Best dehumidifiers of 2019: Stop mold from dampening your day

The best dehumidifiers will help you remove damp from your basement or prevent a funky mold from spawning across your bathroom's ceiling. They're a great device to eliminate that feel clammy, dank or damp from cave like basements. Dehumidifiers will prevent spores, mildew and bacteria from taking root in your home, promoting a healthier environment for your family. 

If you wondering what features the best dehumidifiers should display, we've broken down the commonalities between all the top models and discussed the benefits of this feature. This guide should help you find the ideal dehumidifier for your needs, whether that is to dry out the shower area or to help fix flood damage. 

We've reviewed and compared the best dehumidifiers since 2013 to find the most powerful and quietest models on the market. Ultimately, we chose the Keystone KSTAD70B as the best whole-house dehumidifier. It can dehumidify nearly 4,000 square feet of space and is still relatively quiet, producing only 53 decibels of noise. This whole-house dehumidifier can collect about 10 pints before its reservoir must be emptied. 

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1. Keystone KSTAD70B: Best overall 

The Keystone KSTAD70B is a powerful dehumidifier that can remove up to 70 pints of moisture from the air each day. More remarkably, it can dehumidify an area up to 3,800 square feet, making it a good choice for dehumidifying your entire home.

Unfortunately, the Keystone's water-collection reservoir is the smallest of those we reviewed, holding just 10.4 pints. You can overcome this by attaching a garden hose to the unit's drain spout and directing it into a nearby floor drain. The machine lacks a drain pump, so the drain must be lower than the unit or you’ll need to buy an external pump.

This is the third-quietest unit we reviewed, producing only 53 decibels on its high setting. It also has some excellent safety features, such as an automatic shut-off function that turns the Keystone off once your home hits the humidity levels you've chosen. The machine also will shut down when the water-collection bucket is full.

Another safety feature, the auto defrost, keeps the machine from freezing when the air gets too cold. This whole-house dehumidifier uses 720 watts of electricity, though we found comparable units that use less energy. We like that Keystone offers a one-year parts and labor warranty, as well as a five-year sealed system warranty, which is the best among the dehumidifiers we reviewed.

2. Sunpentown SD-52PE: Best value 

The Sunpentown SD-52PE home dehumidifier can pull up to 50 pints of moisture from the air in your home each day, covering an area up to 1,300 square feet. This makes it a good choice for small homes or for rooms in larger homes.

However, it's not nearly as capable or powerful as most of the dehumidifiers we looked at. We like that it uses only 520 watts, as much as 200 watts less than most competitors, helping the Sunpentown earn an Energy Star certification.

It has a 14.8-pint water-collection reservoir, which is average for the dehumidifiers we reviewed, but larger than on our top pick from Keystone. As with all the dehumidifiers we reviewed, you can connect a hose to the back for continuous drainage, though you have the option of pumping the water to a nearby drain or sink using the included drain pump, which some other units lack.

This machine has several safety features. For example, if you're using the water-collection bucket, the auto shut-off keeps it from overflowing. If your home gets too cold, this Sunpentown dehumidifier can automatically defrost itself to prevent internal components from freezing and breaking. Regarding noise level, only one other product we reviewed is louder, so this may not be ideal in bedrooms.

As with most of the dehumidifiers we looked at, the Sunpentown comes with a one-year parts and labor warranty. However, it's one of two units we reviewed without a sealed system warranty for expensive components.

3. Friedrich D70BP: Best for basement 

The Friedrich D70BP can remove up to 70 pints of airborne moisture each day and can dehumidify homes up to 1,300 square feet (though this is a smaller space than our top-rated Keystone dehumidifier can handle).

We like that this unit has a 16.2-pint water collection bucket, the third-largest in the units we reviewed, so you don't have to empty it frequently. However, the machine lacks a window to check the water levels at a glance. A continuous drainage feature with a built-in drain pump pushes water into a sink or out a window.

There are several safety features worth noting, particularly auto defrost, which keeps the unit working in temperatures as low as 41 degrees Fahrenheit and helps prevent damage caused by freezing water. This makes it an excellent choice for unheated basements or garages. This dehumidifier weighs 47 pounds, making it the heaviest product we looked at, though the built-in wheels make it easier to move.

This is one of the most expensive units we looked at, though this is understandable since it has excellent energy efficiency and is Energy Star qualified. The five-year sealed system warranty also rivals that of the best dehumidifiers we reviewed, though the one-year parts and labor warranty is average for the category.

4. Danby DDR070BDWDB: Most energy efficient

The Danby DDR070BWDB can dehumidify 70 pints of water in 24 hours from an impressively large 4,500-square-foot space. The Danby model is also the quietest in our comparison, creating as much noise as the average refrigerator at 50 decibels. It is the most energy efficient dehumidifier in our reviews. It only uses 515 watts, which is much less than other models. Lower-wattage units use less energy and therefore have less of an impact on the environment. It also has an auto defrost so the coils won’t freeze, nor will water left in the machine.

The reservoir is on the small side, holding 12.7 pints of moisture. A window shows you when it is getting full and a full bucket alert lets you know when it needs to be emptied, but there is no auto shutoff function to automatically turn it off when it’s full. You’ll have to empty it fairly often. You can bypass the bucket and hook up a hose to drain the water continuously, but it doesn’t have a pump to draw water into a sink. Despite the features it lacks, it is a high-functioning, energy-efficient dehumidifier.

5. Frigidaire FAD704DWD: Biggest moisture reservoir 

The Frigidaire FAD704DWD dehumidifier is an Energy Star-certified dehumidifier that extracts up to 70 pints of moisture from the air in a 24-hour period. It is designed for a 1,400-square-foot room, so this dehumidifier would be a good choice for a damp basement. It also has the biggest moisture reservoir of any product in our comparison, collecting up to 16.3 pints of water. It is one of the best in terms of moisture extraction, yet you don’t have to empty it as often as many competing products.

You also have the option of bypassing the bucket by attaching a garden hose to the back port and letting gravity drain the unit continually by positioning the hose below the port. Unlike some of the dehumidifiers we compared, this model doesn’t have a built-in pump to draw water out through a hose into a sink. It also lacks an auto defrost, which would shut off the machine if the temperature dips below 41 degrees Fahrenheit. On the plus side, it has an auto shutoff that will automatically shut the unit off when the reservoir is full. An auto restart function will turn the unit back on and restore its former settings in the event of a power outage.

Why trust us about dehumidifiers?

Since 2016, we've tested fans and programmable thermostats in our lab at Top Ten Reviews. Through these tests, we've gained valuable experience that helps us reach  conclusions concerning other equipment. As we test, we hold ourselves to precise standards, mainly centering on effectiveness and convenience. We work to ensure our tests match mainstream consumer expectations, not those of product designers. 

When the product is hard to test, due us being unable to replicate the environmental conditions most people buy dehumidifiers to  prevent or cure, we rely on extensive meta-reviews. To ensure an accurate score and overview of the product we compare manufacturer specifications between products, read individual reviews to see how users of the device judge it over time, and read professional reviews of the product. 

By merging this data we can come to a rough conclusion of just how good the product is at its job, and any special niches it is well suited to. 

How much do dehumidifiers cost?

Most of the units we compared are priced between $200 and $300. This price range is typical of other units we researched online. The slightly more expensive models didn’t consistently have better features than the more affordable models, but the pricing remained fairly consistent. 

How we tested dehumidifiers

We've reviewed dehumidifiers since 2013, looking at more than a dozen products before choosing the best of those products for our comparison. Due to installation requirements and uncontrollable environmental conditions in our lab, we cannot test dehumidifiers in-house at Top Ten Reviews. Instead, we researched each product in terms of performance, features and warranties, as reflected in manufacturer specifications and online customer reviews. In total, we committed over 100 hours to researching and writing this guide in the past year.

Maintaining your dehumidifier

Dehumidifiers don’t require quite as much maintenance as humidifiers, but it’s still vital to perform the following maintenance tasks:

• Empty the collection tank frequently and clean it out with soap and warm water or disinfectant. Like a humidifier, mold and mildew can build up
• quickly where water is stored, and any impurities inside the machine can get dispersed into the air.
• Clean the intake and exhaust grills at least once a season with a vacuum and brush attachment to help improve the longevity of your dehumidifier.
• Place the dehumidifier at least 6 inches from the wall, so the exhaust isn’t blocked, and keep it in a room that’s at least 65 degrees Fahrenheit to prevent damaging motor. Some dehumidifiers are designed for lower temperatures, but not all are.
• Regularly check the humidistat and adjust it when necessary to keep the humidity levels between a safe 40 and 50 percent.
• To protect the compressor, make sure that whenever you turn off the device you allow at least 10 minutes before turning it back on.

What to look for in a dehumidifier

Daily moisture outtake and collection reservoir size

If you want a whole-home or basement dehumidifier, you need a high-capacity unit that can remove at least 70 pints of water a day. The collection reservoir should also factor into your decision. In general, a large collection tank is a good idea. Unfortunately, none of the dehumidifiers we reviewed have a collection reservoir as large as the moisture outtake, so occasionally dumping collected water is expected. However, you can buy a hose from the manufacturer to attach to your dehumidifier for continuous drainage to a nearby drain.

Room size

Room size also determines the dehumidifier you need. For a bathroom or bedroom, choose a portable dehumidifier that can be positioned in an area where it isn’t a safety hazard. As with all electrical equipment in bathrooms, keep the unit away from the sources of running water.

Noise levels

Noise, measured in decibels, matters if you plan to run the dehumidifier nonstop. For context, a level of 50 decibels is about as loud as a running refrigerator, while 70 decibels equal the sound of a vacuum cleaner. Danby makes the quietest room dehumidifier in our review; it has a noise level of only 50 decibels.

Safety first

Over the past five years, there have been several dehumidifier recalls because of possible overheating, smoking or catching fire. While there are risks in owning and using a dehumidifier, several design features and smart practices can reduce hazards. The most important safety feature is an automatic shut-off, which turns off the unit when the collection reservoir is full so the machine doesn’t continue to run and overheat.

Auto defrost is another good safety feature. When the evaporator coils inside a dehumidifier get too cold, they can freeze and keep the unit from running properly, which can make it overheat. Auto defrost turns off the compressor, so the dehumidifier’s fan pulls in warmer air to heat the coils. Once they reach a safe temperature, the compressor turns back on to resume collecting moisture.

Pricing

The dehumidifiers we looked at range between $200 - $350.  The most powerful models, that dehumidify a large space of about 4,000 square feet, often have a higher price tag. However, if you live in an apartment, or are trying to dehumidify a space of 1,500 square feet or less, you can find good dehumidifiers for less than $200.

The Sunpentown SD52PE is one such dehumidifier with a good feature package that you can usually buy for less than $200. While it’s not as powerful as the best humidifiers, it uses less energy than most, which accounts for its Energy Star rating. It has a built-in drain pump that pushes excess water through a hose you attach to the drain spout, so you don’t have to buy a separate condensate pump.

Warranties

Every home dehumidifier we reviewed has both a parts warranty to cover the cost of any replacement parts and a labor warranty to cover defects caused during the manufacturing process. The industry standard is one year on these, though many manufacturers offer extended warranties.

Another warranty covers a dehumidifier’s sealed system, which includes the compressor, condenser coil, capillary, filter dryer and internal connecting tubing. A sealed-system warranty covers these specific parts longer than the traditional parts warranty, which covers the less-expensive parts in the unit. Sealed-system warranties last between four and five years, although not all dehumidifiers have one.

Related Product Reviews

• Keystone KSTAD70B
• Friedrich D70BP
• Sunpentown SD-52PE
• Comfort-Aire BHD701H
• Frigidaire FAD704DWD
• Haier HM70EP
• Danby DDR070BDWDB
• DeLonghi DD50P