10 Best Geiger Counters 2024 in the US

Introduction

A Geiger Counter is a surprisingly handy device. You can use it in a high-school or college physics lab, to demonstrate radioactive decay to your students. Or maybe you need one in industry, such as in analyzing samples of scrap metal, or in checking granite table tops. It can also be employed in agriculture, for analyzing soil samples or different produce for trace radioactivity.

Geiger counters can also serve as radiation counters, allowing you to identify the type and energy. If you’re a homeowner, this may prove useful in detecting dangerous radon gas. Radon is a radioactive gas that can accumulate in your home, leading to an increased risk of lung cancer. And perhaps you’d want to add a Geiger counter to a survival kit, which allows you to prepare for emergency situations. (You can find other such survival kit paraphernalia in the MSN buying guides.)

But Geiger counters vary greatly in price. There are surprisingly good models for around $100, and very professional devices for over $600! We’ll examine the outstanding features of some of the items in the MSN list of the Top 10 Geiger Counters. Knowing what specs are important will help you make an informed decision.

Types of Geiger Counters

• Pocket models: These have the Geiger Mueller tube inside the casing of the detector. You’ll also see them advertised as “handheld models”. The MSN Top Ten Geiger counters are all pocket models. An example is the GQ GMC-500 Plus Digital Geiger Counter.

GQ GMC-500 Plus Digital Geiger Counter

• Probe models: These have the Geiger-Mueller tube in the form of a wand that is attached to the detector body. They will typically be more expensive. Their advantage is that the wand is more maneuverable, allowing you to fit it into tight spaces. An example is the Ranger EXP Geiger Counter. The cable is 36 inches long, and the probe itself is 10 inches long. This allows you to measure radioactivity while avoiding physical contact with the sample.

Ranger EXP Geiger Counter
 

Where would a Geiger Counter be useful?

There are a number of instances where a Geiger counter/radiation detector would come in handy:

• In school settings: A Geiger counter would allow for neat demonstrations in a physics class. You can demonstrate the gamma rays being emitted by typical radioactive isotopes.

• In industry: For those who work with scrap metal, they may want to check pieces of scrap metal, to see if any of the pieces are radioactive. There is also a possibility of radioactive material in building materials, such as concrete.

• Food testing: Some seafood may have been contaminated by consuming radioactive materials that have accumulated in their tissues. There can also be trace radioactivity in fruits and vegetables.

• Radiation Therapy Testing: If anyone is undergoing treatment using radioactive isotopes, you may need a Geiger counter to know to what distance to keep from the isotopes.

What Features Should I Look For in Geiger Counters?

• Data display: You’ll notice that Geiger counters will display the data in three different sets of units, as we see on the panel of the GCA-06W Professional Digital Geiger Counter Radiation Monitor.

GCA-06W Professional Digital Geiger Counter Radiation Monitor

• • CPM/CPS: This stands for “Counts per Minute” or “Counts per Second”. It’s a simple count of the number of particles captured by the detector.

  • 𝜇Sv/h: This indicates the radiation emission in units of microsieverts/hour. (Some detectors can also display data in units in mSv/h, millisieverts/hour.) One sievert is a unit of the biological effect of depositing 1 joule of energy in a kilogram of human tissue.

For comparison, 5-10 microsieverts are what you’d experience when getting dental X-rays, while 10-30 millisieverts are what you’d experience in a full-body CT scan. The units are microsieverts per hour because even a large total dosage of radiation delivered over a very long time need not be damaging.

• • mR/h: Data from a radiation detector can also be displayed in units of mR/h, or milliRoentgen per hour. Roentgens are units of ionization of air molecules around the radioactive source. This is more a unit of exposure rate. (That’s not exactly the same as sieverts, which is more a measure of radiation dosage absorbed by the human body.) One Roentgen is 100 Sieverts.

• Background mode detection: When you use a Geiger counter, there may be background radiation that will appear, from the soil, sun, radon gas, and the like. Also, depending on the elevation of where you live, there will also be a higher Geiger count, anywhere between 5 to 660 counts per minute! This is because more cosmic rays end up reaching the earth’s surface at higher elevations since the thinner atmosphere doesn’t succeed in scattering them. A Geiger counter should allow you to “zero out” this background radiation by setting a threshold level. That way, you can focus only on anomalous radiation sources.

• Range: Take note of the range of the Geiger counter, to make sure that the radiation sources won’t exceed the Geiger counter’s capacity. For example, the GCA-06W Professional Digital Geiger Counter detects gamma radiation above 7 KeV, and has a range of 0.01 microsieverts/hour - 10 millisieverts/hour. It can count up to 10,000 counts per second.

• Data logging software: Many Geiger counters will come with data logging software that you can install on your Windows or Mac computer. They’ll allow you to display the data over time, and analyze any trends. Some devices, like the Soeks Quantum Professional Radiation Detector, can store data for up to 3 years! And other detectors, like the GQ GMC-500Plus, allow you to transmit data to a computer via WiFi!

WiFi Interface for the GQ GMC-500Plus

• Battery Life: Different devices will either use a 9-Volt battery or rechargeable batteries. They can be charged from wall current, a USB cable, or your car’s cigarette lighter socket. Some offer as much as 700 hours of battery life!

• Detecting other types of radiation: The Geiger Counters in the MSN Top 10 are for ionizing radiation, such as Gamma rays of X-rays. If you’re looking for a device that measures other non-ionizing electromagnetic emissions, like to see if your microwave leaks, there are devices like the RADEX EMI-50 Advanced Electro Magnetic Field Detector/Monitor that detect and monitor other types of electromagnetic waves.

Wrap Up

We’ve taken a brief look at some of the best Geiger counters, and what they’re capable of measuring. We saw how they can collect and store data, as well as the different display formats that they provide. Whether it’s for educational, professional, or amateur purposes, you’re sure to find a device that suits your needs.