Choosing the best blood-glucose meter for you, the meter that provides accurate and consistent readings, is essential for many people with diabetes who need daily insulin injections.

“Inaccurate or inconsistent test results could possibly lead to inadequate treatment and health problems, including dangerously low blood-sugar levels,” says John Buse, M.D., president for medicine and science at the American Diabetes Association.

We contracted with an outside laboratory to test the accuracy and consistency of our best blood-glucose meters against a standard laboratory test using blood samples from diabetic volunteers.

The OneTouch UltraMini, the only meter to score excellent overall, also scored the highest for consistency.

To test the meters’ ease of use, we had lay and expert panelists with diabetes use and score each glucose monitor for size, speed, memory, and whether test strips required users to enter codes before best blood-glucose meter testing. The OneTouch UltraMini was judged very good; the Ascensia Contour, excellent.

For more information on hypertension and diabetes, including drug Ratings from Consumer Reports Best Buy Drugs, go to ConsumerReportsHealth.org.