Body fat scales are a useful piece of tech that help to give an insight into the breakdown of your body. Rather than simply presenting your overall weight like a set of traditional scales, body fat scales can measure BMI, body fat, water percentage, muscle mass, heart rate and more.
Body fat scales – or body composition scales, as they're sometimes called – tend to sync up with apps, so you can view your progress and track changes on your phone.
Of course, data is a triathlete's best friend, so having this extra information can help you track your training progress and work to your ideal body composition for the season ahead.
As you'd expect, you'll find varying price points and features. Through in-depth research and reviews, we've selected eight of the best body fat scales so you can find a set to match you and your triathlon training needs.
Find out how body composition scales work and how they can help triathletes.
The best body fat scales for 2022
Eufy Smart Scale
This set of body fat scales has been designed to track the health trends of up to 16 users, so it could be a solid choice if you've got a large household! Promising an insight into 14 different body measurements, including lean body mass, visceral fat, body age, bone mass and muscle mass, this could be one to consider if you're keen to gain a more holistic understanding.
After stepping on the scales, your data and results should appear on the EufyHome app where you can access previous results and view graphs and trends.
You can also track your progress using Apple Health, Google Fit and Fitbit, which is handy if you want to keep all of your health and fitness data in one convenient place. In terms of design, it features rounded corners, and an anti-slip top plate.
Looking to work out at home? Check out the best treadmill deals.
Renpho Body Composition Scales
These Renpho body fat scales represent good value for money. For a start, it can be used by unlimited users, while there are 13 metrics available for you to analyse in the easy-to-use free app.
Among them, you'll find weight, body fat percentage, muscle mass, metabolic age and basal metabolic rate (the minimum necessary energy needed when in an inactive state).
These measurements are colour coded to help you recognise when you're in zones the app deems are ideal. Of course, which metrics you take notice of is a personal decision.
There's also a tab in the app that allows you to view trends, which is helpful if you want a longer-term, more holistic view of any progress you're trying to make.
You can also sync the app with Fitbit, Apple Health or Google Fit, while the scales themselves are powered by three AAA batteries, though there is also a rechargeable version available too.
Withings Body Body Composition Smart Scale
Withings creates products with a focus on smart health technology, so it's no surprise the brand is a popular choice when it comes to body fat scales.
This body fat scale features a pregnancy tracker, so pregnant individuals can follow their weight gain over their pregnancy and then also track their baby's weight too after the birth using the baby mode.
The position control technology aims to make weigh-ins as accurate as possible as it guides you into the correct position when you're standing on the scales.
In addition to the more advanced technology, this body fat scale aims to present body fat, water percentage and muscle and bone mass.
You can track your progress using the Health Mate app, and it works with Apple Health, Fitbit, Google Fit, MyFitnessPal and Strava. If you can't be bothered moving from the sofa to check on your progress, you can ask Alexa for an update.
Garmin Index S2 Smart Scale
If you're a Garmin loyalist, you'll be pleased to know there's a Garmin body fat scale you can get your hands on. It syncs with the Garmin Connect app, where you can view your progress and trend graphs and access data regarding your weight, weight trends, body fat percentage, BMI and skeletal muscle mass.
If you don't want to be bombarded with lots of information at once, Garmin claims you can customise the data presented to you when you step on the scales, which should allow you to focus on certain areas of health. With room for 16 user profiles, this set could work well for a big family or shared house.
It has a straightforward yet sleek appearance and it shares the weather forecast with you too, so you can decide whether to go for that run or not!
For more Garmin products, take a look at the Fenix 7 multisport watch.
Salter Curve Bluetooth Smart Analyser Scales
This set of body composition scales from Salter is on the lower end of the price scale, while still promising a fairly thorough overview.
You can use the Salter Mibody app to observe your body fat and water percentage, muscle and bone mass, as well as your BMI and BMR. The app shares healthy and recommended ranges, which could be beneficial if you want to compare your results. The app also lets you observe weekly, monthly and yearly changes, so you can spot any patterns over time.
The body fat scales also feature an athlete and child mode to accommodate for different ages and activity levels.
Withings Body Cardio
This is another set of body fat scales from Withings, but this model offers a heart rate feature. The Withings Cardio body fat scales aim to focus on your cardiovascular health by highlighting your vascular age, which is described as how old you are in the inside, and comparing that to your actual age.
Otherwise it shares a lot of the same qualities as the Body , such as the pregnancy tracker and baby mode, and it can also be used by eight different users.
It also measures your body fat, water percentage as well as your muscle and bone mass. So if you're weighing up between the two models, it really comes down to the heart rate and vascular age features.
Omron Viva Bluetooth Body Composition Monitor
This set of body composition scales from Omron aims to help you monitor your heart’s health by measuring your visceral fat and skeletal muscle. It can also inform you of your weight, body fat, resting metabolism and BMI.
As well as accessing your results on the large digital display, you can use the Omron connect app which works via Bluetooth to view and track your data.
This could be a suitable option for a smaller household as it can recognise four users, with the option to add a guest too.
In need of a massage gun to help relieve muscle tension? Take a look at our review of the Hypervolt Go.
Fitbit Aria Air Smart Scale
If you’re concerned about the appearance of your scales, this sleek Fitbit option would make a pretty stylish bathroom accessory.
This set measures your weight and allows you to track your BMI and view straightforward graphs using the Fitbit app. So it doesn't give as detailed a report, but if you’re keen to track your weight through an app, but don’t necessarily want the full breakdown, this could work for you.
If you’re a fan of Fitbit fitness trackers and watches, you can use the Fitbit app to access all of your data, which should help give you a whole picture in terms of progress and goals.
Tanita Segmental Body Analysis Scale
Tanita claim to offer an abundance of information including physique rating, visceral fat, total body water, metabolic age, BMI and bone mass. If you want to work on increasing your arm and leg muscle, there's a feature designed to measure the muscle and fat in each limb, so you can create a targeted approach to your training.
An appealing feature that makes this set stand out, is the addition of the hand held pull up console. Rather than peering down at the result as you step on the scales, you can grab the handles and bring the display up to your level, as you would with a rowing machine.
This makes it a fairly contemporary design if you're in the market for something a little different!
Looking for more tri tech to help with your training schedule? Take a look at the best triathlon watches.