Top Air Purifiers

Air Purifiers & and Information

Right Sizing and Space  When deciding on a room air purifier, Square feet of a Room is a significant factor when choosing an air filter in order to properly clean the air in a room, you will need to exchange the air in the room several times each hour. We recommend 5 air exchanges an hour with 2 air exchanges can be considered a minimum all depending on room size. Consider that many will be loud on their highest fan speed setting, buying one rated for a larger room will allow you to run it effectively on lower speeds and have the added benefit of quieter operation.

• Filtration efficiency:  There is a lot of variability in the efficiency and resulting numerical efficiency is the number given to the percentage of particulates trapped in a filter in one single air exchange. More is better and our best trap particulates in one pass at well over 90%. These purifiers continue to perform at high efficiency until a filter change is required.

• Air Flow:  Clean Air Delivery Rate CADR. CADR rating is reported in cubic feet per minute CFM of 100% particle free air is produced, the higher the number the faster the unit will clean the air. Look for the AHAM Verifide mark to see if your purifier has certified Clean Air Delivery Rate, CADR. Filtration volume efficiency is important because if you are not passing air through the filter efficiently it will not help or work properly. CADR is the combination of high filtration efficiency and high airflow.

• Filter Change Indicator Lights:  Indicator lights are extremely helpful in knowing the optimal time to change a filter especially as the machine is usually more accurate. It also helps to not changing the filter too late, which is not ideal for health, or too early which can cost money.

• Easy Filter Change:  The best units are simply the ones requiring no tools to replace filters. The best units allow you to simply pop out a door, pullout the filter and replace it with the new one. The location and design of some purifier's filters make them difficult to change making most people delay changing them beyond the change dates. Some of our easiest to change filters, on are the QuitePure, PowerPure, and Blueair. IQAir air filters are easy to change after you've done it a couple of times, but can be difficult the first time.

• Weight and Mobility:  Most but not all have casters, so you will be able to push them from room to room. However, you may have needs easy to move model whether for travel or work. We have several small and lightweight air filters which fulfill those criteria.

• Ozone Emissions and Outgassing;  Any ozone emission, which is a toxic substance, is not desirable regardless of whether the person has allergies, asthma, or multiple chemical sensitivities. However, the effects are usually worse for these people because ozone is an irritant to the respiratory system.

• Upkeep Costs;  This is another factor which is often overlooked by the potential purchaser. Many of the most expensive are often less expensive to maintain, saving you money over the life of the machine.

• The Warranty and Reliability:  The best warranties are those offering five years or more on the main fan and motor parts. A reliable model should have no problems with the motor, fan, and electrical components and controls during that time. The rest of the unit consists of the filters, which need periodically cleaning or replacement.

Our Best Brands

Here is an overview of the best brands. Please understand that all these brands produce machines that made the cut when we tested them, while a great deal more products were sent back.

Airfree  This is the only air purity brand that is not based around a HEPA or HEPA like filter. In fact, their models have no filters, relying instead on a patented technology for air sterilization and allergen incineration. Thus there is no maintenance costs associated with any Airfree model, and we have had excellent experience with their reliability. Since Airfree air sterilizers rely on natural air flow in a room because they do not have a fan, we see a single unit as better for a small room. They are also a manufacturer that backs up their claims with serious verifiable research. However, we would not recommend them for serious gas and odor removal and you will not find that household dust is reduced - but your allergies will subside.

Airpura  This manufacturer has shot up the charts in our air purifier favorites category. They have done almost everything perfectly, only falling down in our opinion with difficult filter changes [use a screwdriver and turn the machine upside down] and lack filter change monitoring. Otherwise, Airpura has learned from the mistakes of others and does a first class job at producing air purifiers which are carefully tailored to a variety of special needs, and all for a very fair price. Each of their three filters is of excellent quality and each filter removes particles(including dust), odors, dust mites, and smoke. What is unique is their units are modular and can be refigured if your application needs change at a later date.

Alen Air Purifiers  Alen is wisely positioned as providing a good air purifier for the everyone. They include True Hepa filters which is the gold standard for air filtration. They have neat designs, above average filtration effectiveness, quiet operation, very easy filter changes, low energy consumption and a lifetime warranty. We would not recommend them for serious gas and odor removal. But overall they are an all-purpose air purifier at a moderate price.

Austin Air  is extremely popular with our customers. They offer no nonsense, no frills approach to air purification but they put their money into what really counts. Very good gas and odor filtration and the air filtration effectiveness is above average. We still do not like that Austin Air combined their gas and HEPA filters as these filters degrade at a different pace than each other. Like Airpura their filters are difficult to change requiring a screwdriver and turning the machine upside down. But none the less, for our customers with serious allergy problems they are high up on our air purifier manufacturer list.

Blueair  A longtime favorite with both us and our customers and for very good reasons. Blueair’s patented HEPASilent® technology combine electrostatic, carbon and HEPA type filter technologies which result in a very high filtration effectiveness, 99.97% of airborne particles and down to 0.3 microns, with no ozone. They gain highest marks from us for their ability to deliver large amounts of purified air, with the industry’s highest CADR as certified by AHAM. Also quietly, making them a top choice for a bedrooms. Blueair offers flexibility beyond any other manufacturer with an array of platforms that cater to large rooms, small rooms, bedrooms and office, just to name a few. Choose if you want advanced integrated sensors and electronic interface, or go with their simple and rugged mechanical turning knob designs, filter options allow for focus on pet hair, mold spores, particles or combination of particles and gasses and odors. All their products are made in powder coated galvanized steel which is a testament to their quality. Their filter changes are exceptionally easy and with recent upgrades to include filter life monitoring and pre-filters, this manufacturer is still managing to keep pace and ahead of most other air purifier manufacturers.

QuietPure One of our best-selling brands of air purifiers, QuietPure products are designed to be silent in operation while still being extremely effective. We carry the QuietPure Home, QuietPure Home + Smoke, and QuietPure Whisper HEPA air purifier models. Each model uses HEPA technology to remove contaminants like dust, allergens, VOCs, and more. Of all the air purifier brands we carry, QuietPure is the most budget-friendly. Our customers have been pleased with the operation and positive impact these air purifiers have had on their indoor air.  

Winix  Winix models are well made with a pleasing space saving design, easy filter changes, offer some nice auto monitoring features, are quiet and Energy Star compliant. Best of all they offer above average performance in air filtration. These are well worth a looking at since the price is a knock out for what is being offered. We would not recommend them for serious gas and odor removal.