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☕ Buying Guides · 2026What a coffee scale needs - 0.1 g readability, a timer, a body that fits under a portafilter or a server - and four verified scales from $30 to $200, with the Acaia Pearl's maker figures for comparison.
Written and reviewed by the CoffeeLabAdvisor editorial team · Published 16 September 2026
A coffee scale earns its place with three things a kitchen scale lacks: 0.1 g readability, because an espresso dose is 18 g and a 1 g step is a 5 percent error; a timer, because every recipe on this site is written as grams against seconds; and a footprint that fits where you brew - under a portafilter on a drip tray, or under a server for pour-over. The makers agree on the basics: Hario, TIMEMORE and Acaia all state 0.1 g readability and a 2,000 g capacity. What separates the scales below is speed, modes and price - a $30 scale with a timer, a slim pour-over classic, an espresso-mode scale that tracks flow rate, and a design-led scale that shows a ratio target on screen. Each figure is the maker's or the listing's own.
Coffee is weighed because volume lies: a scoop of light-roast beans weighs less than a scoop of dark, and a pour-over recipe of 21 g to 360 g is impossible to follow by eye. Three specifications do the work. Readability of 0.1 g is the standard the makers state - Hario's V60 Drip Scale, TIMEMORE's Basic 3.0 and Acaia's Pearl all read to a tenth of a gram, and TIMEMORE's page adds that its 0.1 g holds from 0.2 g up to 500 g, then coarsens to 1 g and 3 g at higher loads, which is how most scales behave. Capacity of about 2,000 g, also stated by all three, covers a full server of pour-over with the brewer on top. A timer turns the scale into the recipe card: bloom for 30 seconds, finish by 3:00.
Two things matter beyond the specifications. Response time - how fast the display settles when water hits the bed - decides whether you can follow a pour in real time; Fellow's listing makes it the Tally's headline. And footprint: an espresso scale has to be thin enough to sit on a drip tray under the portafilter (TIMEMORE states a 20 mm body for that reason), while a pour-over scale needs a platform wide enough for a server, which is what Hario built the Drip Scale around.
Greater Goods coffee scale is the budget answer: 0.1 g, a count-up and count-down timer and a heat-resistant silicone cover over a 5.25 in platform, per its listing, for about $30. Hario V60 Drip Scale is the pour-over classic - 0.1 g and 2,000 g on Hario's own page, a timer, a slim body sized to sit under a server, auto-off that stays off while the timer runs. TIMEMORE Black Mirror Basic 3.0 is the enthusiast's espresso-and-pour-over scale: TIMEMORE's page states 0.1 g from 0.2 g, three modes including an espresso mode that auto-tares, times and shows flow rate, a 1600 mAh battery for up to 24 hours, and the listing adds the 20 mm body and a physical mode switch. Fellow Tally Pro is the premium pick: its listing states readings that settle in under a second, a Brew Assist mode that shows the target weight for a chosen ratio, a metal dial and a removable pan.
Acaia Pearl is the scale the cafe supplier Espresso Parts carries under its own brand collection, and its maker page states 2,000 g capacity, 0.1 g readability, a 160 by 160 by 32 mm body and $150 - but it is sold direct rather than through a listing we could verify, so it appears here for comparison and not as a card.
Pour-over only: the Hario if the server is the constraint, the Greater Goods if the price is. Espresso, or both: the TIMEMORE - the espresso mode and the thin body are the two things a pour-over scale lacks under a portafilter. A gift, or a counter you look at: the Fellow. Already weighing on a kitchen scale: check its readability; most read to 1 g, which is fine for a 360 g pour and poor for an 18 g dose.
Whatever you buy, protect it from the two things that kill scales: heat straight from a drip tray or a hot server (the silicone cover and the pan are there for that) and water inside the case, which Hario's listing addresses with improved water resistance. And weigh the output as well as the input - a double shot is judged by its yield in grams, which is what the espresso mode is timing.
Four verified scales in price order. Each capability is the listing's own statement, read on the date shown on the card, corroborated where stated by the maker's page in the sources; live prices come from the Amazon API.
The budget pick - 0.1 g, a timer and a washable cover for about $30. Listing states a 0.1 g high-precision sensor with a rapid refresh rate, a count-up and count-down timer, a heat-resistant dishwasher-safe silicone cover over a 5.25 by 5.25 in surface, quick tare and six units.
Check price on Amazon →
The pour-over classic - weight and timer in a slim body that fits under a V60 server. Listing states 0.1 g increments, a built-in timer for repeating brew recipes, auto-off after five minutes that is not active while the timer runs, a slim footprint sized for a server, anti-slip feet and improved water resistance.
Check price on Amazon →
The enthusiast default - espresso and pour-over modes, flow rate, and a body thin enough for a drip tray. Listing states 0.1 g precision from 0.2 g up to 2000 g, three modes (pour-over with live brew ratio, espresso with auto-tare, timing and flow rate, and regular), a physical mode switch, a 20 mm body and a rechargeable battery.
Check price on Amazon →
The design-led scale with a ratio target on screen - the premium pour-over pick. Listing states readings that settle in under a second, a Brew Assist mode that shows a target for a set water-to-bean ratio, two further weighing modes, a metal dial, a removable weigh pan and up to 13 hours of continuous weighing per charge.
Check price on Amazon →For espresso, yes: a dose is about 18 g, so a 1 g step is a five-percent error before the shot starts. For pour-over a 1 g scale is workable for the water and marginal for the coffee. Hario, TIMEMORE and Acaia all state 0.1 g readability on their coffee scales.
A mode that tares the cup, starts the timer when the first drops land and reports the shot's weight and time together - TIMEMORE's page describes its espresso mode as auto-taring, timing and tracking flow rate. It replaces the two-handed juggling of a manual timer.
Only a thin one. TIMEMORE states a 20 mm body for its Basic 3.0 for exactly that reason; Hario's Drip Scale is built slim for a pour-over server rather than a drip tray. Measure the gap between your drip tray and the portafilter spouts before buying.
For comparison, not as a card. Acaia's own page states 2,000 g capacity, 0.1 g readability, a 160 by 160 by 32 mm body and $150, but it is sold direct rather than through a listing we could verify, and this page only carries verified listings.
For pour-over water, a kitchen scale reading to 1 g is fine. For the coffee dose - and for any espresso work - the 0.1 g readability, the timer and the small footprint of a coffee scale are the point.
Sources for this page: Hario V60 Drip Scale specifications (up to 2,000 g; 1 g and 0.1 g measurements; built-in timer; $60): Hario USA product page, read 2026-09-16; corroborated by the listing 2026-09-16 (0.1 g increments, timer, auto-off, water resistance) · TIMEMORE Basic 3.0 specifications (0.2-2000 g; 0.1 g to 500 g, 1 g to 1000 g, 3 g to 2000 g; three timer modes; real-time flow rate; 1600 mAh, up to 24 hours; $59): timemore.com product page, read 2026-09-16; corroborated by the listing 2026-09-16 (0.2-2000 g at 0.1 g; three modes; 20 mm body; physical mode switch) · Acaia Pearl specifications (2000 g; 0.1 g; 160 x 160 x 32 mm; 3.7 V 1100 mAh, 30-40 hours; $150): acaia.co product page, read 2026-09-16 · Pour-over recipe figures cited (21 g / 360 g; 30-second bloom; 3:00 finish): the sources documented on our how-to-make-pour-over-coffee page · Greater Goods and Fellow Tally Pro capabilities and all prices: each product's own Amazon listing (title and feature bullets), read on 2026-09-16; every card links to the listing it was read from We have not lab-tested brewers; where a figure is a manufacturer's, the page names the manufacturer, and machine capabilities come from our own published review records.