A smart scale is a digital device that can measure a person’s weight and body composition to give an insight into their health and fitness. The best smart scales use bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA), a weak electric current, that sends a painless charge through the feet to estimate a range of body metrics, including body mass index (BMI), muscle mass, protein, body fat percentage and bone density.
After measuring weight, a smart scale uses WiFi or Bluetooth (sometimes both) to send the data to your phone, where the information is stored and updated every time you step on the scales. Depending on the brand, some smart scales also measure heart rate.
Sports scientist Jamal Ramsay (opens in new tab), co-founder of JRNY supplement shakes in England, said smart scales can be beneficial because they are a budget-friendly way of measuring body composition.
“Usually, to get a body composition report, you would need to book a private health assessment or go to a specific venue, which could be quite expensive,” he told Live Science. “But with smart scales, getting these measurements is a lot easier.”
Read on to discover our tried and tested pick of the best smart scales for your home.
Best smart scales we’ve tested
The Renpho smart scale is one of the best smart scales we’ve tested. It’s affordable, well designed, easy to use and has an excellent app that gives real insight into the body metrics it measures.
We love how it syncs with all the main health apps (from Apple Health and Fitbit to MyFitnessPal) so it’s really simple to access your data in one place. You can measure 13 different body metrics and the app gives further insight into how these relate to the average person, in terms of being healthy or unhealthy.
Unlike most smart scales we’ve tested, the Renpho refreshingly comes with a rechargeable lithium battery and USB charger (included) rather than triple AAAs. It also has unlimited users and baby