Last updated on February 28th, 2024.
When you’re traveling around the world, the last thing you want to worry about is your electronics blowing up from an electrical surge.
At home this would be a frustrating inconvenience… but while traveling internationally this has the potential to be devastating.
An excellent travel surge protector has a high joule rating, plenty of international adapters, and multiple sockets.
On the other hand, a faulty travel surge protector is a dangerous and expensive waste of money. It doesn’t make much sense to buy a surge protector that doesn’t actually protect your electronics, and it can hard to find a new one when you’re in a foreign country.
So to help you separate the good from the defective – we reviewed the Best International Travel Surge Protectors of 2025.
Buy with the confidence that you’re buying one of the top international travel surge protectors on the market.
Let’s dive into the reviews.
Top 7 Best International Travel Surge Protectors
Preview | Product | Key Features | |
---|---|---|---|
Best Overall ![]() | GR-8 Power Compact & Slim Travel Charging Station - International Power Adapter - Surge Protector... |
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Premium Choice ![]() | OREI World Travel Plug Adapter M8 Max, 3 USB + Pd 18W USB-C Input - 2 USA Outlets - Attachments... |
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Excellent Value ![]() | Accell Power Travel Surge Protector - 3 Outlets, 2 USB Charging Ports (2.1A Output), Folding Plug... |
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![]() | Travel Adapter, Allocacoc PowerCube Rewirable USB, 4 sockets and 2 USB Ports (TypeB sockets USB,... |
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![]() | Tripp Lite 3 Outlet Portable Surge Protector Power Strip, Direct Plug In, 2 USB, $5,000 Insurance... |
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![]() | Belkin Wall Mount Surge Protector - 3 AC Multi Outlets & 2 USB Charger Ports - Heavy Duty Flat... |
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What to Look For in a Travel Surge Protector
When you’re on the move, a reliable surge protector is a must-have to safeguard your electronics. Let’s dive into the essential features you should consider to find the perfect one for your travels.
Number of Sockets
Running out of power sockets can be a real hassle, especially with surge protectors, where every outlet counts. It’s crucial to plan and determine how many sockets you’ll need to avoid any unpleasant surprises.
You could go with a multi-plug extension lead, but that’s going to cost more and take up more area, which isn’t best. So make sure you map out the range of sockets required prior to you buy your travel protector.
Safety Rating
Navigating through various safety standards can be daunting. For travel surge protectors, focusing on the UL (Underwriters Laboratories) standard ensures you’re getting a device that meets rigorous safety criteria.
UL is among a number of companies approved to perform safety screening by the U.S. federal company Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). OSHA has a list of approved screening laboratories, which are recognized as Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratories.
Even within UL though, there are a lot of safety requirements that might use. For correct travel surge protection, you’re primarily want to be looking at the UL 1449 security requirement.
UL 1449 is the Underwriters Laboratories Safety Standard for Surge Protective Devices (SPD)– i.e. best for travel surge protection.
So ensure your international travel surge protector validates to UL 1449.
EMI/RFI Noise Filtering
EMI = Electromagnetic Interference, while RFI = Radio Frequency Interference. Although these terms are utilized interchangeably, they’re technically not the same thing. For the functions of travel surge protection though, we can treat them alike.
Lots of filters– e.g. low pass filters, high pass filters, or band pass filters– just enable certain kinds of frequencies through, suggesting a set range of EMI/RFI emissions will be transmitted to the gadget being protected.
This is because particular EMI/RFI emissions will not interfere with the performance frequencies of various electric and electronic devices.
So the goal of EMI/RFI is noise filtering is to get rid of electro-magnetic and radio frequency interference that will disrupt the international travel surge protection.
So search for international travel surge protectors that have EMI/RFI emissions.
Clamping Voltage
Clamping voltage refers to the maximum amount of voltage that can pass a surge protector prior to it restricts additional voltage from passing to the gadget it is trying to safeguard.
For instance, an international travel surge protector may restrict a 6,000 V surge so that only 600V is ‘noticeable’ to the load. Thus here the clamping voltage for this travel surge protector is 600V.
An overly high clamping voltage means the surge protector could let through more voltage than your devices can handle, risking damage. It’s vital to choose a protector with a suitable clamping voltage for your gear.
Check the optimum rated voltage of your travel prior to buying a surge protector, so make sure that the clamping voltage of your international travel surge protection device is LOWER than the maximum operating voltage of your travel.
In general though, the clamping voltage should be LESS than 700V for a travel surge protector.
Joule Rating
The joule rating refers to how much energy your international travel surge protector can soak up. A higher joule rating equals better protection.
So how many joules of surge protection do you need? The response depends upon what you’re safeguarding. Are you protecting a PC, travel, or even a whole home? Your response will inform you what kind of joule rating you’re trying to find.
Here are some rough joule rating standards:
- A system with up to 1000 joules of surge protection suffices for little electronics.
- A surge protector with 1000 to 2000 joules will offer adequate protection for office devices and power tools.
- Consider the highest joule rating (2000+) for expensive video gaming consoles, home theater systems, and any computer that saves crucial information. Anything that is really pricey or irreplaceable.
So for your travel surge protector, a joule rating less than 1000 will suffice for small electronics. If you’re got a really pricey laptop or gaming PC to protect, consider 1000 to 2000 joules instead.
Diagnostic LEDs
It would be best if you had a method to confirm that your international travel surge protector is working– and that’s what diagnostic LEDs are for.
Look for international travel surge protection that includes diagnostic LED lights that verify power, protection and line fault status at a look.
Warranty
A comprehensive warranty is not just peace of mind but also an indication of the manufacturer’s confidence in their product. Opt for a surge protector backed by a substantial warranty for added security.
Not just for the apparent reason that if something goes wrong, you’ll have the ability to make a claim, but for the signal that a long warranty suggests about the quality of the travel surge protector (or rather, the confidence the provider has for the travel surge protector).
If suppliers provided generously long guarantees for international travel surge protectors that folded after 2 weeks, they would not be around for long.
So you want to long for longer warranties and high insurance payments on your travel surge protector (from companies that have actually been around for more than 5 years).