The best air purifiers are designed to keep your home’s air clean and prevent polluted or dirty air from impacting your health. But with so many options out there with such a dizzying array of features, picking the right one for you is far from a breeze.
That’s why Live Science has put together this guide to the best air purifiers for your needs and budget. Collected below are some of the very best air purifiers on the market — we’ve put together all of the vital information you’ll need to make your choice easier. From the room size each model covers to the price and whether or not the product has an Energy Star certification, we have everything you need to know.
But don’t just take our word for it — we’ve also spoken with Tim Carroll from the U.S Environmental Protection Agency to hear his recommendations of what to keep in mind while investing in your household’s clean air. First, you should keep in mind the size of the area you’re looking to use the purifier in, then pick the device with the right clean air delivery rate (CADR).
What the experts say
“The best way to improve indoor air quality is to reduce pollutants at their source and to ventilate with clean outdoor air, but portable air cleaners can be an effective supplement.” Tim Carroll, U.S Environmental Protection Agency
“The higher the CADR, the more particles the air cleaner can filter and the larger the area it can serve,” Carroll told Live Science. “Most air cleaner packaging will tell you the largest size area or room it should be used in. Portable air cleaners often achieve a high CADR by using a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter.”
A study from Frontiers in Environmental Science has shown that fumes coming from outside the home, especially in city environments, can easily infiltrate our homes, posing a health risk if inhaled. You could be most concerned about tackling this problem with an air purifier, or you could be looking for the best air purifiers for allergies. Whatever you have in mind, you need to make sure your device is right for the job.
Carroll warns against choosing purifiers that produce ozone, as this can cause irritation and be a danger to the lungs. “Both the California Air Resources Board and the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers maintain lists of air cleaners that have been tested and shown to emit little or no ozone,” he said.
You might also want to consider the size and power of the purifier. You need to make sure it’s powerful enough to work in your space, but also that it’s quiet enough to be unobtrusive — if you’re using a purifier overnight or in any other space where you like peace and quiet, you’re going to need it to be quiet too.
Now is a good time to invest in an air purifier; we’ve rounded up the best air purifiers deals to save you some money.
Best air purifiers
(Image credit: Amazon)
This is the best air purifier for cleaning the air throughout your home.
Specifications
Energy star certified: No
Height: 20.5 inches
Diameter: 10.8 inches
Weight: 11lbs
Reasons to buy
+Affordably priced+PM2.5/timer display +Easy to set up and use
Reasons to avoid
-The app can be unreliable
The Levoit 400S performed best to remove airborne particles in our at-home testing, capturing at least 99.5% and up to 100% or particles during testing.
Its sleek and stylish cylinder shape with a neutral colorway makes it an easy addition to any room, whatever the décor, while a color-coded display gives users a great visual on air quality at any given moment.
What the users say
The Levoit 400S scores an impressive 5 stars out of 5 on Amazon, with 85% of reviews giving it the full 5 stars. Negative reviews cite problems with the VeSync app and a lack of sturdiness in design. Positive reviews praise the purifier’s accuracy in tracking 2.5 microns and its ability to manage and remove unpleasant odors, dust and pet dander. Customers particularly like the look of the Levoit 400S, although some say it feels a little big. They also appreciate how quietly the purifier runs on its lower settings.
The air purifier is light and features indented handles at either side, making it easy to move from room-to-room.
A companion app that users can download gives useful data on air quality and allows users to schedule and time the air purifier to fit round a busy family schedule. The quietest setting is barely discernible, while the most powerful setting still clocks in at just 52 decibels.
Stylish, quietly powerful, and with an intuitive, easy-to-use Smart interface, the Levoit 400S is our top pick of air purifiers. It could be the ideal appliance for you if you’re looking for an effective air purifier that’s big on performance but doesn’t blow the budget.
(Image credit: Future)
The best air purifier that will also look excellent in your home.
Specifications
Energy star certified: Yes
Height: 41 inches
Length: 4.72 inches
Width: 8.7 inches
Weight: 11lbs
Reasons to buy
+Sleek, stylish design +Powerful air purifying capability +Connectivity and smart features
Reasons to avoid
-Expensive outlay -Can get noisy at elevated levels
The Dyson Purifier Cool is one of the most stylish air purifiers on the market. Its unusual design marks it out as a talking point in any room, while simple but genius extras, such as a magnetic remote control, take it a step up from your average air purifier.
What the users say
The Dyson Purifier Cool scores an average of 4.2 out of five stars on Home Depot. Negative reviews cite problems with the sensors’ baseline readings, poor fan quality, and noisiness when in use. Positive reviews praise the purifier’s ability to improve the symptoms of allergy sufferers, as well as removing unpleasant odors. Customers particularly like the integration with smart devices, the auto setting and the purifier’s stylish design, with one user commenting, ‘It looks like a piece of art’.
The purifier also doubles up as a fan in hotter weather, although this isn’t as powerful as some users would like. Users can activate, schedule and monitor their purifier via the Dyson app, allowing them to set fan speed, timers and check air quality whether they’re home or away.
A clever LCD display flicks between icons that show air quality data in real time, while an auto-mode senses air particles and adjusts fan settings to suit.
The Dyson Purifier Cool’s high price tag may be too expensive to suit everyone’s budget, but its stylish, sleek design and smart, connected functionality is impressive.
(Image credit: Best Buy)
Simply the best air purifier for improving your air quality.
Specifications
Energy star certified: Yes
Height: 21 inches
Depth: 13 inches
Width: 13 inches
Weight: 15.5lbs
Reasons to buy
+Low energy consumption +Powerful air purifying capability +360-degree air intake +Ideal for larger rooms or offices
Reasons to avoid
-No smart features -Bulky, heavy unit
The Blue Pure 221 is designed to cover areas of up to 600 square feet, making it an excellent choice for homes with larger rooms or office spaces. With three power settings operated with a one-touch button, simplicity is the key for this purifier.
What the users say
The Blue Pure 221 scores an impressive 4.8 out of five stars on Home Depot, with hundreds of five-star reviews from satisfied customers. Positive reviews praise the purifier’s performance, saying it helps them sleep better, feel less congested, and enjoy cleaner air quality in their home. Many users love the unit’s design and are happy with how quiet it can run. Negative reviews cite problems with performance, the expense of replacing filters, and some complain that the higher settings are too noisy.
Our at-home tests found the Blue Pure 221 to be consistently better than all the other air purifiers we tested. Despite its lack of Smart technology, it out-performed purifiers at almost double the price.
Some users may be put off by the unit’s weight and bulk. But it’s still a stylish machine that’s thoughtfully designed. Plus, its customizable fabric pre–filters make it easy to pair the unit with any home’s color scheme.
Our verdict? A dependable work horse of an air purifier that puts performance above presentation. Plus, we like the fact that it’s energy star certified and cheap to run.
(Image credit: Coway)
Coway AP 1512 HH
The best air purifier that balances features with affordability.
Specifications
Energy star certified: Yes
Height: 18 inches
Diameter: 10 inches
Weight: 12.5lbs
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
Reasons to buy
+Space saving design for bedrooms+Energy-saving eco mode+Four-stage filtration system
Reasons to avoid
-Small design unsuitable for entire home
We’re currently in the process of testing the Coway AP 1512, with our exact findings still to come. However, the Coway AP 1512 is known as a standout air purifier due to its excellent value and high-quality performance.
What the users say
The Coway AP 1512 HH Air Purifier has an impressive 4.7 star rating out of five on Amazon, and with reviewers praising its quiet running, affordable replacement filters and its economical performance, it’s fair to say that this is a total winner with users. Negative reviews said that the included instructions did not quite go far enough in instructing users how to set up and use their air purifier. Positive reviews were sold by how lightweight and easy to maneuver the air purifier was, as well as the design which was easy to integrate into their home.
For an initial cost of under $300, this air purifier can offer you a four-stage filtration system, a HEPA filter and coverage of up to 361 square feet. The air purifier itself is packaged in a neat, sleek design and available in two different colors, black and white.
This air purifier excels when it comes to dust and eradicating odors, with a pre-filter and odorization filter for reducing contaminants in the air. It’s also inconspicuous when it comes to noise, making it a suitable addition to any bedroom when paired when its smaller size.
The Coway AP 1512 Air Purifier also benefits from a built-in particle sensor. That means that you can get an idea of the air quality in your home from the color coding system on the top of the device. It’ll show a blue light when the air is clean, purple to flag pollution and red for high pollution. Another clever feature of the Coway AP 1512 is the sensors that can adjust the fan speed to keep the air clean, so that you don’t have to mess with the settings.
The Coway AP 1512 is an air purifier suited to small spaces of rooms up to 361 square feet, making it suitable for smaller spaces and bedrooms. If you need something for a larger room, then you might want to look elsewhere while bearing in mind that this is a fantastic choice for smaller spaces.
(Image credit: Levoit)
This is the best air purifier for those on a budget.
Specifications
Energy star certified: No
Height: 12.6 inches
Diameter: 20 inches
Weight: 6.5 lbs
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
Reasons to buy
+Affordable+Quiet fan, even at fastest speed+Easy to set up and use
Reasons to avoid
-Can’t program the unit-Didn’t perform as well as expected in tests
Small enough for any desktop or shelf, the Levoit H132’s compact size and low price makes it the ideal air purifier for someone looking to try their first air purifier at home. If you have a small apartment, or you simply want to use an air purifier in one room only, then this might be the product for you.
What the users say
The Levoit H132 scores an impressive 4.7 out of five stars on Home Depot. Negative reviews are few and far between, with one customer finding problems with the motor whining after a few weeks. Most reviews are positive, with users praising the purifier as convenient and highly efficient at reducing the symptoms of allergies. Customers particularly like how quiet the purifier runs, even at the highest setting. Users say the purifier worked so well to improve indoor air quality that they bought a second one for another room.
The Levoit H132 might lack the wow–factor of more stylish purifiers. However, what it lacks in style, it certainly delivers in sheer affordability. Available for under $100, this is definitely one of the best air purifiers for those on a budget.
While this particular air purifier might lack the HEPA filter that gives premium air purifiers their mark of quality, it does come with an in-built dimmable nightlight, making it an ideal air purifier for a nursery or child’s bedroom. While it’s not possible to pre-program the unit, a memory function means that previous fan settings are logged before it powers down.
The Levoit H132 may not have all the bells and whistles of a smart air purifier, but its affordability and compact size makes it the ideal entry-level indoor air purifier that performs well in small to medium-sized rooms.
(Image credit: Amazon)
This portable air purifier is a convenient option for travel.
Specifications
Energy star certified: No
Height: 7.5 (in)
Diameter: 6.9 (in)
Weight: 2.5 lbs
TODAY’S BEST DEALS
Reasons to buy
+Works straight out of the box+Small enough to travel with+Built-in night light
Reasons to avoid
-Noisy on highest setting-Not the best performance-Expensive replacement filters
Light and compact, the KOIOS EPI810 is the smallest air purifier we’ve reviewed. It will sit comfortably on any office desk or shelf and its 2.5lb weight makes it light enough to take travelling.
What the users say
The Koios EPI810 has an impressive 4.5 stars out of five on Amazon.com. Users who gave it the full five stars praise the purifier’s performance as well as its conveniently compact size. Others rate its ability to neutralize unpleasant cooking odors and pet smells. Many reviewers have bought several purifiers to use in multiple rooms. Negative reviews point out that the purifier can be noisy at its highest setting, or that they have been unable to switch the night light setting off. Other criticize the quality of the unit as having a ‘cheap’ feel and say the replacement filters are too expensive, at almost half the price of the base unit.
The purifier can operate from a mains socket or via USB, while a simple one-click button control makes it one of the easiest air purifiers to operate straight out of the box. A built-in night light makes it a good choice for a nursery or kids’ room.
While it doesn’t have the wow factor when it comes to design, or the sophistication of a smart, connected air purifier, the KOIOS EPI810 may work well if you want something easy to operate. However, a noisy higher setting and a lacklustre performance in our at-home tests may put some users off.
Are air purifiers worth it?
The best air purifiers are a great way to help improve the air space around you and your family. As well as protecting those with health issues from the multitude of air pollutants that gather indoors, those without specific concerns will have peace of mind that the right air purifier will make their environment cleaner.
The best air purifiers that are most likely to give you the most benefit, for example those including a HEPA filter, tend to be at the higher end of budgets — generally into the hundreds of dollars. The size of the unit will also play a huge part in the cost — with the larger units that cover a larger area being greater in price. However, this Black Friday many of these pricier purifiers are on sale and you can get some of the best air purifiers for great knock-down prices.
If you have health concerns, or a recurring allergy, keeping pollutants out of your home with an air purifier is definitely worthwhile. Americans now spend roughly 90% of their time indoors, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. It’s here that potentially harmful air is able to build up, meaning there are up to five times higher levels of pollutants indoors, than outdoors. An air purifier can help reduce these levels significantly, though not entirely eradicate them, helping you and those around you breathe easier.
Depending on the type of allergy, and the trigger, air purifiers have also been found to help reduce the presence of particles in the air that cause allergic reactions, which can in turn cause asthma attacks. Dehumidifiers on sale have also been shown to be helpful for asthma sufferers, during times of high humidity. In cases where your indoor space has little or poor ventilation, air purifiers can also come in useful, especially if you are looking to tackle smoke and the resulting odor.
It is still unclear whether air purifiers do anything to prevent the spread of COVID-19 indoors. The Center for Disease Control (CDC) advises that you should open doors and windows to keep a good flow of air moving indoors — weather permitting, of course. HEPA filters, found in some air purifiers, have been found to remove some viruses from the air.
“Portable air cleaners have the potential to improve indoor air quality for any person who uses them properly” said Carroll. “The longer the air cleaner runs, the more air it filters.
“Note that it is always important to reduce or remove the sources of indoor air pollutants and to ventilate with clean outdoor air,” he said. “Filtration does not replace the need to control pollutants and ventilate.”
Air purifier benefits
When it comes to selecting your purifier, ask yourself what kind of pollutant you need to target. “Choosing the right air cleaner will depend on the type of pollutant the user is targeting,” Carroll said. “In general, to filter particles, choose a portable air cleaner that has a clean air delivery rate (CADR) that is large enough for the size of the room or area in which you will use it.”
“The higher the CADR, the more particles the air cleaner can filter and the larger the area it can serve. Most air cleaner packaging will tell you the largest size area or room it should be used in. Portable air cleaners often achieve a high CADR by using a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter.
“To filter gases, choose a portable air cleaner with an activated carbon filter or other filter designed to remove gases.
“Consumers should be careful not to select an air cleaner that produces any ozone, which is a lung irritant. Both the California Air Resources Board and the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers maintain lists of air cleaners that have been tested and shown to emit little or no ozone”.
Today’s best air purifier deals
