GE scales are a scam and math theater

I exported 3 months of readings from my GE CS10H smart scale. The body fat percentage comes from a formula: fat % = 0.434 × weight − 17.5. Every one of 37 readings fits within 0.1 points.

GE CS10H handle display: weight 87.70 kg circled in green as the only measured value, body fat, muscle, water, BMI, bone and visceral fat circled in red as computed values
The CS10H handle display. One load cell feeds every other number on it.

How I caught it

The scale syncs to an app called Fit Profile. The app exports to xlsx. I exported 40 weigh-ins from June to August 2026 and ran a linear regression of body fat % against weight.

  • 37 readings with a body fat number, 3 with none
  • Correlation between weight and fat %: 0.998
  • Residual standard deviation: 0.04 points
  • Worst deviation from the formula: 0.09 points, within display rounding

Real bioimpedance jitters. Hydration, meals, time of day, and wet feet move the reading 0.5 to 1.5 points at the same weight. Zero jitter means zero measurement.

GE scales are a scam and math theater 37 readings over 3 months sit exactly on a straight line, with zero scatter. fat % = 0.434 × weight − 17.5 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 19% 19.5% 20% 20.5% 21% 21.5% 22% 22.5% Jun 01: 88.45 kg, 20.9% fat Jun 02: 86.9 kg, 20.3% fat Jun 02: 86.9 kg, 20.3% fat Jun 04: 88.2 kg, 20.8% fat Jun 05: 87.75 kg, 20.6% fat Jun 07: 89.3 kg, 21.2% fat Jun 07: 89.3 kg, 21.3% fat Jun 11: 87.55 kg, 20.5% fat Jun 12: 88.55 kg, 21.0% fat Jun 16: 89.05 kg, 21.2% fat Jun 17: 88.1 kg, 20.8% fat Jun 20: 87.8 kg, 20.6% fat Jun 22: 88.55 kg, 21.0% fat Jun 22: 88.55 kg, 21.0% fat Jun 26: 88.85 kg, 21.1% fat Jun 26: 90.1 kg, 21.6% fat Jul 20: 91.5 kg, 22.2% fat Jul 23: 91.55 kg, 22.2% fat Aug 03: 90.5 kg, 21.8% fat Aug 03: 90.05 kg, 21.6% fat Aug 04: 90.0 kg, 21.6% fat Aug 05: 89.05 kg, 21.2% fat Aug 06: 88.05 kg, 20.7% fat Aug 07: 88.45 kg, 20.9% fat Aug 08: 89.05 kg, 21.2% fat Aug 08: 89.35 kg, 21.3% fat Aug 09: 87.9 kg, 20.6% fat Aug 10: 88.6 kg, 21.0% fat Aug 11: 87.6 kg, 20.5% fat Aug 12: 87.6 kg, 20.5% fat Aug 12: 88.35 kg, 20.8% fat Aug 12: 88.35 kg, 20.8% fat Aug 13: 86.75 kg, 20.1% fat Aug 25: 87.75 kg, 20.6% fat Aug 26: 84.65 kg, 19.2% fat Aug 27: 85.65 kg, 19.7% fat Aug 27: 85.65 kg, 19.7% fat 19.2% at 84.65 kg 22.2% at 91.55 kg No scatter. No hydration effect. Worst deviation: 0.09 points. Weight, kg Body fat, %
37 readings, June to August 2026. Hover a point for the date. Every reading sits on the line.

Same weight, same fat, months apart

The clearest tell needs no statistics. Repeat a weight, and the fat % repeats exactly:

  • 89.05 kg on Jun 16, Aug 5, and Aug 8: 21.2% all 3 times
  • 88.55 kg on Jun 12 and twice on Jun 22: 21.0% all 3 times

Between those dates I lost and regained real weight. My body in mid June and my body in early August produced the identical number, because the only input is the weight.

The fat curve is the weight curve Same 3 months. The scale repackages one measurement as two. 84 86 88 90 92 Jun 01: 88.45 kg Jun 02: 86.9 kg Jun 02: 86.9 kg Jun 04: 88.2 kg Jun 05: 87.75 kg Jun 07: 89.3 kg Jun 07: 89.3 kg Jun 11: 87.55 kg Jun 12: 88.55 kg Jun 16: 89.05 kg Jun 17: 88.1 kg Jun 20: 87.8 kg Jun 22: 88.55 kg Jun 22: 88.55 kg Jun 26: 88.85 kg Jun 26: 90.1 kg Jul 20: 91.5 kg Jul 23: 91.55 kg Aug 03: 90.5 kg Aug 03: 90.05 kg Aug 04: 90.0 kg Aug 05: 89.05 kg Aug 06: 88.05 kg Aug 07: 88.45 kg Aug 08: 89.05 kg Aug 08: 89.35 kg Aug 09: 87.9 kg Aug 10: 88.6 kg Aug 11: 87.6 kg Aug 12: 87.6 kg Aug 12: 88.35 kg Aug 12: 88.35 kg Aug 13: 86.75 kg Aug 25: 87.75 kg Aug 26: 84.65 kg Aug 27: 85.65 kg Aug 27: 85.65 kg Weight, kg (the real measurement) 19% 20% 21% 22% Jun 01: 20.9% Jun 02: 20.3% Jun 02: 20.3% Jun 04: 20.8% Jun 05: 20.6% Jun 07: 21.2% Jun 07: 21.3% Jun 11: 20.5% Jun 12: 21.0% Jun 16: 21.2% Jun 17: 20.8% Jun 20: 20.6% Jun 22: 21.0% Jun 22: 21.0% Jun 26: 21.1% Jun 26: 21.6% Jul 20: 22.2% Jul 23: 22.2% Aug 03: 21.8% Aug 03: 21.6% Aug 04: 21.6% Aug 05: 21.2% Aug 06: 20.7% Aug 07: 20.9% Aug 08: 21.2% Aug 08: 21.3% Aug 09: 20.6% Aug 10: 21.0% Aug 11: 20.5% Aug 12: 20.5% Aug 12: 20.8% Aug 12: 20.8% Aug 13: 20.1% Aug 25: 20.6% Aug 26: 19.2% Aug 27: 19.7% Aug 27: 19.7% Body fat, % (same curve, rescaled) Jun 2026 Jul 2026 Aug 2026
Weight and body fat over 3 months. The fat curve is the weight curve, rescaled. So are body water, muscle mass, and visceral fat.

The socks test

Bioimpedance needs skin contact. Electrodes push a small current through your body and measure resistance. Socks are an insulator: a real device errors out or returns garbage.

This scale prints the same numbers with socks on. The whole case in one sentence. The electrodes play no part in the calculation.

The height test

Second experiment, also 2 minutes. I changed my height in the app from 1.86 m to 1.80 m and stepped on again. Same body, same evening. The scale printed 87.70 kg, BMI 27.1, body fat 23.2%, water 55.4%.

Losing 6 cm of height on paper added 2.6 points of body fat. That unlocks the full formula. Rewrite my weight regression in BMI terms and it predicts fat 23.2% and water 55.5% for exactly this weigh-in. The scale runs on:

  • fat % = 1.5 × BMI − 17.5
  • water % = 84 − 1.06 × BMI

A $30 pocket calculator with a BMI chart taped to it, sold as a 6-electrode body composition analyzer.

Close-up of the CS10H handle display: 87.70 kg, body fat 23.2%, muscle 73.0%, water 55.4%, BMI 27.1, bone 3.9%, visceral fat 9
The height test. Profile set to 1.80 m: 87.70 kg, BMI 27.1, fat 23.2%, water 55.4%. The BMI formula predicted 23.2 and 55.5.

One more touch. The scale plays a "measuring" animation for several seconds before showing these numbers. The arithmetic takes microseconds. The wait sells the theater.

The hardware could do it

The CS10H has 6 electrodes, including a pull-out handle. The listing promises 8: an "8-Electrode Body Pod Fat Monitor with Full Body Composition Analysis". Hand plus foot electrodes are exactly the hardware real segmental bioimpedance uses.

The app duly reports per-limb muscle and fat, protein, bone mass, body water, visceral fat, and metabolic age. Every one of them tracks weight perfectly. Body water in my export is a mirror of the fat curve. The hardware ships, the signal is ignored, the formula prints.

GE CS10H smart scale with handlebar electrodes
The GE CS10H. 6 electrodes, including a handle. Sold for segmental body composition analysis.

The app doubles down

The Fit Profile app expands the one measured number into an "In-depth Report". These screens correspond to my 85.65 kg weigh-in. Body fat 19.7%. The formula says 19.69.

  • Segmental fat analysis per limb: right arm 1.08 kg of fat, left arm 1.04 kg. Fake precision down to 40 grams, from a device that ignores its own electrodes.
  • Muscle balance: left leg 103.7% of normal, right leg 104.3%.
  • Metabolic age 46, waist-to-hip ratio 0.96, protein 18.2%, BMR 1855 kcal: an entire clinical report from one load cell and a profile form.
Fit Profile body composition screen: weight 85.65 kg circled in green, body water, protein, fat mass and bone mass boxed in red as computed valuesFit Profile segmental fat analysis screen with all per-limb values boxed in red: every number is computedFit Profile other measurements screen: muscle mass, BMR, subcutaneous fat, waist-to-hip ratio, metabolic age

Green: measured. Red: computed. The third screen has no green anywhere.

Who actually makes it

The GE brand is licensed. The Fit Profile app is published by Global eFit Incorporated, which sells "GE branded scales" at fit-profile.com. The GE monogram on the glass is the most expensive component of the product.

There is precedent. The SEC fined GE $50 million in 2009 over its accounting and $200 million in 2020 over its disclosures. The licensed scale keeps the family tradition: confident numbers with no measurement behind them. The biggest cooked books GE has shipped since, and this time they weigh you back.

What works

  • The load cell is fine. Weight readings are consistent and tracked my real 5.8 kg loss over 5 weeks.
  • The electrodes physically exist, and the contact detection works. Skip the handle, or hold it with 1 arm, and the scale refuses to show body composition. It enforces the ritual, then discards the signal.
  • Bluetooth sync works.
  • The app exports clean xlsx. That export is how it got caught.

The joke is on me

Amazon sells $10 and $20 body composition scales by the pallet. I skipped them all and paid $119.99 for the brand name. The brand name skips the measurement. Amazon also flags it FSA and HSA eligible, so Americans can buy this formula with pre-tax health money.

Amazon order: GE Smart Scale for Body Weight, 8-Electrode Body Pod Fat Monitor with Full Body Composition Analysis, sold by GE Authorized Store, $119.99, FSA or HSA eligible
The order. 8 electrodes promised, 6 present, 0 used.

Test your own scale

Takes 10 minutes, no lab needed:

  1. Export your history from the companion app. Most export csv or xlsx.
  2. Plot body fat % against weight. A straight line with no scatter is a formula.
  3. Find 2 days with the same weight, weeks apart. Identical fat % is a formula.
  4. Weigh yourself with socks on. Same fat % as barefoot means the electrodes are decoration.
  5. Change your height in the app and step on again. A different fat % on the same body means the number comes from your profile settings.

Verdict

Buy it as a weight scale, if the price says weight scale. Ignore every other number on the screen. And if your smart scale never surprises you, it runs a spreadsheet.

Data and method

  • Data: 40 readings exported from the Fit Profile app, Jun 1 to Aug 27, 2026. Download: all 40 readings, csv, minus the device MAC.
  • Regression: fat % = 0.4342 × weight − 17.498. r = 0.998, residual SD 0.04 points, worst deviation 0.09.
  • Height experiment, Aug 27: profile set to 1.80 m, weight 87.70 kg. Displayed fat 23.2% and water 55.4%. BMI-formula predictions: 23.16 and 55.45.