I’ve changed my mind on the best kitchen scale I recommend — nine months on and I have a new favorite

After testing a whole stack of digital kitchen scales for Tom’s Guide, I’ve changed my mind about the best kitchen scale I recommend. Despite putting each scale through a set of tests for accuracy, speed, functionality, and ease of use — not to mention design and cleaning — nine months later, there’s one scale that I reach for, and it’s not the top pick.

The Zwilling Efinigy Digital Kitchen Scale is a great contender — after all I did recommend it as the best kitchen scale in the guide. But after further everyday use, there’s one contender I rely on time after time.

It’s not that easy to pinpoint the exact reason why I favor this particular kitchen scale. Several factors make it my current go-to model.

KitchenAid KQ909 Dual Platform Digital Kitchen and Food Scale: $57 at Amazon

You get more for your money with this KitchenAid Dual Platform Scale. It has two platforms: the larger platform weighs up to 11 lbs in 0.1 oz increments, and the smaller platform weighs up to 16 ounces in 0.001 oz increments. The ultra-precise scale is ideal for weighing bulk ingredients or fine spices, and comes in easy-to-clean stainless steel.

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Why KitchenAid’s Dual Platform Digital Kitchen Scale is my top choice

I’m a great fan of KitchenAid stand mixers, and now the company’s kitchen scales are among my top choices too. Here are 5 reasons why I changed my mind about my favorite kitchen scale.

1. Two scales in one

You don’t often get a kitchen scale that has two scales in one. But with KitchenAid’s Dual Platform scale, you can measure anything from a few coffee beans for a single cup of Joe to a heap of flour for a large loaf. And while I’m talking about bread, the small scale is perfect for accurately measuring ingredients such as yeast, where precision is everything.

The dual scale gives you added flexibility that you don't get with other contenders.

2. Easy to access controls

With some scales, such as Zwilling’s Efinigy Digital Kitchen Scale, you have to flip them over to adjust the measurement from, say, kilograms to pounds, as the button is on the base of the gadget. This can be a problem if you’re mid-flow and realize you’ve got the wrong measurement set.

However, with the KitchenAid Dual Scale, this can be changed by pressing the setting button, which is positioned next to the on/off button on the top of the scale. It’s also super easy to reset the scale to zero, so you can add and weigh another ingredient into your bowl without using a separate one.

After regularly using the KitchenAid scale for nine months, I now realize how frequently I swap between metric and imperial measurements.

3. It’s super intuitive

It won’t take you long to get into the swing of using this scale, and despite its extra weighing platform, it’s intuitive to use. You soon became accustomed to which button relates to which scale, which you’ll only need to use if you want to reset the scale to zero.

And, as I’ve mentioned above, it’s really simple to change the measurement to suit your recipe.

4. No bowl, no problem

You might not be bowled over (excuse the pun) with a kitchen scale that comes without a bowl, but for me, I’m happy not to have a bulky gadget taking up precious space in my cabinets. I also find that I tend to use my mixing bowl to weigh ingredients, which also leaves one less item to clean.

So, although the likes of Smeg’s Contemporary Scale, with its majestic-looking bowl, are designed to stay out on your countertop, it will restrict your working space when not in use.

Etekcity’s Digital Kitchen Scale also comes with a large bowl, but because it’s not as pretty as Smeg’s version, you’ll want to store it in your cabinets. However, it’s nowhere near as sleek or streamlined as the KitchenAid scale.

5. A premium product without a premium price

KitchenAid stand mixers are premium appliances, and that comes at a high price. For instance, the KitchenAid 5-quart tilt-head stand mixer has an MSRP of $499 at $499 at Amazon.

However, although KitchenAid’s Dual Scale is not a budget kitchen scale, like Escali's Primo Digital Scale, which is $25 at Amazon, it’s less than OXO’s Good Grips Kitchen Scale, which is $63 at Amazon, and recommended as the best kitchen scale for large loads in our buying guide.

While you’ll still pay $57 at Amazon for KitchenAid’s scale, you do get two scales in one.

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