How to use Xiaomi scales together: full setup

Modern health gadgets are becoming an integral part of everyday life, and Xiaomi’s smart scales are taking the lead here, and many users mistakenly believe that to track the parameters of each family member you need to purchase a separate device or manually enter data after each weighing. In fact, the Mi Home and Mi Fitness software architecture is originally designed to work with multiple users, providing personalized statistics.

The basic principle of the work is that the scales themselves do not have internal memory to separate profiles, but act only as an accurate measuring tool. All the magic of data separation takes place on the side of the smartphone, which communicates with the gadget via Bluetooth Low Energy protocol, and it is the mobile application that recognizes who exactly stood on the platform, based on the current weight and historical data of a particular account.

In this article, we will take a closer look at the system configuration algorithm for two or more people to avoid confusion in progress graphs, learn how to properly create profiles, why it is important to follow the sequence of actions when you first start up, and what nuances exist when synchronizing data to the cloud.

The principle of user identification

It is fundamental to understand that Xiaomi Scale 2 or Mi Body Composition Scale 2 smart scales do not have their own interface for user selection. The device transmits raw data on tissue weight and resistance (for bioimpedance analysis) to a paired smartphone.

If the scale is connected to the husband’s phone and then the wife stands on it, the app can try to record her weight in the husband’s profile if the difference in body weight is small or if the settings do not set clear boundaries. To work correctly in “family” mode, each user must have his Mi Account account and his app on his smartphone, or use the guest feature, which is less convenient for long-term statistics.

⚠️ Attention: Libras determine the user solely by weight. If two people are of almost the same body weight (less than 0.5 kg difference), the system may mistakenly attribute the data to the wrong profile.

The key element of the system is the matching algorithm: the first time a scale is used, it remembers the weight of the first user as the reference weight; the next time it is switched on, it looks for the nearest weight in history, so it is critical that each person has their own anchor weight in the history of measurements.

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For best user accuracy, try to weigh yourself at the same time of day, as a person’s weight can fluctuate up to 1.5 kg during the day due to food and water intake.

Preparation for profile setting

Before you go on the plateau together or in turn, you need to do the preparatory work in the software part. Make sure that both users’ smartphones have the current versions of the Mi Home or Mi Fitness apps (formerly Mi Wear).

You'll need a stable Internet connection to initially sync your profiles, and it's also important that both users have separate Mi Accounts, and using the same account on different phones will synchronize your history and mix up your data, making the statistics useless.

It is recommended to determine in advance who will be the "administrator" of the device, usually a person who bought scales or is better versed in technology, and it is his phone that will perform primary pairing over Bluetooth, after which the device will become visible to other users within the "family group" or through the mechanism of guest access, depending on the model.

Place the scales on a hard, flat surface. Carpet coatings or soft bases can distort the readings of strain gauges, leading to calibration errors and, as a result, failures in user identification. The light must be bright enough that the smartphone camera (if a QR scan is required) works without delay.

Step-by-step: setup for the first user

The setup process starts with the main user: Turn on Bluetooth on your smartphone and launch the Mi Home app. Click on the plus in the upper right corner to add a new device. The system will automatically start searching for available gadgets within range.

When the Xiaomi scale icon appears on the screen, click on it. At that point, stand on the platform to activate the sensors and confirm the connection. The application will request permission to use geolocation and Bluetooth, which are mandatory requirements of the Android and iOS operating system for working with the periphery.

Path to menu: Mi Home → + (Add) → Select device → Click Next → Stand on scales

Once paired successfully, the app will prompt you to enter your personal data: height, age and gender, these parameters are critical for calculating body composition (fat percentage, muscle mass, water), without this data, the scale will only work as a normal mass meter, and the bioimpedance analysis function will not be available.

⚠️ Note: Don’t miss the personal data entry stage. If you specify the wrong age or gender, the calculation of visceral fat and baseline metabolism will be mathematically incorrect, which will confuse you with the goal.

Finish the setup by giving the device a clear name, such as “Libra in the Bathroom,” which will help distinguish them from other Xiaomi devices in the smart home ecosystem, and then the first user can do a check weighing to maintain the baseline.

Adding a second user and synchronizing

Now, the most important step is connecting a second person, and there are two main scenarios: using one ecosystem through a family group or connecting independently, and the most reliable way for models that support Mi Home is to add a device to a family.

The first user (administrator) must open the device settings in the application, select Device Settings (three dots in the corner), and find the option "Family Sharing" or "Share." By sending an invitation to the second user's account, you give him control rights. After accepting the invitation, the second user will see the scales in his list of devices.

However, for models running through the Mi Fitness app (formerly Mi Wear), the logic may be different. It often uses an automatic recognition mechanism. The second user must simply add the device to his app, pairing again. The scale can support connecting up to 8-10 smartphones, but they will actively synchronize the data with the phone that is nearby at the time of weighing.

Importantly, when adding a second user, the scales can reset previous calibration data, in which case it is recommended that both users weigh in turn to update the internal standards.

Use of guest mode and temporary users

For situations where guests come to you or temporary residents live in the house, you do not need to create full profiles. Xiaomi smart scales provide a guest mode that allows you to weigh without linking data to the main account and without violating the statistics of regular users.

To activate this mode, it is usually enough to select the option "Guest weighing" in the application before you stand on the platform, in which case the data will be displayed on the smartphone screen one-time and will not be stored in the long-term history, conveniently, so as not to "clog" the progress graphs with random measurements.

But there's a downside to guest mode: no analytics, you can't track a guest's weight dynamics if they want to stay for a week, and for those cases, it's better to create a temporary profile called "Guest" and just archive or delete it later.

Some scale models allow you to switch to guest mode directly by tapping on the surface of the scales a certain number of times, but this feature depends on the firmware version and device model.

⚠️ Warning: The guest mode does not support bioimpedance analysis (measurement of fat percentage) and only works in normal weights, as body composition requires personal data (age, height) that is not stored in the guest profile.

Solving Frequent Recognition Problems

Despite the advanced algorithms, users may encounter situations where scales confuse owners, which often happens if both users are of similar weight or if one of them dramatically changed body weight (for example, after a diet or, conversely, on holidays).

If you've written the wrong profile, you can manually correct it, go into your measurement history, find the wrong record, and select the option "Edit" or "Transfer to another profile," which will also "train" the weight algorithm, and in the future it will be less likely to make similar errors.

Another common problem is that the scales don't turn on for the second user, which may be because the motion sensors are asleep to save energy, knocking on the surface of the scales lightly or stomping next to it to wake up the Bluetooth module.

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The main reason for recognition errors is the lack of a clear weight history of one of the users, and regular weighing (at least 2-3 times a week) “calibrates” the smart scales for a particular person.

In rare cases, a complete reset of the device and re-binding both users from scratch, starting with the lightest member of the family, helps, allowing the scales to build the correct weight gradation of profiles.

Accuracy of measurements and influence factors

To get reliable data, both users should follow the same weighing conditions: the ideal time is in the morning, immediately after waking up, on an empty stomach and after using the toilet, during which time the body is most stable, and weight fluctuations are minimal.

It's important to stand on the scale barefoot, socks or shoes create an extra layer between the feet and electrodes (metal plates on the surface), which distorts the bioimpedance analysis. The feet should fit tightly into the contacts.

You also need to consider the effects of body temperature and skin moisture, and cold feet can conduct less current, which can lead to errors in the calculation of fat percentage, and if you just took a shower or, on the contrary, are cold, the data may differ from the real one.