Not every home needs a dehumidifier. If your indoor humidity levels normally stay between 40 to 60 percent, it’s usually not necessary. Those are, pretty much, acceptable levels. Any higher, though, and it’s definitely something you’ll want to consider, since high humidity can cause plenty of issues around the house. For one, high humidity can spur mold and mildew growth on furniture, curtains, bed sheets, and clothing, all while providing an environment where dust mites and other pests can thrive. For some people, high humidity can trigger allergies, while making the air feel hotter and stickier than prevailing air temperatures will suggest. As you can imagine, high humidity levels inside the house can lead to a number of health issues.
The best humidifiers can clear out all this extra humidity, removing all the excess moisture from the air to keep the space drier and more comfortable. This can help minimize potential allergy triggers in your home, such as mold, dust mites, and mildew, apart from making the room feel more comfortable, especially if you live in a naturally hot and humid climate.
What should you look for when shopping for the best dehumidifiers? First, you want to consider the coverage area, making sure it’s rated to work with the size of room you want to remove excess moisture in. Then, you want to check the moisture removal rating, which refers to the amount of moisture it can actually remove from the air within a 24-hour period. For smaller rooms and storage areas, low removal ratings (e.g. 20 pints per day) are usually good enough, although you want to see higher numbers the bigger the rooms you’re looking to dehumidify. For large spaces with very high humidity, such as basements, you definitely want to go with dehumidifiers that can remove 40 or more pints per day.
Water tank capacity is also an important consideration when choosing the best dehumidifiers. The smaller the tank, the more frequently you’ll have to clean it out. If you’re using it in a high humidity room, you might want to consider one with a continuous drainage, so you don’t have to keep coming back to dump the tank over and over. Different dehumidifiers can also have varying maintenance requirements, so make sure you look that up before deciding on one.
These are the best dehumidifiers to remove excess moisture in the air around your home.
Eva-Dry EDV-1200
Pros
- Very affordable
- Compact and easy to move
- Easy to monitor water levels
Cons
- Not suitable for bigger rooms
Coverage area: 133 square feet
Moisture removal rate: Not listed
Drainage: Water tank (3 pints capacity)
Speed settings: None
Eva-Dry is a brand you want to check out for affordable dehumidifiers. They make quite a few of them, all of which slot into the lower end of the price scale. Despite being cheaper, they’re actually pretty capable, with this model able to handle rooms up to 133 square feet despite measuring a compact 8.75 x 5.75 inches (height x diameter). It doesn’t draw moisture as fast as the other entries in the list (just based on observation), but it does manage to remove enough at a regular pace, which you can easily monitor from the see-thru water tank at the bottom of the device.
We consider this an improved version of Eva-Dry’s 1100 model, which is one of the most popular dehumidifiers at this size and price range. It has a taller profile, but a lot more powerful, actually drawing moisture at a noticeably faster rate, all while holding over twice the water in its tank, making this a better choice if you’re considering that particular model. The device runs very quietly, too, so much so that we doubt you’ll even notice it running.
Hisense DH7021K1W
Pros
- Auto mode adjusts fan speed automatically
- Low operating temperaure
- Economically-priced
Cons
- Not as sturdy as more expensive options
Coverage area: 4,500 square feet
Moisture removal rate: 50 pints per day
Drainage: Water tank (50 pints capacity)
Speed settings: 3
If you want a large capacity dehumidifier at a more economical price, you’ll definitely be interested in this model from Hisense, which is rated to handle 4,500 square foot rooms. This is a very capable dehumidifier, capturing up to 50 pints of moisture per day, making it suitable to use in very damp basements, all while running at a very low operating temperature, so it won’t heat up the room the same way other large dehumidifiers will. We love the fact that it offers three speed levels, so you can speed up the water collection or slow it down based on how high the humidity levels are. There’s also an auto mode that adjusts the speed based on what’s needed to maintain 50 percent humidity, so it’s actually pretty efficient in that regard. So why is it so much cheaper than others? Truth be told, the build doesn’t feel as robust. The water tank, in fact, feels quite flimsy, so you want to be careful when dumping it out, especially if you let it fill up.
Midea Cube 20-Pint Dehumidifier
Pros
- Unique nesting design
- Supports both water tank and continuous drainage
- Powerful without being noisy
- Companion app is useful
Cons
- App can have connectivity issues
Coverage area: 1,500 square feet (also available in 3,500 and 4,500 square feet)
Moisture removal rate: 20 pints per day
Drainage: Water tank (3.2 gallons), Continuous
Speed settings: 3
For this list of dehumidifiers, we used the smallest model in Midea’s Cube line, which is rated to handle 1,500 square feet, although it’s also available in 3,500- and 4,500-square feet coverage areas. We love the design of this device, which consists of a condenser unit and a large water tank that it actually nests into. When using the device, you have to lift the machine to make space for water at the bottom. Alternatively, you can take the device out of the tank and connect a hose for continuous drainage, which is more preferable.
It’s a powerful dehumidifier, lowering humidity significantly within a short amount of time, all while running pretty quiet. We love the app integration, which lets you monitor humidity levels and adjust speed settings from your phone, making it very convenient to manage. It also alerts you when the bucket is full, so it doesn’t have to stop running for long. We have seen many user complaints about not being able to connect the device with the app, though, so bear that in mind (we were able to connect without much trouble, however).
HomeLabs Dehumidifer with WI-Fi
Pros
- Feature-packed
- Companion app works seamlessly
- Washable filter
- Very efficient
Cons
- A bit noisy
Coverage area: 1,500 square feet (also available in 1,000-, 3,000-, 3,500-, 4,000-, and 4,500-square foot variants)
Moisture removal rate: 22 pints per day
Drainage: Water tank, continuous
Speed settings: 2
This humidifier has a short and wide profile that makes it easy to push against the wall where it can sit out of the way, while casters make it easy to move around the room, although the six-foot power cord might limit the exact spots where you can place it. It’s one of the most feature-packed options we have in the list, offering multiple operating modes, including a comfort mode (which turns on and off based on humidity levels), a continuous mode (which adjusts fan speed based on humidity levels)m and a turbo mode for when you want to dry out the air as fast as possible. There’s also a built-in humidistat, so it can monitor and tell you the exact moisture levels in real-time.
It also has built-in Wi-Fi, so you can check and control it from the companion app, which is an incredible convenience. We also appreciate the fact that it has both a water tank and a drain hose outlet, so you can opt for continuous draining if it’s a viable option for the dehumidifier’s placement. Do note, it’s quite noisy, producing a noticeable hum that could be distracting to some people.
Honeywell 30-Pint Smart Dehumidifier
Pros
- Great app that lets you control multiple units at a time
- Powerful moisture removal rate for its size
- Surprisingly quiet
Cons
- Can heat up a bit when run on high settings
Coverage area: 1,000 square feet (also available in 3,000-, and 4,000-square foot variants)
Moisture removal rate: 30 pints per day
Drainage: Water tank (20 pints capacity), Continuous
Speed settings: 2
This is the smallest model in Honeywell’s 30-pint line of humidifiers, with a rated coverage area of 1,000 square feet. If you’re wondering why it’s more expensive than other devices with similar coverage area, it’s likely because of the moisture removal rate, as most other models designed for 1,000 square feet tend to be around 50 percent less efficient. That means, it dries the air out much faster than comparable models, which you’ll actually notice if you run it at the highest speed setting. Fortunately, you can set a target humidity level and the device will automatically adjust its operation to maintain that, so you can leave it to run on its own without having to fuss about it multiple times throughout the day. There’s a 20-pint water tank, which is easy enough to empty, although it also supports continuous drainage if you can set up that in its location.
It has a companion app that the device connects to seamlessly, allowing you to manage it remotely. If you use multiple of these around the house, you can even control from the same app, making it a very convenient way to manage more complex dehumidifier setups. The built-in filter can be manually cleaned, too, requiring no replacements whatsoever, with the app sending you an alert any time it requires cleaning.
