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CR's experts help you select the best model to keep the electricity flowing after an outage
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When the lights go out, your main insurance against problems, small and large, is a generator.
If the TV won’t go on, that’s no biggie. But if the sump pump stops and your basement floods, you’re looking at a costly repair.
And, given current data, the need for generators is likely to grow. In the years between 2013 and 2021, the average power outage in the United States increased in duration from just over 3 hours to 5½ hours, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.
Choosing a generator takes some thought, though, since they vary in type, price, and size.
Portable generators run the gamut from small recreational units that start at about $450 and can power a single appliance to large portable models that can power most of a home. And within those size categories, you have conventional generators and inverters that are quieter and more efficient, but also more expensive. (Take a deeper dive into the differences between inverter and conventional portable generators.)
The next option is a standby model—sometimes called a whole-house or home standby generator—that powers an entire house seamlessly and without frequent refueling. These models cost as much as $7,000 and require permanent installation.
How do you figure out which generator is right for your needs? Keep reading.
To determine the size generator you need, consider the appliances you wish to power and add up their wattage, says Misha Kollontai, the Consumer Reports engineer who handles generator testing. If you’re considering a portable generator, don’t spring one that produces more power than you need for those appliances, he adds.
“There’s no need to go larger unless you want to be able to power more in a pinch and are comfortable with needing to keep more gas on hand,” Kollontai says. Some of the larger portable generators in our ratings can burn through about 20 gallons of gasoline per day.
Depending on the size generator you need, you may have a choice between a traditional portable generator and an inverter generator, which electronically throttles the engine up and down to supply power more efficiently. Inverter generators are more expensive than traditional generators delivering the same wattage but they also have distinct advantages.
“If you’re willing to pay more up front for a quieter and more fuel-efficient unit, potentially saving down the road if you use it often, then look at inverters,” Kollontai says.
Here, we offer guidance on how to choose the generator that’s right for your situation, along with details on each category of generator we test and a CR recommendation and product review in each category.
Consumers often think about generators in relation to the size of their home. While there’s certainly a correlation, a better way to shop for a generator involves totaling the actual wattage of the appliances you’ll want to power during an outage, as well as the frequency of your power outages.
The interactive tool below will give you a rough approximation. Just click on a type of generator to get a sense of what appliances you can run with it. The wattages for each type of appliance are general guidelines and may vary from what you have in your home. Also keep in mind that some appliances—air conditioners, refrigerators, and sump pumps, for instance—draw a lot more wattage at the moment they’re cycling on. These surge watts can throw off your calculations if you don’t account for them.
What a Generator Can Power
Click on any type of generator below to see what it will run in your home.
The other way to think about choosing the right size generator for your home is to consider how often you’re likely to need one—and for how long. That’s unpredictable to an extent, of course, but think about what you’ll need to power and see which of the three power-outage scenarios below match your situation.
You can click on any generator type to jump down to a list of its pros and cons, as well as a specific product recommendation and review for each.
And when the power goes off, the outages are sometimes prolonged. This also applies if you live in an area prone to severe weather events, such as blizzards, ice storms, tornadoes, and hurricanes, where a large number of homes in your area may be affected at the same time.
Generator Types to Consider • Home standby • Large inverter • Large portable
These three types have enough juice to power your entire household, and they can connect directly to your home’s circuit breaker panel, allowing you to control and run appliances that are hardwired, such as central heat and air conditioning, well pumps, sump pumps, electric ranges, and water heaters. If you have any of these and it’s essential for them to work in a power outage, be sure to have a transfer switch installed at your breaker box for a large portable or inverter generator.
A licensed electrician should be able to handle the job, but be sure to budget for the installation cost when considering the cost of the generator. A home standby generator also needs professional installation but the transfer switch is generally included in the price.
Sometimes they’re sustained, but not typically, and you don’t want to spend thousands on a home standby generator.
Generator Types to Consider • Large inverter • Large portable
Unless you experience numerous power outages a year, you might not be willing to spring for the $10,000 or more it can cost to buy a home standby generator and have it installed. You can save thousands of dollars if you’re willing to pull your large inverter or portable generator out of a garage or shed and hook it up during the outage. You’ll still want to have a transfer switch installed and budget for that expense.
Even so, you want a generator for some peace of mind.
Generator Types to Consider • Midsized inverter • Small inverter
Midsized inverter generators have ample power to run a fridge and a window AC or space heater, as you can see in our interactive tool above. Small recreational models are compact enough to toss into the back of a pickup to power a TV and cooktop at a tailgate, and can be used to charge phones and laptops, as well as lamps and small kitchen appliances.
Consumer Reports recommends only portable generators with carbon monoxide (CO) safety technology—that is, a built-in sensor that triggers an automatic shutoff if carbon monoxide builds up to dangerous levels in an enclosed space. (CR no longer tests generators without this feature; the older models in our ratings that lack it earn a Poor score for CO safety technology.)
With any generator, it’s extremely important to follow our long-standing advice of always operating a generator a minimum of 20 feet from your home with the exhaust directed away from it as well as from any windows, doors, AC units, or other structures.
Small Inverter Generator Up to around 2,000 watts $450 to $1,600 Pros: Small inverter generators are the lightest type of generator. (Most models weigh around 60 pounds.) They are extremely quiet, have no installation costs, and are easy to store and transport. You can pair most units to increase output. Many come with user-friendly features such as fuel-level indicators and smartphone apps.
Cons: These generators have enough capacity to power a fridge, some lights, and a phone charger but not much else. They can’t be connected to a circuit breaker panel or used to power any device that doesn’t have a standard plug. The most expensive models cost as much as a portable generator with more capacity.
Midsized Inverter 2,000 to around 3,500 watts $500 to $2,400 Pros: Midsized inverter generators are quiet and lightweight. (Most models weigh less than 150 pounds.) They’re also efficient, capable of keeping the fridge running and the lights on for 8 to 25 hours using only 2 to 3 gallons of gas.
Cons: These inverter generators can generally power only 110-volt items with a standard two- or three-prong plug, ruling out well pumps, and heating and cooling equipment. You can now find special 110-volt transfer-switch kits, but the installation cost makes them an impractical choice because you could opt for a portable generator with a 220-volt transfer switch for the same amount.
Large Portable Up to 8,500 watts $950 to $2,000 Pros: Portable generators are the best value in terms of cost vs. capacity. Some large models produce enough energy to meet all the power demands in a home. They can be connected to a breaker panel with a transfer switch to run hardwired equipment, such as a well pump.
Cons: Making the connection to your home’s circuit breaker panel costs as much as the generator itself. Large portables are also noisier than large inverter generators and home standby generators. They usually run only on gasoline and use a lot of it compared with inverters. And they’re bulky; most weigh around 250 pounds. They shouldn’t be used in rain or snow without protection, such as an open-sided tent.
Large Inverter 5,000 watts to around 7,500 watts $1,300 to $7,000 Pros: Large inverter generators produce enough energy to run a refrigerator, lights, and other essentials, such as a furnace or small central air-conditioning unit. They can be connected to your breaker panel to run hardwired equipment, such as a well pump. They’re quiet and produce steady power, which is ideal for sensitive electronics, such as stereo equipment. And they’re fuel-efficient.
Cons: They’re expensive. Only models costing $2,400 or more perform well enough in our tests to warrant serious consideration. And that connection to your home’s electrical panel will add significantly to the cost. Since they can’t run on natural gas or propane, so you still need to keep plenty of stabilized gasoline on hand.
Home Standby Up to 20,000 watts $2,000 to $6,000 Pros: Home standby generators are permanently installed (usually next to the house) and kick on automatically during an outage to provide uninterrupted current. They can power everything in a typical home simultaneously, up to their maximum output. Standby generators can be set up to run indefinitely on natural gas or can be fueled by propane. There’s no need to connect cables, flip a switch, or start the engine.
Cons: With few exceptions, standby generators are more expensive than other types of generators. Installation can be complex, including building a concrete footing and running both gas and electrical connections. Costs can run into the thousands—and those costs are not included in the prices we list here. They can’t be installed in low-lying areas prone to flooding and can’t be moved in the event of a flood.
Damaging storms can happen anytime. On the “Consumer 101” TV show, host Jack Rico learns from Consumer Reports’ expert Paul Hope how to avoid being left in the dark during a power outage.
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