The 5 best thermometers in 2021

Best thermometers placed on a wood table

Molly Hebda/Business Insider
  • Best thermometer overall
  • Best budget thermometer
  • All-time infrared not-contact thermometer
  • Best thermometer for daily testing
  • Best thermometer for kids
  • What else nosotros considered
  • How we tested thermometers
  • Which blazon of at-habitation thermometer is all-time?
  • FAQs
  • Our expert sources

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Having an accurate thermometer on hand tin can help tell you how severely the trunk is in distress — whether information technology's confirming that you or your infant is ill enough to need a dr. or the hospital, or if your systems are safe after existence exposed to unsafe weather.

A fever too one of the key symptoms of COVID-19, and many businesses, school, gyms, and other public places as you to confirm you don't take one earlier inbound. (It'southward worth noting that influenza usually produces higher fevers than common colds, and non anybody with COVID19 even spikes a fever.)

Luckily, getting a quick temperature reading is remarkably like shooting fish in a barrel and safe these days. But the biggest variable among thermometers you lot can buy is really just: Is it accurate? That's why I tested 10 leading thermometers, in add-on to speaking with many experts and parents on which type of dwelling house thermometer is best and other FAQs on therometers and fevers. Notice out more about how Insider Reviews tests and reviews health products.

Hither are the best thermometers to check for a fever:

Best thermometer overall: iProven Forehead and Ear Thermometer DMT-489, $24.47 on Walmart
The iProven Brow and Ear Thermometer DMT-489 is highly impressive with an accurate instant read in just 1 second, versatile use, and comprehensive instructions on quality packaging.

All-time thermometer on a upkeep: Vicks Comfort Flex Thermometer, $nine.98 on Walmart
The Vicks Comfort Flex Thermometer was the nearly affordable of the thermometers tested, easy to use, and has a big digital screen with color-coded readings to betoken fever.

Best infrared non-contact thermometer: iHealth No-Affect Forehead Thermometer PT3, $19.99 on Amazon
The iHealth No-Touch Forehead Thermometer PT3 reads in just one second and makes it piece of cake to accurately have anyone's temperature while beingness socially afar.

Best thermometer for daily testing: Kinsa Quick Care Smart Thermometer, $24.99 on All-time Buy
If you lot're tech-savvy and looking for a keen smart thermometer, the Kinsa Quick Care Smart Thermometer can be used three ways and even allows y'all to contribute to public wellness research.

All-time thermometer for kids: Exergen Temporal Artery Thermometer with Smart Glow, $34.92 on Walmart
The Exergen Temporal Artery Thermometer with Smart Glow was the most authentic and consistent out of all the thermometers I tested and has over fourscore peer-reviewed clinical studies to support its use on children.

All-time thermometer overall

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The iProven Brow and Ear Thermometer DMT-489 is highly impressive with an accurate instant read in but one second, versatile use, and comprehensive instructions on quality packaging.

Pros: User friendly, piece of cake to read, nice storage pouch, precise, tin be used either contactless or in-ear

Cons: Cap to change methods difficult to snap on, no probe covers

The iProven DMT-489 infrared therometer is 2-in-one, as it allows yous to switch from reading via an in-ear probe or a forehead setting, the latter of which is safer for infants under 3 months old.

Information technology was highly accurate in my tests, reading within 0.5-1.0 degrees again and again for brow readings and within 0.5-0.viii degrees for ear mode. It as well displays the temperature within one second.

In that location are separate buttons for "head" and "ear," and to change from one to the other, you need to snap on or off the top cap of the thermometer, which I found a niggling hard just notwithstanding doable.

To get an accurate ear temperature,  you take to insert and place the probe tiptop correctly, so exist certain to read the instructions thoroughly. It took me a couple of tries to feel confident taking my ain temperature this way.

I liked that it has a fever alarm and color temperature indication to have the guesswork out of interpreting the readings. The manual besides includes a very comprehensive comparing table on how to translate measurements based on age and method. The thermometer can likewise store upwardly to 20 by readings for easy comparing.

The devices comes with two AA batteries, a soft pouch for storage (great for travel and diaper bags), and cleaning instructions. It also comes with a ii-year limited warranty and the option of an extended yr warranty for free.

Best upkeep thermometer

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The Vicks Comfort Flex Thermometer was the most affordable of the thermometers tested, like shooting fish in a barrel to utilize, and has a large digital screen with color-coded readings to indicate fever.

Pros: Affordable, multiuse, precise, large digital display, comes with probe covers

Cons: Very loud beep, must plough off and on between readings, colored fever alerts misleading, coin prison cell battery is more annoying to replace

The Vicks Comfort Flex Thermometer is easy to utilize right out the box: There's only one button and you take the selection to utilize the device orally, rectally, or nether the arm. Its runs on an included coin cell push battery.

I found the big digital display to be the easiest to read of all the thermometers I tested. It also beeps the loudest of the grouping, which is particularly helpful for seniors with visual and hearing impairments, merely also could be a nuisance for some considering the beeping lasts a full eight seconds.

The LCD screen uses a color temperature indication alongside displaying the actual number, which is generally helpful merely fever isn't the same for everyone so this could be alarmist if yous run hot.

The precision and repeatability of the thermometer was quite expert in my tests and merely varied by about 0.5 degrees. Although the box says the Vicks Comfort Flex Thermometer takes 10-12 seconds to read your temperature, I found it was actually much quicker with a response time of 5 to 6 seconds orally and 6 to 7 seconds rectally.

It is a piddling annoying that you accept to turn information technology off and back on to take a 2d reading, and it is  only able to recall the last reading you took. But I did like that this model comes with 100 disposable probe covers and a protective holder, along with a one-year limited warranty and instructions in English and Spanish.

Best thermometer for daily testing

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If you lot're tech-savvy and looking for a great smart thermometer, the Kinsa Quick Care Smart Thermometer can be used three ways and even allows you to contribute to public wellness research.

Pros: Diverse way to read temps, can back up multiple family unit members and keep temperature records separate, has not bad app features, contributes to public health enquiry

Cons: Needs app to piece of work, does not include probe covers,

Every morning, I accept to self-certify that my kids are complimentary of COVID-19 symptoms earlier sending them off to schoolhouse. A smart thermometer like the Kinsa — which stores all the readings for each individual family member on my phone and helps me monitor their baseline temperature — makes that daily routine much easier to manage.

The Kinsa Quick Care Smart Thermometer connects to your smartphone via Bluetooth and uses an app, which I constitute like shooting fish in a barrel to set up upwards. I and so created profiles for each member of my family, which includes inputting their birthdays to help the app's algorithm provide appropriate care instructions person to person. You tin can also add notes, symptoms, and runway medication doses within the app.

After each reading, the thermometer displays non only the temperature but a happy, neutral, or sorry-face emoji corresponding with fever status.

You lot tin cheque the temperature orally, under the armpit, or rectally (they as well brand a separate model specific for in-ear use). Although the box says the response time is viii seconds, I found it to read a temperature between two to three seconds when used orally. The precision varies betwixt 0.8 and 0.v degrees.

Kinsa sits in a really unique space for both thermometers and smart equipment contributing to public wellness: Equally Hilary Brueck, Insider'southward Senior Wellness and Science reporter, has laid out, the smart thermometer has helped forecast outbreaks of both the coronavirus and the flu, including detecting fever spikes weeks before hospitals and clinics offset to see an influx of patients.

It's an added bonus that using this stellar, versatile, and accurate thermometer tin can help contribute to predicting COVID hotspots.

Best thermometer for kids

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The Exergen Temporal Artery Thermometer with Smart Glow was the most accurate and consistent out of all the thermometers I tested and has over fourscore peer-reviewed clinical studies to back up its utilise on children.

Pros: Nigh precise tested, suitable for all ages older than three months

Cons: Unintuitive, dim display, plastic cap to protect the sensor piece of cake to lose

Next to rectal thermometers, temporal artery thermometers are the near reliable way to get an accurate reading on children and babies over three months of age. (Apply a rectal thermometer on infants under 3 months.)

With the Exergen Temporal Artery Thermometer, a gentle stroke across a child's forehead captures the naturally emitted heat waves coming from the pare over the temporal artery to requite a reading in two to 3 seconds. It tin shop up to eight readings.

When tested repeatedly, the Exergen thermometer delivered the virtually consequent and precise results of any model tested on myself and my kids — within 0.iii degrees.

However, unlike other models with backlight displays, the Exergen has a relatively small LCD display screen with a dim readout. It may exist hard to see if y'all are in a nighttime room.

However, unlike others, this thermometer wasn't as intuitive to utilize, despite having instructions printed direct on the dorsum of the device, I wasn't sure if I was correctly stroking the superlative of the unit beyond the brow. Just the instruction transmission had a QR code which led to videos demonstrating how to utilize it, which was helpful.

The model comes with a 9V bombardment already installed, cleaning instructions, and a five-yr limited product warranty.

Read our guide to the best thermometers for babies and children for additional options.

What else we considered

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What we recommend

Braun Thermoscan seven Ear Thermometer ($fifty.39): This is a fantastic in-ear thermometer with much peer-reviewed research to back information technology up, and non only practise nosotros recommend it just many parents I spoke with already own it. The downsides are information technology takes 10 seconds to read a temp, and it'southward the about expensive option I tested — especially when you gene in the disposable lens filters that need replacing for accuracy and hygiene.

Dr. Talbot's Infrared Brow Thermometer, Not-Contact ($19.89): This device has comparable precision and speed to the iHealth and is designed for contactless reading of infants over 3 months, including adults. I liked this device and it was easy to operate, only it's more expensive than the iHealth and was hard to change the settings using only the trigger.

Kinsa Smart Ear Thermometer ($39.99): The Kinsa is super sleek and like shooting fish in a barrel to utilise on yourself, which can exist tricky for the ear. I also found the app to be tremendous in terms of content with very helpful instructions. Even though the readings just took a second, the precision tended to vary by i.five degrees.

What we don't recommend

CVS Wellness Flexible Tip Digital Thermometer ($18.49): This unit of measurement was butterfingers because did not function at all.

Vicks SpeedRead Digital Thermometer with Fever InSight ($9.72): Despite being called "SpeedRead," this device took 8 seconds to deliver a reading — slower than its cousin, the Vicks Comfort Flex, our best upkeep thermometer. Plus, I plant the SpeedRead to have a metal taste.

What we're looking frontward to trying

Exergen Temporal Artery Thermometer Original ($39.49): We were unable to test this due to an inventory shortage at the time we were evaluating thermometers for this guide.

How we tested thermometers

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I reached out to a number of pediatricians for their skilful opinion on thermometers and read journal articles, "Consumer Reports," customer reviews, and even spoke with twenty parents about their temperature-taking experiences.

I narrowed it down to the tiptop ten thermometers and tested each myself nine times over the class of 3 days on myself and my two kids, as well as a handful of times on my sister and ii of my nieces, 1 of whom is an infant. I besides handed off two of the infrared thermometers to Cindy Mrotek, owner of A.C.E Behavior Solutions, an essential concern screening adults and children with special health intendance needs upon entry, for testing over the class of i week.

I looked at each product's speed, size of display, mute options, retention recall, batteries, warranty options, and storage containers. I also looked hard look at:

  • Accuracy, precision, and readability of thermometer instructions: Y'all take to utilise a thermometer correctly for an accurate reading, so I evaluated the data on each product's box and within its user manual from a health literacy perspective, including how helpful and easy to read the instructions were. Models varied, with some having a quick guide with pictures (great), information in Spanish (big bonus), or a QR lawmaking for video instructions, while others had print and then tiny you need a magnifying glass to read it.
  • Price and availability: Since thermometers are an essential part of an calm health kit, they need to be affordable. Some on our list are the price of two cups of coffee, while others are upwards of $xxx, just we also layout how you tin save money on a thermometer by using your health savings account or flex spending account.

Which type of calm thermometer is best?

Your basic digital thermometer options to cull from are:

  • Single-use stick thermometer (marketed for rectal only)
  • Multiuse stick thermometer (rectum, mouth, or armpit)
  • Tympanic thermometer (ear)
  • Temporal avenue thermometer (forehead)
  • Tympanic and temporal thermometer (ear and brow)
  • Infrared non-contact thermometer (brow)

Though there's plenty of apprehension about no-contact thermometers, a column in Inquire a Pediatrician past Dr. Elizabeth Murray, an official spokesperson for the AAP, addresses those concerns directly. Murray says that "the claims about their danger are faux … It is the infrared energy coming from the person that is beingness gathered by the thermometer, not infrared light being projected to the person."

All thermometers sold in the United States must run across federal standards and are already calibrated for home apply at the fourth dimension of purchase.

FAQs

Which type of thermometer is the well-nigh authentic?

Dr. John Vann, a pediatrician in Omaha, told Insider that merely a rectal temperature offers a truthful outpatient reading. "Everything else is an estimate," he said.

"Luckily, the exact number is non usually equally important equally how the patient looks," he adds. Which is to say, at that place are other indicators of how astringent someone's illness or condition is other than an optimally-accurate temperature reading. There are also reliable methods for checking your temperature even if you don't take access to a thermometer.

No matter if y'all opt for an infrared thermometer or a strictly ear-based model, information technology'southward important to know fever isn't the same for everyone and that it varies by age, gender, and fourth dimension of day, among other variables. Using a thermometer at various times of the day when you're feeling well gives yous an idea of what'south normal for you lot, or your baseline temperature.

Which is the best thermometer for home use?

Amid at-home thermometers, medical research hasn't determined an exact correlation betwixt oral, rectal, ear, armpit, and brow temperature measurements. Merely Kaiser Permanente notes that an ear (tympanic) temperature is 0.five to 1 degree higher than an oral temperature and a brow (temporal) scanner is usually 0.5 to one degree lower than an oral temperature.

What is the all-time thermometer to use for COVID?

The best thermometer for COVID is actually just 1 that is authentic and reliable. That means any of the thermometers on our listing are great for checking for COVID symptoms. That being said, if you lot're using the thermometer on more than one person, information technology's best to employ a contactless reader to not cantankerous-contaminate. In that case, we highly recommend the iHealth No-Touch Brow Thermometer PT3 or the Exergen Temporal Artery Thermometer with Smart Glow, both of which proved to be accurate and reliable in my tests.

Can I use my HSA/FSA funds to buy a thermometer?

If y'all have an HSA or an FSA business relationship, know that over-the-counter digital thermometers are eligible for reimbursement without a prescription.

Here'south how information technology works:

  • If you pay with cash or credit card in a store or online, you can request a reimbursement from your HSA/FSA business relationship. Different plans have different requirements on what's needed for reimbursement merely usually, a copy of your thermometer receipt volition exist enough.
  • There are HSA and FSA-specific retailers, like the HSA Store and the FSA Store that make shopping for items that qualify for reimbursement really elementary. According to both websites, when shoppers use an HSA or FSA menu to pay, they typically don't have to submit receipts; purchases on these websites automatically substantiate. It is worth noting, however, that the thermometer options available on these websites are limited and toll more than other retailers.

What counts as a fever?

Many Americans think anything over 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit is a problem, just what constitutes a fever is actually unlike person to person.

Rik Heller, a biomedical engineer and thermographic skillful, tells Insider, "Age, gender, and even time of day impact normal body temperatures."

Some children's temperatures especially run higher than others, points out Dr. Jesse Hackell, a practicing pediatrician with New York-based Pomona Pediatrics. Any reading of 100.four F or higher in a baby younger than 3 months is reason to phone call the pediatrician. "Another reason to call is if the fever persists for more than 24 hours in children younger than two and more than three days in a child 2 years of age or older," he said.

Meanwhile, older adults tend to have lower baseline temperatures than younger adults; sometimes fevers in the elderly are completely absent.

To figure out what'due south a fever for you, you want to observe your baseline temperature (i.due east., what'southward normal for you lot) past checking your temperature at various times of the mean solar day when y'all are feeling well.

At the end of the day, how you or your child is acting and feeling is the best indicator of a fever over the number on a thermometer, multiple of our doctors say.

Our practiced sources

  • Jesse Hackell MD, FAAP, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics Committee on Practice and Convalescent Medicine and a practicing pediatrician with New York-based Pomona Pediatrics, a partition of Boston Children'south Wellness Physicians
  • John Vann, MD, FAAP, a pediatrician at Omaha Children'south Clinic in Omaha, Nebraska
  • Dr. Jenifer Johnson, a family unit medicine dr. and internist at Westmed Medical Group in Westchester, NY
  • Rik Heller, a biomedical engineer and thermographic expert who founded the clinical-grade thermometer company, Wello
  • Cindy Mrotek, business owner of ACE Behavior Solutions
  • AP News. Infrared thermometers used for COVID-19 testing practise not pose risk to pineal gland. July 28, 2020
  • Consumer Reports. Thermometer Buying Guide. September 23, 2016
  • NASA. Ingestible Thermometer Pill Helps Athletes Beat the Heat. January 8, 2007
  • EPA. Mercury Thermometers. June 26, 2018
  • CDC. How COVID19 Spreads. Oct five, 2020
  • Business organization Insider. Coronavirus temperature scans are nothing more than pandemic security theater. In some cases, they're dangerous.
  • Mayo Dispensary. Thermometers: Understand the options. September xv, 2018
  • HealthyChildren.org. When to Call the Pediatrician: Fever. November 21, 2015
  • HealthyChildren.org. How to Accept Your Child's Temperature. October 12, 2020
  • HealthyChildren.org. Are Infrared Thermometers Safe? October 15, 2020
  • New York Times. Can Smart Thermometers Rails the Spread of the Coronavirus? March 18, 2020
  • Kaiser Permanente. Fever Temperatures: Accuracy and Comparing. June 26, 2019
  • HSA Store website
  • FSA Shop website