The best surge protectors may cost more than your standard power strip, but you’ll be glad you spent the extra money when your house is hit with a power surge or a spike.
Sure, you can always pop by your nearest convenience store and grab whatever power strip is on the shelf there, but that model likely lacks some of the standout features that make our top picks especially practical. The surge protectors we've tested have features like USB ports, extra-slim plugs, rotating outlets, and more.
We picked our top choice, the Anker 351, thanks to its incredible size, the diversity of its outlets, and its relatively low cost. If you're looking for something cheaper and perhaps a bit more compact, you can also check out our budget pick, the One Beat surge protector.
These are the best surge protectors you can get right now based on our hours of extensive testing and years of real-world usage.
The best surge protectors you can buy today
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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.
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.
Anker is a brand more often found at online retailers like Amazon than at Best Buy. But the company has made a name for itself with its clean white aesthetic, value and quality. The Anker PowerPort Strip 12 is no exception.
As of publishing, the 6-foot version can be found for between $26-27. That undercuts the competition by around $10. Not only that, it has the surge energy rating and equipment protection to match. Although, the warranty on the surge protector itself only lasts for 18 months. This surge protector is also UL listed. As for protection, it has an overload protection feature that will flip the surge protector off during a major surge.
On Walmart's website, this product has an average rating of 4.3 out of 5. "It is so convenient to plug in so many cords in one location. I am very pleased that I learned about the Anker Strip Surge Protector," said one reviewer.
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.
This product has been favorably rated on Home Depot's website based on 34 reviews. One reviewer who rated the surge protector a 4 out of 5 said: "Liked it so much, we bought 3."
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 on 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 to prevent damage to electronics. It’s also UL Listed.
The reason why the Monoprice 12 doesn’t rank higher on our list is due to subpar warranty and no equipment protection. The one-year warranty, while not bad, falls below the competition. This could be excused if the Monoprice 12 was a value leader. Unfortunately, as of publishing, it sells for around $28, which is more than the Anker PowerPort Strip 12.
This power strip has an average rating of 4.7 out of 5 stars on Walmart's website. One of the 22 reviewers said: "Really useful. Works great. USB outlets are handy - and I don't get any noise from the USB ports when using with audio devices which I have gotten with other USB chargers."
The Belkin 3-outlet Mini Surge Protector with USB Ports is a bit of an oddball but could come in handy for specific situations. Acting more like a wall tap, the 3-Outlet essentially gives buyers additional ports on their walls. It also swivels, meaning it can sit both horizontally and vertically.
Compared to larger surge protectors, the 3-Outlet falls short. It doesn’t have nearly as high a Joule rating at only 918, nor does it offer the same amount of equipment protection. But it does have more surge protection than other barebones power strips.
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, the 3-Outlet Mini Surge Protector with USB ports can come in handy. Just use it mostly for smaller devices.
This Belkin surge protector has an average rating of 4.5 out of 5 stars on B&H Photo. The surge protector "allows charging of multiple items in 3rd world hotel rooms with only one outlet! Protects from primitive grids, with huge power fluctuations," said one reviewer.
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 longitude:
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.
