[en] The US Department of Energy (DOE) Division of Remedial Action Projects has responsibility for the cleanup of radioactive contamination resulting from defunct federal projects as well as from commercial facilities operated by or for the Department of Energy and its predecessor agencies. These cleanup activities are conducted under the auspices of four programs: the Uranium Mill Tailings Remedial Action Project, the Formerly Utilized Sites (Manhattan Engineer District/Atomic Energy Commission) Remedial Action Program, the Surplus Facilities Management Program, and the Grand Junction Remedial Action Program. The Technical Measurements Center of the DOE Grand Junction Area Office provides technical support to each program. One element of that support involves preparation of a series of reports designed to compare and evaluate available instruments used in making measurements in support of DOE remedial action programs. This report, one of that series, presents results of a study conducted to test and evaluate selected instruments to determine their applicability and effectiveness for use in making surface gamma-ray measurements. Design characteristics that affect performance in remedial-action applications are examined. Also presented are the results of tests conducted to assess several aspects of instrument performance, including counting-plateau quality, sensitivity to battery-voltage variation, temperature sensitivity, dead time, linearity, sensitivity to high ambient radiation, counting sensitivity, and spectral response. In general, the instruments performed satisfactorily; exceptions are discussed and, where apparent, the probable cause of unsatisfactory performance is suggested. Recommendations are made with respect to design and performance characteristics to aid in the selection of instrumentation for use in remedial-action work