Objective This study aims to compare and evaluate theperformance and applicability of two ammonia $\left({\mathrm{{NH}}}_{3}\right)$ detection methods in the field and laboratory. Methods The C16 portable ${\mathrm{{NH}}}_{3}$ gas detectorand GBZ/T 160.29-2004 ammonia Nessler’s reagent spectrophotometricmethod were used to perform 10 repeated measurements of 5 differentconcentrations $\left({{9.3}\sim {148.8}\mathrm{{mg}}/{\mathrm{m}}^{3}}\right)$ of ${\mathrm{{NH}}}_{3}$ standardgases. Results The results showed that the C16 portable detectorexhibited a highly linear relationship $\left({r ={0.9998}}\right)$ in fieldapplications, which was highly correlated with the concentration ofstandard gases; The GBZ/T 160.29-2004 method provides higher precisionmeasurement values in laboratory analysis. The relative standarddeviation and relative error of both methods are less than ±5%,demonstrating good precision and accuracy. The research conclusionindicates that the C16 portable detector is suitable for rapid on-sitedetection and emergency response, while the GBZ/T 160.29-2004 method ismore suitable for laboratory analysis that requires high precision. Conclusion This study provides a scientific basis for selectingappropriate ${\mathrm{{NH}}}_{3}$ detection methods, which is of great significance for improving thequality of environmental monitoring and occupational healthassessment.