TechGearLab

If you need precise rain measurements further from your house, the Stratus Precision Gauge is your best bet. The opening is just over four inches across, a minimum benchmark for the most accurate rain gauges. It's made of sturdy plastic and is large enough to hold 11 inches of rain for even severe storms. Its double-cylinder measuring system provides excellent precision. The inner cylinder measures just one inch of rain to the nearest hundredth. After the first inch, water spills into the larger one. To measure the spillover, dump the first inch and pour the rest into the small cylinder, inch by inch. The lid serves as a funnel to help prevent spills. The mounting plate is straightforward and secure, and the cylinder slides out easily to take a measurement. This gauge is the only option we tested that works in the winter. Remove the funnel and inner tube to capture snow or hail, then melt and measure it. 
This gauge requires patience and care if you need precise measurements. It's fun, for our nerdy testers anyway, to carefully measure each drop, though. The key is pouring the water slowly so you don't overfill the funnel and inner cylinder and spill a portion of the rain. If you don't mind working for it, this sturdy, high-volume gauge will reward you with accurate and precise readings.

If you need precise rain measurements further from your house, the Stratus Precision Gauge is your best bet. The opening is just over four inches, a minimum benchmark for the most accurate rain gauge. It's made of sturdy plastic and is large enough to hold 11 inches of rain for even severe storms. Its double-cylinder measuring system provides excellent precision. The inner cylinder measures just one inch of rain to the nearest hundredth. After the first inch, water spills into the larger one. To measure the spillover, dump the first inch and pour the rest into the small cylinder, inch by inch. The lid serves as a funnel to help prevent spills. The mounting plate is straightforward and secure, and the cylinder slides out easily to take a measurement. This gauge is the only option we tested that works in the winter. Remove the funnel and inner tube to capture snow or hail, then melt and measure it. 
This gauge requires patience and care if you need precise measurements. But it's fun &mdash; for our nerdy testers anyway &mdash; to carefully measure each drop. The key is pouring the water slowly, so you don't overfill the funnel and inner cylinder and spill a portion of the rain. If you don't mind working for it, this sturdy, high-volume gauge will reward you with accurate and precise readings.

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When it comes to rain gauges, larger catchment areas make for more accurate readings. The La Crosse Wireless Rain Station has one of the largest in the test. Like all the digital rain gauges, it has an outside sensor and an indoor display. The sensor consists of a housing that protects two seesawing cups. They take turns filling with water, tipping over, and spilling it out. The sensor wirelessly sends that information to the indoor display. We like digital gauges because they empty themselves, they capture more data than manual options, and you can check them indoors. The La Crosse version tallies rain totals by the event, hour, day, week, month, and year. It reads rainfall in inches or millimeters and temperature in Celsius or Fahrenheit. This is the highest-scoring digital option, thanks to its accuracy and sturdy housing that keeps insects from meddling with the sensors. 
Setting up the display is straightforward &mdash; just dial in the time, day, month, year, and preferred units. Then decide if you want an alarm to sound when it rains and how much rain needs to fall to trigger it. You can choose in 0.1-inch increments. You also need to pair the outdoor sensor and the indoor display, which can be a finicky process. The sensor must be within 300 feet of the display, the largest range of any digital gauge in the test. The La Crosse's indoor display is not as user-friendly as we'd like. It deletes your data quickly, rolling over the moment the hour, day, week, month, or year is over. If you want to keep long-term records, you'll need discipline and a separate spreadsheet. If you want to monitor the rain without standing in it, we recommend this gauge for its security and accuracy. 

Regarding rain gauges, larger catchment areas make for more accurate readings. The La Crosse Wireless Rain Station has one of the largest in the test. Like all digital rain gauges, it has an outside sensor and an indoor display. The sensor consists of a housing that protects two seesawing cups. They take turns filling with water, tipping over, and spilling it out. The sensor wirelessly sends that information to the indoor display. We like digital gauges because they empty themselves, they capture more data than manual options, and you can check them indoors. The La Crosse version tallies rain totals by the event, hour, day, week, month, and year. It reads rainfall in inches or millimeters and temperature in Celsius or Fahrenheit. This is the highest-scoring digital option, thanks to its accuracy and sturdy housing that keeps insects from meddling with the sensors. 
Setting up the display is straightforward &mdash; just dial in the time, day, month, year, and preferred units. Then decide if you want an alarm to sound when it rains and how much rain needs to fall to trigger it. You can choose in 0.1-inch increments. You also need to pair the outdoor sensor and the indoor display, which can be a finicky process. The sensor must be within 300 feet of the display, the largest range of any digital gauge in the test. The La Crosse's indoor display is not as user-friendly as we'd like. It deletes your data quickly, rolling over the moment the hour, day, week, month, or year is over. You'll need discipline and a separate spreadsheet if you want to keep long-term records. If you want to monitor the rain without standing in it, we recommend this gauge for its security and accuracy. 

Budget Pick

The AcuRite 00899 Wireless outdoor sensor and indoor monitor affords you the luxury of checking rain totals without stepping outside. It's also self-draining. Meanwhile, the indoor monitor provides a wealth of information. Like the other digital options, it tracks rain totals for the event, day, and week. The difference is that it stores those totals longer, holding information about the last seven rain events, days, and weeks. It also gives you two tracking modes &#40;called Total A and Total B&#41; that you can control. They begin tracking totals when you turn the gauge on and only stop if you power it off or clear the mode. That means you can track by the month, season, year, or whatever interval is meaningful to you. We appreciate having the extra time to check or record rainfall. 
The gauge does have a rain alarm, but only one setting for it. It goes off for a full minute when the rain starts, which is annoying if you're asleep. Other models let you set a threshold, like 0.5 inches before the alarm sounds. This one gives you a similar feature with a separate Flood Watch Alarm. This tracks several predetermined scenarios &#40;for example, 1.4 inches of rainfall in the last 2 hours&#41; that are likely to saturate soils, making floods more likely. This seven-button monitor does take longer to figure out, and you have to keep the monitor and sensor within 100 feet of one another. But it stores more data and gives you more control over it than the other digital gauges. If you're willing to work a little in dry weather to stay indoors when it's wet, this is a good bet.

The AcuRite Wireless 00899 outdoor sensor and indoor monitor affords you the luxury of checking rain totals without stepping outside. It's also self-draining. Meanwhile, the indoor monitor provides a wealth of information. Like the other digital options, it tracks rain totals for the event, day, and week. The difference is that it stores those totals longer, holding information about the last seven rain events, days, and weeks. It also gives you two tracking modes &#40;called Total A and Total B&#41; that you can control. They begin tracking totals when you turn the gauge on and only stop if you power it off or clear the mode. That means you can track by the month, season, year, or whatever interval is meaningful to you. We appreciate having the extra time to check or record rainfall. 
The gauge does have a rain alarm, but only one setting for it. It goes off for a full minute when the rain starts, which is annoying if you're asleep. Other models let you set a threshold, like 0.5 inches before the alarm sounds. This one has a similar feature with a separate Flood Watch Alarm. This tracks several predetermined scenarios &#40;for example, 1.4 inches of rainfall in the last 2 hours&#41; that are likely to saturate soils, making floods more likely. This seven-button monitor does take longer to figure out, and you have to keep the monitor and sensor within 100 feet of one another. But it stores more data and gives you more control over it than the other digital gauges. If you're willing to work a little in dry weather to stay indoors when it's wet, this is a good bet.

It's hard to think of an easier way to set up a rain gauge. Just plant the La Crosse Easy Read's four-inch plastic spike in the ground and be done with it. While we chose to install it in the dirt, you can hang the gauge almost as easily on two screws. Placing it higher would make it easier to read without removing it, but you'll have to pick it up to dump it anyway, so we didn't mind. The water has a magnifying effect on the measurement numbers, making it even easier for our testers to read the measurements. We also like that the Easy Read marks off every tenth of an inch. 
Since this gauge is easy to place in the ground, it's more likely that you'll place it near vegetation that could shield it from some rainfall, particularly if it's windy. Combine this possibility with the reality that the semi-circle opening measures just 3.1 inches by 1.3 inches, and you're not giving the rain much room to enter. So it's not the most accurate gauge available. Still, it gives you a good idea of rain totals with minimum fuss. And we love that you can move it around your property without having to remount a bracket. The best rain gauge is one that you'll use, especially when it comes at an accessible price.

It's hard to think of an easier way to set up a rain gauge. Just plant the La Crosse Easy Read's four-inch plastic spike in the ground and be done with it. While we installed it in the dirt, you can hang the gauge almost as easily on two screws. Placing it higher would make it easier to read without removing it, but you'll have to pick it up to dump it anyway, so we didn't mind. The water magnifies the measurement numbers, making it even easier for our testers to read the measurements. We also like that the Easy Read marks off every tenth of an inch. 
Since this gauge is easy to place in the ground, it's more likely that you'll place it near vegetation that could shield it from some rainfall, particularly if it's windy. Combine this possibility with the reality that the semi-circle opening measures just 3.1 inches by 1.3 inches, and you're not giving the rain much room to enter. So it's not the most accurate gauge available. Still, it gives you a good idea of rain totals with minimum fuss. And we love that you can move it around your property without remounting a bracket. The best rain gauge is one that you'll use, especially when it comes at an accessible price.

Rain Gauge Comparison