Luggage Scales Can Help You Avoid Airline Fees. This Is Our Favorite.

On the left, a person's hands hold a small silver digital luggage scale that reads '9.8' pounds. On the right, a black handheld luggage scale with a strap and buckle is shown against a blue background with checkmarks and Xs.

If you’re anything like me — a souvenir shopaholic, a “just in case” packer, and an avid avoider of fees — luggage scales might be a travel essential. They can help you avoid paying for an overweight bag or at least give you a head’s up before you get to the airport. We even suggest using one in our guide to not overpacking.

Of course, if you have access to a good bathroom scale, you can always use what travel writer Maria Adelmann calls “the math method” — standing on the scale with and without the bag and subtracting your weight. This is how many of Wirecutter’s travel writers weigh their luggage.

But my travel destinations usually don't have a scale, and the weight matters more to me on the flight back home. So packing a luggage scale has saved me from my personal nightmare: Opening and rearranging my suitcase in front of annoyed strangers at the airport. Instead, I know ahead of time if I need to wear an extra layer on the flight to accommodate the cow-themed mugs, handmade soap, or the Rooster of Barcelos figurine I purchased.

While I came into testing as a luggage scale user, I was curious to see how these handy-dandy scales would hold up to the tried-and-true math method. What I learned is that not all luggage scales are accurate. I tested six popular luggage scales, comparing them with the math method for reliability, packability, and ease of use. In the end, I found one luggage scale that was a cut above the rest. The math method is not to be discounted, either, but it can’t travel with you.



from Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World https://www.nytimes.com/wirecutter/reviews/travel-inspira-luggage-scale-review/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=RSS%20Feed
via IFTTT

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The 30 Most Popular Prime Day Deals, According to Wirecutter Readers

Image
Amazon’s summer Prime Day — which is now a four-day event rather than the usual two days — is well underway, and we’ve been working hard to surface the best deals for our readers. We’ve sorted through thousands of on-sale items to pinpoint truly excellent discounts on the things our experts have found are worth your time and money. Among the 500-plus deals we’ve posted so far —less than 1% of every discount we’ve reviewed — some have grabbed the attention of our readers more than others. Here are the 30 Prime Day deals that our readers have loved the most, including soft sateen sheets, a luxe leather tote, an investment-worthy blender, and more. from Wirecutter: Reviews for the Real World https://ift.tt/tDSahdQ via IFTTT
Read more

How Molly Baz Restocked Her Kitchen After the LA Fires

Image
Shortly after the devastating Los Angeles fires of January 2025, cookbook author and recipe developer Molly Baz shared a note with her followers on Instagram. “You can take away the physical kitchen, but you can’t take away the spirit of the cook,” she wrote. The Altadena house that she’d shared with her husband, Ben Willett; her baby; and her miniature dachshund, Tuna, had just burned to the ground. “If there’s anything that will bring me some semblance of normalcy, comfort, and routine right now, it will be cooking. So that’s what I’ll do.” Still, “I felt so out of sorts,” says Baz. She recalls thinking, “Where is my pinch pot with my salt? I cannot cook, because I do not have the things that make me feel comfortable and like myself in my kitchen.” All the cookware, pantry staples, appliances, and beloved glassware and dinnerware that Baz had collected through her years of working in food were gone, and Baz suddenly faced the question of what had really mattered to her and made a ...
Read more

The Nugget Is the ‘Original Play Couch.’ Costco’s Version May Be Better.

Image
If you’re a parent of a child under 10, you’ve probably heard of The Nugget, the beloved play sofa that launched a thousand (well, at least 20) competitors. I’ve only recently discovered the category; but now that my eyes are open, play-cushion sets seem to be everywhere — even at Costco. I’m inherently skeptical of any product that claims to solve a need that I’m unaware of having. But, last summer, a junk collector hauled away our sofa, whose base had finally broken clean in half from eight years of my son’s intense, anime-inspired dance-jumping. It turns out we could’ve used a play sofa — and saved our couch  (as well as our cushions). The Nugget , the first play couch to widely popularize the concept, experienced viral popularity during pandemic lockdowns in 2020. It is also a Wirecutter favorite . Its modular design is simple: There are two long, hinged cushions and two triangular bolsters, all with removable, washable covers. And while The Nugget is arguably the most popu...
Read more