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Sales of dehumidifiers rise with the temperature, which is why my team and I at the Good Housekeeping Institute start researching these devices in winter, well ahead of the sultry summer heat. This round-up includes the models in stores today that do the best job of pulling moisture from humid indoor air. Not only will that make your home more comfortable, it will reduce the growth of the mold and mildew that can trigger allergic reactions, asthma attacks and other health concerns.
In addition to reviewing dehumidifiers in the Home Improvement and Outdoor Lab at the Institute, we send units into the homes of expert testers, who report back on performance and usability in real-world conditions — the same method we use with other home comfort equipment, like portable ACs, air purifiers, and ceiling fans.
“The latest innovations, like Wi-Fi-connectivity and built-in pumps for continuous draining, make today's dehumidifiers so much easier to operate and maintain,” said Nikolas Greenwald, data engineer at the Good Housekeeping Institute, who carried out most of the Lab tests.
All in all, we tested more than a dozen dehumidifiers from leading brands for this report, clocking hundreds of hours of operation over the months-long evaluation process. Read on to find the model that’s best for you.
This Honeywell came out on top for performance and versatility in our tests, making it our best overall dehumidifier. I was impressed by how effectively the 50-pint unit pulled water from the air, especially on its highest fan setting. "The Honeywell was also one of the easiest dehumidifiers to take apart and clean, thanks to its accessible front-facing bucket with a handle," said Greenwald. "Plus, we found the interface and digital controls to be clear and intuitive."
In addition to its exceptional performance in our water removal test, the Honeywell's accurate humidistat helps it maintain steady humidity levels. It includes an onboard pump, so you can continuously drain water vertically or horizontally, up to 15 feet. And the device's low-temperature function means it won't freeze up in basements or other cold rooms.
All that stellar performance comes at a cost: The Honeywell is on the pricier side. It's also fairly bulky and noisy, so it's best suited to basements or other isolated parts of the home, as opposed to your bedroom or family room.
Capacity: 50 pt | Weight: 42.5 lbs | Dimensions: 12.4"D x 15.8"W x 25.4"H | Drainage: Bucket or hose (with pump) | Noise level at highest fan setting: 51 dB | Fan speeds: High, medium, low | Energy Star certification: Yes
If you're dealing with a midsize area that gets damp, but not wet, this medium-capacity unit is a solid option. Midea is a trusted manufacturer in the category, and I like that the unit sells for under $250 while still claiming to dry out 3,000 square feet of space.
Based on our experience with similar Midea models, we expect the unit to do a superb job with minimal noise from the motor or fan. Its auto-defrost function means it's safe for use in basements or other cold rooms. The 33-pound dehumidifier sits on wheels for easy transportation from room to room. Though at nearly 25 inches tall, it's on the bulky side, so you might want to consider a more compact unit if you're looking to dry out a smaller space.
In past reports, our experts tested Midea's Cube 20-Pint Dehumidifier and found it to be another excellent option, especially for a bedroom or smaller areas of the home.
Capacity: 35 pt | Weight: 33.51 lbs | Dimensions: 11.54" x 15.94" x 24.29" | Drainage: Bucket or hose (no pump) | Noise level at highest fan setting: 54 dB | Fan speeds: High (turbo), low | Energy Star certification: Yes
We find that moisture removal capacity between 40 and 50 pints per day tends to be the sweet spot for dehumidifiers, since those models offer the best combination of value, performance and efficiency. You can't go wrong with this 50-pint unit from Frigidaire.
In extensive Lab tests, the dehumidifier did an excellent job of drawing moisture from the air, while consumer testers praised the long list of user-friendly features, including intuitive controls, an accessible water bucket and a washable air filter.
You'll pay a premium for this Frigidaire, but one feature in particular makes it worth the splurge for many homeowners: The on-board pump enables you to continuously drain water from the bucket to a location up to 15 feet away, including a utility sink or other elevated spot.
On the downside, the dehumidifier is not suited for spaces that get below 40°F, since it lacks a frost control sensor, a feature found on other dehumidifiers that automatically shuts the unit off whenever ice crystals start to form on its coils. That's why I like this model for living spaces, such as a family room or bedroom, as opposed to a chilly basement.
RELATED: The Best Dehumidifiers From Frigidaire, Tested by Experts
Capacity: 50 pt | Weight: 44 lbs | Dimensions: 15.97" x 12.19" x 24.25" | Drainage: Bucket or hose (with pump) | Noise level at highest fan setting: 51 dB | Fan speeds: High, medium, low | Energy Star certification: Yes
If you're only dealing with a little moisture in a bathroom or other confined space, for example, a home office in a finished basement, you can save money without sacrificing comfort with a small-capacity dehumidifier, like this 35-pint unit from Frigidaire that works fast.
This dehumidifier was a top pick in our tests because it has so many simple, helpful features that make it easy for daily use. A digital readout helps you monitor the current humidity and customize how much moisture you want in the air. The power cord wraps around hooks on the back of the unit for easy storage, and the side handles and wheels make it a breeze to move this 40-pound dehumidifier.
When it comes to maintenance, we found it easy to access the reservoir bucket, since it's right in the front of the unit. The bucket's built-in carrying handle means you can hoist it up and empty the water down a drain or into the yard with less effort.
The big drawback with this Frigidaire is that, while it comes with a hose for continuous draining, there's no onboard pump to send water to an elevated drain source, like a utility sink or nearby window. The highest fan setting may also be loud in a small room.
If your humidity level is on the lighter side, Frigidaire offers an even smaller 22-pint-capacity version for $179. If you've got high humidity to fight, the larger 60-pint version for $359 might be the best option for you.
Capacity: 35 pt | Weight: 40 lbs | Dimensions: 15.97" x 12.19" x 24.25" | Drainage: Bucket or hose (no pump) | Noise level at highest fan setting: 45 dB | Fan speeds: High, medium, low | Energy Star certification: Yes
For large, wet spaces, like an unfinished basement where moisture collects on the floor and walls, you need a dehumidifier that can remove at least 50 pints of water per day from the air. I've been impressed by TCL's entire line of dehumidifiers, and its 50-pint model is no exception.
It delivers exceptional air-drying power up to 4,500 square feet of interior living space. Despite all that power, the TCL carries the Energy Star label, so it will help keep both moisture levels and electricity costs in check. The built-in pump allows for continuous draining, though as I always say, that convenience is going to eat into your energy savings.
Like other TCL dehumidifiers we've tested, the 50-pint model is brimming with smart features, including Wi-Fi-connectivity and a user-friendly app that allows you to monitor and control the machine remotely. The auto-defrost feature makes this dehumidifier suitable for use in basements and other locations where the temperature gets down to 41° F. One drawback is that it lacks a humidistat for pinpoint control.
Capacity: 50 pt | Weight: 42.5 lbs | Dimensions: 10.55" x 15.09" x 24.02" | Drainage: Bucket or hose (with pump) | Noise level at highest fan setting: Not listed | Fan speeds: High and low | Energy Star certification: Yes
Product experts and analysts at the Good Housekeeping Institute survey the marketplace and manufacturers to identify the models that consumers nationwide are most likely to find in stores and online. From there, we select models for testing across different size categories to cover every need and budget.
Hands-on testing begins in our Lab under controlled humidity and temperature conditions. The key performance-based test measures how much water each dehumidifier collects in a 48-hour time period. Our engineers also use a decibel meter to assess how loud each machine is when running at its highest fan speed.
Usability is another important part of our evaluation; it happens in the Lab, as well as in the homes of consumer testers, allowing us to test the dehumidifiers under real-world conditions. We look at factors such as portability, how intuitive the display and controls are and ease of cleaning, including how simple it is to wash the filter and empty the water reservoir.
Finally, we assess each brand's customer service by contacting their help lines with a pretend problem and seeing how quickly it is remedied by the representative.
To evaluate noise, we use a decibel meter, measuring the volume produced by each dehumidifier when set at its highest fan speed.
Our experts test the on-board pump on the 50-pint Frigidaire to make sure it could continuously drain water to an elevated location.
Here are a few points to keep in mind before you purchase the best dehumidifier for your needs:
✔️ Size: For the most part, the bigger the unit, the more pints of moisture it can remove from the air in a day. The calculation gets tricky when you have a small area with serious humidity. In that scenario, go for a model designed for medium-sized rooms so it has the power to pull all that moisture from the air without taking up a huge amount of floor space.
✔️ Noise: You might not need to consider this if you plan on placing the unit in a basement or other room you're not in that often, but if you want to put it in your bedroom or dorm room, consider how loud the machine gets. Below 50 decibels is ideal; anything above 60 decibels could be a nuisance at night.
✔️ Features: Dehumidifiers have many features to consider, but these are the ones our pros recommend focusing on:
✔️ Maintenance: Some dehumidifiers are easier to clean and maintain than others:
Dehumidifiers rely on two heat exchangers and a condenser to pull moisture from humid air. An interior fan draws air from the room into the first heat exchanger and trades heat for a refrigerant in the heat exchanger. This process causes the air to drop below its dew point, or the temperature at which condensation starts to form.
This condensation is then deposited into the dehumidifier's reservoir. The evaporated coolant flows into a condenser where it's returned to its liquid form and the heat it produced in the process is absorbed back by the air.
This way, cold air isn't coming off the dehumidifier. The air that leaves a dehumidifier will always be slightly hotter than the air that enters.
I've been testing and writing about dehumidifiers for 25 years. In that time, I've spearheaded numerous investigative reports on the topic of indoor air quality, working closely with outside experts from government, industry and the home services space. As Director of Home Improvement and Outdoor at the Good Housekeeping Institute, I oversaw the latest round of dehumidifier testing in our Labs, as well as the continuous in-home, survey-based consumer testing that allows us to evaluate these devices in real-world conditions.
Nikolas Greenwald led our latest round of dehumidifier testing. Greenwald works with all of our Labs to develop testing protocols and manage data collection and analysis. Before joining Good Housekeeping in 2022, Greenwald worked in the labs of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Regeneron Pharmaceuticals, working on projects ranging from chemical inventory and reporting to the development of bioassays. He holds a degree in chemical engineering from Northeastern University.
Having written thousands of product reviews and how-to articles on all aspects of home ownership, from routine maintenance to major renovations, Dan (he/him) brings more than 20 years of industry experience to his role as the director of the Home Improvement & Outdoor Lab at the Good Housekeeping Institute. A one-time roofer and a serial remodeler, Dan can often be found keeping house at his restored Brooklyn brownstone, where he lives with his wife and kids.
As a data engineer in the Good Housekeeping Institute, Nik (he/him) works with all of our Labs to develop testing protocols and manage data collection and analysis. Before joining Good Housekeeping in 2022, Nik worked in the labs of MIT and Regeneron, working on projects ranging from chemical inventory and reporting to the development of bioassays. He holds a degree in chemical engineering from Northeastern University.
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