11 Best Humidifiers [Tested and Reviewed]

The LV600S Smart Hybrid Ultrasonic Humidifier from Levoit can effectively humidify an entire living room quickly. Another attractive feature is that you can easily operate it with your smartphone or your voice using the VeSync app.

This humidifier stands out for its ability to maintain humidity and the ease of water supply and drainage. When we tested it using automatic mode for 30 minutes, it maintained the target humidity of 50% within an error of 5%. So you can count on this humidifier to maintain a comfortable humidity level on its own. In addition, you can check the amount of water in the tank from the outside, and you can supply water from the top of the main body by removing the lid, so it’s easy to replenish the water supply without having to move the tank.

This humidifier earned high marks for its ability to humidify a room and its user-friendliness. The humidification amount was 365 mL/h, which was the highest among the humidifiers we tested for this guide. Additionally, the tank is designed with a handle that you can easily carry in one hand. And this hybrid model can supply both warm and cold moisture, which should help keep you warm in the colder months.

Our only concern is that electricity consumption was higher than others on this list. When we operated it at maximum hot water mist output, the monthly electricity bill was about $4.50, which is slightly higher than other models. However, the LV600S Smart Hybrid Ultrasonic Humidifier is a best-buy humidifier that we highly recommend for use in the living room and bedroom, as it provides sufficient humidification and is easy to operate with an automatic mode.

The Classic 300S Ultrasonic Smart Humidifier from Levoit is an economical humidifier that costs just $0.72 per month in electricity, even if you use it every day. Similar to the LV600S Smart Hybrid Ultrasonic Humidifier, this product also features an automatic mode and can be linked with a smartphone app.

The top selling points are its humidification capacity of 255 mL/h and the automatic mode. The humidification capacity is the second highest on our list, just behind the LV600S Smart Hybrid Ultrasonic Humidifier. The automatic mode is also quite accurate, maintaining within 10% of the set humidity during 30 minutes of operation. If you set the humidity to 50% in the living room or bedroom, you should be able to maintain a comfortable humidity level.

In addition, you can operate this humidifier by using a smartphone app even while you're out., Or you can operate hands-free if you connect to Alexa or Google Assistant. This device doesn’t come with a humidifying filter, which is a plus as it would require extra maintenance, but it was somewhat tedious to clean the tray. 

Considering the performance, ease of use, and cost-effectiveness of this humidifier, the Classic 300S Ultrasonic Smart Humidifier can be said to be an excellent product. If you don't need warm mist or a handle on the tank, you'll likely be satisfied if you choose this humidifier, as you’ll save on electricity costs and price.

Westinghouse's 28-inch Cool Mist Ultrasonic Tower Humidifier allows you to adjust the level of humidity with a simple dial operation. At about 30 inches tall, you won’t need to bend over to refill it.

This humidifier doesn’t come with an automatic mode, but its humidification capability is impressive. In our tests, we recorded a minimum humidification rate of 66.9mL/h and a maximum of 199mL/h. Operation is manual, but you can choose from a wide range of settings, allowing you to adjust to the humidity in any room. Another attractive feature is the low power consumption, making it economical with an approximate monthly electricity cost of only 57 cents.

On the other hand, this humidifier isn’t very user-friendly. You can't see the water level from the outside, so you have to open the lid to see when you need to refill it. In addition, the tank is 18.4 inches tall, which might make it difficult to refill it in the sink. If you're filling it up to full with a cup of water, you might need to fetch water multiple times.

Overall, this humidifier performs excellently, but there is room for improvement in its usability. Since it costs more than $100, if you don’t like the design or size, we recommend choosing another option.

Dreo's Humidifier HM311 is a compact humidifier that stands 10 inches high and can be placed on a table. It costs around $40, so it’s significantly cheaper than the top three products.

After using distilled water and running this humidifier for a week, we observed no mold growth and very little bacteria. The tank is designed so you can reach inside it, so it’s easy to clean. Plus, this humidifier comes with a cleaning brush to reach the crevices of the tray. In addition, refilling the water is easy, and since you add water at the top, you don’t have to remove the tank. Even if you want to add the maximum amount of water, this humidifier is compact enough that you can just move it to the sink to replenish the water.

On the other hand, this humidifier didn’t perform as well t in terms of humidifying power and convenience. The humidification amount of 170mL/h is significantly less than that of higher-ranking products. While that humidification capability may be sufficient for a small room, it may not adequately cover a larger room. In addition, this humidifier does not come with a timer function or a remote control, so you’ll have to place it somewhere easily accessible, like a side table, for easy operation. 

Given that this model’s humidifying power is not very high, it won’t likely have much effect in large rooms like living rooms, but this humidifier would be quite effective in small rooms like bedrooms or a home office, where its compact size allows you to put it on your desk.

Venta's LW25 Original Humidifier is a relatively expensive humidifier, costing more than $300. However, it is a convenient product as you can refill it with tap water, eliminating the need to buy distilled or purified water.

The humidification capacity for this model is 288mL/h, which helps justify the price. This humidifier also stands out for its resistance to mold. Even after operating continuously for five days, only a minimal amount of bacteria were able to grow. In addition, the tank capacity is very large at 2 gallons, which allows for about 36 hours of continuous operation in strong mode. This means you don’t have to refill this humidifier as often, another advantage.

Despite its high price, though, this humidifier’s functionality is relatively simple. There are only three humidity levels, and it does not come with a timer function or remote control function. Also, you cannot tell how much water is left unless you open the lid, so this humidifier is not very user-friendly.

Overall, this product’s humidifying performance is sufficient, and it's easy to keep clean, though its usability is not great. This humidifier would be good for people who prefer not to buy or prepare distilled or purified water for the humidifier.

Vornado's EVDC300 Energy Smart Evaporative Humidifier is an evaporative humidifier equipped with an automatic humidity adjustment feature. It features an energy-efficient DC motor, which makes it extremely economical with a monthly electricity cost of just 7 cents.

When set to 50% auto mode, this humidifier reached 30-40% in about 3 minutes, then maintained a stable humidity. This machine detects a room's humidity and adjusts it before it reaches the set 50%, so you may want to set the desired humidity 5% higher to reach the level you want.

On the other hand, this humidifier was high maintenance and loud. In addition, because this appliance has a humidifying filter that collects dirt easily, you should follow the instructions in the manual and replace the water every 8 hours. Plus, the operational noise averages 44.1dB in Lo mode and 48.3dB in Hi mode, so this humidifier isn’t the best option for the bedroom or other quiet environments. Finally, the maximum humidification amount is not very high at 122mL/h, so this model likely won’t sufficiently humidify the air in a large room.

The cost of the electricity required to run this humidifier is very economical, but this humidifier’s overall rating is low because it’s high maintenance and loud. So even though this humidifier comes with an automatic mode and is low-cost, we recommend you choose a higher-ranked product.

The MistAire Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier from Pure Enrichment has a cute design resembling a droplet. At less than 10 inches tall, it is compact and suitable for use on a desk.

The selling points of this humidifier are that it prevents mold growth and has low power consumption. Even after running continuously for five days, we observed no mold growth, and the bacterial count was far lower compared to other products. The power consumption is as low as 0.012kWh per hour, and the monthly electricity bill is a mere 43 cents.

On the other hand, this humidifier is not as powerful as other models and can be inconvenient to use. At 137mL/h, the humidification amount is less than half of what more powerful humidifiers do, so it’s time-consuming to humidify large rooms. Also, this model only has two modes, Hi and Lo, and the lack of useful features such as a timer makes it difficult to customize settings.

For the best humidification and functionality, we recommend you choose the comparably priced top-performing Dreo humidifier instead.

The Vicks Warm Mist Humidifier uses warm mist to humidify moderately sized rooms. Its downside is that it uses significantly more electricity to heat the water compared to cool mist models.

The power consumption of this humidifier per hour is 0.264kWh, which means that if you operate it for 8 hours every day for a month, it will cost about $9.50 for electricity. Considering that humidifiers generate less than $1 a month in electricity bills, this model lost points for cost performance. In addition, this humidifier releases hot steam, so you need to be careful when you use it near children or pets.

The humidification capacity is 267mL/h, which can effectively humidify a bedroom in a relatively short time. However, this humidifier doesn’t have an automatic mode, so you’ll need to manually adjust it to maintain a certain level of humidity. In addition, this warm mist humidifier boils water but does not prevent the proliferation of bacteria. While we didn’t observe any mold growth, this humidifier did encourage the proliferation of germs.

Despite this humidifier’s high power and low price of around $40, your electricity bills will add up. If you use it every day for 6 months, the overall cost exceeds that of the Levoit LV600S Smart Hybrid Ultrasonic Humidifier. If you plan to keep your humidifier running all the time or intend to use it for two to three years or more, a higher-end product will ultimately be more cost-effective.

The Warm Steam Vaporizer from Vicks is priced at approximately $29, making it one of the least expensive humidifiers on the market. It starts up immediately as soon as it's plugged into the wall outlet.

The standout feature of this humidifier is how easy it is to maintain. You can rinse and wipe clean both the tank and steam unit for simple maintenance. With no extra parts, you can clean this humidifier in as little as 5 minutes. We recommend this humidifier for people who don’t like the hassle of maintaining one.

That said, the humidification level is relatively low at an average of 96mL/h, and the electricity bill amounts to about $4 per month. In addition, this humidifier releases hot steam at 120°F, so it's essential to make sure that you place this humidifier out of reach of children.

Our testers gave the Warm Steam Vaporizer high praise for its easy maintenance and cleanliness, but you might be concerned about its low humidification power and high electricity cost. Still, this model might be worth considering for those who don't use humidifiers very often and are looking for a simple, easy-to-maintain model.