Selecting a Blood Glucose Meter:
Things to Consider

When you're choosing your glucose meter, consider the following:

• Ease of use (number of steps required etc.)
• Amount of blood required for measurment
• Size and weight of glucose meter
• Range of measurement
• Display size
• Requirements for glucometer cleaning
• Testing time and speed
• When and how to calibrate
• Whole blood versus plasma glucose concentration results
• Memory and ability to download results
• Ability to average glucose values
• Cost of meter
• Cost of strips
• Cost/ease of replacement batteries
• Ability to use alternate site testing
• Effect of altitude
• Customer support availability
• Blind and visually impaired diabetics may need talking glucose meter.
• Check also Which Glucometer Do You Use? with live diabetics' comments.
• Depending on where you look, recommended glucose levels can vary.The American Diabetes Association (ADA) numbers differ from the American College of Endocrinology (ACE) guidelines. The ACE recommendations are more strict than the ADA's.
  How do you know which to follow?
  
• The major meter manufacturers such as Lifescan, Bayer, Roche, and Abbott have continued to raise test strip prices to the cash paying consumer. At one point in time they had superior products and could justify those prices. Over the last years there have been several new meters introduced into the marketplace that are just as good as, if not better that some of the meters from these leading manufacturers.

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