If you are thinking of trying to make your home’s oxygen more palatable for consumption, you may wonder how much is an air purifier. Some of the best air purifiers, after all, are on the expensive side. So what features increase the cost of air purifiers and what are their average prices? Keep reading to find out.
KEY TAKEAWAYS:
- Air purifiers vary wildly in price, with budget-friendly portable air purifiers clocking in at $50 to $80 and high-end models averaging $300 but increasing to $900.
- The price of a purifier depends on its feature set, its power to eliminate airborne particles, energy efficiency, and any additional functionalities, such as smart app integration.
- When purchasing a purifier, don’t forget to budget for monthly energy use and replacement filters.
How Much Should You Expect to Pay for an Air Purifier?
There are plenty of different types of air purifiers out there, each of them with a unique price range. Generally speaking, an average consumer air purifier with an included HEPA air filter costs around $100, though that figure can rise to $300 or more with the addition of certain features. Hospital-grade models that answer the question “what is better than a HEPA filter”, rise to $700 and above. Some ultra-portable travel purifiers and air diffusers are extremely budget-friendly, at $80 or less, but lack many of the purification features of their more powerful cousins.
Insider Tip
No matter which purifier you choose, be sure to keep it maintained according to the manufacturer’s instructions.
What Factors Impact the Cost of Purifiers?
As you can tell, modern purifiers, including the top-rated air purifiers for asthma, are available with a wide range of price options. What drives up these prices? Let’s take a look.
Power and Filtration Technology
No matter what type of purifier you choose, be it an ozone generator, carbon filtration unit, HEPA filter, or a UV-based model, it all comes down to power. In this definition, power refers to how much air it can purify in a single minute. This CADR number, or Clean Air Delivery Rate, measures the performance of residential air purifiers. Obviously, the higher the CADR number, the more expensive the air purifier. If you are looking for something to quickly purify larger-than-average living rooms, for instance, you’ll pay more than when shopping for a simple bedroom unit.
Moreover, you’ll want to maintain your device, so it’s important to know why your air purifier is not working, if an air purifier can clean more than one room, and what is the best size air purifier for your needs.
Energy Consumption
Don’t forget energy consumption as you total up the cost of buying and using a purifier. Most purifiers are intended to be running at all times, or at least for multiple hours throughout the day. This adds up to an increase in your monthly utility bill.
Replacement Filters
Some purifiers include reusable air filters that get cleaned every couple of months, but HEPA filters and many other types of filters must be discarded and replaced. Unfortunately, replacement filters can be pricey, going anywhere from $40 per unit to $100 per unit.
F.A.Q.S
What can an air purifier do for you?
These purifiers increase the indoor air quality in a pre-determined number of square feet. In other words, they capture tobacco smoke and other contaminants via carbon filters, HEPA filters, or related technologies.
How do HEPA filters work?
HEPA filters work by trapping harmful particles, which stay inside of the filter until it is disposed of. These filters work differently than carbon filters, for instance, and other types.
What if you just put a furnace filter on a box fan?
This would do for an extremely small room with minimal square feet, but would not be advisable for long-term use as a furnace filter is not designed to capture most airborne particles and to increase indoor air quality.
STAT: The Association of Home Appliance Manufacturers (AHAM) oversees the CADR rating program. As part of this program, products are randomly selected and independently tested to confirm they continue to meet the performance levels. (source)
