9 Best Air Purifiers for Clean Breathing (2022)

Filter replacements: The filter replacements are only $20—you can even buy a replacement pre-filter (the sleeve on the outside) for only $8—and it is incredibly easy to replace. I didn’t even need to look at the instructions, so I’d say it is very intuitive.

My experience: I really like this purifier because of how quiet it is and how there are minimal bright indicator lights to bug me at night (I really need a totally dark room). It’s also a very unobtrusive object—it tucks into a corner quite easily and has various outer sleeve color options if you do want it to pop in a room. While it doesn’t have a ton of extra features or buttons, I enjoy how simple and efficient it is—when you want a great little air purifier for your room, this is the way to go. It’s also easy to clean—I’ve used a vacuum on it and I’ve hand washed the pre-filter/cover.

According to Blueair’s website, the purifier is ENERGY STAR rated to use less energy than the average LED lightbulb, so you can keep it running all day without using too much energy. It also has a three-part filtration system, so the fabric pre-filter catches large particles like pet hair and dust and then the combination particle and carbon filter uses a layer of activated carbon to filter light household odors from pets, cooking, and smoking, while the main particle filter removes airborne particles like pollen, dust, and pet dander.

The bottom line: At $120 (or less when it’s on sale!), I think this air purifier is worth the price. It’s an ideal option for a smaller space or single room, and with its ultra quiet operation, it is a great pick for a bedroom.

Tester: Elise Portale, senior social media manager

My space: I live in a prewar apartment that is absolutely loaded with dust, not to mention that I have a cat (and light cat allergies), so my air quality is suspect for sure. My apartment is also a studio, which means that any weird smells, whether they’re from the kitchen or litter box, are inescapable if not dealt with immediately.

Area coverage: The My Happi purifier can cycle air in spaces up to 500 square feet, which is perfect since my studio is less than 400. While the appeal of bedside purification was tempting, I opted to place My Happi in the kitchen, where garbage smells, cat food odor, and other symptoms of my pandemic lockdown depression reigned supreme.

Filter replacements: Filters for the My Happi cost $35, and wow! They’re insanely easy to replace. The My Happi is literally a canister—you open up the bottom, take the old filter out, set the new one in, and close it up. I’ve had water pitchers harder to work with. You can even “subscribe and save,” getting the filters automatically delivered to you every 6 months at a 10% discount.

My experience: As someone who has never had an air purifier before, I was a little intimidated and wasn’t totally convinced it would be worth the hassle of taking up space in my small apartment. But I’ve been pleasantly surprised at how well it handles kitchen odors in particular. The key to the My Happi is the five-layer HEPA filter, which catches all sorts of particles in the air. It’s kind of incredible how much coverage this purifier has given how small the unit is—a huge plus, given I have so little square footage to give up to an appliance like this. Along those same lines, this thing is the quietest, which is ideal for a studio. If the air quality gets bad for some reason (the LED indicator changes color to indicate this), the fan picks up speed and can get quite loud, but it’s usually only for a moment or two. I’m so happy with this purifier that it’s really hard to think of any improvements. If only it could work double duty as a humidifier, then me and my eczema could be truly happy.