CNET: Best carbon monoxide detectors of 2024

Carbon monoxide is commonly known as the "silent killer" -- a gas that can spread through your home without any color, odor or even taste to alert you to danger. Breathing in carbon monoxide can restrict the amount of oxygen carried throughout your blood and cause breathing difficulties. This is why you should take the threat of carbon monoxide in your home seriously and why a reliable carbon monoxide detector is critical for ensuring your family's safety.

In its early stages, carbon monoxide poisoning can lead to headaches, nausea, dizziness and general weakness and, if not treated, can be fatal. It's easy to confuse it with flu, too, making it important to have a carbon monoxide detector in your home. You don't want to risk CO poisoning with an old or defective monitor. Whether you're a new homeowner or it's time to replace your existing detector, we found the best, most reliable models to help ease your mind and protect your home.

To help you get the best carbon monoxide detector, we put a number of popular models to the test, evaluating their ability to detect carbon monoxide at two hazardous concentration levels: 250 and 400 parts per million. Here are three of CNET's best options for keeping you safe.

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First Alert CO615

Best carbon monoxide detector overall

CNET TAKE: At an average retail price right around $35, the CO615 from First Alert is the perfect carbon monoxide detector if you're looking for handy features and decent performance at an affordable price.

Highlights include a digital display that shows real-time carbon monoxide concentration in ppm and battery level, a test/silence button for weekly testing and a peak carbon monoxide level button to show the highest carbon monoxide concentration detected. This is a plug-in model that is backed up by...