# Broadband RF power-density meter

> The general-purpose instrument for Wi-Fi, cellular, 5G, smart meters and cordless phones: reports total power density across a wide band in µW/m² or mW/m², with peak-hold and average modes.

- Canonical URL: https://emfbase.com/meters/broadband-rf-meter
- Collection: Instruments
- Record id: `meters:broadband-rf-meter`
- Status: verified
- Last verified: 2026-08-12
- JSON: https://emfbase.com/api/meters/broadband-rf-meter
- Also known as: RF meter, microwave meter, high frequency meter

## Key values

- **Band covered:** roughly 200 MHz – 8 GHz for consumer units
- **Quantities measured:** power density, electric field strength
- **Axes:** single
- **Typical price:** $150–$500

## Detects

- Cellular downlink and uplink in the covered bands
- Wi-Fi 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz
- Smart-meter and other 900 MHz ISM bursts
- DECT cordless phone beacons

## Cannot detect

- Power-frequency magnetic and electric fields — a different instrument entirely
- Signals below the meter's lower frequency limit, which excludes FM broadcast on most consumer units
- 6 GHz Wi-Fi 6E/7 and mmWave 5G on units that stop at 6 GHz or 8 GHz
- Which service a reading came from — broadband meters give a total, not a spectrum

## What to insist on

- Peak-hold as well as average mode: pulsed sources read many times higher on peak
- Stated frequency range that actually covers your bands of interest, including 6 GHz if you have Wi-Fi 6E or 7
- Readout in µW/m² or mW/m² rather than an unlabelled 0–100 scale or a colour LED
- An external or clearly specified antenna, isotropic or with a documented pattern
- A published calibration statement

## Example models in this class

- Safe and Sound Pro II
- Cornet ED88TPlus5
- Acoustimeter AM-11
- Gigahertz Solutions HFE59B
- Latnex AF-5000

## About the model list

Named models illustrate the class and are not endorsements or verified specifications. Confirm the current frequency range and calibration statement with the manufacturer before purchase.

## Related records

- [RF room survey](https://emfbase.com/protocols/rf-room-survey): How to measure radiofrequency exposure in a room so the result is reproducible: peak and average, at body positions, with the dominant direction identified.
- [Power density](https://emfbase.com/quantities/power-density): Radiofrequency energy flow per unit area — µW/m² on consumer RF meters, mW/cm² in FCC rules, W/m² in ICNIRP guidelines. 1 mW/cm² = 10 W/m² = 10,000,000 µW/m².

## Sources

- `sbm-2024` Institut für Baubiologie + Nachhaltigkeit (IBN) (2024). *Building Biology Evaluation Guidelines for Sleeping Areas (SBM-2024)*. https://buildingbiology.com/site/downloads/SBM-2024_EVALUATION_GUIDELINES_EN.pdf — ngo, link checked 2026-08-12
- `fcc-1310` U.S. Government Publishing Office (eCFR). *47 CFR § 1.1310 — Radiofrequency radiation exposure limits*. https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-47/section-1.1310 — regulation, link checked 2026-08-12

Data licence: CC BY 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/). Dataset version 2026.08.1. Retrieved from EMFBase, https://emfbase.com.

This record is reference data, not medical or legal advice. Regulatory limits, scientific guidelines and precautionary values are labelled separately and answer different questions.