Thermapen FAQ: Common Questions Answered

In this Thermapen FAQ, Randy answers some of the most common customer questions about the Thermapen.

Where can I buy a Thermapen?

You can buy it right here online. There are only a few authorized dealers. (Watch out for counterfeit Thermapen look-a-likes!) Also, there are a few retail outlets in the U.S. and Canada that stock the Thermapen.

Why don’t more retail outlets carry Thermapens?

Most retailers want to more than double their money. The big name chains want the most. If a product costs them $4, they want to charge you $10. The Thermapen is already priced at “Trade Pricing”, meaning this is the price we sell it to commercial food service users and health departments. We offer it to the general public at the same price. Big retail chains would have to charge you much, much more and they’d still be mad that we would take your order at a lower price. The retailers that do carry the Thermapen are not making their normal mark-up, so thank them if you buy there!

Where can I buy replacement batteries for my Thermapen?

Classic Thermapen uses two coin cell batteries, CR2032, which are commonly found at WalMart, Target, and other stores. You can also order spare batteries for your Classic Thermapen from us.

Thermapen Mk4 (discontinued model) uses one 1.5 volt AAA batteries, which can be purchased anywhere batteries are sold. You can also order spare batteries for your Thermapen Mk4 from us.

Thermapen ONE uses one 1.5 volt AAA batteries, which can be purchased anywhere batteries are sold. You can also order spare batteries for your Thermapen ONE from us.

How long should my Thermapen’s battery last?

The Classic Thermapen batteries are rated for 1,500 hours of use. You can enable and disable the auto-off feature in the battery department, which will extend the life of the batteries. See the owner’s manual for more details.

The Thermapen ONE battery typically lasts 2,000 hours (without backlight)

Will my Thermapen tell me when my meat is done?

Not exactly.

Instead, your Thermapen (very quickly) will tell you the actual temperature of your food and you will decide if that means it is “done”. We can give you the USDA guidelines for food safety, but you should consult your favorite cookbooks, TV shows, and recipes for advice, not only on safe temperatures, but for recommendations for the best cooking temperatures for flavor and texture. Also, remember that individual preference is very important.

Other digital cooking thermometers are cheaper. Why pay more for a Thermapen?

In use, there’s a big difference, but don’t just take our word for it. Check out some of the reviews customers have added to the Thermapen ONE product page.

Here are a few examples:

Just when you think a Thermapen can’t be any better…
The Thermapen ONE comes along… I simply cannot believe how fast this thing is, and as much as I didn’t think it would make much difference, it absolutely does. The speed of this is what I’ve wanted for years, but didn’t think was remotely possible. ThermoWorks hit it out of the park with this one, I love it and couldn’t be happier (unless they took their MK4 technology and fit it into a the little keychain version, hint hint). 🙂

Best of Its Kind
Don’t waste your money on $20 knockoffs. Spend the extra money if you want immediate, accurate readings. – George B.

THERMAPEN ONE – THE NEW TOP DOG
I didn’t believe the Thermapen Mk4 could be improved but WOW was I wrong.. The new ONE is appreciably faster, which is important in many situations where something is heating up quickly and you want to catch it at a certain temperature before it over cooks. And anyone who has stuck their hand inside s hot BBQ to get the temperature knows how quickly their hand can overheat too unless you’re wearing a glove. With the One you’re in and out. Bravo, ThermoWorks, you’ve got a winner..

Best Thermapen ever!
Here at DUCKWORTH DISTILLERY, we have to be very accurate with temperatures when we are working with yeast. For best growth, the yeast solution needs to be warm but if it gets too hot the yeast will die.

That is why we rely on our Thermapens for fast and accurate measurements. We are super impressed with the new ONE. It is the Best Thermapen ever!

Btw, we also cook with it almost every day.

I never write reviews
I am going to make an exception because this product deserves it. Customer service said it was a game-changer and I would love it. Right on both accounts. I have been cooking/grilling for 50 years. No more guessing. No more overcooking to be safe. How about just right every time. I will be buying 3 or 4 these for Christmas gifts.

Best instant read thermometer money can buy
I have been searching for a good instant read thermometer for backyard grilling and smoking for many years now. I always thought the Thermapen was too much money to spend for a thermometer. As a result, I bought many different cheaper so called instant read thermometers and ended up spending way more than the cost for one of these. None come close to the responsiveness of the Thermapen which in my opinion is the ONLY instant read thermometer that lives up to its name. Save yourself time, frustration, and money and just buy a Thermapen. – Jonathan Y

Cheaper thermometers are limited by the technology that they use. These can be mass-produced for just a few dollars. On the other hand, the Thermapen is hand-assembled, hand-tested, and use professional thermocouple circuit design. The superior design and quality a Thermapen includes makes it worth the investment you’ll make.

Why is the Thermapen so much faster than other cooking thermometers?

The main reason it is so fast is the professional thermocouple technology we use instead of mass-produced thermistor technology. Thermocouples are recommended by the USDA for measurement of cooked meat products and thin portions.

Go here to see what a thermocouple means in performance vs. a thermistor.

We also use a reduced-diameter needle tip on the probe. Comparable professional meters cost $140 to $300 for the electronics and a similar probe! Some recent improvements were made in the sensor manufacturing process and the probe assembly in the Thermapen which make it the fastest digital thermometer on the market.

Why don’t you have a left-handed Thermapen?

Interesting question.

My wife Suzette is left-handed and she’s always thought the opposite. She prefers to use her dominant hand to wield the roasting pan, grasp the food with tongs, stir, or whatever else she’s doing in combination with the one-handed temperature measurement. Thus, in her opinion, it’s best to hold the Thermapen in her right hand while she uses her dominant hand for the other tasks. Also, the new Thermapen ONE includes an auto-rotating display, so she can easily see the display no matter which hand she holds it with.

Don’t buy that? While the Thermapen isn’t quite as ambidextrously switchable as a screwdriver or a hammer, it’s pretty close. It can easily be gripped in a number of ways. I hold my Thermapen in both my left hand and right hand depending on what I’m doing. Still, I empathize with anybody who’s left-handed and wishes the Thermapen were reversed. So, if our engineers can ever figure out a no-cost way to make a left-handed Thermapen, we’ll consider doing it.

Meanwhile, switch-hit.

–Randy