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Summer’s officially here, and with it, high humidity. And while a little moisture in the air is desirable for easy breathing and hydrated skin, too much can lead to trouble—mold and mildew can grow in your home, for example, which can cause respiratory ailments. Fortunately, there are ways you can keep your humidity levels in check. First and foremost, you should always address the root cause of the excess moisture. If you’re in need of some extra help, though, it may be time to invest in a quality dehumidifier.

Dehumidifiers come in sizes ideal for your basement or crawlspace as well as specific rooms ... [+] throughout your home

Like humidifiers and air purifiers, these machines couldn’t be easier to use: After plugging it in, you simply adjust the settings to your needs and let it go to work. Because basements tend to be musty places, it’s recommended that you run a dehumidifier in your home’s lowest level. (That being said, you can also place them in crawl spaces or other problematic rooms.) To determine the best dehumidifiers for basements and other spaces prone to dampness, we identified and reviewed the best-selling and top-rated devices on the market. Then, we judged them by efficiency, value and noise. Here are the eight models we stand by.

It’s hard to beat this dehumidifier from Black+Decker, which has features that meet most needs and a price tag that’s not too high. The device extracts 50 pints of water every 24 hours, covering up to 4,500 square feet, so it can tackle most basements. You can also use the 24-hour timer to have your device work harder during select hours.

The dehumidifier has a built-in pump with a 16.4-foot drain hose. It also comes with a removable, washable mesh filter that you can use repeatedly.

The whole thing is controlled by an electronic control panel with LED digital display that’s easy to read. And here’s another nice perk: The machine operates at a noise level that doesn’t surpass 51 decibels. You’ll hear it working, but it’ll be more of a low hum than a disruptive gurgling. Plus, it’s Energy Star-certified for efficiency so you don’t have to stress about your utility bills skyrocketing.

Honeywell’s TP70PWKN is a high-capacity dehumidifier that can accommodate large spaces up to 4,000 square feet by removing up to 70 pints of water from the air per day. If you’re new to dehumidifier shopping, don’t be confused by the two seemingly contradictory sets of numbers; this model is also routinely advertised as a 50-pint model, for example. The reason is a revised DOE testing system implemented in 2019 that reduced the estimated effectiveness of many models. The important point is to make sure you compare apples to apples when shopping for a dehumidifier.

This Honeywell model is available with or without a pump—this is the pump version. Unfortunately, the pump doesn't kick in until the built-in 14-pint water tank is full, at which time you can automatically drain the appliance with an included hose up or down up to 15 feet away. It has a digital humidistat that automatically controls the system based on moisture level in the room and has a digital status display so you can see the humidity at a glance from feet away.

It’s safe to leave the TP70PWKN for unattended operation. If you’re using the built-in tank, it has an auto shut-off for when it’s full and can auto restart after a power failure. It’s also easy to move around thanks to four rolling casters, and it has a handy handle for moving and carrying it as well. Finally, the five-year warranty is one of the longest in the industry, so you can be confident it’s a safe investment.

The hOmeLabs HME020006N Dehumidifier comes in a few sizes, from a compact 30-pint model all the way up to a 70-pint version that rivals the Honeywell 70 Pint Dehumidifier earlier in this list. We’re focusing on the 50-pint model (35 pints per day using the revised 2019 DOE standard) because it’s a superb middleweight dehumidifier that can handle about 3,000 square foot spaces. It includes a removable 13-pint water tank, and can be set to run continuously until the tank is full, at which time it’ll shut down automatically. Alternately, you can connect a drain hose for continuous draining, though there’s no integrated pump, which might limit your drainage options (you can’t run the hose upward to a sink or window, for example).

This dehumidifier is a “fire and forget” model, though the top of the case has a digital humidity display and a row of buttons for configuring operations. Need to increase the moisture removal for short periods of time? A turbo setting kicks up the fan speed from 165 cubic feet per minute to 188 CFM. And unlike many competing models, this is an appliance you don't need to consign to the basement; its simple styling and clean lines would not look out of place in a more elegant room that needs moisture removal. Mounted on wheels and weighing just 40 pounds, you can move it around easily, though there’s no carrying handle on top.

Not every situation calls for a high-capacity dehumidifier, and you can save a lot of money by buying a more modestly powered model. Ivation’s IVAESDH30P is an excellent portable appliance that checks virtually every box you might be interested in; it’s programmable with a built-in humidity sensor, so you can set the humidity level you want your room to maintain, it shuts off when the built-in water tank fills, and can automatically restart when needed.

Ivation offers three versions of this dehumidifier in sizes from 70 pints down to 30 pints—it’s the 20 pint model (actually 22 pints using the revised 2019 DOE specification) that we’re recommending for smaller spaces up to about 1,500 square feet. It has an easy-to-empty 10.4-pint water tank and a drain hose hookup, though no pump—so you’ll probably need to run the water to a floor drain.

While the Ivation isn’t the most aesthetic dehumidifier on the market, it has a snazzy set of digital controls on top with the ability to set the desired humidity level, enable the 24-hour timer, choose between two fan speeds and watch for the filter status. It’s also quite portable thanks to the rolling casters and 29-pound frame.

Dehumidifiers are not known for being especially quiet, and many models can make quite a racket. If you’re planning to place one in the basement or crawlspace, that might be fine, but if you need it upstairs among human beings, how loud it is becomes an important consideration. Most dehumidifiers don’t advertise their sound level at all, but clock in around 58-61 decibels. That’s why the Tosot 50-pint dehumidifier is so compelling; it manages to run at a peak of just 51 decibels, which is about the same volume as a quiet conversation between a few people in your living room. You’ll know it’s on, but it’s not exhausting to listen to.

This appliance can pull 50 pints out of the air—and that’s using the revised 2019 DOE system. Apples to apples, the older rating system would classify this as a 70-pint dehumidifier. It includes a programmable thermostat, so you can dial in the humidity level you want, and you can rely on the 8-pint bucket or drain captured water via the hose connection. Despite the low noise, it has a pump to let you draw the water up, down or sideways up to 12 feet away. It’ll run automatically until the bucket fills, or full time if you’re using the drain hose.

Tosot designs its appliances with an eye towards style, and this model genuinely does not look like a dehumidifier—great if you need to put it in a room that gets foot traffic. There’s a simple set of controls on top for choosing the humidity level, timer and fan speed.

If you don’t like the idea of going down to the basement just to check on your dehumidifier, you might be interested in the Frigidaire FGAC5044W1—one of the few smart dehumidifiers on the market. This 50-pint model includes Wi-Fi and connects to a mobile app for iPhone or Android, and it also works with voice commands via Alexa and Google Assistant. Using the app, you can remotely turn the appliance on or off, adjust the desired humidity level and get notified if the water bucket needs to be emptied. You’ll need a solid Wi-Fi signal in the basement (or wherever you place the dehumidifier) so you might want to check on that before investing in this model.

Aside from the high-tech Wi-Fi feature, this is a fairly typical high-capacity dehumidifier. It can remove up to 50 pints of moisture from the air each day and has both a drain hose connection and a larger-than-average 16-pint water bucket. There's an automatic shut off when the bucket is full and you’re not using the drain hose. You won’t get an integrated pump, though, so your drainage options may be limited. The controls (if you don’t use the mobile app) are top-mounted, where you’ll also find a handle to easily move it around. Of course, it also rolls on four casters. Finally, you get three fan speeds whereas most dehumidifiers generally have just two.

While most portable dehumidifiers are priced at or above $200, there are a handful of quality models you can get for less. The Frigidaire 22-Pint Dehumidifier is one such dehumidifier—not only is it often priced not far above $150, but it punches well above its weight. It removes 22 pints of water from the air each day and can easily accommodate a basement or other space up to 1,500 square feet. It’s also among the smallest and lightest models we’ve seen, weighing just 34 pounds (and especially easy to move around thanks to its four casters, top-mounted carrying handle and even a pair of side handles).

It includes three fan speeds and has an automatic shut-off when the large 16-pint water tank is full. You can also configure it to drain continuously, though you’ll need to attach a hose and run it to a nearby drain for that. There’s no pump built in, but you probably expected that given the unit’s low cost and small size. You can use the top-mounted controls to run it on a 24-hour cycle, adjust the desired humidity and choose a fan setting.

The Shinco dehumidifier is the ultimate hands-off machine. It has a handy built-in drain port and pump so it can empty automatically. There’s also a sleep timer, so you can set the dehumidifier to flip on at a set time every day. (However, you can run it all day if you like—it has a continuous 24-hour cycle setting and will operate until the tank is full.) The LED screen is easy to read and shows your room’s current humidity levels, along with your target.

This machine efficiently filters out 70 pints of water a day, easily adjusting the humidity from 80% to 30% in up to 5,000 square feet. Given its high capacity, you can use this dehumidifier just about anywhere, including large basements. It’s also Energy Star Certified, costing 30% less to operate than those that don’t have this distinction. And, with a 48 decibel peak, this device isn’t any louder than normal conversation.

A dehumidifier that works well for one basement might not be a good fit for another—it’s not a one-size-fits-all machine. Consider these factors when making your purchase.

Before you go shopping for a machine, it’s important to know the size of your basement (or space) where you plan to install it. Dehumidifiers are designed to work within a certain square footage, so ideally, you want a machine that’s made to tackle the size of your space. If, for example, you need the device to cover 1,500 square feet, you don’t want to shell out money for one that’s made to tackle 5,000 square feet.

A dehumidifier’s capacity is determined by the amount of moisture it can remove from the air in 24 hours. This is typically measured in pints, and most residential machines can capture between 30 pints to 70 pints in a day. If you have a high level of moisture in your home, opt for a model with a larger capacity so you don’t have to empty it as often.

Many people prefer dehumidifiers with pumps, which automatically drain the collected moisture through a tube that’s connected to a sink or pipe. Models without pumps contain reservoirs that need to be emptied when they fill up to capacity.

Most dehumidifiers work by drawing air through cooling coils. When the moisture in the air hits the coil, the molecules lose heat and condense; the water that condensates then runs into a drain or collects in a tank that must be emptied manually. Simultaneously, the dry air that enters the appliance is warmed before it’s ejected; this is so the air doesn’t chill the room it’s venting into.

While there are some large, whole-house dehumidifiers, most people can get by with smaller, more portable models. To determine the ideal size and capacity for your space, note the square footage of your basement and buy a model that’s designed for that size.

Because humidity tends to be higher in the summer, it’s a good idea to install one of these savvy machines in your basement during the warmer months. As a rule of thumb, anytime the humidity level exceeds 60%, run your dehumidifier.