I smell gas / worried about a gas leak

If you smell gas right now: leave the property, do not operate switches or open flames, and call your gas utility or emergency services from outside. This page is not a substitute for that.

What's happening

Natural gas and propane are naturally odorless. Utilities add a distinctive smell specifically so a leak can be noticed. A slow or intermittent leak, or a leak in a room you don't spend time in, can still go unnoticed by smell alone.

Why it matters

Once the immediate situation is handled, meaning you're not smelling gas right now, ongoing detection is about catching a leak before it reaches the point where you'd smell it, not after.

What kind of solution

Two different tools cover this: a fixed, plug-in alarm you install once and leave running for ongoing, unattended protection, or a portable handheld sniffer for pinpointing a leak you already suspect near a specific fitting or appliance. They're not substitutes for each other. See the comparison below for which fits your situation.

Next step

Compare the gas leak detectors covered by this site to see the difference between a fixed alarm and a handheld leak locator, or go directly to the First Alert GCO1CN review if you already know you want a fixed, plug-in alarm.