Dry indoor air can be a real nuisance, especially when it disrupts your sleep or affects the comfort of your little one in the nursery. But if you’ve ever used a humidifier before, you might be familiar with the common downside – the noise.
The constant humming and whirring can turn your quest for comfort into a quest for tranquility.
We know that a good night’s sleep is invaluable, and a well-rested baby is a happy baby. So, join us on a journey to discover the quietest humidifiers that will help you reclaim your peaceful nights and ensure a cozy, comfortable environment for your little one.
What Is a Humidifier?
A humidifier is a household appliance or device that is used to increase the moisture or humidity level in the air of a room or enclosed space. The primary purpose of a humidifier is to add moisture to the dry air, which can have several benefits for health, comfort, and the environment.
Humidifiers work by dispersing water vapor into the air, effectively raising the humidity level.
They is highly effective in treating dry skin, throat, nose, and lips. According to research, a humidifier can also help ease the common cold and flu symptoms.
On the other hand, overusing humidifiers has been shown to worsen respiratory problems. Therefore, it’s important to learn how to use one properly.
Types of Humidifiers?
There are different types of humidifiers available on the market today. For the purpose of this guide, I shall only be discussing the most popular ones and give you the verdict on what I think the best ones are. Let’s get started.
Cool mist Humidifiers
Cool mist humidifiers are a popular type of humidifier that provide moisture to the air in the form of a cool, room-temperature mist. These devices use various methods to disperse moisture into the air without heating the water, making them a safe and energy-efficient option for increasing humidity levels in a room.
Cool mist humidifiers have a filter that traps minerals and other impurities as they emit an invisible cool mist that evaporates into the air. These are easy to clean and much effective in large rooms and warmer climates. Most people find cool mist easy to breathe than warm mist.
- Unfortunately, cool mist humidifiers are noisier than warm mist humidifiers. However, some people find this humming noise soothing and a perfect substitute for a white noise machine.
- They also require more maintenance since the filter often needs to be replaced to prevent mold and algae growth.
If you have small kids and pets in your house, you’re better off with a cool-mist humidifier. Accidents often occur, and with a warm mist, you risk burns.
Warm Mist Humidifiers
Warm mist humidifiers are a type of humidifier that use a heating element to heat water, producing warm steam or mist that is released into the air.
They are great for use in cold climates and work great in treating flu and cold. Unlike their cold mist counterparts, warm mist humidifiers are quieter and produce a cleaner mist.
Unfortunately, warm mist requires regular cleaning and is more difficult to clean. And they cover a smaller area compared to cold mist humidifiers. These devices heat the water to produce a vapor that is then cooled before being released. The best part is that the heating process helps eliminate or decrease the risk of bacterial contamination and enhances purity.
Like the cool mist above, the warm mist is compatible with medicated products and inhalants. If you require a humidifier for a baby nursery, I highly advise you against a warm mist humidifier. This is because the heater water is a safety concern for your baby.
Whole House Humidifiers
Whole house humidifiers are HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning) system accessories or standalone units designed to increase the humidity levels throughout an entire home. Unlike portable humidifiers that are limited to a single room, whole house humidifiers are integrated into the home’s heating and cooling system to deliver moisture to all living spaces.
Here are some key features and advantages of whole house humidifiers:
- Comprehensive Coverage: Whole house humidifiers distribute moisture evenly throughout your entire home, ensuring that all rooms benefit from improved humidity levels. This makes them ideal for maintaining consistent comfort levels in large houses.
- Seamless Integration: These humidifiers can be integrated with your existing HVAC system, so you don’t need to worry about taking up floor space or dealing with the noise associated with standalone units. They operate quietly and efficiently alongside your heating and cooling systems.
Ultrasonic Humidifiers
Ultrasonic humidifiers are a popular type of humidifier that use ultrasonic vibrations to produce a fine, cool mist or warm mist (depending on the model) that is released into the air to increase humidity levels. These humidifiers are known for their quiet operation and effectiveness in adding moisture to the indoor environment.
These units can produce a white dust, and therefore, I’d highly recommend you use distilled or bottled water.
Ultrasonic humidifiers require less maintenance and are easy to operate and maintain. If you’re looking for a humidifier for bedroom, baby nursery, or use in rooms that require silence, I would highly recommend Ultrasonic Humidifiers.
The best part is that some ultrasonic humidifiers have pre-programmed settings that allow you to control humidity depending on the outside climate.
- Quiet Operation: Ultrasonic humidifiers are often praised for their whisper-quiet operation. They use high-frequency vibrations to create the mist, making them suitable for bedrooms, nurseries, offices, and other quiet spaces.
- Unfortunately, these units are more expensive than other models in this guide. But I’m better off spending more cash for quietness and energy efficiency.
Quiet Humidifier for Bedroom
An ideal humidifier for a bedroom should be quiet and compact enough not to take up the entire space in your bedroom. The humidifier should also be safe to use, especially if you have kids in the room. In this case, a warm mist humidifier wouldn’t be ideal.
1. AquaOasis™ Cool Mist Humidifier for Bedroom
- Quiet operation
- Automatic shut off
- 2-liter tank
- 360 degrees rotating nozzle
The Aqua Oasis™ Cool Mist Humidifier delivers a quiet operation that allows you to sleep, relax, study, meditate, or soothe your baby to sleep with zero distractions.
It comes with a 2.2-liter tank that allows for more than 24 hours of operation without refilling. This makes it perfect for overnight use in your kids’ room, where total silence and serenity are required.
The auto-shut-off operation will shut or turn on the unit depending on your preferred settings. The AquaOasis™ is a filter-free humidifier, meaning you won’t incur expensive filter replacements.
In addition, this cool mist humidifier is equipped with a knob dial that allows for precise mist adjustment. The analog knob is far more accurate than a button.
2. Mooka Humidifier Diffuser for Baby Home Bedroom Office
- Capacity: 0.53 Gallon (2L)
- Noise Level: ≤28db
- Power Input:100-240V, 50-60Hz
- Dimensions: 6.2*5.5*10.6 inches
The Mooka Humidifier is a perfect and quiet humidifier producing less than 28 decibels. This not only makes it the quietest cool mist humidifier but also an excellent humidifier for the bedroom to help you clear your airways if you’re sick in bed.
If you’re experiencing dry lips, cough, sinus problems, itchy skin, cracking of musical instruments and wood furniture, this is the perfect humidifier to deal with such problems.
Comes with a 180 degrees nozzle to help distribute moisture effectively across the room. Though not as powerful as the whole house humidifiers above, the Mooka Humidifier delivers up to 250ml/h, with the tank lasting up to 21 hours.
3. Crane Drop Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifier
- For rooms up to 500 square feet
- Whisper quiet
- 360-degree mist lid
- Variable speed setting
- 1-gallon tank capacity
- 24 hours runtime before refilling
The Crane Drop Ultrasonic humidifier is an excellent tool for use in bedrooms for kids, light sleepers, and babies. It comes with a 1-gallon tank, and it’s compact enough to fit under a kitchen or bathroom sink, making it easy to store.
The unit can humidify rooms up to 500 square feet (ideally medium-large sized rooms) and deliver a quiet operation for 24 hours without the need to refill the tank.
It offers variable speed settings and boasts 360 degrees adjustable mist lid allowing the user to send mist in any direction.
The unit features an easy to clean design– a detachable bottom fill tank that helps promote clean humidifier habits. Additionally, the water level sensor is removable, allowing you to clean the entire base.
4. HemingWeigh 28 Decibels Ultrasonic Humidifier
- Produces 28 decibels
- Tank capacity 2.2 liters
- Covers up to 280sqft
- Auto shutoff feature
The HemingWeigh guarantees a silent operation at all speed settings, with tests showing that it only produces 28 decibels. The rotating nozzle and adjustable knob allow you to direct mist flow to any part of your room, while the knob lets you adjust the amount of mist the unit releases into the air.
The unit has a 2.2 liters tank capacity allowing up to 24 hours operation time. However, don’t worry, as the humidifier will automatically shut down when the tank runs out of water.
Unfortunately, this humidifier can only cover areas up to 280 square feet. It’s not recommended for a large room, but it’s ideal for small bedrooms, a personal office, or your baby’s nursery.
5. TaoTronic Humidifier for Bedroom
The TaoTronics Humidifier for nursery and large bedroom is our best pick for one of the best quiet humidifiers on the market.
To improve your home environment, this humidifier is the perfect unit for improving air quality and adding moisture in the atmosphere for your home or your office.
Additionally, the quiet humidifier operation makes it perfect for the bedroom as well as a baby nursery.
The humidifier has a sound decibel rating of fewer than 38 decibels, which can be compared to whisper or babbling brook.
The four-liter tank is equivalent to over one gallon and will hold enough water to keep the humidifier operating all night long without needing a refill.
Additionally, the humidifier can spread humidity over a large area covering rooms measuring up to 10-30 m², or 107-322 ft².
It features an LED display that allows you to customize different humidifier settings and also display the current Relative Humidity (RH).
Sleep Mode and nightlight can be a perfect solution when installing it in your child’s nursery or when you want to sleep like one.
Unfortunately, like most humidifiers, this unit lacks a handle to carry it from one room to another, which can result in spills since the tank is not attached to the base.
Quietest Ultrasonic Cool Mist Humidifiers
If you need ultrasonic humidifiers to generate some cool mist in your room without producing too much noise, then I would highly recommend below humidifiers
6. VicTsing Cool Mist Humidifier
The VicTsing is a quiet ultrasonic cool mist humidifier for anyone on a budget.
The best part is that it uses ultrasonic technology that makes this unit extremely quiet. It has a sound decibel rating of 32 dB.
Additionally, this model boasts simplified controls – just a simple dial knob — no more struggles with complicated computer settings. You only work with one control knob to adjust mist output.
Unfortunately, the half-tank gallon will keep the unit running for up to 10 hours. Luckily, when water runs out, it will automatically shut off.
The LED indicator stays green when the unit is operating, and it’ll turn red when the unit needs refilling.
With a compact design and friendlier price, the VicTsing humidifier is an excellent pick for anyone looking for a decent unit that won’t break the bank.
7. Homasy – Quiet Uniquely Designed Humidifier
The Homasy Humidifier has a noise level rating of 28 decibels. It’s uniquely designed with an anti-bacteria stone.
It runs on a medical stone filter that filtrates water before it emitted into the atmosphere. Thus the mist released to the environment is safe and clean, making this humidifier great for anyone with sinus problems.
In addition, the filter also stops bacteria growth inside the tank hence prolonging the humidifiers lifespan.
Its unique design makes it easy to clean and refill. The top refill design allows you to pour water without the need to detach the reservoir.
You get a 45-day money-back guarantee and a 12- month worry-free warranty with this unit.
Unfortunately, the tank is too small, and hence you’ll be forced to refill often if used frequently.
8. Pure Enrichment MistAire- Cheap Humidifier
Pure Enrichment humidifier is a cheap premium humidifier. It boasts a 1.5 L water tank that will keep the unit running for up to 16 hours.
It utilizes ultrasonic technology that makes the unit quiet on both low and high-speed settings.
Though small, the tank is still large enough to provide enough coverage for offices, bedrooms, and other medium sizes rooms.
It also features an optional night light to soothe you or your baby to sleep and for maximum relaxation. The automatic shut-off feature ensures the humidifier turns off when the water tank is removed, or the water level is low.
The 360- degree mist nozzle will allow you to direct mist flow away from “sensitive” areas such as spaces with electronics, pets, plants, upholstery, and fabrics.
9. Everlasting Comfort Humidifiers for Bedroom
The Everlasting Comfort humidifier boasts a 6liter (1.6gallon) water tank that can humidify rooms’ ups to 500sq.ft for up to 50 straight hours.
It fitted with an essential oil tray where you add a few drops of your favorite essential oils to spice up the mist dispersed in the room.
According to the manufacturer, this unit reduces airborne bacteria and viruses by maintaining relative humidity above 43%. As a result, it decreases the risk of germs, illness, and bacteria hence helps with clearing sinuses, allergies, and coughs.
The auto-shutoff feature ensures that the humidifier automatically turns off when water runs out to keep you safe.
10. Homech Quiet Ultrasonic Humidifier for Bedroom Home Baby
The Homech is ultrasonic humidifiers that boast dustproof sponge and weaken water flow that lowers the noise levels to 30 decibels.
It’s a quiet humidifier that will humidify the room without disturbing your working, study, and run all night quietly, allowing you to have a quiet sleep.
It features multiple protection features. They include a dustproof sponge that prevents dust from entering the unit via the base, an auto shut-off mode when the water is drained, or when the tank is removed, IC board waterproof to protect it from water spills and dry burn protection feature.
The 92mm wide opening allows for quicker filling and also makes the cleaning process very simple.
Quietest Whole House Humidifier
Whole house humidifiers are perfect for anyone looking to add moisture to spaces over 1000 square feet. Luckily whole-house humidifiers come in different shapes and sizes allowing you to choose one that meets your specific requirement. Below is my guide on the quietest whole-house humidifiers.
11. AIRCARE MA0800 – Quiet Whole House Humidifier
The AIRCARE MA0800 is one of the quietest whole house humidifier and a compact source of quality air for your entire house.
It features digital controls for easy access and an Auto Humidistat, which simplifies everything for you.
It comes in two different models- 2.5 gal 2600 sq ft and 3.6 gals 3600 sq ft, respectively, making it one of the biggest capacities of humidifiers on the market today.
Want to know the best part?
The humidifier automatically shuts off when your desired humidity level is achieved or when the humidity is empty- making work easier for you.
Additionally, the unit has “water refill” and “check filter” indicators so you won’t have to check the filters condition and water level now and then.
Unfortunately, the unit can be quite loud when it’s set on medium and high fan speed setting.
12. Condair HumiLife Residential Whole House Humidifier
The Condair residential whole-house humidifier is a perfect choice for maintaining 40-60% relative humidity, vital for human health and comfort.
This ultra-quiet state-of-the-art humidifier guarantees constant indoor air humidity around the clock. This helps reduce allergens and cleans the indoor environment of dust, pollen, and other foreign particles.
Unlike standard humidifiers, this unit will maintain a relative humidity of 40-60% throughout your entire house. This evaporative humidifier boils the water to provide clean and uncontaminated steam to the air while at the same time optimizing the drain cycle for maximum energy efficiency.
13. Honeywell Home HE360A1075 HE360A
Key Features:
- Recommended area: up to 4000sq.ft
- 120V voltage
- Type: Bypass
Like most whole-house humidifiers, the Honeywell Home HE360A1075 HE360A is mounted on your furnace and works alongside the furnace to achieve desired humidity levels.
It’s powerful enough and recommended for homes up to 4,200 square feet. The installation is hassle-free as the unit can be mounted on either the return air or the warm air supply duct of any forced-air furnace.
The flow-through design helps keep the humidifier clean, which helps eliminate the frequency of maintenance. However, you will need an installation kit which is sold separately.
The good: Some users commented how easy it is to use this unit, requiring only cleaning once per year. Other users commented on the durability of the humidifier, stating that it was built to last.
The downside: I’ve read user reviews, and one notable complaint was an issue with the bad pressure switch. The issue, in this case, was that the replacement kit was discontinued prompting the buyer to replace the entire thing.
14. Aprilaire – 600MZ 600M Whole Home Humidifier
Key Features:
- Compatibility: The HVAC system
- Airflow capacity: 220 cubic ft per min
- Control type: manual
- Coverage: up to 4000 sqft
The Aprilaire is one of the best and quiet humidifiers designed and manufactured in the USA. Aprilaire is the inventor of a whole-home evaporative humidifier and a leading brand in indoor air quality products.
This unit can cover up to 4000 square feet, especially in tightly built homes with a capacity of 17 gallons per day.
It’s one of the durable manual humidifiers equipped with a single sensor built in the standard control monitors relative humidity for use manually adjusting the humidity in your room.
This unit can help you achieve 40-60% hence minimizing dust mites, bacteria, viruses, and fungi in your home. This helps protect you from incidences of respiratory infections and eases systems related to asthma and allergies.
With an airflow of 220cubic feet per minute, you’re guaranteed efficiency with the Aprilaire – 600MZ 600M Whole-Home Humidifier.
15. Lacidoll 4.2Gal Quiet Tower Humidifier
Key Features:
- 2Gallons/ 16Litres tank capacity
- For rooms up to 1000 sqft
- 4 mist speeds
- Humidity sensor
The Lacidoll 4.2Gal Tower Humidifier boasts a 4.2 gallons/ 16-liter large tank designed to humidify rooms up to 1000 square feet. It’s capable of delivering mist up to 1000ml/hr. With a tank lasting up to 48 hours before the next refilling.
It comes with remote control and a 12-hour timer allowing you to set your desired settings from the comfort of your couch.
It’s one of the few whole-house humidifiers with a self-cleaning light making the mist it produces cleaner.
It’s equipped with a built-in humidistat that detects the amount of humidity in your room and auto-adjust depending on your preset relative humidity levels from 40%-90%.
Upon activating sleep mode, the unit auto shuts the LED light and generates less noise as possible, ensuring quiet operation as you nap, work, or relax at home.
The top-fill design allows for convenience when adding water. You can refill the unit without the need to take out the tank. Simply fill in the water directly.
Quietest Humidifier Buying Guide; What to Consider
Before you buy your new humidifier, it’s essential to pay attention to some very important details.
These details may appear less important at first but will play a very important role later. Let’s have a look at the features to consider:
Noise Level
Investing in a quietest bedroom humidifier like the Homasy can make a huge difference, especially when you’re planning to keep it running at night.
You don’t want to have a humidifier that whistles all night long because you won’t get to sleep.
Our humidifiers reviewed above all have sound decibel ratings between 28-38 dB. This is an excellent range of nose especially when choosing a quiet humidifier for your bedroom or nursery.
Water Tank Capacity
A water tank is an important feature when choosing a humidifier. You don’t want to wake up in the dead of night to – add more water to the tank.
Instead, choose a tank that will have your humidifier running for at least 16 hours or 24 hours.
A humidifier with the largest water tank capacity in our guide is AIRCARE MA0800, with a 2.5 and 3.6-gallon water tank and can run for over 48 hours between refills.
Mist type
Cool mist humidifiers produce cold mist creating a cool, humid home environment. On the other hand, warm mist humidifiers boil the water inside and release warm mist to the environment.
While warm mist help fights bacteria growth, they are not recommended for use in nurseries or generally in homes with kids.
The quietest cool mist humidifiers in this guide are Homasy and VicTsing Humidifier. Fortunately, other models allow for adjustments between cool and warm mist like the Cool Mist Humidifier (BUL9500-SHP) and Bionaire Ultrasonic Warm.
Coverage area
If the room you want to humidify is enormous, it’s essential to know the humidifier coverage before purchase.
You don’t want to buy a humidifier only to realize that it’ll humidify a quarter of your room.
You don’t want to buy a humidifier designed for whole-house coverage when all you want is to use it for one room- that would be a waste of money, space, and energy bills.
Extra Features
There are additional features that you should consider before buying a quiet humidifier. For example, automatically shut-off feature comes in handy when you leave your unit running.
Nightlight is great when buying a humidifier for the baby room or when you want to sleep like one. LED indicators are also great.
What Is the Quietest Humidifier on The Market?
The AquaOasis™ Cool Mist is the quietest humidifier on the market. While there are other humidifiers with similar decibel ratings, the AquaOasis™ Cool Mist wins thanks to its bonus features, including the 2.2litre/ 0.5-gallon tank capacity as well as the 360° adjustable nozzle. It’s also a filter-free humidifier which is excellent since you won’t have the hassles of changing the filter every now and then.
Another option that’s also quiet is the Mooka Humidifier Diffuser. All these units are safe to use in a baby’s room or if you have pets in your house.
Who Makes the Quietest Evaporative Humidifier?
I wouldn’t be wrong to say that AIRCARE is the best brand that manufacturers the quietest evaporative humidifiers.
AIRCARE is a brand that’s been around for more than 7 decades, and it’s headquartered in Little Rock, Arkansas.
What I love about the AIRCARE is its uniqueness in designing state-of-the-art humidifiers, with some having some nice wooden finish that anyone would confuse for a piece of furniture.
If you want an evaporative humidifier that’s uniquely designed, then consider one from the AIRCARE brand.
What Is the Quietest Economy Humidifier?
If you’re on a budget and want something that will be as quiet as top budget humidifiers, then consider choosing HemingWeigh 28 Decibels Ultrasonic.
This unit boasts excellent features you will find in most quiet humidifiers, and the best part is that it operates at 28 decibels as quiet as a whisper. The only problem is that the humidifier is only effective for small rooms measuring up to 280 square feet.
How Should I Maintain a Humidifier?
A humidifier is something easy to maintain and shouldn’t take most of your time while you do this. Failure to clean your humidifier can facilitate the growth of mold, bacteria, and other invasive micro-organisms.
Below are some essential tips on how you should maintain a humidifier.
- Read the instruction manual and follow each to the latter
- It’s essential to wash and effectively clean the humidifier after each use.
- Use the recommended tools and chemicals to clean the unit
- Use demineralized water/ distilled water every time
- Filter replacement is a must to keep the unit properly functioning
- The area around your humidifier should always be dry
- Unplug the unit after each use
Can I add Fragrance or Essential Oil?
Some brands allow this option but others don’t. I would always recommend you get in touch with the manufacturer or contact an expert to help you. In some cases, adding anything other than demineralized water to the humidifier could destroy the circuitry.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’ve skipped to our final verdict or still trying to figure out the best silent humidifier, here’s our final verdict.
The TaoTronics is the quietest humidifier for bedroom and Homasy are our pick for best quiet humidifiers for the money.
The VicTsing Cool Mist Humidifier is excellent if you are looking for a good humidifier but have budget restrictions. At 32 decibels it can humidify rooms up to 270 square feet. That’s perfect for small and medium-sized living rooms, bedrooms and nurseries.
Meet Mike O’Connor, (a DIY enthusiast), living in Cincinnati, a city ranked as the noisiest in the USA.
As a work from home dad, I have a first hand experience of how noise can truly affect your well being.
Soundproofing isn’t something that should be taken as a hobby, it should be a skill that every homeowner should be equipped with.
Most of the work documented on this blog comes from purely first hand experience, and the products recommended work as indicated.