Fluke 117 Digital Multimeter, Non-Contact AC Voltage Detection, Measures Resistance/Continuity/Frequency/Capacitance/Min Max Average, Automatic AC/DC Voltage Selection, Low Impedance Mode

The Fluke 117 is a rock-solid multimeter—accurate, reliable, and built like a tank. The non-contact voltage detection and backlit screen are super handy for quick diagnostics. Perfect for both pros and DIYers. Definitely worth the investment!

I'm a weekend electrician in my home and I do a lot of projects that involve both AC and DC electricity. I even use this to check operation of portable solar panels for camping. Fluke makes quality products and I regularly appreciate the features (like well insulated leads) that can make a real difference in my life.The product has 2 knocks. First, it's really expensive (partially because it is high quality). Second, I need to read the manual frequently to use it. Nothing seems particularly intuitive and, if I'm doing an operation for the first time in a while, I need to read the manual to make certain I use the meter correctly. In an age of cheap microprocessors, I'm wondering why Fluke can't make a version that is easier to use for people with experience working with meters but who don't do it every day.The ease of use is an issue because there are less expensive meters that have more intuitive user interfaces. The interfaces may seem similar, but they are not.Electricity needs to be respected. I usually watch refresher Youtube videos before doing even relatively simple projects that I haven't done in a while to help myself think through all of the steps for safety. Fluke could help us all into this new age.

I was a Maintenance Technician for Honeywell for 23 years and Fluke multimeters were the ONLY meters we were allowed to use when servicing and testing our extremely high accuracy multi-million dollar pieces of semiconductor test equipment. So during these years where I used a meter every day, I became very comfortable and confident in Fluke meters.Now that I am retired and my personal Beckman HD100 meter finally gave it up after an admirable lifespan, I ordered this Fluke 117. I am equally as impressed as I always have been with Fluke build quality and accuracy! Plus it is in a very sturdy rubber case. The integrated "non contact voltage detection" is great and something I know I'll use from time to time. My meter says "Made in Malaysia" which is of absolutely no issue to me. Whatever country manufactures Fluke meters builds them to Fluke specs which are quite demanding in my opinion.The only ding I'll give Fluke on this is (like many others have mentioned in their reviews) is the quality of the leads included with this meter. Come on Fluke, consider including better quality leads that match the high quality of this meter! But as I have a bunch of other better leads accumulated through the years, this isn't as big of a deal to me as it might be for some.Overall, going to give the Fluke 117 5 stars! Purchase this meter with confidence!

I purchased this for my husband as he needed one to perform his job. He’s very satisfied with it, said it does everything that he needed it for. The quality of it is very good. Definitely a good value for what we got

Great multimeter, easy to use, good size, and rugged. The wireless voltage detection is awesome and quite sensitive

High end meter As advertised

Fluke has a reputation for being the best of the best, and I won't argue with that. I've been using this meter for going on two years now and have never had a single issue with it. I haven't even had to change the battery yet. And so I fully expect that this meter will serve me well for many, many years. Until recently, in fact, I thought there was no point in even writing a review: It's a Fluke, and everyone knows you can't go wrong with Fluke. But as time passes and I gain more experience with this meter and more exposure to the broader market, I find that I do have more thoughts about this product than I thought I would.First and foremost, while I don't disagree with labeling this an "electrician's multimeter," I do think it can be a little misleading or confusing and requires further explanation. I am not an electrician, but my impression is that real electricians tend to reach for something more like the Fluke T6-600 (or the T5-600, which is probably a better value for the money) as their daily go-to device. It's more nimble for moving around with and shoving in your pocket or tool bag. That product is technically marketed as a "tester" and not a "multimeter", so it wasn't even on my radar when I was meter shopping. I suppose the difference in labeling is to say that it's not the same precision instrument that the "real" multimeters are. You're only going to be measuring voltage in 1-volt increments, for example, and it has a relatively limited set of capabilities that cover just the essentials for an electrician. But that tester is less expensive and I want to note here that it includes one capability not found on the 117: a set of sensing jaws that can measure current up to 200 amps (100 amps on the T5) without breaking the circuit. The 117 is disappointing by comparison when it comes to current measurement. Sure, if you can rig it up so the current flows through the device (which you're not likely to want to do while troubleshooting household circuits), then you can measure up to the basic 10 amps. But the meter doesn't have a milliamp range, which means not only that you can’t make really fine current measurements (which I can’t say I’ve ever needed to do) but also that you can't buy the basic i400 current clamp if you want to add a T5/T6-like no-touch high-current sensing capability. You would have to get the much more expensive i410 if you're trying to add that capability -- at which point you're probably going to seriously consider just buying a separate meter that has a built-in clamp. So the complete inability to provide even a halfway economical option for a current clamp is fairly frustrating for an “electrician’s meter” and I feel the need to deduct one star. But for any other function, the 117 is a far superior device to the T5 or T6. The 117 will give you more precise readings over a larger range for the things that both meters can measure, and adds capabilities like capacitance (great for troubleshooting a heat pump or other motor with a run capacitor) and low-impedance voltage measurement, which has actually proven a lot more useful than I'd expected (although, to be fair, while the T5 and T6 don’t offer the ability to switch between two different input impedances, for electrical work they do strike a pretty good balance of low-but-not-too-low on the one input impedance that they do give you). It's just a little frustrating when you compare to something like the Klein CL800, which has a current sensing clamp and a temperature probe. Klein admittedly isn’t quite as highly regarded in the multimeter game as Fluke, and if it came down to it I’m sure the Fluke is a safer and more reliable instrument, but Klein is a respected brand. And the CL800 (or the cheaper CL700, if you’re not concerned with DC current) strikes me as a fuller “electrician’s meter” in that you’re not terribly likely to need to buy a second meter after it to round out the set with some missing capability (although it does still lack microamp and milliamp ranges). The Ames CM200A (which is not True RMS and has an AC-only amp fork but does provide in-line DC microamp measurement) also merits honorable mention here as a budget candidate for a person’s sole electrical/HVAC meter, but of course it’s not in the same class of products as these other meters that cost three times as much.In all, I think the 117 did turn out to be the best Fluke I could have gotten for my varied purposes as a homeowner — testing everything from a AA battery to a household receptacle to a heat pump run capacitor, and who knows what will come next. I do have two other cheapie meters in my arsenal, which I use for milliamps, microamps, and a current clamp. So I don’t want to give you the impression that this Fluke does everything for me. But I think it’s a pretty good compromise. Display contrast is okay but not brilliant. The probes are kind of cheap and tangle easily, but most people who really care probably have their preferred probes that they’d buy separately anyway. If you’re looking for something on a budget, I’ve been pretty satisfied with Kaiweets probes.If you're just starting out in the electrical trade, I'd urge you to take a good look at the T5-600 or T6-600 if you don’t already have something like that. But if you're looking for a more high-precision instrument or something more general-purpose that happens to also be suitable for use on mains electricity then the 117 is a great meter. Now, if your needs are more modest you might take a look at the Fluke 101. Adam Savage made a video gushing over that device, and if you just need to make basic voltage, resistance, and capacitance measurements (no current measurement capability) then that looks like a great way to get your hands on a Fluke without breaking the bank. And from a safety standpoint I'd feel a lot better about sticking that meter in a 120V mains socket than I would about some competitor's $50 meter with more features. If you’re willing to spend $100 or more, though, take a look at the Klein CL700 and CL800, which are feature-packed enough to go a long way toward solving the buying-two-meters problem that plagues the Fluke lineup. The Greenlee DM-510a (which lacks an amp clamp) would also be a fairly direct competitor to this Fluke and is a bit broader in its capabilities. Within the Fluke lineup, if you need a clamp meter instead of or in addition to the 117, the Fluke 323 might merit a look (or the 324 if you need one that measures capacitance too), but it doesn't have a low-impedance voltage mode, which again I'm a big fan of. (Fluke does sell the SV225 stray voltage eliminator as plug-in accessory for meters that don’t have LoZ built in, but it’s pretty pricey.) LoZ is really useful when troubleshooting to be able to determine whether a voltage is a "ghost voltage" or a real one. And I find that it works pretty well as a makeshift GFCI tester, although the current is probably a little lower than a proper GFCI tester (I estimate about 3.6 kOhm DC resistance). If you end up buying a multimeter that doesn’t have a LoZ function, you might consider supplementing it with something like a Klein ET60 tester, which is inherently low-impedance.I also have to mention the Brymen BM-235, Brymen BM-257, and Greenlee DM-510A (which is evidently a rebadged BM-257 intended for sale in the United States, and so perhaps likely to have a better warranty experience for US customers). These are not really electrician’s multimeters so much as they are general purpose, but they look like they do one heck of a job of being general purpose. I haven’t got my hands on any of these, but they appear at first glance to do everything that this Fluke 117 does and then some. You still don’t get an amp clamp, which is largely why I have to still tip my hat to the Klein CL800 as the best solution I can find for a full featured electrician’s meter, but you get temperature, microamps, milliamps, and a Cat IV 300V rating. And if you can tear yourself away from the Fluke name that (quite rightly) gives people a warm fuzzy feeling that their meter will be accurate and last forever, it’s pretty cool to see all that in one meter. And Brymen seems to be known for making very good quality meters.Whatever meter you decide on, be careful. Don’t attempt anything unless you’re confident you understand the risks. Turn off the power to anything you’re working on if at all possible, and call an electrician if you can’t do it safely yourself. If you’re working on an appliance with a big capacitor (which usually looks like a large cylinder), assume that component is holding enough charge to shock you even if the equipment isn’t plugged in.