The Best Bathroom Scales of 2023

In several ways, the basic HoMedics Carbon Fiber Glass Bathroom Scale is a joy to use, as far as scales go. For one, the extra-large platform seems luxuriously large, especially compared to the petite Renpho. The brilliant blue backlit large display looks great and is a cinch to read. But best of all, this HoMedics was the only scale that beeps when it “locks in” your weight—audible feedback that provides a finality that a flashing-then-not-flashing number fails to produce. It’s also attractive, as far as scales go.

But while these attributes are great, we just don’t think they, er, outweigh the features and value you get for spending less money on either of our two top picks (assuming the Homedics isn’t currently on sale).

The best part of the striking basic-model Escali Glass Platform Bathroom Scale is its easy -to-read display. The worst part: the two too-high weights it recorded during our testing. (Despite instructions to the contrary, we recommend tapping to calibrate it to zero before you step on the scale, which may rectify the situation.)

Still, it comes in several stylish colors to coordinate with your decor—and it’ll do the job, up to 440 pounds and in stones, if that’s your jam—as long as you don’t mind stepping on and off a couple times to confirm its final answer.

If you're a Garmin running watch user, we can see the allure of buying Garmin's Index S2 Smart Scale, which sends weight and body composition data to the same Connect fitness app. The scale works statistically fine, in terms of recording readings that varied by no more than 1%.

However, if you’re not certain the first reading is sound, you may be right: We found discrepancies when we stepped on and off in succession, and the subsequent line graph showing up or down progress annoying—and, of course, inaccurate, as no one loses or gains a pound or two within the 20 to 30 seconds it takes for the scale to cycle through its readings and upload to the app. You can delete wrong data in the app, but that’s a hassle we’d prefer to skip.

Given the slight reliability issues, we can’t justify recommending you spend this much cash—approximately five times that of our top pick—unless you’re deeply entrenched in the Garmin ecosystem.

The experience of using the basic Etekcity Digital Body Weight Bathroom Scale is as meh as its appearance, with a small-yet-brightly-lit display and a flimsier-than-you’d-expect feel.

In the pros column, it comes with a tape measure, which allows you to track body circumference measurements (or shop online for clothes that fit).

You can do worse, but you can also do better.

The EatSmart Precision Digital Bathroom Scale was the only basic scale model we found that got a perfect score on accuracy, in terms of the dumbbells we placed on it. Unfortunately, it also gave two erroneously high readings during our weigh-ins, both after moving the scale. Bottom line: It should provide accurate readings if you leave it in one place and/or tap it first to zero it out before stepping on for a weigh-in.

Another scale that suffered from some calibration issues, the basic Taylor Digital Glass Scale yielded two incorrect weight readings during use, though it carries the same warning as some others in its instructions to zero out before stepping onto the scale if you’ve moved it. Using it is otherwise as unmemorable as its neutral gray appearance.

The “smart” Withings Body+ looks pretty at first glance, but it failed to wow us with either its usability or its reliability. For starters, its feet slid on bathroom tile, so we had to be extra-careful when we stepped up. The display is cramped and it only scrolls the data once, requiring you to review your data on the app—which confusingly isn’t called “Withings,” making it hard to find on your phone (it’s HealthMate, in case you wondered).

The most disconcerting issue, though: the three bad readings we got over one week’s time. This wouldn’t be the biggest deal, except the app creates a line chart to show your weight trend, so our results were all over the place. You can delete any erroneous weights manually—if you’re confident they’re, in fact, erroneous—but it would be better if they just didn’t happen in the first place.