs, protein, fat and number of calories, on the large LCD screen. You can get even more data in the accompanying app too, which our experts found easy to set up and navigate.

But if tracking your intake isn’t your cup of tea, that doesn’t mean this scale isn’t for you. On test, it took less than 0.75 seconds to display a weight reading, and its accuracy impressed across the board – it was only a maximum of 2.4 grams off when weighing a kilogram. The surface picks up fingerprints easily but that’s something we can let slide for a responsive, accurate and versatile scale.

Score: 92/100

This is another smart scale that works alongside an accompanying app to track the nutrients and calories of each selected ingredient. It's 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.

Score: 91/100

Able to weigh to a tenth of a gram, this scale is for the coffee nerds among us. On test, it excelled at weighing out smaller ingredients (like coffee beans and grounds) but was less accurate with heavier weights. This wouldn’t be noticeable when cooking though – it was only 1.4 grams out when weighing 1 kilogram.

There were a few dirt traps but otherwise testers loved the design; it’s easy to read, and sturdy with non-slip feet.

Score: 89/100

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 easy to clean, and the low battery and weight overload messages were helpful.

The countdown from three before the scale switched on was mildly annoying for busy bakers and the screen was difficult to read at some angles (clearest directly above) but those are small irritations that won’t stop you from flexing your Bake Off muscles.

Score: 88/100

With the reading appearing almost automatically, these are the scales to shop if you want accurate results, fast. They were reliable throughout testing and were only 0.1g out when measuring our 50g weight. We did notice that the larger the weight, the less accurate the scales got though, with our 1000g weight registering as an extra 2.4g more.

Bakers will love the built-in clock and timer as well as the zero button and easy-clean surface. The non-slip feet keep the scales sturdy too and they’ll automatically switch off after 90 seconds of inactivity to save the battery.

Score: 88/100

We’re big fans of Ooni’s pizza ovens (pizza lovers should check out our full Ooni pizza oven review), so we couldn’t wait to get our hands on its kitchen scales and perfect our dough recipe too. There are two integrated weighing platforms; 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.

Score: 88/100

Another speedy scale. It was one of the fastest on test, taking 0.8 seconds to show up results when tasked with weighing all our 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-bake!

There was one notable bugbear though – the button to change the measurement units is on the underside of the scale, so in the (admittedly rare) situation that you need to switch them midway through use, it’s quite fiddly.

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 it's easy to clean and our testers appreciated the compact design for storage.

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 with 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 it created some dirt traps around the bottom. Overall, though, this premium scale was easy to use and reactive.

Score: 85/100

As one of the only scales to score full marks for its design, this disc-shaped model would make a fantastic addition to your kitchen. The controls are responsive, the display is clear, and testers loved the quality build. At times, the lightweight design caused issues though – testers found that if you pressed the buttons along the front too hard, the scale would tip forward.

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.

Score: 84/100

Salter is well known for its kitchen scales, which is why we have two on our list. And this proved another reliable pick, performing reasonably well throughout testing.

It was just 1.2 grams out in our 1 kilogram 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 in 1.4 seconds.

Testers also liked the uncluttered display and the detailed accompanying instructions that helped them start baking in no time.