I bought a $25 Craftsman from Kmart almost 9 years ago and it's still going strong. I was surprised it worked so well.
Hi Matt,
How'd you get my meter?
That's amazing, i have the very same make and model. Got mine directly from Sears in Watchung, NJ. See attachment.
I must have about 20 meters. Of them i used that Craftsman one the most because it is small and easy to grab for a quick test. It also reads up to a count of 3999 rather than the usual 1999 which helps get better resolution readings. It also has a 'relative' mode which helps when you want to read the difference between one reading and the next several rather than an absolute measurement.
The other meters range in value from about 5 dollars (USD) up to about 350 dollars. The more expensive meter gives more digits in the measurement like 59999 instead of just the usual 1299. I also have a Radio Shack model i got a long time ago that has various test functions like capacitance and transistor and diode.
After testing many meters not only my own, i have to recommend NOT getting a very cheap one like 5 dollars. I would say at least 10 dollars prefer 20 dollars or more. 40 dollars will get a pretty nice meter. There are options too to think about.
Options include backlight, diode test, transistor test, cap test, frequency measurement, duty cycle, relative mode, AC, DC, RMS, LCD or LED. So it partly depends on what you think you might be measuring, and if you have to use it in low level lighting with no flashlight available. They almost all do resistance too.
Another thing to think about is the resolution. This is sort of important if you plan on reading low level signals. Many meters have 0.1 millivolt resolution on the lowest scale, but some dont. Some only go down to 1 millivolt. That's not to say that they are bad though, i have a 20 dollar unit that works very well for more normal voltages like 5v and 12v, but if i need low level measurement like for a current shunt, i have to use a different meter. It is pocket size too so it fits in the pocket.
So you might think about this for a while and look around, then decide what you really want. You dont want a really cheap meter that could be off either. The one i got from Harbor Freight for 5 bucks is not very good even though it has a back light. The meter is subject to interference from nearby EMR sources like the car ignition.