How to Find the Best Air Purifier
From living in the midwestern and northeastern US for my entire life, I’ve never had to experience wildfire smoke like those on the west coast have had to deal with. But, with the increase in wildfires, checking my local air quality index each day and trying to avoid wildfire smoke and other pollutants have become part of my daily life. Plus, with my autoimmune illnesses and chronic inflammation, I’m particularly sensitive to poor air quality, and exposure to allergens, dust, smoke, and pet dander really knocks me down. When my old air purifier didn’t seem to be cutting it anymore, I set out to purchase a new one. Learn more about the factors I considered when shopping for my new Shark air purifier.
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means that – at no extra cost to you – I might earn a commission if you purchase something through my links. Additionally, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I never recommend anything that I don’t personally use, that I haven’t gifted to friends or family, or that I haven’t heavily researched. Please see my full disclosure statement here for further information. Thank you for supporting me & my blog!
What to look for when buying an air purifier
When I first set out to research air purifiers, it had been over 10 years since I purchased my last one, so I felt like I was starting at square one with how quickly the technology has advanced in that time. But I was really excited to dive into some online shopping to see what fun new gadgets might be out there, just waiting to make my air cleaner and easy to breathe! My old air purifier was small but loud, and I didn’t really feel it making too much of a difference over the past few years with the worsening allergy seasons, and especially this year with the wildfire smoke in my region.
Before landing on and purchasing my two new Shark air purifiers, I did a ton of research on what to look for, which I’m sharing with you here. I even bought and returned a few air purifiers, thinking I had found “the one”, only to wake up with chest pains and a scratchy throat from intense plastic off-gassing. I hope sharing with you all of the factors that I learned to consider in my purchase will help you to find the best air purifier for your home more quickly than I did.
Price range
With so many air purifiers on the market these days, there’s truly something out there for every budget. Before diving into your own research, it’s important for you to decide how much you want to spend on your new air purifier. While there are some really incredible options out there with all the bells and whistles for $600 and upwards, there are plenty of solid options for under $200-300.
Size of the space
Another factor that will help you determine how much you want to spend on your new air purifier is how big the space is that you’re trying to improve the air quality of. Are you only trying to clean one room? Or are you trying to clean multiple rooms? What’s the square footage of the space you’re trying to clean? Do you have high ceilings?
Air purifiers are categorized in size and power by the number of square feet they can filter through in a certain period of time (typically under an hour). Choosing the right size air purifier is important so you can ensure that your air purifier is capable of cleaning all the air in the room you’re trying to clean. If you get an air purifier that’s too small for your space, it won’t be able to fully clean all of the air inside of that room.
Size and type of particulate matter your air purifier will filter
Allergens come in many varieties and sizes. And although they’re small, they’re mighty! Especially if you have a sensitive respiratory system.
Dust, smoke, pet dander, pollen, and other allergens are all different sizes. These allergens are typically measured in a unit of measurement called a micron, and they’re typically categorized into different levels of particulate matter or PM for short. The most common types of PM to ensure your air purifier is capable of filtering out are PM 1.0 (viruses and other allergens), PM 2.5 (bacteria and smoke), and PM 10 (pollen, dust, and mold). Not all air purifiers filter out all of these, so it’s important to check the details of the air purifier that you’re interested in. When you’re searching for an air purifier, it’s important that you get one that’s actually going to filter these out and get the job done to help improve the quality of your home’s air as much as possible.
Noise level of the air purifier
Many people, including myself, leave their air purifiers on all of the time. If your air purifier runs loud, even at its lowest setting, you’ll likely get annoyed with the noise and will be less likely to use it. Look for an air purifier that has quiet operating noise levels or even a “night mode” feature that offers an experience similar to a gentle white noise machine.
Technology on the air purifier
I absolutely love fun technology! And so many air purifiers on the market today are high-tech and full of cool features. Some have remote controls, built-in air quality monitors, smartphone apps, or come in a variety of fun colors and designs.
However, the feature that I was most impressed with when shopping for my air purifier was an “automatic” or “eco” feature – a setting on the air purifier that allows it to sense the air quality inside my home and increase or decrease its power based on what my home’s air needs at any given time. This way, when I’m cooking or had the windows open in the afternoon, my air purifier knows to kick itself into high gear to help bring my indoor air quality back to where it should be.
How to find replacement filters, how often you’ll need them, and how expensive they are
When shopping for air purifiers, I was surprised to learn that replacement filters for some models were either hard to come by or cost an arm and a leg. Before you buy an air purifier, make sure you know where to buy replacement filters for your unit, how much they’ll cost, and how often you’ll need them based on normal use. These are all important factors to consider, especially in terms of your budget and how simple it will be for you to use your new air purifier on a consistent basis. You want your air purifier to live long beyond its filter to ensure you’re getting your money’s worth, so make sure you know the answers to these questions.
Ensure the air purifier doesn’t emit ozone or other unpleasant smells
The absolute last thing you want your air purifier to do is make your air quality worse. But believe it or not, there are quite a few air purifiers on the market that do just that. Specifically, air purifiers that rely on ionizers to filter the air actually emit ozone, which decreases the quality of your air. Additionally, some air purifiers off-gas strong plastic smells, which can be painful to breathe in for long periods of time, speaking from my own personal experience. Make sure your air purifier utilizes a HEPA filtration system and always test run the device for a few days after you buy it to ensure it’s not emitting any strange or unpleasant odors.
Consumer reviews
Online reviews are a very helpful tool when shopping online, and shopping online for an air purifier is no exception to that. Make sure you read reviews for models you’re interested in on different websites to ensure you’re getting the most holistic opinions about the product you’re looking to buy.
A few things to look out for are: How quickly do users say they needed to replace their filters? Is anyone talking about strange smells caused by the unit? How good is the customer support should something break?
Why I love my Shark air purifier
Disclosure: This post contains affiliate links, which means that – at no extra cost to you – I might earn a commission if you purchase something through my links. Additionally, as an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. I never recommend anything that I don’t personally use,that I haven’t gifted to friends or family, or that I haven’t heavily researched. Please see my full disclosure statement here for further information. Thank you for supporting me & my blog!
After taking all of the factors into consideration that I listed above, and with some trial and error, I eventually purchased two Shark air purifiers, and I could not be happier with how they perform and just how much they have improved the air quality in my home.
I purchased both the Shark HP102 Clean Sense 500 square feet model and the Shark HP202 Clean Sense 1,200 square feet model.
Although I probably would have been fine with the larger unit, I wanted to get the smaller unit, too, so that I could create a few ultra-clean rooms in my home for myself on days where the outside air quality is really poor. The recent bouts of wildfire smoke have impacted my health pretty significantly, given my autoimmune and inflammation illnesses, and these devices have helped me personally to breathe a little easier. I also like thinking that these devices help my dogs to breathe a little easier, too.
Although these particular models don’t come with remote controls or a smartphone app, I absolutely love the easy-to-use touchscreen and the Clean Sense features they have built in. Toggling through their touchscreens, I can easily learn more about the different PM levels inside of my home, how long it will take for my air to reach 100% filtered, and how long before I have to change my filter.
Both of these models have an “eco” or “automatic” feature, which I leave enabled 24/7. This way, I know that the devices are automatically increasing or decreasing in speed or power based on the real-time air quality inside my home. When my air is at 99% or 100%, they’re ultra-quiet, and I barely notice they’re running (my apartment HVAC is definitely louder than these devices). I’ve noticed the air purifier fan speed will increase if I’m cooking, if I leave the windows open for a bit, or if it’s a poor air quality day outside.
Lastly and most importantly, I have been thoroughly impressed with these particular models and all the features included on them, especially considering their price point. Although they’re not the cheapest options out there, they’re relatively affordable, loaded with helpful features, and all from a trusted brand like Shark!