The Best Smart Bathroom Scales for 2020
How to Choose the Right Smart Scale
What Is a Smart Scale?
The bathroom is probably the first room you think of when it comes to health, and the last room you think of when it comes to technology. But as health and fitness become increasingly connected, it makes sense that more and more smart home devicesare popping up in the bathroom, starting with the humble scale. Yes, some smart bathroom scales can tweet your weight (with your permission, of course), but that isn’t really what makes them smart. The main reason to pick up a smart scale is that it can give you a clear picture of your health and fitness without making you do a lot of work.
Track Stats Automatically
Unsurprisingly, the best smart bathroom scales are compatible with the best fitness trackers. When you pair a Wi-Fi- or Bluetooth-connected scale with a fitness tracker, you typically use just one app to see data from both devices. Add in a heart rate monitoror at-home blood pressure cuff, and a smart water bottle, and you have even more information being collected and correlated, no spreadsheet and daily note-taking required.
Maybe you don’t want to track your weight over time, but chances are, your doctors and healthcare team do. Or maybe it’s not you, but someone in your family who needs to keep an eye on their body weight. Smart scales are smart enough to know the difference between a few different users and can track their weights separately and privately. Sharing data among family members and doctors is usually an option, too.
When you start using a smart bathroom scale, your weight is automatically logged every time you step on. Many of the best scales also measure body fat, and some track bone density and water percentage. Some can even read your heart rate through your feet.
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Smart Scales for Training
While many people want to track their weight and the number of steps they take in a day to get a better sense of their health, some people are a little more, shall we say, excited, to get on the scale every morning. Athletes and people who train regularly will want a scale that has not only great features, but a lot of companion apps and tools that can help them on their journey.
We note in our reviews which fitness and health tracking appseach of these scales work with, and which support apps that do things like calculate your training intensity day by day, charting your VO2Max and lactic acid threshold, and more. But if all this talk of VO2Max makes your head spin, you’re much better off with a smart Wi-Fi scale that has a simpler user experience.
Bluetooth vs. Wi-Fi Scales
Smart scales are either Bluetooth-enabled, or both Bluetooth- and Wi-Fi-enabled. Wi-Fi scales generally cost more because they require more components to work. They’re also much more convenient.
To get your daily weigh-ins off of a Bluetooth scale and into the app where they’ll be tracked, you need a Bluetooth device by your side. If you leave your companion smartphone, fitness tracker, or running watch in the other room, you’re out of luck until it’s within Bluetooth range. (Some scales can save a recorded weight until the next sync, but the cheaper ones do not.) A Wi-Fi-enabled scale doesn’t have this problem. It syncs your data as long as it has a signal from your Wi-Fi router. In our testing experience, Wi-Fi syncing is also more reliable, whereas Bluetooth syncing fails from time to time.
Pregnancy Mode
Women who are pregnant or who might become pregnant have unique needs when it comes to tracking their weight. Plus many pregnant women do not want impedance measurements, which are taken by way of mild electrical impulses sent through the feet to estimate body composition (things like body fat, bone density, and water percentage). People who have an implanted health device, such as a pacemaker, are often warned not to use impedance scales either.
While a few scales that support impedance measurements have an option to turn them off, only one scale, the QardioBase 2, has a full pregnancy-tracking mode. When enabled, impedance is shut off, and the scale flashes a happy face every time you step on it, rather than showing your weight in numbers. The companion Qardio mobile app helps new moms slowly work back to their pre-pregnancy weight, if that’s their goal.
If you’re looking for a new bathroom scale, we highly recommend buying one that’s smart. There’s real value for individuals, families, and health care providers to be able to track weight accurately and effortlessly over long periods of time. No matter your needs, you’re sure to find a scale that suits them on this list.
For more, see 5 Ways Smart Scales Can Help You Stay Healthy. And make sure to check back soon, as we regularly review new models.
Where To Buy
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QardioBase 2
Pros: Measures weight, BMI, and full body composition.
Improved stability over predecessor.
Safe for implanted medical devices and pregnant women.
Rechargeable battery lasts one year.Cons: Family members may be able to view your weight.
Bottom Line: The QardioBase 2 adds some welcome improvements to one of the smartest scales on the market.
Read Review
Withings Body Scale
Pros: Good looking bathroom scale with a supreme display.
Highly customizable Web account for recording personal health data.
No add-on costs.
Great options for sharing information with doctors and friends.
Interacts with a wide range of other fitness and health devices.Cons: Expensive.
Weight and health objectives are confusing to configure.Bottom Line: Though pricey, the Withings Wi-Fi Body Scale and complementary Web account pack a lot of value into an everyday health and fitness device, and the scale’s display is one of the best we’ve seen.
Wyze Scale
Pros: Affordable
Tracks 12 metrics
Supports auto-recognition and syncing for eight users
Integrates with Wyze Band
Attractive design
Cons: App only shows recommended levels for BMI
Apple Health, Fitbit, and Samsung Health not supported at launch (but are coming soon)Bottom Line: The $20 Wyze Scale offers unbeatable value, with the ability to measure and track 12 metrics, Wyze Band integration, and a safe mode for pregnant women and people who wear pacemakers.
Read Review
Arboleaf Smart Fitness Scale
Pros: Tracks 14 metrics
App helps you interpret your measurements and tracks your progress
Supports Bluetooth and Wi-Fi
Integrates with Apple Health, Google Fit, Fitbit
Supports up to eight users
Attractive designCons: Not safe for people with implanted medical devices like pacemakers
No heart rate measurements
Doesn’t sync with MyFitness Pal or Samsung HealthBottom Line: The $79.99 Arboleaf Smart Fitness Scale tracks 14 metrics, helps you make sense of your measurements, and supports Wi-Fi for greater convenience than Bluetooth-only scales.
Read Review
Eufy BodySense Smart Scale
Pros: Sleek design.
Measures weight, BMI, and full body composition.
Supports up to 16 users.
Good data contextualization.
Accurately differentiates between family members.
Integrates with Apple Health, Fitbit, and Google Fit.Cons: Data not private.
No modes for implanted medical devices and pregnant women.
Can’t delete erroneous measurements.Bottom Line: The Eufy BodySense is a comprehensive, accurate, and sleek smart scale that offers a ton of functionality for just $40.
Read Review
Fitbit Aria 2
Pros: Sleek look.
Tracks weight, BMI, body fat percentage, and lean mass.
Fully integrates into Fitbit platform.
Supports up to eight users.Cons: Lacks finely detailed body composition breakdowns.
Not safe for pregnancies or users with implanted medical devices.Bottom Line: Fitbit keeps things smart with its updated Aria 2 bathroom scale.
It’s not the most comprehensive, but you get all the benefits of Fitbit’s excellent platform.Read Review
Nokia Body Cardio
Pros: Rechargeable battery.
Sleek, stable design.
Low profile.
Accurate weight readings.
Syncs via Wi-Fi and Bluetooth.
Reads weight, water, fat, bone mass, heart rate, and arterial health.
Shows weather forecast.Cons: No pregnancy mode or ability to disable bioelectrical impedance.
Back-to-back heart readings varied in testing.
Arterial health feature is difficult to use.
Expensive.Bottom Line: With a sleek, stable design packed to the brim with features, the Withings Body Cardio is an upscale take on the smart bathroom scale.
Nokia Body Smart Scale
Pros: Affordable.
Connects via Wi-Fi.
Works with more than 100 third-party apps.
Supports up to eight users.Cons: Lacks advanced metrics.
App is a bit cluttered.Bottom Line: The Nokia Body is an affordable, attractive smart scale that sends basic information on your daily weigh-in to your phone over Wi-Fi.
Read Review
Garmin Index Smart Scale
Pros: Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and ANT+ syncing.
Readout shows weight as well as body fat, BMI, body water, and bone mass.
Clean design.
Supports up to 16 users.Cons: Initial syncing issues in testing.
No pregnancy mode.
At the high end of the price spectrum.Bottom Line: The Garmin Index Smart Scale wirelessly keeps track of your weight, body water, fat mass, and bone mass, but it’s a bit pricey for what you get.
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