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Carbon Monoxide Alarm Ownership Statistics: U.S., Canada and England

Survey findings on CO alarm presence, functionality, household differences, barriers to ownership, and maintenance.

November 12, 2026 8 min read astrofireplaces.com Editorial Team

Contents

Carbon monoxide alarm ownership statistics in U.S. households

Carbon monoxide (CO) alarm ownership statistics depend on how presence is measured. In the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) survey, 55% of household heads reported having a CO alarm installed. Testing identified alarms in 58% of households, including some combination smoke-and-CO devices that respondents had not recognized as CO alarms. The survey covered 1,060 households overall; testing covered 985. These are distinct measures, so the test-identified figure should not be substituted for self-reported ownership. Source: CPSC, Survey on Use and Functionality of Smoke and Carbon Monoxide Alarms in Households, §4.1.1 and Figure 4.1.1-3

A separate CPSC breakdown of respondents’ reports shows how CO alarms overlapped with smoke alarms. It lists CO alarms in 54.9% of households overall: 54.4% reported both smoke and CO alarms, while 0.5% reported CO alarms only. Smoke alarms only were reported in 44.2%, and 0.9% reported no alarms. These are weighted estimates from the survey’s 1,060 households. Source: CPSC, Figure 4.1.4-1

A 2026 UL Standards & Engagement (ULSE) online survey offers another measure: 34% of U.S. adult respondents said they did not own a CO alarm. The sample included 2,010 adults and was weighted to reflect demographic composition. Because this survey asked adults about personal ownership, its result is not directly interchangeable with the CPSC household estimates. Source: ULSE, “The Difference Between Smoke Alarms and CO Alarms – And Why It’s Important,” survey methodology and “At a glance”

Carbon monoxide alarm ownership statistics by age and region

Health Canada’s 2022 Healthy Home Environmental Health Survey reported that 47% of respondents said a CO alarm was installed in their home. The online panel included 2,187 respondents. By age, the reported installation rate was 37% among people aged 18–34, 43% among those aged 35–54, and 58% among those aged 55 or older. These are self-reports from a nonprobability online sample, not measurements of alarms in inspected dwellings. Source: Health Canada, Exhibit 2.8.2.a

Canadian respondent groupReported home installation
Total47%
Ages 18–3437%
Ages 35–5443%
Ages 55 or older58%
Atlantic Canada36%
Quebec25%
Ontario62%
Prairies51%
British Columbia43%

The regional percentages refer to respondents’ reports of installation, not the share of all homes in each province or region confirmed by inspection. Exhibit bases varied by region: 152 in Atlantic Canada, 480 in Quebec, 874 in Ontario, 417 in the Prairies, and 264 in British Columbia. Source: Health Canada, Exhibit 2.8.2.a, regional columns and base row

The same survey reported installation by 47% of general-population respondents, 49% of parents, 34% of newcomers, and 59% of seniors. These respondent categories came from a panel with oversamples and can overlap; they should not be read as mutually exclusive slices of one population. The bases for those groups were 1,502, 153, 190, and 152, respectively. Source: Health Canada, Exhibit 2.8.2.b

Carbon monoxide alarm ownership statistics in homes with solid-fuel appliances

The English Housing Survey (EHS) reports CO alarm presence in physical dwellings, including comparisons by whether a dwelling had a solid-fuel-burning appliance. In 2024, 66% of English dwellings with such an appliance had an alarm, compared with 61% of dwellings without one. The corresponding 2023 estimates were 66% and 59%. The figures describe separate annual survey estimates; they do not establish why the rates differed. Sources: English Housing Survey 2024–25, Chapter 1, “Carbon monoxide detectors”; English Housing Survey 2023–24, Chapter 1, “Carbon monoxide detectors” 2023 chapter

Among English dwellings with solid-fuel appliances, the EHS recorded these tenure comparisons:

Survey yearPrivate-rentedSocial-rentedOwner-occupied
202452%82%68%
202365%82%66%
201947%59%52%

The EHS 2024 chapter says 52% of private-rented dwellings with a solid-fuel appliance had an alarm, compared with 82% of social-rented and 68% of owner-occupied dwellings. Its 2023 chapter gives 65%, 82%, and 66%, respectively. The retrospective 2019 comparison reports 47%, 59%, and 52%. The 2019–20 EHS report separately gives 52% for owner-occupied homes with a solid-fuel appliance. These historical estimates should remain attached to their survey years. Sources: English Housing Survey 2024–25, Chapter 1; English Housing Survey 2023–24, Chapter 1; English Housing Survey: Home ownership, 2019–20, p. 37 2023 chapter 2019–20 report

The 2019–20 report also describes differences by dwelling age among owner-occupied English homes with solid-fuel appliances. A detector was present in 71% of homes built after 2002, 52% of those built before 1919, and 44% of those built from 1919 through 1944. By dwelling type, reported rates were 49% for detached houses, 50% for bungalows, 20% for high-rise purpose-built flats, and 33% for low-rise purpose-built flats. The report cautions that only a few dwellings had solid-fuel appliances, limiting comparisons across tenure; that small subgroup also matters when interpreting these breakdowns. Source: English Housing Survey: Home ownership, 2019–20, pp. 37, paragraphs 4.18–4.20 and footnote 20

Carbon monoxide alarm ownership statistics and alarm functionality

Having an alarm in a home does not establish that it works. In the weighted CPSC household estimate, 49% of households had at least 1 working CO alarm, 9% had no CO alarms tested working, and 42% had no CO alarms in the home. The report notes that unknown or untested alarms were proportionally allocated in this estimate, and that percentages may not sum to 100% because of rounding. The 49% estimate had a margin of error of ±3 percentage points. Source: CPSC, Figures 4.1.1-4 and 4.1.1-5 and notes

Among the smaller group of CPSC households with CO or combination alarms tested, 84% had at least 1 working CO alarm. This tested subgroup result has a different denominator from the estimate across all households: Figure 4.1.1-3 identifies 134 tested households with CO or combination alarms, compared with 1,060 households overall. Source: CPSC, §4.1.1 and Figure 4.1.1-3

Survey respondents’ beliefs also differed from test-confirmed functionality. Among CPSC households with CO alarms, 88% believed most or all were working, 3% believed they were not, and 9% were unsure. These are perceptions, not test results. Source: CPSC, §4.1.2 and Figure 4.3.1-3, Q24, N=543

A local East Baltimore study provides a historical comparison between reports and observation. In 603 residences surveyed from July through December 2009, participants reported CO alarms in 33% of cases, while observers found at least 1 working alarm in 28% of homes. Observed working alarms were present in 62% of owner- or mortgage-paying homes and 44% of rented homes. These results describe that local sample and period, not U.S. households generally. Source: CDC, Residential Carbon Monoxide (CO) Poisoning Risks: Correlates of Observed CO Alarm Use in Urban Households, abstract, pp. 4–5 and Table 1

Carbon monoxide alarm ownership statistics: why households lack alarms

Among CPSC households without a CO alarm, the most frequently listed reason was that an alarm did not come with the residence, selected by 33%. Another 19% said they did not think they needed one. “Other reason” and “Don’t know” were each selected by 17%. Respondents could select more than 1 reason, so the percentages are not parts of a single, exclusive breakdown. Source: CPSC, §4.3.1 and Figure 4.3.1-2, Q28, N=471

Other responses included not having replaced previous detectors (11%), landlord responsibility (10%), nuisance (2%), and an alarm that did not or does not work (2%). Within the renter subgroup without alarms, 20% believed the landlord was responsible for providing one. That renter-only percentage has a different denominator from the 10% figure among all households without alarms. Source: CPSC, §4.3.1 and Figure 4.3.1-2

ULSE’s 2026 survey asked non-owners why they lacked an alarm. Of those respondents, 24% said it was not a priority and 15% did not think CO was a risk in their home. These reported reasons come from a separate survey of U.S. adults and should not be combined with the CPSC household responses. Source: ULSE, “The Difference Between Smoke Alarms and CO Alarms – And Why It’s Important,” “At a glance” and methodology

Carbon monoxide alarm ownership statistics: alarm knowledge and maintenance

In the CPSC survey, 66% of households rated having a CO alarm extremely necessary, while 3% rated it not at all necessary. On practical knowledge, 73% of respondents said they knew how to install an alarm and 73% said they knew how to maintain one in good working order. Another 27% said they did not know how to install one, and 24% did not know how to maintain one. The corresponding “unsure” responses were 1% for installation and 3% for maintenance. Sources: CPSC, Figure 4.3.1-1, Q27; Figure 4.3.2-4, Q31, N=545

Self-reported testing frequency among CPSC households with CO alarms varied. The survey recorded 26% who never tested their alarms, 21% who tested yearly, 19% every 6 months, 13% every few years, 8% every 3 months, and 5% monthly. The report’s narrative says 6% tested at the recommended monthly or more frequent rate; 5% specifically selected monthly. These are responses about test-button use, not independently observed maintenance. Source: CPSC, §4.3.3 and Figure 4.3.3-2, Q23, N=543

Asked when CO alarms should be replaced, respondents gave varied answers: 35% selected every 2–5 years, 12% every 10 years, 11% said never unless an alarm stops working, and 6% selected every 6 months. Another 15% did not know. These figures describe respondents’ reported beliefs about replacement timing. Source: CPSC, Figure 4.3.2-5, Q26, N=543

In ULSE’s 2026 survey, 7% of respondents had a CO alarm older than 7 years and 9% did not know how old it was. The article does not specify the alarm-owner subgroup denominator for these age responses, so those percentages should be read as published rather than assigned a different base. Source: ULSE, “The Difference Between Smoke Alarms and CO Alarms – And Why It’s Important,” alarm-age findings and methodology

Sources

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