Dozens of air purifiers are tested wired every year. This is what we want (2025)

If I put a box on the side of it and couldn’t master the product to lift it off the box, it was the first strike. Wired considers accessibility, which means handling and wheels on heavier air purifiers. When I review a unit, I think of people with lower upper body strength, able to move appliances, and whether they can manipulate at home. I moved the air purifier around my apartment; I didn’t have to bend over to adjust the position of the purifier.

Once you unbox the air purifier, it’s time to pair it with the app. Not all air purifier wired tests have an application, but if you do, the pairing process should not be complicated and does not require a lot of time. The best user experience is when the air purifier has a QR code to open the app and add the device. An application with a simple dashboard that corresponds to the AQI color code and usually requires the use of a smart remote, although it is a reward if the application gives the expected filter life.

I prefer a simple power bar design that shows the percentage of the life of the filter used. While air purifier models offer advice on when to replace filters (e.g. every six months), or when to replace filter indicator lights to glow on the device, nothing is better than a mind that exactly how much filter life is used.

Internal air sensors, lighting and fractions

While some air purifiers had internal air sensors when they first started testing in 2018, most of the purifiers we tested now have them now. If the purifier has an internal sensor, there is usually an indicator light. Next question: Does the air purifier have an easy to observe or read indicator light or Air Quality Index (AQI) score? If it is a smart air purifier, the sensor reads for the device’s application. I prefer the indicator lights that follow the EPA’s color code. This means green air, suitable for moderate yellow, unhealthy orange, unhealthy red, very unhealthy purple, and the dangers of maroon. Some companies (such as Coway) have their own opinions on color codes, which can be confusing.

Photo: Lisa Wood Shapiro

Although Coway’s air purifiers have always been the highest draft pick on the Wired, if one thing I could change them, it would be their custom color scale, blue means good and green means moderate. More and more air purifiers also show the air quality figures of their internal sensors. Most of the time, the air purifier will display a reading of PM 2.5. If the internal sensor senses the rise speed in PM 2.5, the automatic mode will trigger higher fan speeds, and the indicator may display orange and red, as well as PM 2.5 numbers (like 100). I should be able to see the light throughout the room and the numbers should be easy to read.

Then there are some models that use their own scoring system, such as the shark’s model. For example, a score of 100 represents quality air when Shark’s “Neentchange” displays, but a 100 pm 2.5 would be considered unhealthy.

Photo: Lisa Wood Shapiro

shark

No replacement of air purifier

Noise and size matter

I think the labels on the air purifier are intentionally confused. The square footage usually listed on the product is one Exchange hourly air per hour at the highest purifier environment. How many times can an air purifier clean a room’s air in an hour. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommends five air exchanges per hour. If you have a room of 200 square feet, your air purifier needs to be able to use a fan to pull the room’s air into the filter. The air passes through the filter, PM 2.5, VOC is captured by the filter, and the clean air is released back into the air at least five times within an hour. Usually, wired won’t recommend an air purifier that can only clean abnormally small spaces. And, while those cute desktop or miniature air purifiers may seem like an easy solution, they are usually too small to effectively clean the air in an average-sized room.

Wired also uses a decibel meter to check the manufacturer’s decibel claims. In most cases, decibels are close to the decibels listed on the purifier user manual. Sometimes they are louder. What’s too big? The buzzing sound of the refrigerator is between 40 and 50 decibels. The dialogue is about 60 decibels. Ideally, an air purifier should be able to clean air in a room five times an hour without sounding like a conversation. And, if the air purifier is bigger – louder and louder – we will include it in our review, or do not recommend it, compared to the manufacturer claims.

If the air purifier is too large at its highest fan setting, the user will likely reduce the fan speed to a quieter, more efficient setting, making the air purifier nothing more than a health prop. Another problem with the wiring is that when the air inlet exceeds the external ventilation hole, pet hair is incredibly accumulated outside the air purifier.