Several names come to mind when it comes to the best air purifiers... Honeywell, Sharp, Daikin, Samsung, and Coway will certainly feature.
A couple of budget options have emerged in the last decade including Germguardian and you don’t necessarily need to break the bank to get an effective air purifier.
But the increased variety also means you have to work harder to find one that suits your air cleaning needs.
This guide aims at helping you choose the best air cleaner without combing through potentially hundreds of purifiers.
It’s well worth a read before you click the order button.
The basics first.
What is an air purifier?
What does an air purifier do?
An air purifier (air cleaner to some) is simply a machine that gets rid of nasty contaminants from the air circulating in your room.
Modern-day purifiers are more advanced and provide relief from allergies, asthma, nasal congestions, and more.
Some of the best air filters for home also deodorize your rooms they will smell fresh.
Types of air purifiers
It’s important to understand that air purifiers work differently when selecting the best home air purifier or even an office air cleaner.
Let’s go through the commonest types and how they function:
· HEPA (High Efficiency Particulate Air) air purifiers
These purifiers use the classic HEPA technology to filter out particles.
The greatest advantage of true HEPA filters is their efficiency (they typically trap 99.97% of all allergens and other particles even as small as 0.3 microns).
· Activated Carbon Devices
You might want to use purifiers with activated carbon (carbon processed with activated charcoal to create small, low-volume pores) if you’re regularly breathing in harmful fumes, odors, and chemical gases.
These use a process called adsorption to capture odors and gases and sometimes volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from your environment.
· UV Light Air Purifiers
Air purifiers with UV light superbly eliminate myriad airborne germs, bacteria, and viruses.
The generated ultraviolet radiation breaks up the molecular structure of these organisms killing or rendering them powerless.
· Ionizing Air Purifiers (Ozone generators)
Your best home air purifier or office could come with an Ionizer.
These are so-called since they create and deploy charged ions on the hapless airborne particles until they tumble fall from the air.
Some of these generate ozone – to remove odors- and might irritate your lungs if you have a respiratory problem.
· Electrostatic Air Purifiers
These use static electricity to charge airborne particles so as to kill niggling microbes, particulates, mold spores, and more.
Air Purifiers Buying Guide
Just before I take you to the reviews, here are things you need to keep in mind especially now that you’ll be meeting an avalanche of options out there.
· Your specific needs
What could be the best air cleaner for me may not work for you. It’s a question of the kind of pollutants that dominate in your spaces.
For instance, you’ll want to pick a specialized allergen remover if you suffer stubborn allergies while your safest bet is a HEPA air purifier if you’re overwhelmed by pet dander.
And so forth.
· Your room size
Each unit only cleans specified square footage optimally and you want to confirm before ordering.
If two units work well for equal footage, check each unit’s dust, pollen, and smoke CADR rating.
The CADR simply tells you the number of cubic feet (of air) it can clean in a minute and higher rating mean quicker results.
Consider investing in two (or more) units if cleaning extra-large spaces.
· What features does it have?
But for budget units, the best air purifiers come with lovable features such as:
- Air quality indicator
- Smart sensors.
- Timer.
- Wi-Fi connectivity
- Intuitive controls.
- Filter lifetime indicators.
- Automatic operation
- Remote control
· Your budget
Prices vary a lot.
You will discover dazzling budget units priced below $100 (mostly for small spaces) and units priced over $500 (heavier duty).
· Others
- How many fan speeds does it provide?- the more, the better.
- Is it noisy?- Look out for the estimated dB at different settings.
- Aesthetics- Will it blend well with your interior décor?
- Carrying handle and/or caster wheels- These help portability.
- Price of filters- Some units need costly replacement filters and are expensive to maintain.
- Energy efficiency- Always choose energy star certified units
Best Air Purifiers Reviews
Which is the best air purifier?
Here now are our air purifier reviews for the 5 units that have shown us enough to merit recognition.
Coway AP-1512HH Mighty True HEPA Air Purifier (with Eco Mode)
The Coway AP-1512 air purifier is specially built to eliminate allergens, dust, and other contaminants from your living rooms, apartments, kitchens, offices, and other middle-sized spaces (361 sq ft).
Click Here to View Price and Customer Reviews on Amazon.com
The cute design, long-lasting HEPA filter, and multiple airflow modes see it rank among the top 5 units in our list of the best air cleaners.
Features
This unit employs its impressive collection of futuristic features to fight nasty contaminants including chemical vapors and will let you and your family breathe easy.
Honestly, it’s one of the best units I have ever met in my long dalliance with top-rated air purifiers.
And if you’re looking for a super-efficient unit, this could be it- primarily because of the construction of its filtration system…
The mesh pre-filter, deodorization filter, 99.97 percent efficient true HEPA filter, and the optional Ionizer team up to create an all-conquering army which delivers a knockout blow to pollutants.
And you know what?
The Coway AP-1512hh comes with convenient inventions such as air quality indicator that tells it to kick into high gear if it notices rising pollution levels and a helpful timer.
You can thus set it to go off after running for 1/4/8 hours.
Then, the night mode helps bring a soft ‘white noise’ to help you sleep peacefully.
And yes, the control panel is very intuitive so everything works like a charm
The filter lifetime indicator will help you know if the filters’ time is up.
Pros
- Very compact unit.
- Energy efficient (Enters the power-saving eco mode after idling for 30 minutes).
- Deodorizes wonderfully (few purifiers have this feature).
- Functional auto mode
Cons
- Slightly loud at the highest setting.
RabbitAir MinusA2 Ultra-Quiet HEPA Air Purifier
Pay attention if you have been wondering what the best large room air purifier for the largest spaces is.
Click Here to View Price and Customer Reviews on Amazon.com
Because that might be none other than the stylish RabbitAir MinusA2 air cleaner.
I know you’re eager to know why this is
Well, it not only filters out elements from the air in your spaces but will also completely deodorize the space while maintaining maximum air circulation.
Works well for spaces up to 815 square. ft
Features
The results from this air purifier for home are second to none in this list of best home air purifiers.
And it all boils down to its sophisticated engineering.
First, it’s exclusive six-stage purification system is simply amazing..
The pre-filter excellently traps the largest pollutants as the medium filter nabs particles sized over 1 micron.
Next, the BioGS HEPA Filter captures surviving contaminants even (as fine as 0.3 microns)- it attains 99.97% efficiency like a standard True HEPA filter but purifies optimally for longer.
You can then invoke any of its customized filters- pet allergy, germ defense, toxin absorber, or odor remover- depending on the existing pollution.
Lastly, the high-grade carbon filter (activated) removes chemicals and remaining odors as the ionizer refreshes the room.
You will enjoy superb airflow thanks to a powerful 5-speed fan.
And can you focus when this air purifier for home is running?
Absolutely yes…
It uses the traditionally ultra-quiet BLDC Motor.
Best of all?
You can mount it on a wall (a wall mount bracket is included), the floor, on a table… you name it.
Pros
- It’s also one of the top air purifiers with longest-serving filters (24 months)
- It looks amazing.
- Intelligent sleep function – no sleep-disturbing lights at night
- Nice extras such as remote control and WiFi ability
Cons
- Replacement filters a tad pricey.
Honeywell HPA300 True HEPA air purifier/Allergen Remover
This is hands down one of the best air purifiers when it comes to allergens.
Okay, Honeywell has a number of brilliant purifiers but few come near this in battling microscopic allergens.
Click Here to View Price and Customer Reviews on Amazon.com
In short, if you’re after an air purifier that’s fed up with infection-causing allergens more than you, you have a perfect option in this.
To get the healthiest air, use it for spaces not exceeding 465 sq. Ft.
Features
Believe it or not, its ‘simple’ allergens purification system gives incredible results.
In fact, the air just passes through 2 stages – the mesh pre-filter (infused with activated carbon) and a HEPA filter.
But because of the built-in quality (It’s a Honeywell and you can’t expect less), this portable air purifier battles allergens with maximum efficiency.
Your rooms should hence smell extremely fresh and you’ll be experiencing reduced nasal congestion.
And for good measure, the company has added an allergen function to go with the customarily robust Turbo setting.
Sure, the Honeywell HPA300 lacks some of the flashy additions common in pricier units such as automatic mode and a remote but it will do the job.
Pros
- It comes with a 5-year warranty.
- Extremely portable (has side handles).
- Straightforward controls.
- Moves lots of air
Cons
- Allergen and Turbo setting a bit loud.
Blueair Classic 480i HEPASilent Air Purifier
A common complaint I hear against some of the best air purifiers is that some are too loud and you can’t concentrate when it’s working.
Click Here to View Price and Customer Reviews on Amazon.com
I could be wrong but perhaps this is what motivated Blueair to release this air purifier…
The unit uses Blueair’s proprietary HEPASilent Technology to get rid of pet dander, dust, odors, smoke, pollen, and pollutants lingering in your environment.
And you’ll easily forget it’s there…that’s how quiet this is.
Overall, one of the best units for rooms sized about 434 sq. ft.
Features
The other highlight in this (besides the aforementioned HEPASilent feature) is the dual protection filters.
Now, these consummately catch harmful particles and gases including irritating formaldehyde and immensely upgrade the quality of the air circulating in your room.
It’s an expensive unit so you’ll get all the bells and whistles led by a precise air quality sensor that continuously monitors air pollution and a responsive touch control panel.
You can connect it to your Wi-Fi connection and download the Blueair Friend app from where you can track its status and get tips to improve your room’s air quality.
You can even manage it from your Alexa.
It has one of the best CADR ratings you’ll ever meet at this level-300 (Dust), 280 (Smoke), 300 (Pollen) cfms- and has no known ozone emissions
Above all, it consistently delivers a performance you can trust and really circulates air well.
Keep in mind that filters are to be replaced about once every 6 months.
Pros
- Very, very powerful.
- A super sophisticated air cleaner.
- Runs at a whisper.
- Dramatically improves air quality.
Cons
- Pricier unit.
- Heavier.
Germ Guardian True HEPA Filter, High CADR Air Purifier for Home (AC5900W)
Consider this Germguardian if you’re looking for a sub $300 that stands up powerfully to airborne germs including influenza, rhinovirus, staph, and even volatile organic compounds.
Click Here to View Price and Customer Reviews on Amazon.com
You will finally show airborne viruses, bacteria, yeasts, molds, and VOCs who’s the boss thanks to the built-in UV-C light.
The 3-in-1 unit has respectable CADR ratings for mid-sized rooms (335 sq. ft ) -216 (dust), 216 (smoke), 265 (pollen) cfms- and an ionizer to help you rein in on allergens.
Features
This unit executes three procedures to bring you fresh air.
It first kills germs before proceeding to capture allergens.
It winds up by eliminating smelly odors from your space.
The unit uses a combination of filters, an ultraviolet light, and the ionizer (the latter 2 are optional) to achieve this.
It actually packs three filters- a plastic pre-filter (handles large particles), HEPA filter (targets smaller particles to .3 microns), and a charcoal insert (takes care of odors).
Conveniently, you can customize its settings to comfort.
For instance, you can set the lowest fan speed (has 5 options) in rooms with minimal pollution or when you wish to focus maximally (it’s barely audible here).
You might also want to program it to run for up to 2/4/ 6 hours.
It is 27-inches tall, lightweight, and has a handy carrying handle.
Pros
- It offers a range of customizable options.
- Handy carrying handle.
- Easy-to-use controls.
- Outstanding germs killer.
Cons
- Bigger in size.
Wrapping it up
Be sure to invest in one of the best air purifiers out there if you have been regularly suffering from allergies, asthma, and other breathing discomforts while indoors.
Keep in mind that they’re not cut from the same cloth so it’s important to examine a unit’s performance against various contaminants, portability, ease of understanding and use, technology, and even aesthetics.
Our guide will hopefully help steer you to the right direction when making your purchase.
