Fluke 114 vs Fluke 117 for Residential Electricians

Specs side by side

Specs checked against manufacturer documentation and official Amazon listings. Fluke 117 is hands-on tested by OhmSavvy; the Fluke 114 assessment is desk research. How we research.

Key differences

• →Both have AutoVolt with a low-impedance input, so the ghost-voltage check on a shared cable run is the same on either meter.
• →Only the 117 has VoltAlert, a non-contact sensor in its top edge that lights and beeps near a live AC conductor.
• →Only the 117 measures current, on 6.000 A and 10.00 A AC and DC ranges through a fused A jack; the 114 has two jacks.
• →Only the 117 lists capacitance, frequency and a diode test.
• →Voltage and resistance accuracy, display, case, battery, CAT III 600V rating and 3-year warranty are the same.

The residential electrician's short answer

The Fluke 117 is one of the meters the OhmSavvy team has bought and tested, and it carries our Hands-on Tested badge; the 114 has not been through that, so its details come from Fluke's spec tab and the official Amazon listing. Our Fluke 117 review covers the larger meter in depth.

Fluke 114 vs 117 spec by spec

The 114 is the 117 with the load-side functions removed. Fluke kept every voltage, resistance and continuity line identical and dropped the A jack, capacitance, frequency, diode test and the VoltAlert sensor.

The wattages in the second chart are examples, not nameplate data; read the label on the actual appliance. The arithmetic shows where the 117's in-series current input stops being useful: a 1,200 W load sits right at its 10.00 A ceiling, and a 1,500 W heater needs the 20 A allowance, which Fluke limits to 30 seconds.

Checking a receptacle with either meter

The bread-and-butter residential check is the same on both: three probe pairs at the receptacle. On a correctly wired 120 V circuit you expect roughly 120 V hot to neutral, roughly 120 V hot to ground and close to zero neutral to ground, rising by a few volts when the circuit is loaded. Utility voltage normally lands within about 5% of nominal, so 114 to 126 V is a typical healthy range.

One caution applies to AutoVolt on both meters. A low-impedance input draws far more current than a normal volts position, and Fluke's documentation for its 113 LoZ meter warns that phase-to-earth LoZ readings can trip a GFCI or RCD. The same principle applies here, so on a GFCI-protected receptacle make the hot-to-ground check on the normal V AC position. For receptacles that refuse to reset, see our guide to testing a GFCI outlet that won't reset.

Ghost voltage in houses: a draw

Residential wiring produces phantom readings constantly. A three-way traveler, a switch leg left disconnected, or an abandoned circuit in the same cable as a live one all couple voltage through the insulation. A 10 MΩ volts input shows 30, 50 or more volts on a conductor that can't light a lamp. Both the 114 and 117 handle this the same way: switch to AUTO-V LoZ, and a coupled phantom collapses while a real feed holds. Our explainer on voltage on a disconnected circuit covers why.

1. 01

   Odd reading on V AC

   e.g. 40 V on a switch leg

   →

2. 02

   Switch to AUTO-V LoZ

   Same on 114 and 117

   →

3. 03

   Reading collapses

   Coupled phantom, not a feed

   →

4. 04

   Reading holds

   Real backfeed: find the source

This is why the 114 is still a serious electrician's meter rather than a stripped-down one. On a remodel where old and new cable share a box, the LoZ check is the one you reach for most, and you get it on either meter.

VoltAlert on service calls

The 117's VoltAlert sensor is in the top edge of the meter. Hold it near a cord, a receptacle face or a bundle of conductors in an open box and it lights a red LED and beeps when it senses AC. Fluke's manual gives two settings: Lo for flush receptacles, power strips and cords, and Hi for recessed sockets and bare wire down to 24 V. On a service call that means you can find which of four cables in a crowded box is still hot before the leads come out.

The 114 has no sensor, so a 114 user carries a separate non-contact pen, which most residential electricians already own. If yours lives in your shirt pocket anyway, VoltAlert is a convenience, not a reason to spend more. If you would rather carry one tool, it is a real gain.

Residential tasks: which meter does what

The 114 covers the first five rows, the work that fills an install day. The 117 covers all ten, and the bottom five are what a service electrician meets on call-backs: a disposal that hums, a fan that runs slow on a weak capacitor, a homeowner's standby generator. For long runs, our guide to continuity on a long electrical wire works with either meter.

Which should you buy?

If you are weighing the 114 against the general-purpose model instead, our Fluke 114 vs Fluke 115 page sets out that trade, and Fluke 115 vs Fluke 117 shows what LoZ and VoltAlert add to the 115. Need CAT IV for service entrances? Compare Fluke 117 vs Fluke 87V, or browse the best multimeter for electricians guide.

Notes on Fluke's published specs

Frequently asked questions