Any Digital Food Scale Recommendations?

WeberWho

I'm looking for a cheaper digital food scale. Under $50 preferably. Something more less to convert into grams when working with recipes. Any recommendations or tips are welcomed. Do any scales come with a bowl or do you just add a bowl to the scale and zero it out? I've never owned a food scale obviously. Thanks! 

DoubleEgger

Just zero it out with your bowl. Get one with a larger scale base. 

Find one on Amazon. It's just a scale....

sheetmetalpete

I have this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00V5IM5PY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's about $10.  I'm sure it's not super precise but it works for me.  And just like you said, I put a bowl on it and zero it out.

WeberWho

DoubleEgger said:

Just zero it out with your bowl. Get one with a larger scale base. 

Find one on Amazon. It's just a scale....

Good tip on the larger base. Thanks! Just wasn't sure if one brand was better than the other on the cheaper end 

WeberWho

sheetmetalpete said:

I have this one:

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00V5IM5PY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It's about $10.  I'm sure it's not super precise but it works for me.  And just like you said, I put a bowl on it and zero it out.

Wow! Great price and a ton of good reviews. Thanks Pete!

lkapigian

I have this, the display detatches so if you have larger items , converts to grams has tear weight an 11 pound capacity 49.00

WeberWho

lkapigian said:

I have this, the display detatches so if you have larger items , converts to grams has tear weight an 11 pound capacity 49.00

Thanks lkapigian!

DoubleEgger

WeberWho said:

DoubleEgger said:

Just zero it out with your bowl. Get one with a larger scale base. 

Find one on Amazon. It's just a scale....

Good tip on the larger base. Thanks! Just wasn't sure if one brand was better than the other on the cheaper end 

If you're not weighing drugs, any old scale will do the trick  

lkapigian

@WeberWho i never really weighed until I got into sausage making, found knowing weights does matter

WeberWho

DoubleEgger said:

WeberWho said:

DoubleEgger said:

Just zero it out with your bowl. Get one with a larger scale base. 

Find one on Amazon. It's just a scale....

Good tip on the larger base. Thanks! Just wasn't sure if one brand was better than the other on the cheaper end 

If you're not weighing drugs, any old scale will do the trick  

WeberWho

lkapigian said:

@WeberWho i never really weighed until I got into sausage making, found knowing weights does matter

@lkapigian That's something I'd like to try one day. My wife and her grandma make potato sausage. (Family tradition) I'm not the biggest fan of it but would like to dabble with some other recipes. Good to know about using a scale for it. Thanks for the tip!

HeavyG

Lots of choices out there but if you also do any bread making or other baking you might consider this one:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NE0FU2/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It'll do the bakers math for you. Also, given the heigh of the scale and placement of the screen you can still read it if using a large bowl or plate on it.

RRP

lkapigian said:

I have this, the display detatches so if you have larger items , converts to grams has tear weight an 11 pound capacity 49.00

Same one I've had for years! Bought it as it was Cooks Illustrated number 1 recommendation. I could not be happier with it! 

WeberWho

HeavyG said:

Lots of choices out there but if you also do any bread making or other baking you might consider this one:

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B001NE0FU2/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

It'll do the bakers math for you. Also, given the heigh of the scale and placement of the screen you can still read it if using a large bowl or plate on it.

I like that @HeavyG. Thanks for the info. That looks like a nice scale for the price. It appears to be $33 with free shipping on Ebay. I like the bakers math option 

WeberWho

RRP said:

lkapigian said:

I have this, the display detatches so if you have larger items , converts to grams has tear weight an 11 pound capacity 49.00

Same one I've had for years! Bought it as it was Cooks Illustrated number 1 recommendation. I could not be happier with it! 

Good to know. Thanks RRP for the tip on Cooks Illustrated 

78 T140E

I have this scale which I bought from Amazon. Current price only $12.87.

WeberWho

78 T140E said:

I have this scale which I bought from Amazon. Current price only $12.87.

Thanks 78T140E!

Carolina Q

I have a MyWeigh KD-7000 that was recommended to me by Little Chef. $38.

https://www.amazon.com/My-Weigh-7000-Gram-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B000EVFC8K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1501171967&sr=8-2&keywords=kd7000

7000 is the max weight in grams (15 lb 7oz). Measures in grams, kg, pounds or pounds/ounces. It does a good job unless I'm weighing very lite things like 3g of yeast for instance. I don't trust it for that sort of thing. It's supposed to be accurate down to 1g as I recall. Mine isn't so I use measuring spoons for the yeast and salt. You can also weigh stuff in a bread machine container if you have one. Very convenient.

The other thing I don't like is its size. Takes up a lot of room in the cabinet. I probably wouldn't buy it again, mostly because of this.

Mine is probably 5-6 years old. Had to change batteries once. Takes AAs. 

ATK has a recommendation...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSm1hoyjoyY
The Oxo they recommend is $50 and Bed Bath and Beyond carries it. Which means 20% off with coupon.

nolaegghead

I have this scale, weighs up to 60 pounds, portable with rechargeable battery.

I paid $40, looks like the price is a bit higher now.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004C47IGO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have a couple others in different weight ranges and some calibration weights to keep them honest.

WeberWho

Carolina Q said:

I have a MyWeigh KD-7000 that was recommended to me by Little Chef. $38.

https://www.amazon.com/My-Weigh-7000-Gram-Kitchen-Silver/dp/B000EVFC8K/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1501171967&sr=8-2&keywords=kd7000

7000 is the max weight in grams (15 lb 7oz). Measures in grams, kg, pounds or pounds/ounces. It does a good job unless I'm weighing very lite things like 3g of yeast for instance. I don't trust it for that sort of thing. It's supposed to be accurate down to 1g as I recall. Mine isn't so I use measuring spoons for the yeast and salt. You can also weigh stuff in a bread machine container if you have one. Very convenient.

The other thing I don't like is its size. Takes up a lot of room in the cabinet. I probably wouldn't buy it again, mostly because of this.

Mine is probably 5-6 years old. Had to change batteries once. Takes AAs. 

ATK has a recommendation...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSm1hoyjoyY
The Oxo they recommend is $50 and Bed Bath and Beyond carries it. Which means 20% off with coupon.

Thanks Q for your opinion on the scale and the video!

WeberWho

nolaegghead said:

I have this scale, weighs up to 60 pounds, portable with rechargeable battery.

I paid $40, looks like the price is a bit higher now.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004C47IGO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have a couple others in different weight ranges and some calibration weights to keep them honest.

Thanks Nola! Those calibration weights I can see how they could come in handy down the road 

jtcBoynton

Features to check before buying:

Does the platform come off for easy cleaning? Is there any way for food items to get between the platform and the scale?

Does the scale have an auto shutoff feature?  If so, how long before it shuts down and you lose the reading of what you are measuring?

What are the dimensions of the scale?  Will it fit into your cupboard?

lkapigian

jtcBoynton said:

Features to check before buying:

Does the platform come off for easy cleaning? Is there any way for food items to get between the platform and the scale?

Does the scale have an auto shutoff feature?  If so, how long before it shuts down and you lose the reading of what you are measuring?

What are the dimensions of the scale?  Will it fit into your cupboard?

All extremely valid points, thanks for posting 

nolaegghead

nolaegghead said:

I have this scale, weighs up to 60 pounds, portable with rechargeable battery.

I paid $40, looks like the price is a bit higher now.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004C47IGO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have a couple others in different weight ranges and some calibration weights to keep them honest.

Sorry, capacity is 66 pounds. 

I also find this useful for charging refrigeration systems.  Tare the tank and watch the scale as I charge.

Focker

Bought this one for $25 in 2009.
Great scale, still going strong on original battery.  If it went tits up, I'd get another.

WeberWho

jtcBoynton said:

Features to check before buying:

Does the platform come off for easy cleaning? Is there any way for food items to get between the platform and the scale?

Does the scale have an auto shutoff feature?  If so, how long before it shuts down and you lose the reading of what you are measuring?

What are the dimensions of the scale?  Will it fit into your cupboard?

Excellent points jtcboynton. Thanks!

WeberWho

Focker said:

Bought this one for $25 in 2009.
Great scale, still going strong on original battery.  If it went tits up, I'd get another.

Thanks Focker!

caliking

I bought this one for about $14. Light, compact, and backlit. Has worked very well for me as I have been baking a lot of bread in the past several months . Just tare it after adding each ingredient, and it's easy to  keep track of everything.


I used to have that Oxo and it didn't work very well after a year or two. The weight would bounce around with a range of 10g or more. Drove me nuts. And it wasn't backlit. 

bgebrent

Use The Force, much more accurate than the good advice above.

lkapigian

nolaegghead said:

nolaegghead said:

I have this scale, weighs up to 60 pounds, portable with rechargeable battery.

I paid $40, looks like the price is a bit higher now.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004C47IGO/ref=oh_aui_search_detailpage?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I have a couple others in different weight ranges and some calibration weights to keep them honest.

Sorry, capacity is 66 pounds. 

I also find this useful for charging refrigeration systems.  Tare the tank and watch the scale as I charge.

we just count " 1 mississippi 2 mississippi when we charge systems

Griffin

lkapigian said:

I have this, the display detatches so if you have larger items , converts to grams has tear weight an 11 pound capacity 49.00

Had the same one for years and can't complain. Need to get another one that weighs down to a tenth of a gram at least so I can weigh out hops for my homebrew, though.