Club Benefits
So, you're looking for the best surge protector to keep your devices and equipment safe from any nasty power surges or spikes, and that means you haven't already popped over to your closest convenience store to grab whatever power strip you can find on the shelves. Good call, as you'll find plenty more here with huge benefits.
From extra USB ports for charging to rotating outlets, and even noise filtering to keep that annoying hum of electromagnetic sound to a minimum, our team of experts and I have tracked down the surge protectors to fit your needs — whether it be for your phone or a whole HiFi setup!
The best surge protectors you can buy today
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Best surge protector for most
Anker is an electronics powerhouse, and this surge protector is perfect for a workspace, entertainment center, or gaming setup that requires a hell of a lot of plugs. It has 15 outlets in total, three of which are for USB-A and USB-C. It has a flat plug for easy installation behind your furniture, and the main body is slim enough to tuck into just about any cable management tray you may have on or near your desk.
This power strip is the largest and most versatile model I've tested, and the outlets on the 351 face in different directions per row to prevent your MacBook charger from colonizing all of your outlets. Their even spacing may make it difficult to put an especially bulky plug anywhere, but there are also enough outlets available that you can likely afford to block one or two of them.
Best budget surge protector
If you're looking for a travel-friendly surge protector that you don't have to fret about losing or damaging, you can score yourself this One Beat model that's a mere $12 on Amazon. It may not be as capacious or have as much protection as other power strips I'm recommending in this roundup, but it's impressive what you're getting for the price.
With this strip, you get six standard outlets, two USB-A ports, and a USB-C port. These outlets are spaced on four sides of the main body, which minimizes crowing. It can get pretty bulky when you have large plugs coming out of every side, but you can at least opt for an extra-slim plug on the surge protector itself to help the cord slip into tight spaces.
Best surge protector with USB
The Monoprice 12 Outlet Power Surge Protector with 2 Built-in USB charger Ports is a solid piece of kit. The transparent rails on the side that light up to indicate both grounding and surge protection look slick. And of all the units we tested, it was the sturdiest of the bunch, with a flat and wide base.
In terms of design, there’s plenty of room to plug into oddly-shaped power pricks. And the cord feels solid.
The Monoprice 12 also has lights that indicate if surge protection is working, and if protection fails following a major surge, the light will shut off. The device will auto-shut off to prevent damage to electronics. It’s also UL Listed.
Be warned: it does come with a subpar warranty and no equipment protection. The one-year warranty, while not bad, falls below the competition. At $28, though, it's not certainly worth checking out.
Best surge protector for phones
The CyberPower Desktop Power Charger is meant for a desk, to plug in accessories or charge phones. Not only that, it includes a 10W Qi wireless charger.
The CyberPower Desktop Power Charger is built like a brick, and that’s a good thing. Even with its smaller size, it won’t slide around. It really is ideal for the kitchen counter, where kids may need to plug in laptops to do schoolwork or charge devices.
The power cord is braided and robust, meaning it should deal with a fair amount of abuse. While not a typical surge protector, we feel it sits within a specific niche and is worth considering.
Best surge protector for audio equipment
If you're building a HiFi stack or a home theater, the ECHOGEAR ShockBlocker 8 is the surge protector you want. Not only is it capable of handling large electrical events, but its five-year, $25,000 connected equipment warranty ensures your equipment is always protected, no matter what happens.
In addition to its top-tier protection, the ShockBlocker 8 comes with 58 dB of EMI/RFI noise filtration that reduces the amount of electromagnetic noise in your power supply. For audiophiles, this is essential.
Not only is it good for a relatively sizable electrical event, but the green indicator lights on its edge will stop glowing once it burns through that protection. A very handy perk to have, especially for those who need to be reminded to replace their surge protectors. And all for $29? Now that's well worth investing in.
Best compact surge protector
This model from Tessan is a bit of an oddball, but it could come in handy when you don't want to lug around an enormous brick of plastic when you're on the go. This surge protector is ideal for travel, camping out at a cafe, or anywhere else where you're not trying to power an entire entertainment center but do need access to your devices.
Compared to larger surge protectors, this four-outlet surge protector falls short — it doesn’t have nearly as high a Joule rating at only 900, nor does it offer the same equipment protection. But it does have significantly more surge protection than barebones power strips, which is what you're much more likely to find for this kind of price at your local department store.
Still, it sits cleanly on a wall and can work well next to a nightstand to plug in a lamp and some phone chargers. For travel and small spaces, this puppy can really come in handy. Just use it mostly for smaller devices if you don't want to overload it.
How to pick the best surge protector for you
What to look for when buying a surge protector
The way most surge protectors work is by using Metal Oxide Varistors (MOVs), which reroute energy back to the electrical source. Think of it as an automated levee or dam that can push a massive surge of water back towards a river to help keep your home safe.
While MOVs are an efficient and cost-effective way for manufacturers to design surge protectors, they're not an absolute fail-safe. Every time there's a major surge, the MOVs degrade and are sacrificed to ensure your electronics stay protected. That means surge protectors don't last forever, and it's important to look at a few specs to forecast a surge protector's longevity:
Kill Switches: Most quality surge protectors and power strips have a built-in kill switch, which will make the surge protector inoperable if it can’t provide protection any longer. Others might continue to work without protection. All of the units on our list have the added security of turning off or notifying the user once components inside have degraded to a point of inadequate protection.
Protection Ratings: You’ll also notice that the surge protectors we recommend have high joule protection ratings. A joule is a measure of energy. The average lightning strike releases about one billion joules of energy in less than a second! The higher the joule rating, the more protection it offers. A higher joule rating also means a surge protector can absorb more energy before it fails. Generally, for most electronics and video game consoles, 2,000 joules and above will be more than adequate in keeping your devices safe.
