Nosotros tested 12 meat thermometers and plant the one make that consistently performed the all-time

  • Here are the 5 best meat thermometers in 2022
  • Best meat thermometer overall
  • Best budget meat thermometer
  • Best leave-in meat thermometer
  • Best get out-in meat thermometer on a budget
  • Best meat thermometer for the grill
  • What else nosotros tested
  • Our meat thermometer testing methodology
  • Types of meat thermometers
  • How to use a meat thermometer
  • Why ThermoWorks makes the best thermometers nosotros tested
  • How to calibrate a meat thermometer
  • Check out our other grilling gear guides

Lauren Savoie/Insider

The well-nigh-used piece of equipment in my kitchen isn't my Dutch oven, or my chef's knife, or even my almost beloved spatula — it's my thermometer. I invested in a good kitchen thermometer almost a decade ago and since so, it'south carried me through countless dinner parties and holiday meals (including a grunter roast), hundreds of weeknight dinners, and a career in professional person kitchens. I use my thermometer to temp everything from a piece of chicken to a loaf of breadstuff to a pot of caramel or a vat of frying oil — I've even taken the temperature of a baked white potato.

Using a thermometer to accept the temperature of food is i of the first skills students learn in culinary schoolhouse. Tracy Wilk, lead chef at the Institute of Culinary Didactics, said that a thermometer is a core tool that tin can brand you a more than confident cook.

"A lot of home cooks can be intimidated by some techniques similar cooking steak or tempering chocolate, merely once y'all're able to work with temperatures, the gates really open up for your cooking abilities," Wilk said. "There'due south also satisfaction from a perfectly cooked roast chicken that isn't cut into a 1000000 pieces earlier it'southward served."

Thermometers don't just help make your nutrient taste ameliorate, they're besides important for food safety. Co-ordinate to the Food and Drug Administration, a meat thermometer is the only way to ensure that meat, poultry, and egg products are cooked safely as color and texture are non e'er reliable.

To discover the best meat thermometers you can buy, I tested 12 different models, putting each through an identical set of tests to determine accurateness, ease of use, and durability. You can read more than below about our testing methodology, also every bit information on how to use and calibrate a thermometer, and why Thermoworks occupies all of the summit spots in our guide. Larn more about how Insider Reviews tests and recommends kitchen products hither.

Here are the 5 best meat thermometers in 2022

Best meat thermometer overall: Thermoworks Thermapen 1, $89.25 bachelor at Thermoworks
The Thermoworks Thermapen One is the fastest and near accurate thermometer nosotros tested, with thoughtful features similar an automatically adjusting display and backlight sensor.

Best meat thermometer on a budget: Thermoworks ThermoPop, $35 available at Thermoworks
The Thermoworks ThermoPop is a simple and easy-to-use meat thermometer at an entry-level toll that's great for those just learning to melt.

All-time leave-in meat thermometer: Thermoworks ChefAlarm, $65 bachelor at Thermoworks
The Thermoworks ChefAlarm has many thoughtful features like built-in alarms, a timer, and a probe that stays in your food for the entire cook time, making it a dandy option for grilling or long cooking projects.

Best leave-in meat thermometer on a budget: Thermoworks DOT, $45 available at Thermoworks
The Thermoworks DOT is a relatively inexpensive thermometer with a few uncomplicated, but well-designed features. It'south an authentic leave-in thermometer without all the bells and whistles.

Best meat thermometer for the grill: Thermoworks Smoke X2, $169 available at Thermoworks
If you're serious nearly charcoal-broil, the Thermoworks Fume X2 offers both accurateness and convenience with a leave-in probe that can transmit data to a pager more than than a mile away.

Best meat thermometer overall

Lily Alig/Insider

The Thermoworks Thermapen One is the fastest and most authentic thermometer we tested, with thoughtful features similar an automatically adjusting display and backlight sensor.

Pros: Lab-calibrated, displays accurate temperature within seconds, large and easy to read brandish, automated backlight, automatically turns on and off, display automatically rotates, can be used in Celsius or Fahrenheit, tin can exist customized to display whole numbers or up to one decimal identify, comes in 10 colors

Cons: Might exist more difficult for lefties to use

I reach for the Thermapen One equally often equally I attain for my chef's knife. The Thermapen 1 has all the accuracy, speed, and helpful special features that make a stellar meat thermometer. With this thermometer in my kitchen, I am confident cooking steaks, baking dumbo loaves of bread, and more.

If you own the older model, the Thermapen MK4, there'south no demand to replace it merely yet. The merely differences between the two models are that the Thermapen Ane is supposed to read temperatures one to 2 seconds faster and with an even smaller margin of plus or minus .5 degrees Fahrenheit. In our testing, we plant that the Thermapen I registered temperatures within one to 2 seconds. During the boiling water and ice bathroom calibration tests, the termoter registered the correct temperatures immediately. The Thermapen 1 isn't significantly faster than the MK4, but both thermometers are faster than any others on the market.

Similar the MK4, the Thermapen I has an automatically rotating display and a sensor probe that opens 180 degrees from the base. Y'all can easily stick the thermometer in the side of a sparse patty or even underneath a heavier piece of meat. Additionally, a sensor turns on the display backlight when it's dark out — a feature we found especially useful for grilling at night. The display is big and doesn't glare from whatever bending.

The Thermapen One is ready to employ out of the box, simply you tin hands customize it to read in Celsius or Fahrenheit and to show whole numbers or 1 decimal place.

Best budget meat thermometer

Lauren Savoie/Insider

The Thermoworks ThermoPop is a elementary and piece of cake-to-use meat thermometer at an entry-level cost that's bully for those just learning to cook.

Pros: Authentic, fast, like shooting fish in a barrel-to-read numbers, has a backlight, has a rotating display, can evidence temperatures in Celsius and Fahrenheit, comfortable for both lefties and righties to use, comes in nine color options

Cons: Backlight and display rotation have to exist activated by pressing buttons, the rigid probe has some problem getting into tight spots, only displays whole numbers, can't suit digits if the thermometer needs scale

While the Thermapen may be unparalleled in its features and accuracy, it comes at a premium cost. For those learning to cook or merely looking for something a footling more unproblematic or inexpensive, the Thermoworks ThermoPop has everything you demand to get started, and information technology'south about a third of the price of the Thermapen.

The thermometer is lollipop-shaped with a long, sparse probe on one end and a bulbous display on the other. The screen is articulate and easy to read with large digits and a backlight. Information technology's accurate and reports the temperature inside four seconds of inserting the probe into the food — just a second longer than the Thermapen. Since its probe is upright instead of angled, it works every bit well for lefties and righties.

Information technology has all the features you need in a thermometer, notwithstanding, it takes an actress step to activate some of them. For example, you lot demand to press a push to turn on the backlight or rotate the display while the Thermapen does both of these things automatically. It's also not quite as customizable — you tin can't set it to display one decimal identify temperatures, it just shows whole numbers. And in the issue that your thermometer'due south calibration is off, you can't make adjustments to the numbers on your own; you'd have to ship it back to the visitor. It's also a little less maneuverable in tight spaces or bad-mannered angles since the probe is straight instead of angled.

That said, it'due south a bang-up entry-level thermometer that has all the features you'll need for nearly every type of cooking project.

Best leave-in meat thermometer

Lauren Savoie/Insider

The Thermoworks ChefAlarm has many thoughtful features like built-in alarms, a timer, and a probe that stays in your nutrient for the entire cook time, making it a great option for grilling or long cooking projects.

Pros: Accurate, reads quickly, large display, born timer and stopwatch, loftier and low alarms, comes with a pot clip and carrying case, tin can purchase and use other probe styles depending on your needs, magnetic base, tin can be used in both Celsius and Fahrenheit, comes in nine different colors

Cons: Magnet not always strong plenty to hold up the unit on oven door, takes some time to set up upwards

While fast-reading handheld thermometers like the Thermapen and ThermoPop are great for near uses, sometimes you need a thermometer that tin can be left in your food while it'south cooking, which is where probe or leave-in thermometers like the Thermoworks ChefAlarm come up in.

The ChefAlarm is ideally designed for grilling, barbecue, or cooking long roasts in the oven. Information technology features a high-temperature probe connected to a base that reports the electric current temperature, too equally the minimum and maximum temperatures your food has reached while cooking. Buttons on the base permit you to set a timer or stopwatch, along with alarms to tell you when your food has dropped above or beneath a certain desired temperature range. The base tin be folded to sit stably on a counter or attached via a magnet to a metallic surface like a grill lid or oven door. It also comes with a carrying instance and a clip for attaching the probe to pots for deep frying or candy making.

In my temperature tests, the ChefAlarm was accurate and relatively fast, reporting temperatures inside six seconds. However, between the probe, cable, and base, it has a lot of parts and is a fleck unwieldy for stovetop cooking like searing steak or fish. I've found I go the most use out of it when grilling or cooking foods that take a lot of time.

I tiny quibble I have with the ChefAlarm is that the magnet isn't always potent enough to hold the base upward when attached to my oven door, which could be an issue if you lot have a wall-mounted oven with no hands reachable surface nearby.

Best leave-in meat thermometer on a budget

Lauren Savoie/Insider

The Thermoworks DOT is a relatively inexpensive thermometer with a few elementary, only well-designed features. It's an authentic leave-in thermometer without all the bells and whistles.

Pros: Relatively fast, very accurate, clear display that's piece of cake to read from afar, has a backlight, can purchase and utilize other probe styles depending on your needs, magnetic base, alert alerts when the food has reached its set temperature, tin exist used in both Celsius and Fahrenheit, comes in nine different colour options

Cons: No timer, no minimum or maximum temperature display, just i volume setting, only displays whole numbers

If you're looking for a leave-in thermometer that is a bit simpler and less expensive than the ChefAlarm, the Thermoworks DOT is a more streamlined option. It consists of a circular, magnetic base attached to a iv.5-inch probe connected by a 47-inch cablevision. The front end of the base has just two buttons: up and down, which you apply to ready your desired final cooking temperature. You lot stick the probe in the food and leave it there for the unabridged melt time, and the thermometer will beep loudly to permit you know when your food has reached your desired temperature.

The DOT has a backlight that can be activated with a push on the back of the base, and you lot tin can buy other specialty probes that work with it to suit your needs (though y'all most probable won't ever need to). 1 matter I particularly like most the DOT is that it'southward lighter than the ChefAlarm, and stays put when I attach information technology magnetically to my grill or oven. Information technology's likewise incredibly accurate and a beat out faster than the ChefAlarm, reporting the temperature within just five seconds.

The DOT doesn't have a timer or the power to testify you minimum and maximum cooking temperatures, but you may not need either of those functions if you're cooking something simple, or you use a split up timer while cooking.

Overall, information technology's a nifty selection if you're looking to dabble with a go out-in thermometer, or don't need all the actress bells and whistles that come with a more expensive thermometer.

Best meat thermometer for the grill

Lauren Savoie/Insider

If y'all're serious most barbecue, the Thermoworks Smoke X2 offers both accuracy and convenience with a leave-in probe that tin transmit information to a pager more than a mile away.

Pros: Comes with a pager so you can monitor temperatures from afar, pager works more than a mile away from the base of operations, comes with 2 temperature probes, accurate, moderately fast read and data transmission time, tin can prepare high and depression temperature alarms, has a backlight, can be used in both Celsius and Fahrenheit, comes in 9 different colors, can be used with other specialty probes and equipment

Cons: Too bulky for stovetop cooking

If y'all're cooking something that takes many, many hours or even days — as is frequently the example with barbecue — remote thermometers similar the Thermoworks Fume X2 allow you monitor the temperature of your food from afar so you lot're not tied to the grill.

The Smoke looks similar to other leave-in thermometers we tested. Information technology comes with two probes that are connected past long wires to a base that sits outside your grill or oven. The base transmits that temperature data to a pager that you wearable on a lanyard. Both probes were authentic and took almost vii seconds to transmit the temperature to the base of operations — slower than our other tiptop picks, but much faster than any other remote thermometer I've tested.

The base and pager stay continued upwardly to a mile away from each other, which likely covers all the distance you lot'll demand. While I didn't examination the lengths of this claim, I did walk with the pager upwardly to one,000 anxiety away from the base and it never lost connection, even when I went upstairs, behind walls, and down the cake.

While The Fume isn't a thermometer you'll likely use every day, information technology'due south a practiced investment if y'all regularly cook a lot of project recipes or barbecue.

What else we tested

Lauren Savoie/Insider

We tested a total of 12 thermometers for this guide. Here are the ones we tested that didn't make the cut.

What else nosotros recommend and why:

  • Lavatools Javelin PRO Duo Digital Meat Thermometer: This fast-reading handheld thermometer is accurate, piece of cake to employ, and gives articulate readouts. Information technology has many of the features we love in the Thermapen One, similar a backlight and machine-rotating display. While the Javelin is a slap-up thermometer, the Thermapen edged this model out because its features were a chip more than reliable; the Javelin's display sometimes rotated when nosotros didn't want it to and you need to press a button to activate the backlight. These are minor quibbles, however, and this is a cracking choice if you want a more affordable alternative with many of the same functions as the Thermapen.
  • Lavatools Javelin Digital Meat Thermometer: This petite thermometer is a piffling more than than four inches long with a probe length of just 2.8 inches. While it's fast, accurate, and easy to read for its small size, it'southward a bit too pocket-sized for everyday use. I plant my hands getting uncomfortably hot when holding this thermometer in food that was cooking, and its probe is too short to get all the style into large roasts and cuts of meat. That said, it's small enough that yous could clip it to a keychain, or utilize the included magnet to keep it on your fridge door for easy access when you lot need a thermometer in a pinch. Information technology might be a skillful portable thermometer, but non i that I would desire to apply every twenty-four hours.

What we don't recommend and why:

  • OXO Practiced Grips Thermocouple Thermometer : This instant-read thermometer is sleek, reports fast read-outs, and has a rotating brandish, but it was consistently off past i degree in all the scale tests. While that wasn't a bargain-breaker (and hardly plenty of a divergence to ruin your nutrient), the rotating brandish consistently read upside down when I tried to use it in a hurry, like while searing steak. The probe does extend further than other models, which meant my left-handed hubby could also use the thermometer comfortably in his ascendant paw (many instant-read thermometers only extend far enough to be most versatile for right-handed apply). Information technology may be a good pick for lefties, just I would've liked more accuracy and reliability given the cost.
  • ThermoPro Wireless Meat Thermometer : While this remote thermometer was accurate, it was difficult to use compared to the Thermoworks Fume and lacked many of the features we love in that thermometer. The ThermoPro's brandish is relatively small and difficult to read, information technology wasn't intuitive to use and program, and it only has a range of up to 300 feet. It lost connection when I left the transmitter by the grill and took the pager with me into my house and upward a flight of stairs. When it was connected to the pager, information technology took about 45 seconds for the thermometer to written report the temperature in all of our accuracy tests — the longest of whatsoever product we tried. While this lag isn't likely to make a difference in your nutrient if you're using it to cook barbecue or another long-cooking dish, information technology's much as well boring for stovetop use or quick-cooking foods like steak or fish.
  • Taylor Commercial Digital Thermometer: While this thermometer was the least expensive of any model we tested, its display is teeny-tiny at only 1/4 inch tall. I had to squint to read the numbers, the brandish frequently fogged up, and there was a glare if I didn't agree the thermometer at the right bending. It also took a relatively long time to read at nearly 20 seconds, and in that time, my hand got hot from having to hold the thermometer close to the food for so long. It also was consistently off past 2 degrees F in all our accuracy tests.
  • Yummly Smart Thermometer : This thermometer is role of a new generation of go out-in thermometers that are completely wireless. The probe stays in your food the entire cooking time, but there are no wires coming out of your oven or grill like there are with the DOT or ChefAlarm. The probe wirelessly transmits temperature information to your phone, and then you tin can see when the food is finished cooking. I tested this model and struggled with app and connectivity bug that rendered the thermometer basically useless.
  • Polder Stable-Read Digital Thermometer : This thermometer beeps to let you know when it's at a stable reading, which can be useful if yous're all the same figuring out the nuances of using a meat thermometer. However, that was just about its only redeeming factor. It was consistently off by well-nigh three degrees F, and the display is hard to read, doesn't rotate, and is not backlit. The probe is rigid and the thermometer is long, then it'due south not good for temping things at an angle. This thermometer is currently out of stock.
  • Taylor Waterproof Instant Read Thermometer: Some other cheap selection from Taylor, this thermometer was slightly easier to read and featured a backlight. While it was also faster and more accurate than the other Taylor thermometer we tried, it nevertheless wasn't without flaws. The display had a strong glare from certain angles and fogged up when close to hot foods; this was exacerbated past its short probe, which kept the thermometer (and our easily) near the rut. The buttons were also hard to press. This thermometer is currently out of stock.

Our meat thermometer testing methodology

Lauren Savoie/Insider

I've been using kitchen thermometers for more than a decade, including vii years working in professional person kitchens as a product tester and editor for "America'south Test Kitchen" and "Cook'southward Illustrated." For this guide, I leaned on my extensive experience using a thermometer almost daily, and also interviewed Tracy Wilk, pb chef at the Institute of Culinary Education, as well as Martin Bucknavage, senior food safety extension acquaintance at the Penn State department of nutrient scientific discipline. I tested 12 unlike kitchen thermometers. Here'southward what I looked for in the all-time thermometers:

Accurateness: A thermometer must be accurate at both high and depression temperatures, as well as over time. I put each model through two manufacture standard tests: the ice bath test and the boiling water examination. And so, I utilized a sous vide test where I tracked the temperature reported by each thermometer over ii hours when placed in a water bath heated by an immersion circulator. In my accuracy tests, I didn't include food since cooking introduces a number of hard-to-control variables similar cooking temperature, size and thickness of the meat, and potential human error.

Speed: In every test, I timed how long information technology took for the thermometer to report a steady, authentic temperature. For remote thermometers, I also timed how long information technology took for the base to transmit the temperature data to the pager.

Ease of use: Thermometer readouts should be legible and easy to read. I used each thermometer over several weeks as part of my regular cooking routine, seeing how comfortable they were to agree over hot pans filled with searing steak and whether their screens fogged up when I stuck the probes into vats of chili.

Durability: Thermometers are often used in busy kitchens where bumps and spills happen. I tested the durability of the thermometers past knocking each from the counter onto the ground 10 times and checking for any keen or functionality loss. All the thermometers passed this test.

Special features: While a thermometer doesn't need to accept whatsoever fancy features, I looked at any boosted functions such as backlights, alarms, timers, and customizability. I checked to see that these functions were helpful and worked every bit intended.

Types of meat thermometers

Lauren Savoie/Insider

In this guide, we focused on 3 types of thermometers used nigh commonly in cooking: instant-read thermometers, probe thermometers/get out-in thermometers, and remote thermometers. Hither are the key differences between the styles:

Instant-read thermometer

Pros: Fast read-out, slim design for an easy grip, tin bank check multiple locations in the food speedily, tin be used for near any task

Cons: Not meant to be left in the nutrient so you accept to open up the pot lid, oven door, or grill lid to bank check the temperature, which could effect in heat loss and a longer melt fourth dimension

These devices are handheld digital thermometers that give yous a temperature read-out in seconds. If you're looking for one thermometer that tin can handle most kitchen tasks, this is the style to buy. They're great for stovetop cooking and foods that melt fast merely they also work well for checking on dishes you cook in the oven or grill. My instant-read thermometer is ane of the nigh-used tools in my kitchen and the thermometer I reach for most oft.

Probe thermometer or go out-in thermometer

Pros: Nifty for long cooks where you don't desire to poke the nutrient also often, skillful for processed-making and deep-frying, oft has congenital-in alarm or timer

Cons: Slightly slower read-out, not ideal for fast-cooking foods similar steak or fish on the stovetop, more parts to go along runway of, harder to operate with i hand

These thermometers have a probe that's meant to be left in the food for the duration of cooking. The probe connects past a thin metal wire to a base that sits outside the stove, oven, or grill and shows the temperature read-out. Many probe thermometers besides have actress functions similar timers or alarms. This style is skillful for when you desire to constantly monitor the temperature without having to oftentimes poke the nutrient or open the oven door or grill lids, like when making big roasts or long-cooked braises. They're too useful for deep-frying and candy-making since you can clip the probe onto the pot and monitor the temperature of the frying oil or carbohydrate.

Remote thermometer

Pros: Pager or smartphone-connectivity that lets y'all monitor temperature from afar, good for long-cooking foods like charcoal-broil or roasts

Cons: Almost expensive, bulky, slightly longer read and transmission fourth dimension than leave-in thermometers

Remote thermometers have the same design as probe thermometers (a leave-in probe connected to a base), but with the addition of a pager that lets yous monitor the temperature of your food from afar. This is pop for grilling and smoking, which typically take very long cook times. A remote thermometer lets you walk away from the grill or oven and still continue an eye on the temperature of your nutrient. Many are as well smartphone-connected, so you can cheque the temperature from your phone. While you tin can use them in all the aforementioned ways yous would use a leave-in thermometer, they're commonly bigger, heavier, and more than expensive, so we actually just recommend them if you do a lot of barbecuing or very long cooks.

How to use a meat thermometer

Lily Alig

In that location are a few ways to ensure you lot're getting an authentic reading with your meat thermometer. Aim for the thickest office of the meat and bank check the temperature in multiple places. "You want the 'sensing point' of the thermometer to be in the eye of the meat, what we term the cold spot," Bucknavage said. This part of the meat takes the longest to melt, so information technology's the best spot to examination for overall doneness.

If you lot are cooking a thinner cutting of meat or a patty, Bucknavage suggests inserting the thermometer into the side of the meat instead of the meridian. Make sure you lot don't striking bone when testing meat.

How to read a thermometer

Reading a handheld digital meat thermometer is simple: information technology displays the temperature it senses. That said, if you're taking the temperature of something that is cooking fast, like a steak, you may notice the numbers on the display changing speedily. This tin be catchy, specially in high-pressure situations where y'all're cooking hot and fast.

A proficient rule of thumb is to trust the lowest steady number yous see. If yous temp your craven in a couple of dissimilar places, consider the lowest steady reading you found to be the most accurate temperature, equally information technology's an indication that your food is not fully cooked in that spot.

Why ThermoWorks makes the best thermometers we tested

Lauren Savoie/Insider

Though Thermoworks occupies all five of our top picks, this guide is not sponsored. Our guides are never sponsored and we conduct the same ready of tests on all products. We put 12 dissimilar thermometers through identical rigorous criteria for this guide. Then how did Thermoworks products best the contest?

Accurateness: Thermoworks thermometers consistently gave the well-nigh precise and accurate measurements in our tests. Should your thermometer reading be off later doing bones scale tests (very unlikely in a new thermometer, just a possibility with extended use), some of Thermoworks' thermometers are easily adjusted with buttons inside the battery compartment, or you can send the thermometer to the visitor for lab calibration.

Thoughtful design: Thermoworks thermometers are thoughtfully designed and unproblematic to utilise, with no superfluous features. In our meridian picks, we particuarly liked the big readouts, backlit displays, and piece of cake adjustability.

Trusted industry leader: Thermoworks has been in business for 25 years and simply makes thermometers and temperature tracking devices. Its staff is filled with engineers who are laser-focused on thermometry and scale. Its a trusted make used not simply by home cooks and in the foodservice industry, but also past pharmaceutical, manufacturing, heating and ac, research, and other industries.

Customer service: While client service didn't gene into my rankings for this guide, it'south worth noting that Thermoworks has some of the best customer service I've always experienced. I've been using Thermoworks products daily for a decade every bit function of my job and in my ain dwelling. Whenever I've had a question, a call to the customer service line quickly puts me in touch with a technician who can respond questions big and small — from troubleshooting data logging software to basic questions almost what thermometer is best for what use.

How to calibrate a meat thermometer

Lauren Savoie/Insider

Before you lot use your meat thermometer for the get-go fourth dimension, you should brand certain it's accurate. This procedure is called "scale," but that'southward a fleck of a misnomer since you lot usually aren't making any adjustments, but checking accuracy. In addition to calibrating your thermometer before its first use, it's also a practiced thought to check its accuracy periodically, especially if you lot're using an older model or a dial thermometer. At that place are two manufacture-standard ways to calibrate your meat thermometer: the ice bath exam and the boiling h2o test.

Water ice bath examination

The easiest manner to check for accuracy is to fix an water ice bath. Here are the steps outlined on Thermoworks' website, which are standard beyond many brands:

  1. Fill a vessel like a big mug or bowl to the rim with water ice.
  2. Add together cold water to the vessel to fill the gaps between the ice. Stop filling when you've reached just below the lip of the vessel.
  3. Insert your thermometer's probe into the middle of the water ice bath and stir gently.
  4. An accurate thermometer should read 32 degrees F (or 0 degrees C) in the ice bath.

Boiling water test

If you don't have ice readily available, you can also bank check the accuracy of your thermometer with boiling water. Notwithstanding, keep in mind that water boils at unlike temperatures depending on your location and the current atmospheric force per unit area. The humid water calibration test should merely exist used in a pinch and only to find glaring inaccuracies. Hither are the steps:

  1. Fill a pot with at least four inches of water and bring to a boil over loftier estrus.
  2. When the h2o is at a roaring boil with large bubbles bursting at the surface, insert your thermometer probe into the h2o, taking intendance that it doesn't touch on the sides or bottom of the pot.
  3. Compare the temperature read-out to the estimated boiling indicate of water for your area. At sea level, water by and large boils at 212 degrees F (100 degrees C).

What to do if your thermometer is inaccurate

If you perform either of the higher up calibration tests and find that your thermometer is inaccurate, first check the accuracy range of your device, which should be listed on the packaging or instructions. Some thermometers let for a variance of upwardly to a degree plus or minus the target temperature. If your thermometer's reading is within the allowed range, there's no need to make adjustments.

If your thermometer is off by more than the allowed range, follow whatsoever included instructions in the packaging for adjusting the read-out of your device. If your device isn't adjustable you lot have a couple of options. Get-go, you can ship the thermometer back to the manufacturer for calibration. The cost and availability of this service will vary depending on the model, your warranty, and the company. Second, you can simply take a small slice of tape and write the corporeality the thermometer is off past on it and stick it to the thermometer body. Every time you use the thermometer, the tape will remind y'all to mentally adjust the read-out by the number written on the tape. Finally, if your thermometer was cheap or is old, y'all may only desire to buy a new ane.