Every product is carefully selected by our editors. If you buy from a link, we may earn a commission.
Clean air, full lungs, can't lose.
There's something in the air, and it's not good. Between coronavirus and wildfires, consumers are stocking up on air purifiers like their lives depend on it. Air purifiers aren't the end all be all of health and wellness, but they will drastically improve your indoor air quality so you can breathe easier.
"Air purifiers are designed to remove small particulate matter, or air pollution, from the air we breathe," Kenneth Mendez, the president and CEO of the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America (AAFA), says. "These small particles can vary in size, and can irritate the lungs or trigger allergic reactions when inhaled." The pollutants can come from practically anywhere, with Mendez noting that the primary sources of air pollution come from "cooking, automobile emissions, dust, fires or burning of coal and other materials."
Shopping for an air purifier can feel like a difficult task, no thanks to the unfamiliar terms, options and confusing numbers. Dr. John McKeon, the CEO and founder of Allergy Standards Limited (ASL), says shoppers should look out for a few standard things when it comes to buying an air purifier.
First, find one that uses a high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) filter. "A device equipped with a HEPA filter is a good choice for those impacted by asthma and allergies as a HEPA filter can remove 99.97% of particles that measure 0.03 micrometers in diameter, including pollen spores, pet dander, dust mites and some bacteria," McKeon says. For odors and gasses, McKeon says an activated carbon filter is what you'll want to help remove them, and activated carbon filters will be typically be used in conjunction with a HEPA filter for enhanced filtration. Then there's the clean air delivery rate, or CADR, which McKeon says "indicates the volume of filtered air that an air cleaner delivers, with separate scores for smoke, pollen, and dust." The higher the CADR, the quicker the air purifier is at filtering the air — though it's important to note the CADR reflects the air purifier's efficiency when on its highest fan speed, the noisiest level on a purifier. Equipped with these facts, these are the best air purifiers we found in 2022.
Air purifiers basically use fans and filters to trap airborne particles so that you're not breathing them in.
"Some air cleaners work by trapping allergens like pollen or pet dander in their media-based or carbon filters," Mendez says. "Other air cleaners work by passing air through an electrostatic filter, giving the particles an electrostatic charge. This makes the particles then stick to metal plates in the air filter which can then be washed to remove the particles."
Different filters will act in different ways, whether they're trapping large particles or small particles, or eliminating odors. Be on the lookout for purifiers that release ozone, which can be detrimental for those with asthma and cause problems in the airways for others. And if you're wondering if air purifiers actually work, they do.
Air purifiers filter and remove airborne particles that can aggravate allergy symptoms and underlying health conditions and improve the overall air quality of the indoor environment. They are not, however, a panacea of air perfection. They won't eliminate 100 percent of the unwanted particles in your home, namely those that are stuck on hard and soft surfaces. In general, air purifiers will greatly impact your respiratory health — and we found 13 that do this the best.
This is a tricky question. Yes, air purifiers equipped with True HEPA filters may be apt at removing the virus from the air, but COVID-19 is primarily spread through person-to-person contact, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Just because an air purifier could work well to filter the air of the coronavirus, it will not make you immune to it if someone infected with the virus is sitting right next to you, mask-free.
As the Environmental Protection Agency mentions on its website, "by themselves, portable air cleaners and HVAC filters are not enough to protect people from the virus that causes COVID-19." However, as it further explains, when used in conjunction with social distancing and wearing masks in public, air purifiers can further protect you and your family from contracting the virus.
Yes, air purifiers can help with both cigarette smoke and smoke caused by wildfires. The biggest threat from smoke is from fine particles, which can cause stinging in the eyes, runny noses and respiratory complications. It can also worsen chronic heart and lung diseases, as reported by the Environmental Protection Agency.
"If you don’t have an HVAC system with a high-efficiency filter installed in your home, then a portable air cleaner or air purifier is recommended as an approach to remove fine particles from the air and reduce your exposure to harmful pollution during a wildfire smoke event," McKeon says.
For the smell, air purifiers with carbon filters will help to eliminate the smoky odor that can irritate the senses. Also, the Environmental Protection Agency advises against using air purifiers that produce ozone, which will worsen indoor air quality. The California Air Resources Board has a list of air purifiers that are certified to not emit excess ozone and can be found here.
Clean-air delivery rating, often denoted as CADR, was established by the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, or AHAM. The CADR measures an air purifier's effectiveness by noting the volume of clean air produced per minute based on the space of a room. Devices will be given a rating for smoke, pollen and dust, with the higher the number, the better the efficacy.
To figure out which CADR is best for the room you want to use an air purifier in, use AHAM's suggestion of finding a CADR that is "equal to at least two-thirds of the room's area."
These days, most air purifiers (the good ones at least) will use a three-filter system. The first filter, often called a pre-filter, is the first layer of protection that captures larger dust particles. You can typically wash a pre-filter, which when dirty, will make the HEPA filter (make sure you get a real HEPA filter) less effective. Another filter that air purifiers typically have is a carbon filter, which helps with absorbing odor. Then there's the HEPA, or high-efficiency particulate air, filter, which removes 99.97 percent of particulates measuring 0.3 microns in diameter. HEPA filters will need to be replaced regularly, so make sure the price of replacement filters is something you can keep up with over time.
Air pollutants are invisible, and a lot of the time you won't be able to tell when your air is polluted. A good air purifier should have an auto mode, which will kick up the air purifier's fan speed to purify the air when a high concentration of pollutants are detected.
Over the course of several months, we had testers use their air purifier in their home, running 24/7. A handful of our west-coast testers were tasked with making sure their air purifiers were capable of clearing wildfire smoke, while those who lived in less polluted areas were tasked to ensure their air purifiers could keep up with any daily air pollutants from everyday living, whether it was food odors or funky smells. We judged air purifiers through their listed clean-air delivery ratings, as well as their ease of use, quietness and perceived effectiveness. While air purifiers are by no means works of art, we did give extra (imaginary) points to units that looked half-decent. Also, we took into consideration the cost of filters, because as a recurring fee, these would certainly add to the overall value of the air purifier over time. We’ll continue to update this list over time as new air purifiers come to the market and how our current testing units continue to fare.
The Airmega AP-1512HH offers some of the best air purifications — with CADRs of 240 for pollen, 246 for dust and 233 for smoke — at its price point, and it does so in rooms up to 361 square feet. Plus, its small build makes it easy to tuck away.
It has a triple filter system, a pre-filter, HEPA filter and activated carbon filter, plus an ionizer. A built-in air quality monitor tracks air quality and, when running in auto mode, will adjust the fan speed according to its readings (faster for low quality, slower when it's contented). Our reviewer found that the device worked well at eliminating kitchen odors and smokes even in an open floor plan that was about 200 square feet bigger than recommended. One negative: our tester wasn't a fan of the shiny plastic body, which they compared to "terrible luxury styling trends that were popular in the early '90s."
Mila started as a Kickstarter project, which received over $1.1 million in backing. Those backers should rest assured that this is an excellent air purifier in the middle-to-upper price range. Mila has a CADR up to 447 in rooms as big as 1,000 square feet. The powerful unit has an in-depth display that offers information most air purifiers require an app to see (and Mila's app itself offers a wealth of information). In auto mode, set Mila to hit a target air quality index (AQI), and it'll tell you how long it will take to get there, and how it compares to the outdoor AQI as reported by your closest air quality reporting station.
Mila also monitors temperature, humidity and carbon monoxide detector among a host of other useful information and insight. The air purifier uses tailored air filters that address specific needs for its users. For example, there are filters for pet owners, new parents, overall clean freaks, etc. One knock against the Mila is that because it has a manual on/off switch, you can't power it on or off remotely, which is odd since the overall device is so smart. For a deeper look, read our full review of the Mila.
Formaldehyde is a silent killer, and it's hard to capture and kill. Dyson recently revamped its air purifier line, and it included a range that specializes in getting formaldehyde (as well as other crap in the air). The Pure Cool Formaldehyde uses Selective Catalytic Oxidization filter, which is a fancy way to say it catches formaldehyde in billions of tiny tunnels and turns it into water. It's also insanely quiet, and 20 percent quieter than the old models. All air purifiers have an air output, and I like how Dyson turned that necessity into something functional: a fan and a humidifier. The tiny display on the machine actually offers a lot of information about your air quality, and it's only rivaled by the information you get on the accompanying Dyson app.
Many people buy air purifiers to help them with their allergies. If you're looking to quit the sneezing, get the Levoit Core 400S. The compact air purifier uses trademarked AirSight Plus technology that quickly picks up the air quality in the room to automatically adjust its fan speed to clear up the muck. It has a CADR of 260, with an optimal room size of 403 square feet. The unit itself displays the filter life and real-time updates of the number of airborne particles, but if you sync it up with the accompanying Levoit app, you'll get in-depth information and remote control.
Ikea's entry into the air purifier category is very Ikea. It looks good, it's cheap and it gets the job done. It has a decent CADR of 140, and it employs two filters: a HEPA 12 filter and a carbon filter. However, purchasing the unit only includes the HEPA 12 filter. You'll have to spend an extra $13 to get the carbon filter, which is good for eliminating unwanted odors. It's not compatible with a smartphone app, but at $60, you can't really expect it to be smart. Besides its technical capabilities, the Fornuftig happens to be quite attractive. It's pretty similar to Ikea's speakers made in collaboration with Sonos, and that's a good thing. Also, the thing hangs on the wall, which is objectively cool and highlights how light and thin it is. For a deeper look, read our full review of the Fornuftig.
The most important factor in purchasing an air purifier is its effectiveness, but many also consider how it looks. Some either look too sterile or like a droid out of Star Wars. The Blue Air 211+ is simple in its looks — essentially a two-toned rectangular box with customizable colored pre-filters — and has high-tech features to boot. The 211+ has CADR of 350 across the board, and our tester noted the machine is exceptionally good at removing odors from cooking, both quickly and effectively.
The 211+ can complete up to five air changes an hour in a 540-square-foot room, and our tester found it worked well in combatting smoke and food odors in an open floor plan. Because the 211+ is small and lightweight (under 13 pounds), you can somewhat easily carry the air purifier from room to room depending on where you need it. One downside is the air purifier does not have an auto function. And while most modern-day air purifiers eschew buttons for touch-sensitive controls, our reviewer was a huge fan of the device's tactile buttons, a small, but satisfying product detail that plays into its overall aesthetic.
With a coverage area of 1,560 square feet, the Airmega 400 offers excellent air purification for extra-large rooms. It's a big machine, but it's necessary to house the power fans and filters to ensure it's effectively working to clean huge rooms. One of our testers, who has been dealing with the smoke of the California wildfires, says the Airmega 400 has been valuable since day one. Immediately upon its first use, the machine went into overdrive on auto mode, detecting unsafe levels of pollutants in the air. And its projected coverage area is no joke — our tested lives in a two-floor home, and the machine was able to run a full clean sweep. Night mode is good for, well, nighttime use; it's quieter, but when the air quality is OK, it doubles as a low-power mode to make sure your air quality remains good. The baseline Airmega 400 does not have app connectivity, though, so if that's important to you, look to the Airmega 400S ($599).
For rooms up to 161 square feet, get the Blueair 411. It completes up to five air changes an hour, and it weighs only three pounds so you can easily transport the device from room to room without issue. The fabric pre-filter, which is machine washable and helps to extend the life of HEPA filter, comes in various colors to fit your interior design aesthetic, so it doesn't look too sterile in your impeccably designed home. Because of its 360-degree air intake, you can place the purifier almost anywhere and still experience peak performance. The 411 also boasts energy efficiency, unlike most others on the market, which makes this budget pick a good deal in the long run, too.
When the Airmega 150 came out, we were taken by its looks. As our reviewer noted, "the fact that a serious air purifier manufacturer is taking aesthetics seriously is a necessary step in making these things more widespread." It's essentially a compact box with a bunch of tiny holes in it (trypophobia sufferers beware). And because it's a Coway, you can be sure it's still a quality device. Its CADR in a 214-square-foot room clock in at 138 for pollen, 161 for dust and 219 for smoke.
Our reviewer used this in his bedroom, and both he and his partner have noticed their bedroom air quality has drastically improved as have their sinus issues. One qualm is its noise levels. While Coway's website notes that the Airmega 150 has decibel levels between 19.98 dB and 48.3 dB, we found that when the purifier kicks into medium- or high-mode, it really makes its presence known. However, unless your space is particularly polluted, the Airmega 150 shouldn't need to run on anything above low speed for too long.
Get one air purifier that's easy to carry, and that could be the only air purifier you need to buy for your whole home. Blueair's Pure Fan Auto offers just that thanks to its relatively lightweight and convenient handle. It's similar to Dyson's air purifiers in that it sucks up your dirty air and shoots it out as clean air like a fan, so it keeps you cool and it cleans. The purifier uses quiet HEPASilent filtration, and the brand claims it can capture 99 percent of dust particles in 20 minutes and pollen in 30 minutes. Its CADR is listed as 250 for pollen, 220 for dust and 210 for smoke, with an area coverage of 326 square feet. The auto function of the unit is helpful for ensuring your air quality is always where it should be. And with allergy season in full swing, it's a lifesaver for those who are just sick and tired of constantly sneezing.
For $100, this is an excellent base-level air purifier. It has good CADRs (145 for pollen, 140 for dust and 141 for smoke), a good performance range (215 square feet) and a much-appreciated quiet mode. Levoit's QuietKEAP Technology reduces the noise levels so you can continue to get clean, purified air while you're sleeping. Three-stage filtration is pretty much standard, even with higher-end units, so the fact that the Core 300 doesn't eschew this despite being a budget air purifier. While there is no auto mode, the timer function is helpful, and you really can't beat the price, or features, of the Core 300.
Coway's Airmega 250 ups the power of our Just Get This Pick, and it combines the looks of its best-looking air purifier and the power of its most powerful unit. It also somehow does it for a very reasonable price. The machine covers an impressive 930 square feet, packing CADR of 230 for pollen, 249 for smoke and 261 for dust. The Airmega 250 uses three-stage filtration — a washable pre-filter, a Green True HEPA filter and an activated carbon filter — which is standard with Coway air purifiers, so you know it's good. A quick glance at the machine lets you know how your air is doing thanks to the LED air quality indicator atop the unit. Most of the time I'm in the blue, which means my air quality is great, and I'm pretty sure it's thanks to the Airmega 250. For a deeper look, read our full review of the Airmega 250.
The Ikea Starkvind was the second air purifier the furniture brand released, and it falls in line with the rest of its Scandinavian design aesthetics, completely reinventing what an air purifier can and should look like. Some people may question why your side table is plugged into the wall, but that's a better question than "Why is your air purifier so ugly?" Hidden under the tabletop is the actual Starkvind air purifier (which is available as a standalone unit), with a CADR of 141 and recommended coverage area of 215 square feet.
These vacuum cleaners suck, but in the best way possible.