A smart coffee scale is the secret to a perfect brew. It explains why you’ll rarely find baristas using a plastic scoop to measure their coffee grounds. These experts know that coffee’s flavor depends on the coffee to water ratio, and consistency is key. Because a smart coffee scale accurately measures coffee grounds and tracks each brew in an app, it can help you remember the ratios you liked and the coffee that tasted best. It’s a great tool for making consistently excellent coffee, and it’s beneficial if you like using pour over coffee makers. These are some of the best smart coffee scales to consider when it comes to precision, size, and functionality.
Fancy favorite
Acaia Pearl
Staff Pick
This incredibly high-end smart coffee scale will help you improve your brew with its snazzy connected features. It’s Bluetooth-enabled, water-resistant, accurate to 0.1 grams, responsive, and has a built-in timer as well as auto-off customization. The Acaia is for someone who’s serious about coffee and loves the idea of saving brewing data and coffee ratios in one of Acaia’s apps.
$140 at Blue Bottle Coffee
Newbie pick
Motif Mentor
Seattle-based Motif’s coffee brewing scale and companion app were created to guide coffee lovers at home through the brewing process with tips and techniques, such as step-by-step guides for all brewing methods. Though this smart scale has an auto shut off after 5 minutes, it has 0.01-gram precision and remains a great starting point for those new to the brewing process.
$62 at Walmart
Barista’s best friend
Acaia Lunar
Even more pricey than the Acaia Pearl is the Acaia Lunar, which comes in a smaller size that’s perfect for an espresso machine’s drip tray. Coated with anodized aluminum, this durable scale is best suited for the professional barista or anyone who wants to make espresso that competes with what you’ll find in Italy.
$225 at Acaia
$224 at Prima Coffee
New kid on the block
Timemore Black Mirror 2
The original Black Mirror is a popular coffee scale, but the Black Mirror 2 is its recent (and expensive) upgrade. This smart scale features an updated app that serves as a learning platform for coffee brewing, while the scale itself comes with a useful pour over stand as well as excellent accuracy, stability, and data control.
$268 at Amazon
Espresso addict
Felicita Arc
This simple yet stylish Arc smart scale is made with espresso lovers in mind. It’s accurate to 0.1 grams, has a built-in timer, and different functional modes. It’s a durable device made of aluminum, and it’s water-resistant. If espresso isn’t your thing, Arc’s other smart scales (Incline, Parallel, and Parallel Plus) are also great quality choices.
$140 at Arc
$200 at Amazon
Next gen
Acaia Pearl S
An upgrade to the Pearl, the Pearl S is a professional-grade smart scale with better battery life, a larger capacity, and lighter weight. It comes with cool features such as letting you monitor weight, time, and flow rate throughout coffee brewing, as well as personalized brewing modes, pour over coffee practice mode, and access to the Acaia app’s interactive coffee brewing guide. This is a next-level smart scale made for the most enthusiastic coffee enthusiasts.
$195 at Acaia
$185 at Prima Coffee
$185 at Blue Bottle Coffee
The real gem
When it comes to good coffee, consistency is key. Without precise measurements, your coffee will always taste a little bit different. A reliable smart coffee scale, on the other hand, will help you achieve the best brew every single time by tracking the coffee to water ratio used and saving it for future use. It’s a valuable purchase if you like pour over coffee or can’t go a day without your Chemex.
Though all the scales on this list are accurate, connected, and quite frankly impressive, I have a soft spot for the Acaia Pearl. Not only is its minimalist design something I wouldn’t mind seeing on my kitchen counter, but it’s a great quality product followed by a reputable brand with a range of apps to help with the brewing learning curve. Though it’s not the cheapest option on the list, the Pearl is on the more affordable end of smart coffee scales without being too complicated for my taste. It’s an ideal size, has a convenient auto-off function, and is incredibly precise.
But if you don’t mind spending more, then the Acaia Pearl S is clearly an upgraded version of the beloved Pearl. It’s best suited for someone who is basically a barista and has a bit of experience in brewing coffee. Its (super) advanced features will allow you to refine your brew and make you never want to use a plastic scoop ever again.
