Not only is the Crane Drop Shape Cool Mist Humidifier one of the best selling humidifiers on Amazon, it’s also one of the best reviewed mid-priced humidifiers on the market.  The Crane Humidifier is priced right (list price is $50, but you can get a discount here), comes in five different colors and is the perfect size for a bedroom or other small room.

Actual users give the Crane humidifier consistently high marks for quietness, ease-of-use and appearance.  Like all humidifiers, the Crane Cool Mist requires some general upkeep, but most owners report being very pleased by the Crane Humidifier’s overall performance.

The following video gives a great overview of the Crane humidifier:

Actual Crane Humidifier Owners Give Overwhelmingly Positive Reviews:

“This is a great product. I’ve owned it for over 5 months now, and I use it everyday…With the Crane drop shape I can see the mist coming out and I can feel it in the air. Also the cleaning is easy. I love the fact that its filter free. I will recommend it to everyone who wants to get a good product and low price.” –A. Humayun

“This humidifier is the perfect size for a bedroom. The tank empties in about a day, so the water doesn’t sit around too long to get mildew or mold. The humidifier puts out lots of moisture, and is absolutely whisper-quiet! We have the penguin-shaped one for our son’s room, and this one for ours. Both are great.” –Lilly P.

Click here to read many more Crane Humidifier Reviews.

Consumer Reports Shopsmart Magazine recently headlined a review of the Crane Penguin Cool Mist Humidifier with the phrase: “New Stuff We Love!”

Ideal for a smaller room, the steam comes out of his mouth.  In addition to finding the Crane Penguin Humidifier quiet and easy-to-clean, reviewers appreciated the auto-shut off feature.  A part of Crane’s “Adorable Animals” series, this humidifier also comes shaped as a frog, duck and other variations.  You can check out a well-done Crane video that goes into much more about the series here.

List price for each of the humidifiers in this series is $40, but after searching we found the best deal here.

The Crane Adorable Animals Series Humidifiers Get Many Five Star Reviews, Including These:

“Buy it, enjoy it…it works great plus it’s cute.” –J. Baltrus

“I bought the cow, the penguin and the elephant. The penguin is the best at disbursing the mist. All three are very quiet and have a large range of mist options. None require a filter which is GREAT…My girls LOVE these humidifiers and, assuming the motors hold up well, I’d get any of them again. VERY good price performers compared with some others I’ve purchased.” –Sue P.

Click here to read many more Crane Adorable Animal Series Humidifier Reviews.

When it comes to humidifiers, many people express concern about bacteria and mold. And with good reason. Germs can be a serious problem with some cheaper humidifiers. The Vicks UV Germ Free Humidifier is designed to change all that. This unit features a patented ultraviolet chamber that kills up to 99.999% of all bacteria, mold and spores.

In addition to being germ-free, this Vicks Humidifier features a medicine cup that allows you to use Vicks Vaposteam or Kaz Inhalent to produce a medicated vapor that can sooth a stuffy nose or throat. The Vicks Humidifier is also very quiet (no fan), easy to fill and easy to clean.

Some third-party internet sellers charge up to $15 for postage for this unit.  I highly recommend buying from Amazon, where you’ll get FREE shipping in addition to the best price: Click this link now to check out the Amazon price.

Actual Users Give Overwhelmingly Positive Reviews of the Vicks Humidifier:

“Before buying this one, I had a humidifier that looked like an elephant (you know what I mean). That product was loud and just wet the immediate area. This product is great! It’s less noisy (not silent especially when boiling the water, but ok). The baby room is very well humidified. (when we have it high, it feels like we’re in a jungle). It’s easy to add water. And, cleaning is easy.” –J. Park

“This humidifier is the nicest I’ve ever owned. I’ve always had fan driven units which are noisy and blow cold air from the floor through a wick which grows mold. No cold air, no mold, just warm humidity with this unit. Keeps our 14′ X 16′ bedroom at 50 percent humidity on half setting, with the door open. The blue light makes a nice little nite lite.” –R. Swartley

“After a ton of research and several poor quality humidifiers, I found this one. It is expensive, but considering all the positive attributes – its worth the money.
Fan humidifiers tend to be loud and ultrasonic ones leave a white film over the furniture. This steam humidifier makes up for both of those shortcomings. It puts out about 2 gallons of steam every 24hrs, which is enough to keep a medium size room at about 30-35%. Relatively quite. Has a UV lamp to control bacterial growth. It does require a new mineral pad and about 10 mins of cleaning every two/three weeks. Comes with a 3 year warranty. If it lasts that long it will have earned its keep!” –Adam A.

Click here to read many more Vicks Humidifier Reviews.

The February, 2011 issue of Consumer’s Digest Magazine gave the Bionaire BCM646-UM Humidifier its coveted “Best Buy” rating in mid-priced humidifiers.

Consumer’s Digest pointed out that the Bionaire BCM646-UM Cool Mist Humidifier runs up to 36 hours on one filling, and features a unique adjustable Accuset Digital humidistat.  Other features of the Bionaire Humidifier are a 24-hour timer, a Filter Check Monitor, antimicrobial protection and a manufacturer promise of “Ultra-Quiet” operation.

Actual user reviews of the Bionaire Cool Mist Humidifier seem to validate Consumer’s Digest endorsement:

“This little humidifier works well for an average to large sized room It is easy to refill the water. It’s easy to take apart and clean. The controls are easy. It has a meter to tell you when the filters are in need of replacing. It has a small footprint, so it can fit in a lot of places out of the way, maybe in a corner. It’s attractive, for a humidifier. It’s reasonably quiet, even on high, for a humidifier. The quality of the materials seems good.”  –P. Hartwig

Click here to read many more Bionaire Humidifier Reviews.

The Holmes Group makes a variety of different humidifiers, ranging from the popular Holmes Warm and Cool Mist Humidifiers, to a table top model, to models for medium and small size rooms. For this review, we’ll focus on the popular Holmes HM630-U Tower Humidifier, which seems to garner better reviews than some of the Holmes lower-priced models.

The Holmes HM630-U Tower Humidifier is designed to run for up to 36 hours on the lowest setting, and features an “Accuset digital humidistat” that always displays the humidity in the room.

While many users are pleased with their Holmes humidifier, one thing that should be pointed out about the “tower” design is that it can make it awkward to refill using a regular sink. (Filling with a bathtub faucet seems to work best.)

Here, an actual user from New York sums up the pros and cons of the Holmes Humidifier quite well:

“Pros:
* displays humidity all the time
* variable speed settings. 3 manual and 3 auto speed.
* tower design does not take up too much space.
* easy to add water and change filter.

Cons:
* due to the size (length) of the tank, you do need a deep sink to add water. I use the bath tub.
* the fan is loud even at lowest setting.
* uses two filters.”   –A. Tempuraki

(It should be noted that there seems to be disagreement on the loudness of the fan, many users say their fan is actually fairly quiet.)

Click here to read many more (good and bad) Holmes Humidifier Reviews.

Like most Honeywell Humidifiers, the Honeywell HCM-6009 QuietCare 9-Gallon Console Humidifier seems to get a wide cross-section of reviews–people either seem to love it or hate it. On the positive side, this Honeywell humidifier is designed to cover a larger room–up to 2300 square feet–and the manufacturer claims it can run up to 24 hours per filling. On the negative side, owners have consistently reported the Honeywell HCM-6009 to be louder than they’d like.

If you’re set on the Honeywell Humidifier brand, you might also consider the Honeywell HCM-300T UV Tower Humidifier or the better-rated Honeywell HCM-630 Humidifier. (For the record, I found the best deal on Honeywell Humidifiers, with FREE shipping, here.)

Actual User Comments about the Honeywell HCM-6009 Humidifier:

“It was easy to set up–has two tanks to fill; plug in, set the fan setting and the moisture control where you want it and that was it. It really puts the moisture in the air–once you have it adjusted it kicks on and off as it calls for moisture AND I can not forget it is really quiet compared to my hunter–I wish I was as happy with other purchases I have made as I am with this one! If you need a humidifier you will not be disappointed with this one!” –K.F.

“I did quite a bit of research before purchasing a humidifier, and have been pleased after two months of use with this one. Overall, a good unit with a few design flaws, but given the inferiority of many other units, this one is a good deal.” –N. Seltzer

Click here to read many more Honeywell Humidifier Reviews.

If you’re looking for a top-quality ultrasonic humidifier, two Air-O-Swiss models deserve serious consideration. Consumers Digest Magazine recently gave the Air-O-Swiss 7133 one of its highest ratings, while across the road, Consumer Reports gave similar high marks to the slightly more expensive Air-O-Swiss 7135.

Both units feature warm or cool mist humidification. Both Air-O-Swiss humidifier models are also very quiet (perfect for running at night during sleep.) Both Air-O-Swiss units are designed to cover rooms up to 600 square feet and both feature powerful ionic systems to help prevent and control microbial growth.

Actual Users give the Air-O-Swiss generally favorable reviews. Here is one buyers detailed report:

“A Salesman introduced this Air-O-Swiss as the best machine on market. He added Venta-Sonic does the same job but costs $50 less, and all other brands can’t compare. I bought both units to compare. Air-O-Swiss is a clear winner, hands down.

1. Consistent Performance – I can put Air-O-Swiss on automatic mode with preset humidity level before I go to sleep, when I wake up, my bedside humidity reader (far away from the machine) has within 1% margin of error to the preset desired level.

2. Greater Output Capacity – My bedroom is 300 square feet+, half of 600 both machines claim can cover. Air-O-Swiss comfortably reaches my desired level (b/w 40% and 50%) with lower settings (It can go as high as 75%, I only set it up to 50%). Venta-Sonic labors over 8 hours at MAX settings and gets me LESS humidity! It won’t get me above 50%.

3. Ease of Use with Digital Control – I like Air-O-Swiss’ Auto Mode with Desired humidity setting. The machine adjusts output automatically. Venta-Sonic only has two dials, you’ll have to experiment for a while to find the optimal settings. As soon as atmospheric humidity changes, which can be daily or a few hours, you’d have to re-adjust again…that’s like shooting darts in the dark all the time, you can get close if lucky but never on target.

4. Better Mist Venting Notch Design – I put both machines on 3-feet-tall dresser. Air-O-Swiss’ notch is tilted higher than Venta’s. This means when operating cold mist, Air-O-Swiss’s disappears into air vs. some Venta’s still hit the floor – not enough to form condensation but less efficient in humidifying – perhaps that contributes to Venta’s lower output previously mentioned.

5. Better Craftsmanship – Venta-Sonic is a notch below Air-O-Swiss, appears to be made simpler and CHEAPER.

Anything Air-O-Swiss can improve? Sure! The humidity reader on the machine is adjusted about 13% lower than actual average room humidity. They probably did it to ensure average humidity far away from the unit reaches target, but I think they can do so internally without having to show it. It would be a mistake to read the room humidity off that machine.

After I got the machines, I googled on both. There was one review elsewhere saying that Venta-Sonic broke after a month and half, out of store 30-day warranty and owner took a loss. Air-O-Swiss has 3 year warranty, if I remember correctly, Venta 1 year.” –T.L.

Click here to read many more Air-O-Swiss 7133 and 7135 Humidifier Reviews.

Savvy shopper alert! I found a great deal on the Air-O-Swiss 7135 using the coupon below:

The dual warm or cool mist SPT SU-4010 Ultrasonic Humidifier is designed to deliver year-round versatility.  The manufacturer promises nearly silent operation, and additional features include a 360-degree adjustable split nozzle and ION exchange filter (designed to prolong the life of the generator.)

Consumer Reports Magazine recently gave the  SPT SU-4010 one of its highest overall ratings. The magazine judged the Sunpentown excellent in almost every category including output, convenience, noise and efficiency.

After searching around a bit, I stumbled on a nice deal on the Sunpentown SU-4010 (up to 30% off and free shipping) here.

Here is an excellent, detailed user review of the Sunpentown SU-4010 Ultrasonic Humidifier:

“Bought this based on the Consumer Reports review. Have had it for over two months in a cold winter and a dry room. In sum, this is a very good humidifier with some annoying deficiencies.

Pros: Humidity – This thing works a lot better than any of those drug store humidifiers that you will find for $30-$40 and then break after a couple of years. It really generates a ton of humidity and is really exceptional in that regard.

Directional misters – the directional misters are terrific and work well.

Low sound – this humidifier is very, very quiet. After awhile, you will not notice it in the room at all.

Neutral: Analog controls – this is a matter of personal preference. Every humidifier I ever had with digital controls broke, so I prefer analog controls.

Cons: Filter & Filter cost -  I don’t like filters and this is no exception.   The refill filters are rather expensive.

Warm mist – On the “warm” setting, the mist comes out room temperature. On the cold setting, the mist is a little cooler than that. This is not a true dual-temperature humidifier, so prepare to be underwhelmed. If you really want warm mist, then you may need to buy a humidifier based on a heating element rather than this one.

CONCLUSION – A very, very good, but not great humidifier that performs its main function – i.e.: generating humidity – extremely well.  But there is no perfect humidifier, so make your decision accordingly. Best of luck shopping!

Click here to read many more Sunpentown SU-4010 Ultrasonic Dual Mist Humidifier Reviews.

And don’t forget to check out discounts via the coupon below:

Recently, Consumers Digest Magazine gave the Lasko 1128 Humidifier one of it’s best rankings in the magazine’s “premium” humidifier category.  What makes the Lasko 1128 Humidifier a top pick is the combination of a large 4.5 gallon water reservoir, a 9-gallon per day capacity output and a humidistat with automatic cut-off (thus insuring you don’t exceed your desired humidity level.)

The Lasko 1128 Cool Mist Humidifier is designed to cover a space of up to 3200 square feet. The unit also features three speeds, an on/off indicator light, four castors and comes with a one-year warranty.

Though a bit pricier than some models, I found free shipping and a great deal on the Lasko 1128 here.

Actual users give the Lasko 1128 Humidifier generally positive reviews:

My Lasko is the best portable humidifier I have ever owned…operation is accurate and easy… It is relatively quiet in operation but you do hear the air.   It was very easy to change the filter pad when necessary.

“I highly recommend that anyone buy a recirculating humidifier when they feel it is time to replace their wick humidifier. The Lasko evaporative recirculating humidifier is the best portable recirculating unit I have read about and owned.”  –J. Callaghan

“A very effective, cost wise humidifier for our home. It is easy to assemble, to refill and keep clean.”  –Charlie A.

Click here to read many more Lasko Cool Mist Humidifier Reviews.

Possible concerns about the Lasko 1128 Cool Mist Humidifier:

• Some users feel the Lasko humidifier is noisier than they’d like
• A few buyers have reported the water reservoir was too small for their needs

Still, with the excellent Consumers Digest Magazine recommendation, this is a unit worth checking out. For more information on the Lasko 1128 Humidifier, check out the coupon below: