The 10 Best Air Purifiers of 2021 - gearpatrol.com
The 10 Best Air Purifiers of 2021 - gearpatrol.com |
| The 10 Best Air Purifiers of 2021 - gearpatrol.com Posted: 02 Dec 2020 12:00 AM PST  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. From air purifier terminology to the best models to buy, this is our definitive guide to air purifiers for 2021. The Short List
The Best Air PurifiersThe Short ListBest Overall Air Purifier: Coway Airmega AP-1512HHSThe Airmega AP-1512HHS offers some of the best air purification — with CADR ratings 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. Connect the Airmega AP-1512HHS to the companion app, IoCare, for remote access to your device, and if you have Alexa, you can ask her for updates on your indoor air quality, tell her to change the fan speed or buy more filters. 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." Price: $230 Best Upgrade Air Purifier: Dyson Pure Cool TP04If you're buying a Dyson product, you're usually set to get a high-quality device, albeit at a very high price point. The TP04 follows this trend. At $550, it's not cheap, but it also does more than just purify the air. It also doubles as an oscillating fan, which helps to circulate clean air in a larger space. Use the Dyson Link app, which our reviewer deems as the air purifier's greatest asset, to keep track of everything you need to know about your air quality and air purifier. With 360-degree activated carbon and HEPA filters, the Dyson will effectively track pollutants and odors, and the machine will notify you when it's time to swap out the filters. The display is a bit tiny, but you're more likely to track the device through your phone, and with its auto mode, you can be sure the TP04 is doing what it should be. Price: $550 Best Cheap Air Purifier: Partu BS-03 Air PurifierThe Partu proves that you don't need a loan to afford cleaner air. It's good for rooms just over 100 square feet, making this more of a small-room air purifier. For an air purifier that costs $60, it's surprising that it's fitted with a HEPA filter, in addition to an activated carbon filter and pre-filter. There are no bells and whistles, like an auto mode, remote control, or app connectivity, but then again this thing costs under $100. It also has an interesting fragrance feature, which allows users to add drops of essential oil to scent the room. The biggest knock against it is its noise output on the higher fan settings, but you'll only need to let it run on high for a few seconds before dropping it down to its slower, quieter fan speed. Price: $60 Air Purifier 101Do Air Purifiers Work?In short, yes, air purifiers work. 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 10 that do this the best. How Do Air Purifiers Work?Air purifiers basically use fans and filters to trap airborne particles so that you're not breathing them in. Different filters will act in different ways, whether they're trapping large particles or small particles, or eliminating odors. A short list of particles that air purifiers can eliminate include: smoke, pet dander, odors, allergens and indoor toxins. Do Air Purifiers Help With COVID-19?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. 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 disease. Do Air Purifiers Help With Wildfire Smoke?Yes, air purifiers can help with both cigarette smoke and smoke caused by wildfires. However, not all air purifiers will eliminate smoke particulates effectively. 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. Air purifiers with HEPA filters will do a good job of filtering those fine particles, and are recommended for those who live in areas affected by wildfire smoke. 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. Air Purifier Terms to KnowActivated carbon: A type of porous material that is good for absorbing unpleasant odors for the air. It is not apt at removing VOCs from the air. Air quality: The extent to which the air is free of pollutants, which is usually expressed as an average concentration during a given time period. Allergen: In short, any substance that can cause an allergic reaction. Potential allergens include pollen, pet dander and mold spores. Allergens can have a reactionary effect through touch or inhalation. AHAM-Verified mark: Products tested and approved for the Energy Star program by The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers. Air purifiers with this certification ensure that the device's "energy consumption rating is consistent with the measured energy consumption," per the Aham Verifide website. Clean-air delivery (CADR) rating: Established by the Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers, clean-air delivery ratings 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. Indoor Air Quality: This is "Indoor Air Quality" with a capital "I," "A" and "Q" is an environmental study that relates to the air of indoor spaces as it relates to human health. Minimum Efficiency Reporting Values (MERV) rating: A rating used to determine an air purifier's filter's ability to catch large particles (between 0.3 and 10 microns). The higher the MERV rating, between 1 and 16, the better a filter is at trapping specific particles. For exact ratings, see here. Pollutant: Any substance that, when in large concentrations, can degrade health conditions. True HEPA filters: High-efficiency particulate air filters that must remove 99.97 percent of particulates measuring .3 micron in diameter. These have become the baseline for all air purifiers. If you find a filter rated as HEPA-type, don't buy it as it's trying to sell you an inferior product — by using the HEPA buzzword — with weaker filtering capabilities. Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs): Compounds with high vapor pressure and low water solubility that are emitted as gases from solids or liquids. These can come from things such as paints and pesticides. VOCs, a common type of indoor pollution, can accumulate easily, especially if you rarely open a window. Inhaling VOCs can lead to adverse health reactions and may cause cancer. The Best Air PurifiersBest Air Purifier for Large Rooms: Coway Airmega 400With 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 ($749). Price: $480 Best Air Purifier for Small Rooms: Blueair 411For 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. Price: $120 Best-looking Air Purifier: Coway Airmega 150When 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 rating in a 214-square-foot room clocks 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. Price: $190 Best Air Purifier for Smoke: Blueair 211+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 ratings 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 tested 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 Price: $300 Best Air Purifier for Allergies and Dust: Honeywell PowerPlus True HEPAIf you deal with seasonal allergies, or are particularly sensitive to allergens and dust, the Honeywell PowerPlus True HEPA will help you breathe a breath of fresh air. It has exceptionally high CADR ratings — 342 for smoke, 339 for dust, 335 for pollen — and completes five air changes an hour spaces up to 530 square feet. The PowerPlus True has four cleaning levels for allergens, general cleaning and germ fighting, though it makes no claims to have the ability to remove COVID-19. As someone who suffers from sensitivity to dust and pollen, I found that the air purifier helped to alleviate symptoms like a stuffy and runny nose and nasal congestion. The air purifier has an easy-to-read air quality indicator, and even though it shows my air quality to be in the green, or good, it doesn't go into detail how good or bad your air is, just a general idea. But once the device is on, food smells wafting from my neighbors' homes dissipate, and my allergy symptoms are alleviated, so the air purifier is doing something good. Price: $269 Best Air Purifier for Odor: Austin Air HealthMate Standard Air Purifier B400A motif that runs throughout reviews of this Austin Air air purifier is this: it helps remove the odor of secondhand cigarette smoke. If you live next to someone who happens to be a chainsmoker, the B400 may be the way to go so their terrible habits don't interfere with your health. The B400 uses a four-stage filtration system to ensure a deep clean of your air. The first two filters are two types of pre-filters, one for large particles and one for medium-sized particles. The third stage of filtration comes in the form of an activated carbon and zeolite filter, the combination making for enhanced odor trapping. Zeolite is particularly good at trapping toxic gases and odors, such as formaldehyde and carbon monoxide, as Austin Air's website claims. It has a 780-square-feet coverage area, three fan speeds and a 360-degree air intake system. Price: $595 Best Air Purifier for Smoke: Blueair 211+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 ratings 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 tested 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 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 Price: $300 Best Quiet Air Purifier: Levoit Core 300For $100, this is an excellent base-level air purifier. It has good CADR ratings (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. Price: $100 |
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