Airthings View Plus vs Wave Plus: differences that matter

For radon itself, Airthings lists the same design and figures for both. Air reaches a passive diffusion chamber, and the radon in it is measured by alpha spectrometry. Both state a measurement range of 0 to 500 pCi/L, a sensor sampling interval of 5 minutes, and an accuracy of about 10% after 7 days and about 5% after 2 months. Both also measure carbon dioxide over a range of 400 to 5,000 ppm, and both use a red, yellow and green light to show the air quality at a glance.

The View Plus has a 2.9-inch ePaper screen, so the numbers are on the device, along with a red, yellow and green glow indicator. Airthings lists its radon thresholds for that indicator as 4 pCi/L and above, and from 2.7 to under 4 pCi/L. It adds a particulate matter sensor for PM2.5, which makes seven sensors in all. It connects over 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi, Airthings SmartLink and Bluetooth Low Energy, and with Wi-Fi and its USB-C cable connected, its hub functionality is enabled.

The Wave Plus has no screen. Its red, yellow and green glow ring gives the level at a glance, and the figures are in the free app for iOS and Android and on a web dashboard. Airthings describes it as a smart monitor with six sensors: radon, carbon dioxide, TVOC, temperature, humidity and air pressure. It connects over Bluetooth or through an Airthings SmartLink hub, and it supports mounting on a wall or a ceiling, with a mounting screw in the box.

The View Plus runs on 6 AA batteries or a USB-C cable, and runs from its batteries if the cable is removed. Airthings gives a battery life of up to 2 years, depending on the sensor interval and the Wi-Fi router. The Wave Plus runs on 2 AA batteries, with a stated battery life of 16 months on Bluetooth and 18 months through a SmartLink hub, about a year and a half either way.

C-NRPP's 2024/25 consumer monitor list approves a model it names only as the "Airthings View", which our product pages apply to both View models, as the accuracy results explainer sets out. Its 2023 report listed the View Plus by name as passing. The Wave Plus was not included in the 2024/25 evaluation, which is a fact about which devices took part, not a failed test, and C-NRPP's 2023 report listed it as passing.

Both were also run in a 2024 field study beside a calibrated reference instrument at a natural radiation laboratory in Salamanca, Spain, between 1 July and 23 August 2023. Over that period the View Plus's average differed from the reference by 7.7% and the Wave Plus's by 11.0%; the View Plus lost 1.6% of its records and the Wave Plus 6.1%. In the study's test of how quickly each monitor followed a rise in radon, the View Plus, View Radon and Wave Plus reached the 10% level but not the 50% and 90% levels, so a sudden change shows on these monitors later than on some others.

Neither comes out ahead. Each list below has four points, drawn from the features Airthings states, so the choice rests on how you will use it.

Both models, with their full specifications and evidence, are on their own pages: Airthings View Plus and Airthings Wave Plus. Every monitor we cover is on radon detectors and monitors.

1. 1

   Pick the floor

   The lowest lived-in level of the home, in a room used regularly, such as a living room, playroom, den or bedroom, not a kitchen or bathroom.

2. 2

   Pick a room people use

   A room occupied for at least 4 hours each day.

3. 3

   Set the height

   At least 20 inches above the floor and away from drafts, high heat, high humidity and exterior walls.

4. 4

   Give it time

   Test for at least 3 months, preferably in the heating season, and decide on the long-term average.

More on placement is at where to place a radon test, and on reading the result at continuous radon monitors.