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The best humidifiers

Keeping the air in your home properly hydrated can be as important as your own water intake. If the air you’re breathing is too dry, it can make it difficult to breathe and lead to health issues. Additionally, static electricity can build up under arid conditions, which could lead to unwarranted zaps between you, loved ones, and valuable electronics. If you’re experiencing these conditions and more, it sounds like a humidifier would be a worthy investment for your home. 

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A top-notch humidifier will add just the right amount of moisture to the rooms in your home. To help you decide which models are worthy of your hard-earned cash, we’ve put together this roundup to highlight the best humidifiers on the market today. We even consider some of the best new features like automatic humidity sensing and ultraviolet cleansing technology aimed at killing off bacteria.

Pure Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier

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The Pure Ultrasonic is one of the most popular humidifiers, and for good reason. With a 1.5-liter tank, it’s perfect for bedrooms, offices, and medium-sized rooms. The top-mounted clear tank lets you easily view its water levels, allowing you to keep track of your next refill time. However, considering Pure designed it to last 16 hours on a single tank, you shouldn’t need to replenish the humidifier very often.

The 360-degree nozzle offers quick and convenient speed and directional mist adjustments. The Pure Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier also shuts off automatically if it runs out of water, so you don’t have to worry about wasted energy if the humidifier empties while you’re out. The device doubles as a nightlight, too. Simply activate the nightlight, and the Ultrasonic produces a gentle blue glow that serves as a perfect nighttime ambiance in the bedroom. However, if you need a humidifier for larger rooms or the entire home, you’ll need a more powerful device. Due to its shape, the device can be difficult to clean if you don’t stay on top of the recommended weekly cleaning. Fortunately, it comes with a brush to make cleaning a bit easier.

Vicks Warm Mist Humidifier

Vicks Warm Mist Humidifier
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An ideal companion for bedrooms, offices, and other small parts of your home or business, the Vicks Warm Mist Humidifier will help to moisten the air around you, making for easier breathing conditions. Featuring a one-gallon tank that will run up to 12 hours when full, the machine’s handy Auto-Off kicks in when all water is dissipated, so you won’t have to worry about powering down manually.

Releasing up to 95% bacteria-free air, two output settings ensure utmost comfort when you’re up and about and down for the night. Speaking of sleep: The machine’s whisper-quiet operation keeps the noise level low so your humidifier won’t disturb your much-needed good night’s rest. If you’re suffering from a cold or allergies, load up the medicine cup with Vicks Vaposteam inhalant to soothe your sinuses. While it may not be as advanced as other models on our list, the Vicks Warm Mist Humidifier nails all the basics for a more than reasonable price.

Levoit Large Bedroom Humidifier

Levoit Humidifier
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This titan of a humidifier can tackle any part of your home you care to throw at it. Featuring both cool and warm mist options, the machine’s 1.5-gallon tank will last for up to 60 hours, so you won’t have to worry about constantly refilling. Plus, with Auto Mode enabled, the machine will automatically turn off when the water is depleted.

The Levoit Large Bedroom Humidifier runs quietly, is controllable by the machine’s touch panel and remote, and even allows for aroma oils to send soothing scents throughout your home. Enjoy cleaner air, moist skin, and easier breathing for the largest spaces you know, even if the price is a bit on the high side.

TaoTronics Ultrasonic Humidifier for Babies

Product still of the TaoTronics humidifier
TaoTronics

While this might not be the most attractive TaoTronics humidifier on the market, the features are top-notch. The nano-coated unit produces less than 27 decibels of sound and doesn’t emit any bright light, so it won’t disturb you while you sleep.

The 4-liter tank allows the unit to run for between 12 and 15 hours, but the humidifier is not overly large. The humidifier also will shut off automatically when the tank is depleted. It has a 360-degree nozzle, so you can choose exactly where you want the mist to go. You can even adjust the mist output to between 60 and 300 milliliters per hour using the dial.

Cleaning the TaoTronics Ultrasonic Humidifier is easy, as the nozzle is removable. Plus, there’s a dust-proof sponge to prevent dust particles from entering the unit’s base.

Aircare MA1201 Evaporative Humidifier

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The AirCare MA1202 is the no-frills, all-business humidifier on our list. The device isn’t going to take home any design awards, but when it comes to efficiently humidifying the air in your entire home, the AirCare Ma1201 is our utilitarian choice.

This device offers humidity control for 3,600-square-foot homes, and a set of wheels lining the bottom allows you to move the unit around with ease. A digital readout on the top of the device incorporates refill and “check-filter” indicators, too, helping to eliminate any operational guesswork. The 4-gallon tank humidifies your environment for up to 36 hours. This humidifier also adds moisture to the air by circulating dry air through a saturated wick filter. As a bonus, this filter also traps mineral deposits.

Let’s be frank, the AirCare MA1201 looks better suited for an infirmary than a living room. For the price, however, there are few units capable of humidifying your entire house without daily refills.

Dyson AM10 Humidifier

Product still of the Dyson humidifier
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Looking for a humidifier that does double duty? This one by Dyson works to humidify your home year-round, but it can also release high-velocity cold air to keep things cool in the summertime. The device also utilizes Ultraviolet Cleanse technology to destroy 99.9% of the bacteria in the air, keeping your home clean and helping you breathe easier.

After killing the bacteria, the device releases hydrated air, and the long-range mist projection feature helps to distribute the mist evenly throughout the room. The Dyson AM10 Humidifier also is ideal for asthma and allergy sufferers, as the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America has deemed this unit “Certified Asthma and Allergy Friendly.” It received the Quiet Mark accreditation from the Noise Abatement Society. Want to monitor the temperature of your home as well? This humidifier has Intelligent Climate Control that can measure the temperature and moisture in the air, helping to ensure your living environment is comfortable and not too humid or too dry.

Elechomes UC5501 Ultrasonic Humidifier

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With a 6-liter tank, this unit can humidify areas up to 750 square feet. It has three different mist-strength levels, and it serves as both a warm mist and a cool mist humidifier. The UC5501 has smart humidity sensing. It displays the humidity level on the LED display screen, so you know how much humidity you need to reach the right level in the room.

The Elechomes UC5501 Ultrasonic has a sleek, high-tech design, and it comes with a remote control, so you can change the settings without getting up. There’s even a built-in aromatherapy box, so you can add a few drops of essential oils and sit back and relax.

TaoTronics Wi-Fi Humidifier

Taotronics Smart Humidifier
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Make way for Alexa and Google Assistant. This 4-liter humidifier by TaoTronics features smart controls by way of the two popular voice assistants, as well as the Sun Home app. Use voice commands to control the humidifier, and enjoy the unit’s super-quiet operation (less than 36 decibels).

In addition to its smart features, the TaoTronics Wi-Fi Humidifier has a nightlight, sleep mode, LED display, auto shut off, and a built-in humidistat to tell you the current RH. It’s a great price, too, so you get a lot of features for a little bit of cash.

Erika Rawes
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Erika became a professional writer in 2010, and her work is published all over the web on sites ranging from USA Today to…
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