Air that’s too dry or too humid will make you feel uncomfortable, not to mention wreak havoc on your home. Having one of the best indoor humidity monitors is a foolproof way to keep tabs on your indoor moisture levels year-round, and they come with easy-to-read interfaces with reliably accurate readings. This is important because — although the optimal indoor humidity hovers between 30 to 50% — the “sweet spot” within that range varies from season to season.
Accuracy & Features
Often called hygrometers, all indoor humidity monitors measure temperature and the relative humidity (RH). They’re straightforward devices but look for ones that deliver accuracy readings within plus or minus 3% RH so you know you're getting a reliable unit. Some more advanced models give you additional readings, like for dew point temperature and wet bulb temperature. Dew point is the temperature at which air would have to be cooled to achieve 100% humidity; a higher dew point indicates a stickier day. Wet bulb temperature is the lowest temperature that can be reached through evaporative cooling, and a high wet bulb temperature makes it hard for your body to cool itself (and ultimately function at your peak).
Design
Many options can be set on any surface and some can be mounted thanks to their wall hanging hole or magnetic back. For people who require more data (or more control), a handheld monitor that's able to travel with you from room to room, or even outside, is a great choice.
No matter how much information you want to play with, these four indoor humidity monitors are vetted for accuracy in even the stickiest conditions.
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1This No-Frills Thermometer And Humidity Gauge With 31,000+ Reviews
- Humidity Range: 10 – 99% (± 2-3% accuracy)
- Temperature Range: -58 – 158 degrees Fahrenheit (± 1)
This wildly popular tabletop humidity monitor gives it to you straight, providing relative humidity and air temperature readings without any additional meteorological bells and whistles. A best-seller on Amazon, this unit comes with a large, easy-to-read digital display and it takes new measurements every ten seconds for ultimate accuracy. In terms of temperature readings, you can toggle between Fahrenheit and Celsius, and for both humidity and temperature, you can see the highs and lows. The whole thing runs off a single AAA battery. Don’t want to clutter your end table? Mount it to the fridge with the magnetic back.
The smiley face icon that’s meant to indicate if you're in the "comfort zone" at a glance has the same symbol for air that’s too dry or too humid — you’ll still need to check the numbers to know what you're dealing with. As well, the maximum “comfortable” humidity level is 10% above most recommendations. Neither caveat stopped Amazon shoppers from leaving this highly accurate little gadget over 11,000 five-star reviews.
2This Wall-Mountable Hygrometer That Allows For Calibration
- Humidity Range: : 1 – 99% (± 2% accuracy)
- Temperature Range: -4 – 158 degrees Fahrenheit (± 0.5)
The AcuRite digital hygrometer has an easy-to-read interface that reveals at a glance whether your relative humidity has veered too high or too low — or if you’re inching close — with a full-color sliding scale indicator and arrows to indicate trends up or down. It has a built-in mounting bracket for hanging on your wall, but you can also stick it on your fridge or stand it upright on a table. One big pro? You can manually calibrate it for even greater accuracy. It also tracks highs and lows for the past 24 hours, keeps a log of all-time records for easy reference, and takes fresh measurements every ten seconds. Temperature readings can be in either Fahrenheit and Celsius, and it runs on two AA batteries.
3A Handheld Humidity Meter For Accurate Measurements Anywhere
- Humidity Range: 0 – 100% (± 3 – 3.5% accuracy)
- Temperature Range: -4 – 176 degrees Fahrenheit (± 0.9 – 1.5)
- Dew Point Range: -4 – 176 degrees Fahrenheit
- Wet Bulb Range: 32 – 176 degrees Fahrenheit
If you need more information (or simply don’t relish the idea of having a lot of visible tech in your home), this handheld humidity meter has a few extra features including wet bulb and dew point temperatures, giving you a ton of data at your fingertips. The backlit screen is easy to read in low light, and it has both a sleep mode and automatic shutoff to preserve battery life, and it even has a small bracket if you choose to mount it somewhere. It’s not the most attractive thing, but substance beats style here. One HVAC technician commented, "This is a nice compact size meter. It has been operating great and all readings have been accurate so far." The temperature readings are available in both Fahrenheit and Celsius and it runs on one standard 9V, NEDA 1604 or 6F22 battery.
4A Smart Hygrometer That Syncs With Your Phone & Alerts You If There's A Problem
- Relative humidity: 0 – 100% (± 3% accuracy typical)
- Temperature: -40 – 140 degrees Fahrenheit (±0.5 – 2.2)
This high-tech wireless hygrometer pairs with an app that’s compatible with iOS and Android devices for humidity and temperature readouts wherever you are, and sends push notifications to alert you in case there’s a problem. The small size can be tucked virtually anywhere and it takes readings every minute, holding up to 20 days of data onboard while storing all-time data in the app. The app can track multiple sensors — you can rename them for clarity — and reveals at a tap your trends spanning from an hourly to yearly basis. Plus, you can even export the data in an Excel file. Although it works within 100 meters (325 feet) and updates immediately when you’re back in range, you can spring for the SensorPush G1 WiFi Gateway to utilize the full suite of features. For data nerds, it’s a worthwhile investment.
