The 12 Best Meat Thermometers, According To Online Reviews

As a trained chef, I get asked about kitchen gadgets a lot, and I have two that I recommend to almost everyone. If you're a home baker, the baking tool you need is a kitchen scale, and if you're serious about cooking, you should buy a meat thermometer. In fact, you should actually buy two for your kitchen. 

Instant-read thermometers are the kind you poke into your meat from time to time to see if it's done. They're great for things like steaks and seafood. The other kind is a leave-in thermometer, which is heatproof and stays in from start to finish. Most leave-in thermometers now have a probe connected to a digital display, safely away from the heat, through a wire or a wireless connection. You'll use those in your oven or smoker, or on your grill if you're doing a reverse sear.

There are lots of meat thermometers available in both categories with a range of price points and features. Here are a dozen of the very best, according to reviews from online experts and actual home cooks.

I'm going to start with the ThermaPen One because if you have the budget for it and use your thermometer a lot, it is the best out there. ThermoPens are what you'll see chefs using more often than not, and serious foodies love them just as much.

First, they're fast. The term "instant-read" is a misnomer because most models can take four to six seconds, or even up to 10, to get a reading. The ThermaPen takes as little as one second. It's also highly accurate, certified to be within half a degree Fahrenheit. The big, backlit display is easy to read and auto-rotates, so the numbers always face the right way up. It's also waterproof, has outstanding build quality, and comes with a five-year warranty.

So, are there any downsides to this consensus top brand? A few Amazon reviewers point to what sounds like manufacturing defects, and some grumble that it won't always give a reading in one second. Aside from those edge cases, its only real downside is that it (deservedly) commands a premium price.

Buy the ThermaPen One on Amazon for $115.

There's a big gap between the ThermaPen One — at the top — and all of those inexpensive instant-read models for $10 or less. Most of us are okay with something between those extremes and would happily choose a mid-priced model from a good manufacturer.

If that's you, Thermoworks' ThermoPop 2 is a great option. It's a bit smaller and slower than its higher-priced sibling, requiring two to three seconds for a reading and boasting a 1-degree Fahrenheit accuracy rather than half a degree, but those are still great numbers for a thermometer at its price point. It shares the quality engineering of the ThermaPen, and its big, backlit round screen autorotates for easy reading from any angle (even inside a dark oven). It uses a coin-type lithium battery that can last for up to 4,000 hours' use and carries a two-year manufacturer's warranty.

Like the ThermaPen, the ThermoPop 2 is a big favorite with product reviewers, outperforming a lot of more costly competitors in rigorous hands-on testing. Regular users seem to love it just as much.

Buy the ThermoPop 2 on Amazon for $41.

Top thermometers like the ThermaPen use a sensing device called a thermocouple, a technology originally created for industrial use. This Oxo product, which lives up to the company's reputation for solid, sensible design, also uses thermocouple.

It's rated as accurate to within .9 of a degree Fahrenheit and reading within two to three seconds, which puts it among the leading products. The probe rotates a full 225 degrees, so it's not just usable but identically usable if you're left-handed. The big display takes the uncommon tack of using illuminated numbers on a black background, so it's unusually easy to read in any lighting. Good hygiene is also baked into the design, which I appreciate as a former food safety instructor: The probe opens and closes with a dial-type thumb pad, so you don't have to touch it, and the slot the probe rests in is wide enough for easy cleaning. This is especially important when you're making fresh mozzarella or homebrewing beer, where any contamination can spoil your whole batch (or potentially make you sick).

Oxo actually shows a similar star rating to ThermaPen One. It's an excellent product, and the only real downside is that its list price puts it in direct competition with the ThermaPen. You're more likely to find the Oxo on sale, though, which can make it a great bargain.

Buy the Oxo Good Grips Thermocouple Thermometer on Amazon for $71.56.

For casual cooks, the speed and accuracy of a thermocouple thermometer aren't such a big deal. "Good enough" is good enough as long as the price and performance line up.

That's where this Venigo comes in. With a starting price of under $10, this isn't going to give you lab-quality results, but that's not the point. It's accurate to within a degree Fahrenheit or so, its response time is surprisingly good (claimed to be within three seconds), and it has a nice, big, backlit display. It even looks like a thermocouple model, for what that's worth.

There are also some nicely considered features here. It has a magnetic back so you can keep it on the fridge (or even your vent hood or oven door) for easy access, and the handle also has a built-in loop for hanging it from a hook or a lanyard. Its high rating on Amazon is pretty impressive for such an inexpensive tool.

Buy the Venigo Digital Meat and Food Thermometer on Amazon for $7.99, depending on color.

Like the Oxo thermocouple thermometer already recommended, the Javelin Pro Duo from Lavatools comes very close to the ThermaPen in performance. The big difference is that the Javelin Pro Duo comes at a price closer to the ThermoPop.

With the Javelin, you'll get readings in just one to two seconds that are accurate to within half a degree Fahrenheit. The Javelin also has a "hold" button, so you can reach your hand into a hot oven to get the reading of a stabilized temperature and then pull the thermometer out to look at it. Just be sure to wait until the temperature stabilizes and the numbers stop changing before you press the hold button. Otherwise, the reading won't be accurate (this holds true for any thermometer with a hold button, but at least it won't take long with the Javelin).

Like the Venigo, the Javelin has a magnetic back and a loop for a hook or lanyard for convenient storage. Overall, it doesn't offer quite the same build quality or warranty as a ThermaPen (three years rather than five), but it's arguably the best product at the price point — Amazon reviewers agree.

Buy the Lavatools Javelin Pro Duo on Amazon for $49.99.

This is another great option for a cook on a budget. ThermoPro is a respected brand in the meat thermometer market, with solid products and a wide range of price points.

This one's at the lower end of the range, so you can't expect all the bells and whistles, but you'll still get ThermoPro accuracy (within .9 of a degree Fahrenheit); you'll just have to wait a bit longer (four to six seconds) to get a reading. Aside from its accuracy, the biggest factor (literally) that makes this model stand out at the price point is its probe. Most low-end instant-read thermometers have a probe about 3 to 4 inches long, but the TP-01A has an extra-long 5.3-inch probe. That puts its electronics (and your hand) that much farther from heat, steam, and spatters of hot oil. You'll get niceties like a lock button and a backlight for the display, as well.

This isn't a professional's tool by any stretch, but that's fine: At this price point, it just has to offer good value for the dollar, and it absolutely does that. Users agree on Amazon.

Buy the ThermPro TP-01A Long-Probe Thermometer on Amazon for $9.99.

Let's move on from instant-read thermometers to the leave-in variety. Here, speed isn't a concern because your probe stays in the food from start to finish. Basic features include a display to show your food's temperature, as well as the ability to use presets or choose a target temperature manually. You'll also get an alarm to let you know when you hit that target.

If all you want is a solid, reliable leave-in thermometer, you can't go wrong with this model from Polder. It's a classic in its low-key way, and it ticks all of the boxes I've just mentioned. It's gone mostly unchanged for 20 years or so, besides the periodic upgrades like the silicone-coated wire to the probe. It's very compact, easy to operate, and also includes a timer that you can use with or without the thermometer. Replacement probes are available if you need one. I owned an older version of this thermometer until I lost it in a move, and I wouldn't hesitate to own one again.

There are more advanced thermometers out there, but this one will fit the bill for most home cooks. Users on Amazon seem to agree. Note that the Polder only goes down to negative 32 degrees and up to 392 degrees Fahrenheit, so it's not suitable for extremely high or low-temperature uses.

Buy the Polder Classic Digital Thermometer and Timer on Amazon for $22.99.

We've already listed a couple of instant-read thermometers from ThermoWorks, and their leave-in models are equally competitive. This one is a relatively basic model, but it's a nice upgrade from the Polder.

Most leave-ins are accurate to within 2 degrees Fahrenheit or less (that's a default on the ChefAlarm as well), but you can manually calibrate the ChefAlarm to be accurate within less than 1 degree Fahrenheit. It also lets you set an upper and a lower temperature target, so the thermometer will alert you if the temperature rises or falls beyond your target. That's great for long, slow cooks on a charcoal grill or smoker, where temperatures can fall as the fuel is used up, or to alert you when your food hits (or leaves) the food safety "danger zone." The probe is good to well over 500 degrees Fahrenheit, and its connecting cable can withstand up to 700 degrees Fahrenheit.

ThermoWorks' alarm volume is adjustable up to busy commercial kitchen levels, and its probes are built with commercial use in mind, so they're much more durable than consumer-focused thermometers. The ChefAlarm is consistently a top pick in professional hands-on reviews.

Buy the ThermoWorks ChefAlarm from ThermoWorks for $65.

Most "wireless" thermometers actually have a wired probe running from your food to a separate transmitter, which relays readings to a larger display or sometimes to your phone. Those are great — you don't have to hover near your food as it cooks — but you'll still need to fuss with running that wire to the transmitter.

Recently, a few companies have managed to cram sophisticated electronics directly into the probe itself, creating truly wireless designs like the Meater Pro. It's an impressive-looking product that comes in a bamboo holder/display block that's also the charger. The probe contains six separate sensors, giving surface and interior temperatures for your food as well as the ambient temperature in your oven, grill, or smoker.

You'll control the thermometer from your phone through an app, where you can set a truly amazing number of alerts and timers. It gives the kind of fine-grained control serious cooks appreciate for grilling, sous vide, and long, slow "cooks" on a smoker. The Meater Pro gives you a single probe, though you can buy more. There's also a Meater Pro XL model, which includes four probes in a money-saving bundle. Be aware that while roughly two-thirds of Meater users on Amazon give it five stars, you can expect sporadic software and connectivity issues.

Buy the Meater Pro Smart Wireless Thermometer on Amazon for $129.95 or the Meater Pro XL on Amazon for $349.95.

The leave-in thermometers we've talked about so far come with a single probe, and that's fine for most purposes. But what if you want to monitor the white and dark meat separately? Or multiple steaks at the same time? Or be sure that your whole roast is cooking at the same rate?

For those situations, you'll want a meat thermometer like this one from ThermoPro, with four separate probes. They're color-coded so you can tell at a glance which probe (or steak) corresponds to the temperature you're seeing, and the thermometer has the usual range of timers and temperature-setting options. It also transmits those temperatures wirelessly to the display, which can be up to 1,000 feet away, through a direct radio frequency connection.

That's an upside/downside scenario. Unlike Bluetooth or Wi-Fi-enabled thermometers, you won't be able to monitor it from your phone, but it also means you won't need to worry about hackers or privacy issues. Overall, it's a very solid offering from a reliable company, ideal for aspiring grill masters and pitmasters. Home cooks like it as much as professional reviewers, with a solid ranking on Amazon.

Buy the ThermoPro TP829 Wireless Meat Thermometer on Amazon for $47.49.

People who are serious about traditional barbecuing (or grilling, for that matter) want serious tools. That's what this is. The ThermoWorks Smoke X looks much like the four-probe ThermoPro TP829 model we've already recommended, but it's a significant upgrade in a lot of ways.

Like the ThermoPro, it supports up to four color-coded probes — one for the ambient temperature in your oven, grill, or smoker and three for your meat. Like the ChefAlarm, it can send an alert if your cooking temperature drops below its target (important for long cooks), and the thermometer can connect to ThermoWorks' Billows Temperature Control Fan (sold separately) to automatically provide more oxygen to your charcoal-burning smoker or grill and goose the heat back up to where it should be. Its range is superior as well, providing a direct radio frequency connection good for up to 6,562 feet (about 1¼ miles) of range.

One quibble to be aware of is that while the device supports up to four probes at a time, it comes with just three at the time of purchase. That's not necessarily a deal-breaker, but you'll need to shell out for an additional probe to maximize its potential.

Buy the ThermoWorks Smoke X Long-Range Remote BBQ Alarm Thermometer from ThermoWorks for $199.

If you're the kind of tech-forward cook who embraces the latest technology (or you need a gift for someone like that), then Combustion Inc. has the thermometer you're looking for. Like the Meater thermometer we've already recommended, Combustion's Predictive Thermometer is truly wireless, and its slender probe is packed with sensors and a wireless transmitter.

The Combustion product takes things a few steps further, though. To begin, it uses a low-power Bluetooth 5.4 spec — released in 2023 — to maximize range (up to 330 feet). You can also add a booster (sold separately) to double that range and monitor temperatures on either the receiver or your phone. It's accurate to within .4 of a degree Fahrenheit, which is outstanding. It also supports data logging, so if you're trying to dial in a perfect brisket or pork shoulder, you'll have detailed data to work from for the next time.

The really big deal with this thermometer, though, is its ability to predict your time to doneness from the information reported by its sensors. It's not always spot-on, but you'll always know whether you have time for another beer (or a trip to the bathroom). I have several acquaintances who own this thermometer and love it, though they do acknowledge occasional frustrations with software bugs. Amazon reviews reflect that experience, with recurring complaints of software "bugs," but the company is highly responsive and pushes out bug fixes through remote software updates.

Buy the Combustion Inc. Predictive Thermometer on Amazon for $199.99.

I drew on several sources to compile this list of recommendations. One is competitive online reviews from sites where people with technical, food science, or professional cooking experience conduct hands-on tests of the various models to see how their specs and marketing copy translate into practice (and where paid sponsorships don't skew the outcomes).

A second important source is Amazon's user ratings and reviews, where the average buyer shares their own experiences with the products. Although many factors come into play with these reviews, they're useful as a way to differentiate products that make a good first impression versus those that hold up in the long term. Finally, I've drawn on my own experience as a chef as well as feedback that I've gotten from colleagues and dedicated home cooks.