Best Whole House Air Purifiers in 2023

Last updated on January 17th, 2023

Whole house air purifiers are powerful air cleaning machines that can reduce the amount of dust in a home, remove allergens, bacteria, germs and other harmful particles in the entire house. As a result, you breathe cleaner air, power up the immune system and lower the chances of someone catching a virus, including Covid-19. So it’s not a surprise for anyone that whole house air cleaners are extremely popular among the US population.

However, before you start searching for the best machine, let me clean one thing people aren’t aware of: there are two types of air cleaners that everyone is calling “a whole house air purifier“. Let me explain them.

The first case of using this term is referring to an HVAC-installed air filter or an air cleaning unit that directly affects the air quality when it passes through the system. They are often ceiling-mounted and installed in the duct system of a house. These air purifiers are designed to clean air in the whole house, as they remove airborne irritants from all rooms simultaneously. Most of the time such air purifiers come at a price and require a certified HVAC technician to install them.

Another case of using the term is when people are looking for a portable air purifier that can be used in every room of their house. These air purifiers do not clean the air in the whole house simultaneously but can be placed at the source of the odor (in a bathroom or kitchen) or used in a large open space like the living room where homeowners spend their time the most. Due to their portability, units can and should be moved from time to time to clean air in other rooms as well. The price for one decent portable air purifier may vary from $200 to several thousand USD.

Now you are familiar with the term “whole house” and let’s see what air purifier you can get in 2023 that works and removes dust, allergens, smoke and other smells from the air indoors.

iWave-R: Best Whole House Air Purifier

Nu-Calgon 4900-20 IWave-R is the best ductwork-installed whole house air purifier. It comes at a very affordable price, is easy to install and cleans the air inside a house from various pollutants including smoke, germs, and allergens. I recommend reading my review if you want to get the whole picture.

If you don’t have time, here’s a quick recap:

• Reduces odors, removes mold and mildew;
• The house smells fresher overall and you know it’s working;
• The iWave-R doesn’t require any maintenance;
• Non-existent operating costs (a few bucks per year);
• The unit is self-cleaning;

Recommending this air purifier for anyone who wants to have the air free of smells and pollutants inside their home.

Tracs TM500: Ceiling-Mounted HEPA & UV Air Purifier

Click Here for More Specs & Full Review

Tracs TM500 is a powerful whole house HEPA & UV ceiling-mounted ozone-free air purifier that comes at a price. However, it is a true beast when it comes to odor removal and killing germs.

This air cleaner employs 2 ways of air filtration: mechanical which utilizes 2 filters and Ultraviolet Germicidal Irradiation with its UV-C lights. Let’s see what’s what.

Firstly, the air is passed through an antibacterial MERV 10 pre-filter. MERV stands for Minimum Efficiency Reporting Values and is developed by the ASHRAE. The number 10 means the rating of the filter, they range from 1 to 16 (the higher the better). Filter with MERV 10 rating removes particles from 1µm (micron) to 10µm. The minimum efficiency is as follows:

Particle Size	Efficiency
1µm – 3µm	50% – 64.9%
3µm – 10µm	≥90%

The particles of this size include dust (different types, including coal dust, fertilizer, settling) and dust mites, pollen and other allergens, bacteria, germs, mold, dander, auto emissions, cooing smoke and other.

The second filter is a medical-grade HEPA H13 filter designed to trap the smallest particles 0.3 micron in size at 99.97% efficiency. These particles include viruses, the tiniest bacteria, gases and VOCs.

And installed inside the air purifier UV bulbs finish off the remaining viruses by exposing them to UV lights. Ultraviolet light has been used since the XX century to keep the air sanitized in hospitals, and now it is available for home use too. Lamps used by the Tracs TM500 are 254nm and are completely safe and do not produce ozone.

Overall, the Tracs whole house air purifier is an ultimate solution for any type of air pollution, including the heaviest one (smoke, gases and chemicals). These UV air purifiers are installed in many medical facilities, laboratories and other commercial buildings. If the TM500 keeps the air clean in such heavily depending on breathable clean virus and bacteria free places, you can be sure this air purifier will keep your whole house free of any harmful particles 100% of the time.

Aprilaire 5000: Extremely Powerful, Works Greatly for Furnace

Aprilaire 5000 is considered by many the best electrostatic air purifier when it comes to dealing with smoke coming from the furnace. I tend to agree with this statement but have to add that this air purifier can not just remove smoke and other smells, but it also does a great job in removing the smallest viruses and tiny bacteria.

Compared to the previously reviewed air purifier, this one has a smaller rate of removing pollutants by a few percent, but has a higher overall airflow, so despite its lower initial capabilities, the number of air cycles increased substantially.

The air purifier is silent and requires only 20 minutes to maintain. Considering the Aprilaire 5000 affordable price, I’d recommend getting one if you want to have a whole house air purifier that can keep the air clean from mold, fungi, allergens, smoke and other odors. It also prevents dust build up inside a house.

Reme Halo: Powerful Whole Home In-Duct Air Purifier

RGF Reme Halo is a whole house UV air purifier with an insanely high airflow of 6500 CFM that removes all pollution at sight. I have one installed in my house – click on the button above to read the detailed review about this excellent electric air cleaner.

In short, it does its job but produces ozone that might be dangerous for people with asthma and other breathing conditions. I don’t have such issues (Thank God!) therefore I do not have any problems with it.

The Reme Halo can be used in any house or building, whether it’s small or large. A very efficient air cleaning system.

Winix 5500-2: Best Affordable Air Purifier for the Entire House

Winix PlasmaWave 5500-2 is the best-rated affordable portable whole house HEPA air purifier for any room, whether it’s a medium-sized room, kitchen or any other living space. It has passed an independent test from AHAM and has the necessary certification for dust, pollen and smoke removal.

This portable air purifier is made by the Korean company Winix and doesn’t require any HVAC technician to make it work. It’s ready to use out of the box, just plug it in and it starts cleaning the air immediately!

The air filtration process is simple yet effective: the air passes through 3 filters (pre-filter, HEPA and Carbon) and also is affected by the built-in ionizer. With the several-stage air cleaning system the air is cleaned from dander, pet hair, allergens, odors and bacteria and it also smells better.

In addition, the 5500-2 has auto mode, which automatically adjusts the speed based on the air pollution inside a house. So you don’t have to touch the button to make it work!

Obviously, it doesn’t have the power to clean all rooms simultaneously as the air purifiers reviewed before do, but it’s still a great budget whole house air purifier that can deal with most kinds of air pollution indoors.

Airdog X8: No Filters Required

Airdog X8 is a filterless whole house air purifier that can easily clean large rooms and spaces 1,000 square feet in size from various particulate matter as small as 0.3 micron. A 1,000 sq. ft. room is cleaned from any allergens, bacteria, gases, VOCs and odors.

The process used by this air cleaner is called ionization, when the wire frame creates an electrostatic field that traps airborne particles that later collected on the plate inside the unit. This plate is washable and doesn’t require a replacement, greatly reducing maintenance costs compared to the usual air filters that require constant replacements.

The Airdog also features 2 smart modes – Auto and Sleep (low, inaudible noise) and child lock. The casters allow for easy movement all around the house while a remote controller is a fine touch for the already buffed and powerful air cleaner that is the Airdog X8.

Alen BreatheSmart 75i: Smart HEPA Air Purifier for any House

Alen BreatheSmart 75i is also a popular, highly-rated HEPA air purifier for the whole house made by Alen. It can cover a room up to 1,300 square feet (yet it performs better in 600 sq. ft. rooms) and can remove food odors, pet or urine smells, tobacco smoke and other unpleasant odors.

All its hospital-grade HEPA filters (there are 4 of them available) are made to trap allergens and bacteria, so if that is your main concern for getting yourself a whole house air purifier, the Alen BreatheSmart 75i is a must. It will protect you from any allergens, whether they are coming from indoor or you have a source for them at home – like pets, for example.

FAQ

What’s better: a portable air purifier or a ceiling-mounted/HVAC?

Depends on your budget and needs. If you have to keep the air clean from allergens from all your rooms you either have to get an in-duct whole house air purifier (Tracs, iWave or a similar one) or put an air purifier in every room you spend enough time in (bedroom, living room, kitchen).

Where do you put a portable air purifier?

As I said before, it’s better to use it in a living room or other large space so it can catch air pollution from the whole house.

Can I run my air cleaner 24/7?

Whole house air purifiers are designed to work 24/7 nonstop except when they require maintenance (replace the filter, clean the air purifier, etc.)

Are whole house air purifiers worth the money?

Whole house air cleaners are definitely worth the money. They are the best when it comes to the removal of allergens, mold, viruses and bacteria.