temp of air in fermenting bucket the same as the liquid?

[well_bucket_brews]

the temperature strip on my bucket is just above the 3 gallon mark, and I am brewing a 2.5 gallon batch. so the temp strip is reading the air space temperature. is the beer the same temp? higher/lower?

thanks!

 

[WSJ]

It's never going to be lower than the room/ambient temperature, where you keep your fermenter.
If it shows acceptable temperature, do not worry about it.

 

[wfowlks]

The strip would read it lower. If it's glass it can be as different as 5-7 degrees, plastic buckets have poor insulation so you would get a better read. But the wort should be within 7 degrees of ambient room temp