Emergency Radios

Emergency radios are built to receive NOAA weather alerts, and some models can also transmit on GMRS or ham frequencies. Hand-crank or solar charging matters most here, since the whole point is working when the power grid doesn't.

Our pick

Midland ER310 Emergency Crank Weather Radio

Shoppers who want a well-reviewed, multi-power-source emergency radio

Watch for: Hand-crank radios generally provide only a few minutes of runtime per minute of cranking — not a substitute for a charged battery

$75–$85

What to look for

Power redundancy: hand-crank, solar, and battery options each fail differently — a radio offering more than one is more resilient.
NOAA alert channels: confirm the radio actually receives your region's weather alert frequency, not just a generic AM/FM band.
Durability: an emergency radio should be rated for the conditions it might actually be used in, like drops or water exposure.

Next up

GMRSGeneral Mobile Radio Service basics.Satellite MessengersOff-grid satellite communication devices.Vehicle CommunicationsIn-vehicle radio setups.