If your batches of cookies turn out differently every time you make them, or your bread dough is never quite right, or your attempts at finicky macarons always end in disaster, I have one question for you: Are you using a kitchen scale?
If the answer is no, don’t worry—I get it. A scale might seem like a fiddly gadget that’ll add more clutter to your kitchen than value to your baking. But what if I told you that a simple two-button scale is actually the key to better baking, easier meal prep, and—get this—fewer dirty dishes?
Our top picks
- The best kitchen scale overall: Escali Primo Digital Food Scale
- The best budget scale: Amazon Basics Kitchen Scale
With a trusty kitchen scale in your arsenal, you can kiss measuring cups goodbye. What’s more, as any professional baker will tell you, a scale is the only way to achieve actually accurate recipe measurements. This is particularly true for ingredients like flour: A cup of flour scooped from the bag will be more densely packed than a cup of flour that’s been spooned into the cup and leveled, making it markedly heavier. This can have a major impact on your baking project, whether you’re making a simple banana bread or attempting something difficult like sourdough, in which the hydration level of your dough is a key factor in how it bakes up.
Not an avid baker? A scale will help you more easily portion out burger patties or meatballs, streamline your weekly meal prep, and cut down on the number of dishes you dirty with those Sunday morning pancakes.
The bottom line is this: A kitchen scale is like a baking (and cooking!) cheat code, and that’s true no matter your level of culinary expertise. That’s why we tested 16 models over the course of several years to find the very best one for home cooks. The best part? Our winner is just $27.
New in this update: We tested three new scales: the dual platform scales from Ooni and KitchenAid and a snazzy-looking scale from Smeg. None of them proved to be nearly as accurate as our beloved Escali, but you can read more about them each below.
escali-primo-digital-food-scale” tabindex=”-1″>The best kitchen scale overall: Escali Primo Digital Food Scale
Escali Primo Digital Kitchen Scale
Pros:
- Inexpensive
- Comes in an array of colors
- Lightweight and compact
- Very accurate
Cons:
- Only measures in 1-gram increments
- Display isn’t backlit
Size: 8.5 x 6 x 1.5″
Capacity: 11 lb.
Gradation: 1 g
Auto-off: 4 minutes 30 seconds
Power: AA batteries (included)
While it may look unassuming, this plastic kitchen scale from Escali has held the top spot for kitchen scales on our sister site Epicurious for over six years now and has been a favorite in the Bon Appétit Test Kitchen for far longer than that.