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Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review

Umito November 23, 2024

Designed for espresso machines but versatile enough to use with pour-overs, the Felicita Arc is the most luxurious coffee scale I’ve ever used. Yes, the price reflects this luxury, but as soon as you lay eyes on this beautiful device, you’ll understand why. This might be one of the best coffee scales I’ve ever tested.

The Felicita Arc is constructed from aluminum and is IPX5 rated, meaning it’s waterproof enough to withstand a low-pressure jet of water. On top of that, the scale is heavy without being heavy, with carefully sealed and polished edges.

If you can make sense of the initially confusing menu of functions, this is a well-designed coffee scale that has all the bases covered. That I use the Arc with one of the best coffee makers or the best espresso machines, it is versatile enough to give me accurate readings.

I would trust this coffee scale more than any others I’ve tested, given its reliable controls and automatic features. But is it worth the whopping $110/£169 price tag? Find out in this Felicita Arc coffee scale review.

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: Cheat Sheet

Who is it for? Professional baristas or serious coffee enthusiasts
What does it cost? $110 at Amazon
What does it do well? The automatic functions are fantastic and extremely reliable
What do we hope it does better? I can’t lie, $110 is expensive for a digital scale

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: Specifications

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Price	$110 / £169
Weight	9 ounces
Dimensions	4.1 x 5.3 x 0.6 inches
Maximum weight	2 kilograms/4.4 pounds
Minimum weight	0.1g
Precision	0.1g
Materials	Aluminum
Color	Black
Battery	USB-C rechargeable
Standby time	5 minutes
Waterproof	IPX5
Timer	Yes
Accessories	Silicone mat, calibration weight 100g

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: Price and Availability

a luxury coffee scale made by Felicita Arc is pictured against a blue background with its weight, USB-C cable and silicone mat

(Image credit: Future)

The Felicita Arc coffee scale is available for $110 at Amazon US And £169 at Amazon UKThis is one of the most expensive coffee scales I have ever used. The premium Timemore Black Mirror 2 costs $59 and features a timer, accuracy up to 0.1g, and a waterproof dial surface. On the other end of the scale, the KitchenTour Coffee Scale costs $29 and works just as well, but it’s not waterproof.

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: Design and Features

The Felicita Arc is a high-end scale, and boy, does it look like it. The IPX5 aluminum body is water-resistant up to a low-pressure stream of water, meaning it should hold up to your daily coffee routine better than something without water protection, like the Maestri House coffee scale ($39) or the Hario V60 Drip. Ladder ($56).

Since the Felicita Arc is only 5 inches long and half an inch thick, it’s compact and easy to store between uses. Although you might think its size makes it incompatible with larger coffee makers like the Chemex, you can use it easily with larger coffee makers and espresso machines thanks to its stable pad.

a luxury coffee scale made by Felicita Arc is pictured against a blue background with its weight, USB-C cable and silicone mat

(Image credit: Future)

The Felicita Arc has a huge range of functions. Accessing these functions relies on a series of confusing button mashes, so don’t do it throw away your instruction manual – you’ll need it. Once you get the hang of the functions menu, the range of settings makes this scale one of the most versatile and impressive I’ve ever seen.

The scale has standard tare and timing, but it also has auto timing and tare, and you can measure the total time of an injection, including pre-infusion time. I found the auto timing and tare feature to be a treat when making espresso and helped me perfect my extraction.

a luxury coffee scale made by Felicita Arc is pictured against a blue background with its weight, USB-C cable and silicone mat

(Image credit: Future)

The Felicita Arc scale is compatible with the Felicita app. This app is not required to operate the scale, but it is a nice feature considering the price of the scale. You can switch between ounces and grams in the app – you don’t seem to be able to do this through the scale itself. You can also enable sound and voice announcements on the app and even view live weighing information from the scale.

I was blown away by the specifications of the Felicita Arc coffee scale. The waterproofing is superior to any other coffee scale I have reviewed. The subminimum subscale ($49) is rated IPX4, but doesn’t have a timer, so it’s not recommended for serious espresso extraction. The Timemore Black Mirror Basic 2 is listed as “waterproof” but doesn’t have an IP rating, so there are no concrete numbers on its ability to withstand spills. I wouldn’t rinse the Felicita Arc under the sink, but it should be fine if water gets splashed on it during the brewing process, and wiping it with a damp cloth won’t be a problem.

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: Performance

As soon as I opened the Felicita Arc, I calibrated the scale using the included 100g (3.5 ounce) weight. I don’t know if it’s an error in the weight or the scale itself, but when I compared the weight of the same object on the Felicita Arc to the KitchenTour scale, to the Hario V60 scale and at the Timemore Black Mirror scale, the Felicita Arc was off. about 0.5 g each time. Despite this, he was consistent with himself.

As this scale is designed for espresso, I needed to test it with my KitchenAid Semi-Automatic Espresso Machine. I placed the Felicita Arc on the drip tray and placed my cup on top. As I had activated the “triangle” function (tare mode and automatic time), it automatically tared when the cup was placed on it. As soon as the first drop of espresso hit the cup, the timer would start, and as soon as the espresso was finished, the timer would beep and stop. I love the beep, because it was the only thing missing from my favorite affordable scale, the Maestri House Scale ($39).

a luxury coffee scale made by Felicita Arc is pictured against a blue background with its weight, USB-C cable and silicone mat

(Image credit: Future)

The Felicita Arc measures down to 0.1g, making it a great device for precise, hands-free espresso brewing, and is reliable enough that you don’t need to triple-check its automatic functions work.

Although the Felicita Arc is designed for espresso use, I also wanted to test its versatility. I changed it to ounces instead of grams using the Felicita app and weighed 1 ounce of medium coarse coffee into my Chemex. Using the timer, I brewed the coffee for 32 seconds, then poured in 10 ounces of water. I let it steep for 1 minute, then added the second 10 ounces more water for my third brew. This made four small cups of coffee and all of my coworkers reported that their drinks were even more delicious than usual.

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: Storage and Care

a luxury coffee scale made by Felicita Arc is pictured against a blue background with its weight, USB-C cable and silicone mat

(Image credit: Future)

As it is an IPX5 scale, cleaning is relatively simple. You can safely wipe up coffee spills without worrying about damaging the scale. Measuring just 5 inches by 4 inches, this is a compact device that you can easily fit into your kitchen cabinet. And even if you decide to keep it aside, it’s an attractive product that will look great on your kitchen counter.

The battery life is 20 hours, which may not seem like much at first, but if you use this scale for a few minutes each day, it will easily last you over a year. When it runs out, you can charge it with the included USB-C cable.

If you need to recalibrate the scale, you can use the included 100g weight to do so. It’s very simple to do and only takes a few seconds.

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: How Does It Compare?

In terms of weight comparison, the Felicita Arc was down about 0.5g when compared directly to other scales. This could have been the result of an inaccurate calibration weight, but the Arc was always consistent with its own measurements: something that weighed 10g the first time, weighed 10g every time.

a luxury coffee scale made by Felicita Arc is pictured against a blue background with its weight, USB-C cable and silicone mat

(Image credit: Future)

In terms of waterproofing, this is the best spec I’ve seen on a coffee scale. Only the subminimum subscale ($49) comes close to IPX4, but I doubt the effectiveness of this scale due to its lack of a timer. The other high-end scale I liked was the Timemore Black Mirror Basic 2 ($59), which had a waterproof surface (although not IP rated) and a live flow monitor. Although the Arc offers a much wider range of functions, it is also $50 more expensive than the Timemore.

If you want to save as much money as possible, I recommend the KitchenTour Coffee Scale ($29). It may not be waterproof or as good looking as the Arc, but it weighs and lasts just as well.

Felicita Arc Coffee Scale Review: Verdict

a luxury coffee scale made by Felicita Arc is pictured against a blue background with its weight, USB-C cable and silicone mat

(Image credit: Future)

This is a luxury scale with a luxury price tag to boot. If you want a truly complete and versatile range, if you want to devote time to mastering, this range is for you. But if you want something that literally only weighs the coffee and brewing time, this might be overkill. The range of functions sometimes got in the way during testing: I accidentally pressed it to switch to auto mode but wanted to manually start my timer, for example.

If you want a basic and/or cheap scale, this is not for you. You’d be better off with the KitchenTour Coffee Scale for $29, or if you want something basic but pretty, I’d recommend the Maestri House Scale for $39. However, if you want to go all out to take your coffee routine to the next level, the Felicita Arc is a great luxury option.

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