Best Air Purifiers for Living Rooms (Reviews & Buying Guide 2020)

Looking to improve the air quality in your living room?

Want to get rid of dust, allergens, bacteria, and other common indoor contaminants?

Then you’re in luck.

In this guide, we’ll show you how to find the best air purifier for living room areas so the air in your house stays clean and fresh.

The truth is that not all air purifiers are built the same.

And not all can handle the complexities of the air quality or size of a living room.

So, to help you get the right product for your needs, we’ll show you the top features to look for in the best living room air purifier models that make them perfect for your home.

Best Air Purifier for Living Room Comparison Chart

Here’s a chart showing the comparison between the top living room air purifiers.

We’ll go more in depth about each one later in this guide but this gives you a sense of what’s available and an easy way to quickly compare them.

Image	Air Purifier Details	Price
	GermGuardian AC5350B Air Purifier Best for small living rooms Includes a True HEPA filter, Activated Carbon filter and UV light Covers 167 square feet	Check Price
	SilverOnyx Air Purifier Best for medium to large size rooms Includes a True HEPA filter, Activated Carbon filter, UV light and Ionizer Covers 500 square feet	Check Price
	Trusens Air Purifier Best for large living room areas Includes a True HEPA filter, Activated Carbon filter and UV light Covers 750 square feet	Check Price
	AIRMEGA 300 Air Purifier Best for the largest living rooms or if you want to have Wi-Fi control Includes a True HEPA filter and Activated Carbon filter Covers 1,256 square feet	Check Price
	AIRMEGA 400 Air Purifier Identical to the AIRMEGA 300 but has even more room size coverage Includes a True HEPA filter and Activated Carbon filter Covers 1,500 square feet	Check Price

Air Purifier for Living Room Buying Guide

Top Air Purifier Features

If you want to get the best living room air purifier possible, then there are a few must-have features you need to look for.

By getting an air purifier will the features listed below, you’ll eliminate the widest range of indoor contaminants in your house or apartment.

• True HEPA Filter — This removes 99.97% of particles down to 0.3 microns in size (invisible to the naked eye). It captures dust, allergens, mold spores, smoke, and millions of other ultrafine contaminants.
• Activated Carbon Filter — This removes particles that cause odors, musty smells, and stale air. It traps volatile organic compounds, chemical vapors, gaseous pollutants, and other pollutants that can’t be absorbed by a True HEPA filter.
• Ultraviolet Light — This destroys microorganisms that live in basement spaces. As air passes through the air purifier, the ultraviolet light disrupts the DNA structure of microbes and pathogens, which renders them harmless to your health.

As you’ll discover below, each product in our list of the best air purifiers for living rooms includes these top features as effective for cleaning your indoor air.

Getting the Right Size Living Room Air Purifier

Now that you know what to look for in the top living room air purifiers, the next factor you need to consider is getting the right size unit.

Unfortunately, not all air purifiers have the same level of air cleaning power.

Each brand and model has a maximum range of room space that it can purify.

Therefore, it’s essential that you buy a device that can handle the full size of your living area.

The truth is that if the air purifier is too small, then it won’t filter the air well enough and will also use more energy to operate.

If it’s too large, then you’ll waste unnecessary money on the initial purchase and the unit will cycle on and off too much, which also increases energy use.

To get the right size air purifier, all you have to do is match up the machine’s square footage coverage with your living room.

To get the right size air purifier, just follow these two simple steps:

Step 1:

Measure the width and length of your living room. (Round the measurements up to make step two easier.)

Step 2:

Multiply the width by the length to get the total square footage (sq. ft.) for the area. For example:

• A 25′ x 20′ living room = 500 square feet
• A 15′ x 13′ living room = 195 square feet

Finding an Air Purifier that Works

Once you have your total square footage number, you can proceed to look for an air purifier that can cover that amount of space.

But, it doesn’t have to be a 100% exact match.

As long as the air purifier equal to or just above the size of your room, then you’ll be in good shape.

For example, if your living room is 195 sq. ft., you could purchase an air purifier that covers 200 or 300 sq. ft., but a 500 sq. ft. unit would be much too powerful.

And a 100 sq. ft. air purifier would bee too inefficient.

Air Purifier Reviews

Below are our recommendations for the best living room air purifiers for rooms of all sizes: small to large.

Read through each review to find the perfect device for your needs.

Additional Information on Air Purifiers

Why Use an Air Purifier in Your Living Room?

If you came here looking for more than just reviews of the top living room air purifiers, and want to know why you should even use an air purifier in your home, here is some information to consider.

The fact is that even though modern building practices are helping to reduce the problems associated with living room areas, there are still some issues that can’t be solved.

For example, some living rooms simply don’t have enough ventilation.

Additionally, not all living rooms have adequate heating or air conditioning systems which cause a lack of good air movement.

As for the building materials inside living rooms, gypsum drywall is a known source for toxic black mold to grow because it feeds off that material.

And, carpeting absorbs moisture and other contaminants that are common in living spaces.

Some living rooms have high humidity levels which cause a number of bacteria, mold, and fungi to grow, as well as odors to formulate.

Dust is also very common in living areas because that’s where people and pets spend the majority of their time.

What’s worse is that contaminated air and odors can travel to other rooms of the house too.

For example, it’s quite common for the mold spores in a living room to float upstairs or downstairs and cause a musty odor that you can seem to find.

It can also cause allergy symptoms to flare that you may confuse with dust mites.

As you can see, air purifiers are a much-needed device in living room spaces because these machines help to eliminate the particles and microorganisms that build up indoors.

And once those issues are taken care of, the rest of your home can benefit as well.

However, you need to ensure that you buy a top rated home air purifier that contains a certain set of filters to keep your home air quality fresh, clean, and free of pollutants, which we covered in this guide.

Benefits of Using an Air Purifier the Living Room

We just went over a few basic reasons for why it’s a good idea to use an air purifier in the living room.

However, there are many more benefits than just getting rid of dust, mold spores, and musty odors.

Air purifiers offer so much more for your health and comfort.

What you’ll find below is a list of the top benefits you’ll enjoy by running an air purifier in your home.

• Better Air Circulation — If you don’t have or can’t open windows in the main living area, an air purifier can help circulate the air for you. Room air is drawn into the unit, filtered, and then pushed back out into the space. This cycle creates flowing air which helps keep the air from getting stale and making the area more comfortable to be in.
• Less Dust — As air is circulated through the air purifier, dust particles become trapped in the True HEPA filter. This reduces the amount of dust from collecting inside your living room.
• Fewer Allergens — There are hundreds of different types of allergens that invade living areas. Like dust, these allergen particles get trapped inside the True HEPA filter.
• Lower Level of VOCs — If you store any sort of chemicals in your house, chances are you have VOCs (volatile organic compounds) seeping into the air. VOCs leak out of building materials, paints, varnishes, carpeting, drywall, and more. An air purifier with an Activated Carbon filter can eliminate these gaseous pollutants before they accumulate to unsafe levels in your living room or float to the upstairs.
• Reduction in Mold Spores — Some living rooms are prone to getting mold. The lack of ventilation, control of temperature, and humidity all play a factor in mold growth. An air purifier can slow down or stop the spread of mold spores in your home by capturing those particles in the True HEPA filter. And the Activated Carbon filter can reduce mold odors.
• Fresher Air — With all of the above contaminants removed from your living room air, it will become much fresher and cleaner.

Additional Tips on Buying the Best Living Room Air Purifier

Make Sure the Air Purifier Can Handle the Size of Your Living Room

As we mentioned at the start of this guide, every living room is a different size and you need an air purifier that can handle it.

You don’t want an air purifier that’s too small and underpowered for the space.

So, make sure that the model you buy can at least purify the size of the living room area you want to use it in.

Get an Air Purifier that Can Remove as Many Pollutants as Possible

There are four types of filters you want to look for in a living room air purifier.

The first two are essential (True HEPA filter and Activated Carbon filter). The third (Ultraviolet Light) is optional but can help kill off bacteria, viruses, and mold.

• True HEPA Filter — Removes 99.97% of particles down to 0.3 microns in size, such as dust, allergens, mold spores, smoke, and millions of other ultrafine contaminants.
• Activated Carbon Filter — Removes odor-causing particles to create musty smells and stale air. Also traps volatile organic compounds, chemical vapors, gaseous pollutants, and other pollutants that can’t be absorbed by a True HEPA filter.
• Ultraviolet Light — Destroys microorganisms as they pass through the air purifier, which the other two filters cannot do.

Look for an Energy-Efficient Air Purifier

These days, most air purifiers are energy-efficient, but it’s good to look for the Energy Star Label. This guarantees that your new machine will operate at the lowest cost possible.

More Ways to Improve Air Quality Without an Air Purifier

Using an air purifier in your living room is just the first step in improving your air quality.

While an air purifier can definitely clean the indoor air of harmful particles and odors, it can’t make up for poor maintenance issues that may be affecting the living room.

In addition to having an air purifier indoors, you should also do the following:

• Seal up Cracks, Gaps, and Holes — Polluted air, allergens, dust, bacteria, and mold can seep into your living room through small cracks, gaps, and holes. So, go around your downstairs level and seal up any noticeable areas around windows and entry points with caulk or foam filler.
• Keep Windows Closed — When you’re running an air purifier, you want all windows shut. This allows the unit to fully recycle the indoor air through the filters over and over again until it’s clean. If the windows are open, outdoor contaminants and moisture can flow inward and defeat the purpose of running the air purifier at all.
• Add a Dehumidifier — Depending on where you live, some living rooms are prone to moisture issues and high humidity levels, which promote the growth of mold and bacteria. Adding a dehumidifier to this space to keep humidity levels around 50% RH can prevent those microbes from growing.
• Inspect (and Repair) Any Insulation — Having good insulation will help in regulating living room temperatures which also improves overall air quality.
• Deep clean the Floors, Walls, and Ceiling — Take a day and do a thorough cleaning of every surface in your living room. Be sure to wear a respirator and protecting clothing and gloves. Doing a deep clean like this can eliminate a large number of contaminants that may be reproducing in your basement space.
• Only Use Low or Zero VOC Paints and Stains — If you’re remodeling your living room, make sure to only use paints and stains that don’t contain VOCs. The price may be more expensive but it will be much better for your health. Paints and stains with VOCs can take years to fully off-gas out of the material since it occurs at such a slow rate.

Benefits of Using an Air Purifier with a Dehumidifier in Your Living Room

Using an air purifier along with a dehumidifier can help your living room stay dry and clean.

Dehumidifiers are excellent machines for reducing humidity in living room. And, by using one, you can decrease the level of mold and fungus growth.

However, dehumidifiers don’t have any ability to filter the air. They only remove moisture.

Therefore, you need to compliment any dehumidifier with an air purifier to get maximum air cleaning coverage.

Air purifiers will remove the airborne particles that cause mold to grow and odors to persist, making your living room area healthy to be in.

Common Questions About Air Purifiers and Living Rooms

Are air purifiers good for living rooms?

Yes, air purifiers are good for living rooms.

Air purifiers help by reducing the contaminants and improving air circulation.

Living rooms that have air purifiers experience less dust, allergens, mold spores, bacteria, and other harmful toxins.

Will an air purifier get rid of musty smell?

Yes, an air purifier can get rid of musty smells.

To do that, the air purifier must include a True HEPA filter to eliminate fine particles that attribute to musty smells, like mold spores, and an Activated Carbon filter to trap the odor-causing particles, like the smell emitted by mold.

Will an air purifier make my house smell better?

Yes, a good air purifier will make your house smell better. Just make sure that it includes an Activated Carbon filter for removing airborne odors.