Air Purifier buying guide 2024: Important terminologies, must-have features, things you can miss and more

air purifier buying guide

Winter is almost here and pollution levels are expected to rise in the coming months. The one good solution to beat the pollution levels is buying an air purifier, which is a little more complicated than it looks.

Ask why? Well, because of the wide variety and options available in the market that can confuse you when making the purchase decision. And, all that jargon, simply makes things more complicated.

Also, the most important aspect of buying an air purifier is to differentiate between necessary features and good-to-have features and with this buying guide we expect to solve just that for you and help you make an informed decision.

First, let's look at important jargon and what they mean for air purifiers

AQI: Stands for Air Quality Index and it indicates pollution level in the air. The higher value means poor air quality.
PM2.5: Stands for Particulate matter smaller than 2.5 microns. They can enter into the lungs and bloodstream to cause health issues.
PM10: Stands for Particulate matter smaller than 10 microns, including PM2.5 and larger particles.
VOC: Stands for Volatile organic compounds, these are harmful gas from products like paints and furniture.
CADR: Stands for Clean air delivery rate which indicates how much air an air purifier can clean.
HEPA: Stands for High-efficiency particulate air filters that capture a wide range of particles.
MERV: Stands for Minimum efficiency reporting value, rating filters based on particle capture.
Ioniser: It is a technology that releases negative ions to make particles stick to surfaces, but may be ineffective.
ACH: Stands for Air changes per hour, measuring how often the air in a space is completely replaced.

Now, you are well versed with most commonly used terms related to air purifiers. Let’s get started with what’s important and things you can give a miss to save on the buying cost.

Budget
India is a price-sensitive ma rket and the first thing you should decide is how much you want to spend. However, what we recommend is you can also factor in other parameters before finalising the price. For instance, the size of the room, the pollution levels in your surroundings and so on.

Important things you should not miss

Room size
This is perhaps the most important aspect of buying an air purifier after all you want to know how much area you want the air purifier to clean. For this look at the air purifier’s ACH value. The higher the value, the more efficient the air purifier is. For instance, for a smaller room, you can opt for a smaller air purifier which has a low ACH rate, but to effectively purify a big space, you’ll need a more capable air purifier.

Here’s a reference table as per Environmental Protection Agency (EPA):

Most air purifiers come with washable pre filter, but some offer disposable ones too. Avoid the latter to save on long-term running costs. Also, HEPA filters and HEPA-type filters are different so pay attention to that while buying. The safest option is “True HEPA filters.

These are a few of the most important aspects of air purifiers when it comes to filters.
But, there are more, for instance, there are activated carbon or charcoal filters that can trap gas and VOCs. Or, you can also find the ones that come with Ionisers. All these extras are good to have and you can give a miss if you are on a tight budget.

CADR rating
We’ve already explained the CADR rating to you. But, it is there to help buyers understand the overall effectiveness of the air purifier for various particles. The higher the value the more effective the device will be. For instance, CADR 200 for pollen means it can reduce the pollen by 200 cubic feet of fresh air per minute.

Noise levels
No one likes it when things get too noisy and that applies to the air purifiers as well. We recommend you check the noise levels before buying. The most important part is to check how much noise the air purifier makes when running at max speed.

Filter replacement cost and accessibility
Air purifiers require filter replacement from time to time. You need to check for the part cost before buying and how easily they are accessible to keep using it for longer period.

Good to have features
Wi-Fi connectivity: Having this feature is good as it will allow you to schedule the operating times, start it automatically when air quality drops and more.

Filter-replacement indicator light: Well, usually this should be an important feature, but if you have been using the air purifier for a long time you will know if the filters are dirty and anyway you need to clean the prefilter from time to time.

Programmable timer: This is a useful feature and allows you to run the air purifier for a set time.