11 Best Rated Air Quality Monitors – In-Depth Reviews

T he air you breathe is not always the cleanest, nor the safest, especially if you live in an agglomerated city, with lots of cars and other pollutants around. It can be even more disturbing if you suffer from allergies and you have to be on a constant lookout for anything harmful present in the air. An air quality monitor will quickly inform you about the air you have in your house, or the outside environment, measuring possible harmful substances and letting you know if it’s safe to leave your house or not. So, to help you decide upon the piece of equipment that is exactly what you’re looking for, we offer you our best recommendations.

Top 11 Air Quality Monitors Comparison

Photo	Product Name	Range	Type	Sensor for	Color-coded	Warranty	Price
Best Overall	1. Awair 2nd Edition	1000 sq.ft	Indoor	Fine Dust (PM 2/5), chemicals (VOCs), CO2, Humidity and Temperature		1 year	Check Price
Our Choice	2. EG Air EGVOC-100	N/A	Indoor / Outdoor	Temperature,humidity, concentrations of formaldehyde, TVOC or fine particles of dust PM2.5/PM1.0/PM10.		1 year	Check Price
	3. ECOWITT WH0290	300 sq. ft.	Indoor / Outdoor	PM2.5, temperature, weather, and relative humidity		N/A	Check Price
	4. IQAir AVPRO	1076 sq. ft	Indoor / Outdoor	PM2.5 and CO2, temperature, humidity.		N/A	Check Price
	5. Temtop M2000	N/A	Indoor / Outdoor	Formaldehyde, PM2.5 and PM10, CO2 and HCHO particles, TVOC, AQI, temperature, and humidity		7 days return	Check Price
	6. GAIN EXPRESS CO22	Mid-range	Indoor	CO2, Humidity and Temperature		3 years	Check Price
Best for Detection Area Range	7. Foobot Model 21	1400 sq. ft	Indoor	VOCs, PM2.5, CO2, temperature, and humidity.		1 year	Check Price
	8. Airthings Wave Plus 2930	N/A	Indoor	Radon, TVOCs, CO2, humidity, temperature and air pressure		1 year	Check Price
Best for Allergies	9. Awair AQMG2001A	1,000 sq ft	Indoor	VOCs, temperature, humidity and CO2		1 year	Check Price
	10. CO2Meter 7Z-RWZ2-K2NX	Mid-range	Indoor	CO2, Relative Humidity and Temperature		1 year	Check Price
	11. Eve Room 10EAM9901	Small range	Indoors	Temperature, humidity and VOCs		1 year	Check Price

1. Awair 2nd Edition

Check Price at Amazon

Made from natural materials, including North American Walnut timber, and measuring 6.3-by-3.54-by-1.97-inch, this unit will easily fit on a nightstand, bookshelf, or kitchen counter. It will track 5 factors of air quality: Fine Dust (PM 2/5), chemicals (VOCs), CO2, Humidity and Temperature because all these factors can affect your health in the long run, and you’d surely want to keep an eye on them. It uses numbers from 0 to 100 to score the quality of your air, and the higher the score, the better the air quality. It is able of covering up to 1000 sq.ft. It requires a VAC of 100-125 and 50/60 Hz to function properly, and it has a limited 1-year warranty from the moment of your purchase.

Awair App and Smart Commands

Despite it having a homey-vintage look, it comes equipped with the ability to synchronize with your smartphone or tablet via Bluetooth 4.1 – running iOS 9 or later and Android 4.4 or later, with an app to provide you with enhanced details about your environment. When you first launch the app, you will see the score prominently in the middle of your phone, with the quality factors presented below it. The color-coding scheme will help you easily determine when levels start moving into dangerous zones: green – good, yellow – fair and red – poor. It even has graphs to let you observe the ups and downs through a day. You can even pair it up with Google Assistant and Alexa, to give it vocal commands if you don’t have your phone with you or with any other HVAC systems in your house to clean your air thoroughly.

LED lights and Sensors

Its front display uses a set of LED lights shining through a grid of holes, showing you not only the graph for the 5 quality features but the score of your air quality as well. Additionally, it has a colored dot in the upper right corner, linked with the colored dots from the app – red, yellow or green, for easier reading. Moreover, its sensors are laser-based, with light scattering particle sensing technology, so you can be sure it will be able to correctly read and diagnose your environment. Moreover, it is able to detect even ambient noise, with a sensitivity of -26dB and a signal to noise ratio of 61dB.

---

2. EG Air EGVOC-100

Check Price at Amazon

Small enough to be handheld, measuring 6.1 inches by 3.4 inches by 1.4 inches, it provides you with a portable testing unit. It has a built-in stand which allows the monitor to be placed unattended everywhere, and thanks to its two ways to keep it charged, a 2200mAH lithium battery or with a 5V micro USB charging cable, there will be no places you can’t take it with you. It has a clear 2.8 inches 320×240 pixels color LCD display which provides you with accurate readings of temperature, in Celsius and Fahrenheit scales, humidity level, concentrations of formaldehyde, TVOC or fine particles of dust – PM2.5/PM1.0/PM10.

It has a built-in fan to quickly draw in ambient air to allow real-time measurements while thanks to its incorporated laser sensor it can accurately measure the dust levels. Moreover, it has color-coded information, ranging from green – good, yellow – slight, red – moderate and purple – serious, thus alerting you when you should take action. Additionally, it has a second electrochemical semiconductor sensor to measure formaldehyde. Even more, it auto calibrates in the fresh air, so you won’t have to reset it manually. So, be sure to keep it outdoors 10+ minutes before the 1st use to calibrate itself. It comes with an eBook where you can find interesting information regarding air quality hazards and their impact and with a 1-year warranty from the moment of your purchase.

---

3. ECOWITT WH0290

Check Price at Amazon

It is able to monitor the concentration of PM2.5 from the air, and it also has 6 grades of air quality levels indicator, based on a 24-hour PM2.5 concentration, with matching color scheme: good (green), moderate (yellow), mild (orange), unhealthy (red), severe (purple) and hazardous (brown). Furthermore, it uses a Honeywell HPM Series Particle sensor, to measure the dust, with a laser-based light scattering particle sensing for accurate information. Thus you can be sure it will precisely tell you the readings.

It measures 5 by 4.5 by 3.3 inches and it can be recharged either by replacing the 2 NI-MH batteries – they are included – or via USB cable. Additionally, it comes with a built-in solar panel as backup whenever it doesn’t have enough power. Moreover, it can measure the indoor temperature from 14 to 140 °F and humidity from 1% to 99%. It can cover a range of 300 feet inside and outside, with a frequency of 433 MHz and an update rate of 60 seconds. It can even calibrate with a weather station for more precise information regarding the weather, and relative humidity. However, it is not weatherproof, so you will have to shelter it from elements.

---

4. IQAir AVPRO

Check Price at Amazon

This system provides you with an accurate and professional-like reading for both indoors and outdoors. It measures 7 inches by 4 inches by 3 inches and it is able to display, in real-time, indoor PM2.5 and CO2 readings, as well as 14 to 104 degrees Fahrenheit temperature and 0 to 95% humidity readings, thanks to its professional-grade laser sensors.

It features a smartphone app which allows you to connect with your unit, as it will provide you with all the details you need directly on your phone and a unique IFTTT System (If This, Then, That) which will make your device act based on certain parameters, sending you notifications when the normal parameters of your air had changed. Thus, you can use other HVAC devices from your home to correct the readings. It has color-coded images to allow you to quickly read the measures, the colors ranging from green, yellow, red and purple, allowing you to compare your indoor air with the outdoor one.

Additionally, it allows you to foresee with 72-hours ahead, the level of pollution and weather forecasts, and it has a coverage area of 1076 sq. ft. It is able to be used outside as well, but since it’s not weatherproofed, you will have to keep it away from elements. It will even send you advice on what the most productive and cost-effective recommendations are. Moreover, it has a rechargeable Li-Ion battery with a micro USB charger for when the battery won’t last anymore and it has a power saving mode, to allow you to use it even when you sleep.

---

5. Temtop M2000

Check Price at Amazon

It measures 5.4 by 1.4 by 2.9 inches thus it is small and compact enough to be handheld, so you can take it anywhere with you. It has three types of sensors: electrochemical formaldehyde, a laser particle sensor, and a carbon dioxide base on NDIR. It can detect up to 9 air quality factors: PM2.5 and PM10, as well as CO2 and HCHO particles, can alert you about TVOC, AQI, and it can tell you the changes in temperature levels, 0-50 ℃, and humidity 0-90% RH.

It has a histogram function, an audio alarm and a colorful TFT display, with color coded information regarding the air status: green for good, yellow for moderate, orange for unhealthy for sensitive groups, red for unhealthy, blood read for very unhealthy and brown for hazardous. Thus you can read the information you need at a glance. It has an internal 2200mAh rechargeable lithium battery, which makes it able to run up to 6 hours continuously without charging. Moreover, it requires no calibration, and has a return warranty of 7 days and an exchange warranty for 30 days.

---

6. GAIN EXPRESS CO22

Check Price at Amazon

It measures 7 inches in length, 5 inches in depth and 3 inches in height, and it weighs 1.01 thus it is extremely light and compact. It comes with a wall mounting system, to allow you to place it on the wall if you don’t want to keep it on your desk. Additionally, since it doesn’t use batteries to work, it also comes with a 12V power adaptor, which can be used with 110V up to 240V outlets, to help you always keep the monitor on.

It will provide you with simultaneous aspects regarding CO2 levels, temperature, and humidity. For the CO2 levels, it uses a stable, non-dispersive infrared (NDIR) sensor, which has a range between 0 up to 2000 ppm. The temperature sensor allows you to select the degrees in either Celsius or Fahrenheit, depending on your preferences, and it has a range that goes from -10.0 ° C up to 60.0 °C, and from 14 °F up to 140 °F respectively. When humidity levels are involved, it has a range that goes from 0.0 up to 99.9%, thus you’ll always be able to tell how humid the air in your room is.

It needs 30 seconds to warm up, and a short-term exposure limit of 15 minutes to accommodate to the environment, to provide you with readings. Moreover, it has built-in relay which will be able to access and control the ventilation system in your house, to always maintain the CO2 level that you set or specified. Even more, it will alert you when it will do so, thus you don’t have to keep an eye on it at all times. It has a baseline calibration, which won’t require you to move it or change its position, as well as manual calibration, to provide you with the option of taking care of it if you want to.

Furthermore, thanks to its large triple-function LCD, you will be able to easily read the digital numbers, while it will provide you with continuous monitoring. It can transmit the data acquired to your computer, so you’ll be able to create your history of air reading and use the necessary appliances to rectify any possible anomalies in the parameters.

---

7. Foobot Model 21

Check Price at Amazon

This lightweight,1.05 pounds, but powerful and compact unit, 3.2 by 2.6 by 6.7 inches, comes with an app that will allow you to keep an eye on the air quality you breathe, and its changes over time right from your phone. It will allow you to tag different events, and it will measure and compare the air quality inside and outside of your home, automatically connecting and turning on different HVAC devices to create the best air quality possible. It can be synced with more than 120 devices; can measure VOC contaminants, temperature and humidity levels, particulate matter (PM2.5), and CO2, and provide you with real-time readings.

Moreover, it will tell you how you can get rid of them, as well as signalizing you through its LED color display when the air quality dropped. It uses a light scattering system to detect fine particles in the air, providing readings from 0 to 1300 µg per cubic meter, and MOS sensors to detect VOCs, which include toluene, methane, formaldehyde, benzene, ammonia, iso-butane, and others. When the temperature is concerned, it can work well between 15° and 45° C, and it needs a humidity level between 30 and 85% to be able to provide you with accurate readings. However, it will need 6 days to calibrate itself and adjust to its surroundings, and it has a coverage area of 1400 sq. ft.

Additionally, it comes with a non-detachable USB 2-meter long cable, and it is able to connect to your home, 2.4GHz, Wi-Fi network or dual-band routers. It can work with IFTTT, Nest, Ecobee, Honeywell, Warmup, Amazon Echo, and others, thus it allows you to easily switch on the right HVAC unit when needed. It comes with a 1-year warranty from the moment of your purchase, and 30-day money-back guarantee.

---

8. Airthings Wave Plus 2930

Check Price at Amazon

It measures 4.72 inches in height, 1.41 inches in diameter, and it has a weight of 0.48 pounds. It is easy to install and use, as all it needs is to place the battery inside and follow the instruction the app it comes with, provide you. The app allows you to always know the quality of your indoor air right from your phone or tablet, as well as providing you with the ability to compare multiple devices and locations and create a database with the previous readings.

Additionally, it allows you to easily tell with a wave how the air inside your house fares, as the unit comes with a color-coded light ring, which will turn green when the air is good, yellow to warn you and red when it’s dangerous, as soon as you wave your hand in front of it. Moreover, it can connect with any intelligent home-devices like Alexa, Google Home, and IFTTT, so they will be able to alert you when there is a change in the quality of the air.

It can be placed on a wall, and you can secure it there with the mounting plate, as it will attach to the mount magnetically. It requires 2 AA batteries which will last you up to 16 months before they’ll need to be changed, and it needs an environmental temperature between 4° C to 40 ° C, to work out properly. It can detect up to 6 air factors: radon ( up to 4 pCi/L), airborne chemicals ( up to 500 ppb), CO2 ( up to 1000 ppm), humidity, temperature( from 0°F to 77 °F) and air pressure (up to 0.15hPa). It needs a 7-day period for the sensors to adjust to the environment and 1 week to be able to create a template of your routine. It comes with a limited 1-year warranty from the moment of your purchase.

---

9. Awair AQMG2001A

Check Price at Amazon

It measures 3.58 inches in height, 1.81 inches in width and 2.64 inches in depth, and it is made from white ABS plastic. It has a weight of 4.8 ounces and it can connect with your smart home assistants, thus providing you with total control over your environment. It is able to track toxins and chemicals present in the air, CO2 concentration (0 to 4000 ppm), humidity (from 0 to 95% RH) and temperature (from -40 to +125° C).

Additionally, it can connect to your smartphone, thanks to the app it comes with, which will allow you to remotely keep an eye on the readings, and track the differences present in your house over several days. Through its app, you can also choose to keep its nightlight on or off or switch it to start when it detects movement, as well as turn on specific appliances if the air quality deteriorates, as soon as you plug them into it.

Furthermore, it comes with a color-coded light, thus it provides you with the possibility of telling with only a glance how the environment in your house fares. It works with iPhone iOS 8 or newer versions, Android Jelly Bean 4.3 or newer, and it is capable of connecting to any 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi. It requires a power of 100-125V AC, 50/60Hz, and it has a limited 1-year warranty from the moment of your purchase.

---

10. CO2Meter 7Z-RWZ2-K2NX

Check Price at Amazon

It can read the CO2 levels, the air temperature as well as the relative humidity in the air for you to be able to adjust your home environment easily. The CO2 readings can range between 0 and 9999 ppm, the air temperature can go from -10 °C (14 °F) up to 60 °C (140 °F), while the humidity range is between 20.0% RH and 99.9% RH. To provide you with correct readings it requires less than 2 minutes for CO2 and temperature readings, and less than 10 minutes for the humidity.

It provides you with a max and min function, and it has programmable CO2 levels. Additionally, it will alert you whenever the CO2 goes over 1000 ppm, or over the limit, you’ve set. For it to operate at its full capacity, it needs to be between -10 °C – 50 °C, 5-80% RH, and it is recommended to avoid condense. It comes with automatic baseline calibration, so you don’t have to manually calibrate it, unless you want to, while thanks to its NDIR sensor, you’ll be provided with updated and real readings.

It measures 4.5 inches in height, 4.5 inches in length, .35 inches in width, and it weighs 6.3 ounces, with a rounded shape and white housing. It can be used with power supplies ranging from 100 up to 240V AC input, and it comes with a limited 1-year warranty from the moment of your purchase.

---

11. Eve Room 10EAM9901

Check Price at Amazon

Small and compact, it measures 2.5” in length, 2.5” in width and 15.90” in height, and it can be used only indoors. It works with Apple HomeKit which ensures it connects with your phone, allowing you to supervise at any given moment how the quality of the air, present in your house. It shows your readings about VOCs, temperature, and humidity, allowing you to switch up the measurement layout according to your preferences.

Its operating range goes from 0°C to 50°C / 32°F to 122°F when the temperature is concerned while it detects humidity when it goes from 5% up to 95%. It works with Siri, and it features a built-in USB-rechargeable 5V battery to provide you with a hassle-free way of always keeping it up. Made from aluminum, it is sturdy, resistant and won’t rust nor corrode with time.

---

Sensors and Pollutants

The air you have in your home or house might be even worse than the one outside if you’re not careful. While for the majority bad air ratings might only be a bit uncomfortable for the majority of people, leading to possible coughing fits that pass as soon as you open a window, for those who suffer from allergies or asthma it might be the difference between life and another fit. The ‘bad air’ appears when you cook – as the process involves steam and smoke when you paint or do DIY jobs, or, it can even come from closed windows and doors. Furniture, as well as other several building materials, might have certain volatile chemicals that are let free in the air, while even the process of breathing will set lose CO2.

If you’re wondering what you can do to prevent such poor air quality ratings, firstly, you have to be aware of them. An air quality monitor can help you become aware of your environment and of possible aspects that, if left unsupervised, might lead, in the future to health issues. There are two types of sensors already on the market: metal oxide electrochemical (MOS) and light scattering sensors.

While the first category will provide you with an inexpensive, widely available sensor, it is not specific to one element and its readings can be quickly influenced by other external factors, thus making its reliability questionable. The light scattering ones, however, provide you with a versatile gadget that can provide you with highly accurate readings. Varying in shapes and sizes, they can measure different types of particles, offering you instant readings, thus providing you with a sure way to detect certain levels of pollutants and their source.

How light-scattering sensors work

They have a light source, which often comes from a laser, which sends a ray of light in the environment. As soon as the light touches a dust particle, it shatters away, the process repeating itself for all dust particles it finds in its range. Some sensors are able to receive readings every second, or every minute, but others are able to be customized to their user’s needs. You might think that fewer updates mean a report lacking in quality, but it’s the contrary. If the laser doesn’t get readings as often, it will require less calibration, thus giving you fewer chances of inaccurate readings.

The typical pollutants

What you should pay attention to, especially if you want to have a clear air are the following, common pollutants:

• Ozone – formed from sunlight and pressure of other ley pollutants
• Carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon dioxide, and sulfur dioxide – fuel combustion and mobile sources
• Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) – fuel combustion, gasoline, evaporation and solvents
• (Fine) particulate matter(PM2.5/PM10) – fuel, dust, agriculture, fires
• Black carbon (BC) – biomass burning, diesel engines

Sensor Important Features

• Weather – if you plan on purchasing a sensor that measures the outside environment as well, be sure to pick on that is designed to do so. Moreover, keep in mind that most of them are not weatherproof, so you will have to place them somewhere safe, away from the elements.
• Battery life – depending on your choice, it has different ranges
• Orientation – some units require specific orientation for them to accurately read
• Data storage – some may come with the ability to connect to WiFi, phones, and tablets via apps, thus creating a data history for you to be able to see the changes
• Sensitivity levels – if they are able to accurately measure ambient levels
• Interferences – some may respond to ‘other’ pollutants and the readings might be influenced, thus not accurate.

When you plan on investing into a sensor, you should pay attention to how often you plan on using it and for what, how repeatable is the measurement, what detection limit or range it has, how long it will take to measure and how accurate and reliable it is. To simply put it, depending on what type of sensor and monitor you are looking for, for education and information, for hotspot identification, for supplemental monitoring or for your own personal use, there are several options to choose from. Simply pick one that fits your needs best.

---

The Conclusion

Keeping an eye on your home environment is essential if you want to be able to lead a healthy life. To be able to track the nocive elements from the air present in your house, you need a reliable air quality monitor. While all the above-mentioned units can keep you updated on how the quality of the air changes, some are better in some areas:

Best Overall: Awair 2nd Edition
Awair 2nd Edition is a great choice if you wish to constantly monitor how the air your home fares, as it is able not only to connect with your phone and tablet, therefore providing you with accurate, real-time information, but it can connect with Alexa and Google Assistant as well. So, whenever the air reaches critical levels, it will automatically turn on the corresponding appliance.

Our Choice: EG Air EGVOC-100
If you want to be able to move the air monitor around, and take it with you wherever you go, then EG Air EGVOC-100 is another great choice. It comes with a large LCD screen, on which you can easily monitor the different air pollutants and their levels, and it comes with 2 ways of charging it up, by battery or with a USB cable. It comes with a built-in fan to access the surrounding air, and it auto-calibrates in the fresh air, so you won’t have to reset it manually.

Best Detection Area for Air Quality Monitor: Foobot Model 21
If you wish to be able to analyze a large area in the shortest amount of time possible, then you should consider Foobot Model 21. It has a range of 1400 sq. ft. more than enough to cover your entire house. It comes with a smartphone app that will alert you of any significant changes, and it will automatically turn on the necessary HVAC if the situation turns critical. It features an LED color display that will let you know with only one glance how it fares, and it can be placed both inside and outside.

Best for Allergies: Awair AQMG2001A
Perfect if you suffer from allergies, Awair AQMG2001A will make sure your home climate is safe. It will connect directly with your phone to provide you with exact readings while the unit will instantly turn on the right HVAC units to remedy dangerous changes. Additionally, it comes with a nightlight to help you easily locate it while its color-coded LED lights will let you know with only a glance if the quality has worsened with time.