Whether it’s pet dander, dust, or cooking fumes, our indoor environment is prone to a wide range of air pollutants that can be detrimental to our health. In fact, the World Health Organization estimates that household air pollution is responsible for up to 3.2 million deaths per year.
While many people rely on fans or opening windows to improve their indoor air quality, this can often make things worse. This is especially true if you live in a part of Canada with poor outside air quality, such as Montreal or Windsor.
The single best way to guarantee that our indoor air quality is safe is to invest in a reliable air purifier. There are many air purifiers in Canada, all offering a different mix of features and benefits.
Our Top Picks:
- Best Overall: Blueair Blue Pure 211+
Jump to Review - Best For Large Spaces: Alen BreatheSmart 75i
Jump to Review - Best For Small Spaces: Levoit Core Mini
Jump to Review - Best Value: Coway Airmega AP-1512HH
Jump to Review - Best For Filtering Germs: TruSens Z-3000
Jump to Review - Best Smart Air Purifier: Levoit Core 300S Smart
Jump to Review
Keep reading to learn how air purifiers work, the benefits of using one, and the key criteria you should keep in mind when buying one. We’ll also highlight some of the best air purifiers available in Canada this year.
How Does an Air Purifier Work?
Portable air filters generally all work in the same way. Equipped with an internal filter and a fan, an air purifier works by pulling in particles from the air. Once the air has been filtered, unwanted particles get trapped, and clean air gets released back into your space. The process repeats continuously until your indoor air quality is as clean as possible.
The 7 Best Air Purifiers in Canada in 2024
Here is our selection of the best air purifiers you can buy in Canada this year.
Blueair Blue Pure 211+ Air Purifier
The Blueair Blue Pure 211+ is one of the best air purifiers for extra-large spaces. While it’s most efficient for spaces up to 540 square feet, it’s also powerful enough for spaces with tall ceilings or larger spaces. With a washable pre-filter and Blueair’s HEPA Silent technology, the 211+ filters your air quickly and more quietly than similar models. It’s perfect for removing allergens, odors, as well as smoke and smog.
In terms of efficiency, the Blue Pure 211+ draws in particles from all sides. It can clean the air of a 2,500-square-foot room in about an hour. The air of a 540-square-foot room could be purified in just 12.5 minutes.
With Energy Star certification, the Blue Pure 211+ is also one of the most energy-efficient air purifiers for large spaces. Even at its highest speed, it uses just 60 watts of electricity.
Another detail we appreciate about the 211+ is its ease of use. With just 1 button to deal with, there’s no need to configure any settings. It’s essentially an automatic air purifier.
In terms of size, the Blue Pure is relatively compact, measuring 13 x 13 x 20 inches. It weighs just over 13 lbs. It’s available in a few different sizes and colors. For example, the Blue Pure 121 is best for even larger spaces or for homes with multiple pets.
Alen BreatheSmart 75i Air Purifier
With a space capacity of 1,300 square feet, the Alen BreatheSmart 75i is the best air purifier for large rooms or open-concept homes. It’s also quiet and efficient. Thanks to WhisperMax technology, the BreatheSmart has a low noise level, ranging from 24 dB to 49 dB, even when operating at its highest level. It can purify the air in a 1,300-square-foot space in just 30 minutes.
In terms of air filtration performance, the BreatheSmart combines an H13 True HEPA filter with an antimicrobial layer to reduce allergens, mold, and bacteria from the air. Its H13 Medical-Grade True HEPA Filter lasts up to 15 months, which is more than double the lifespan of most. However, it should be noted that the filter costs over $200 to replace.
While the 75i doesn’t have a fancy built-in LED display, it comes with a user-friendly mobile app. It has a touch control panel that’s intuitive to understand, including an LED colour-coded ring to display the current air quality in your space.
In terms of design, the 75i is sleek and available in 6 different styles, including oak wood. That said, it can easily blend into most spaces. It weighs 27 lbs, but has a handle and wheels to help move it around.
While it’s an excellent performing high-capacity air purifier, the main downside with the BreatheSmart 75i is that it’s quite expensive to buy and maintain over time.
Coway Airmega AP-1512HH
Perfect for bedrooms and living rooms, the Coway Airmega AP-1512HH is one of the best-performing and most durable air purifiers on the market. It’s also an energy-efficient choice, thanks to its convenient ECO mode. With 3 stages of filtration, including a pre-filter, a True HEPA filter, and a deodorization filter, the AP-1512HH removes 99.99% of particles, VOCs, and odors from the air.
The AP-1512HH is particularly great for its speed and efficiency. It can purify the air in an 874-square-foot room in just 30 minutes. It also has a built-in air quality monitor that will continuously monitor the air quality in your space. The air filter’s settings will optimize based on the air quality detected in your space. This means the air filter won’t operate at full capacity if not needed.
Another perk of the Coway Airmega is its filter’s long lifespan. The filter has to be replaced just once a year, which is significantly less often than most air filters.
While the Coway AP-1512HH is easy to use with a touch control panel, it doesn’t have an LCD display which reduces its user-friendliness. In terms of its control panel, it has a 3-speed fan, an 8-hour timer, ECO Mode, Auto mode, an air quality indicator light, and a filter replacement indicator light.
Measuring, 10 x 17 x 18, the AP-1512HH is an odd shape but is nonetheless compact. However, it weighs almost 15 lbs, making it quite heavy for its small size.
Levoit Core 300S Smart Air Purifier
If you’re looking for a budget-friendly smart air purifier, the Levoit Core 300S might be for you. It’s small and lightweight (6 lbs), but powerful with a space capacity of 215 square feet. With an H13 True HEPA filter, a built-in air quality monitor, and a user-friendly app, the 300S takes air purification to the next level.
In terms of settings, the Levoit 300S features an 8-hour timer, 4 fan speeds, Auto mode, Sleep mode, and an on/off button. Thanks to its built-in air quality sensor and Auto mode function, the air purifier can essentially work at its most efficient settings without manual intervention. This means you don’t have to fiddle with settings and hope for the best. The control panel is touch-based and once you understand each button, it’s quite easy to use.
Best of all, the 300S can be controlled with an app or voice commands using Alexa and Google Assistant. With the app, you can essentially control the 300S from outside of your home.
In terms of air purification, the Levoit 300S uses a 3-stage filtration process. While its fine pre-filter captures larger particles like dust, its True HEPA filter captures all the smaller (0.3 microns) particles. Lastly, its activated carbon filter helps eliminate odors caused by smoke, pets, or cooking.
Levoit also has a similar Smart Air Purifier For Large Rooms (the 400s).
Levoit Core Mini Air Purifier
There are many small air purifiers on the market, but Levoit has truly revolutionized the market with its Core Mini air purifier. It’s small enough to sit on a desk, but powerful enough to purify the air of a room up to 356 square feet in size. Its 3-stage filtration process includes a pre-filter, a HEPA filter, and an activated carbon filter. That said, it’s excellent at reducing particles, pollutants, and odors from a small space.
In terms of efficiency, at its highest fan speed, the Levoit Mini can filter the air of a 178-square-foot room in just 30 minutes. It would take about an hour to purify the air of a 356-square-foot room. It has a low noise level of just 24 dB, so it operates quietly.
With just a few simple settings, the Levoit Mini is very easy to use. You essentially just have to turn the air purifier on and select one of three fan speeds.
In addition to filtering your air, the Levoit Core Mini has an aromatherapy setting. You can essentially fill it with the essential oil of your choice to reap the benefits of aromatherapy.
In terms of its size, the Levoit Mini is just 6.5″ wide and 10.4″ tall. It weighs just over 2 lbs, making it extremely lightweight. Its design is minimal and can easily blend into most spaces. Because of its small size, it can fit perfectly on a desk or nightstand.
TruSens Z-3000 Air Purifier
The TrueSens Z-3000 is one of the most efficient air filters for large rooms up to 750 square feet in size. It comes with an air quality monitor (“SensorPod”) that adjusts the settings based on the air quality detected. It’s a 3-stage air filter that uses both UV-C light and a True HEPA filter to capture particles, gases, and airborne germs from your space.
Asides from its sleek and elegant design, the TrueSens Z-3000 is excellent in terms of efficiency. The air filter is efficient at both capturing pollutants and releasing purified air. Its round design allows for a 360-degree filter that draws in air from all sides. After the air is purified, the clean air gets released in two directions instead of one.
The TrueSens Z-3000 is also quite easy to use, with its intuitive LED display. It features a touch interface with controls for fan speed, a timer, Night Mode, and an On/Off button. Thanks to the provided SensorPod, it will also display the current air quality in the space. An indicator light will let you know when it’s time to replace the filter.
In terms of size, the Z-3000 measures 13 x 13 x 32 inches. It’s on the heavy side, weighing 18 lbs. The TrueSens air filter has several different models to choose from, however, depending on the size of your space. For smaller rooms, we recommend the Z-1000.
GermGuardian Smart Elite 4-in-1 Air Purifier
If you’re looking for a quiet air purifier for a small room, the GermGuardien 4-in-1 Air Purifier is worth considering. It uses UV-C light, a True HEPA filter, a carbon filter, and a charcoal filter to remove airborne bacteria and germs, odors, allergens, and harmful particles from the air. It’s suitable for cleaning the air of rooms up to 188 square feet.
The GermGuardian is very easy to use, with its intuitive LCD screen. In terms of settings, it has 5 options for fan speed, an 8-hour timer, UV sanitizer Mode, and an On/Off button. It has an indicator light that will let you know when it’s time to replace the filter. We particularly appreciate the bright LCD screen for nighttime use.
The best part about the GermGuardian is its near-silent operation. This air purifier can only really be heard when running on its highest settings.
In terms of size, the GermGuardian measures 9 x 7 x 28 inches. Its tower design means that it won’t take up much floor space. While it’s a bit heavy for an air filter for small bedrooms (11 lbs), it’s easy to move around thanks to its carrying handles.
Overall, the GermGuardian offers impressive performance without the price tag of a high-end air purifier.
The Main Benefits of Air Purifiers
Whether you have asthma, allergies, or simply want to breathe cleaner air, air purifiers offer a wealth of benefits. Here are the main benefits of using an air purifier in your home:
Helps Prevent Certain Health Conditions
An air purifier can help prevent certain health problems caused by the ingestion of polluted air. According to the World Health Organization, health conditions strongly linked to air pollution include heart disease, ischaemic heart disease, lung cancer, and even cataracts. Not to mention, difficulty breathing, allergy flare-ups, and asthma.
Ingesting contaminated air over an extended period of time weakens your lungs and the rest of your body, causing these organs to work harder, and lowering your overall energy level. Breathing clean air can improve the functioning of your body so that your brain can better absorb oxygen. This will help keep you sharp and energetic.
Reduce Allergens In The Air
Air purifiers, and particularly HEPA filters, can remove up to 99.97% of air pollutants from your indoor environment. For people suffering from pet or dust-related allergies, sleeping with an air purifier close by can be life-changing.
A study published in the Yonsei Medical Journal found that HEPA air filters significantly reduced the medication requirements of people with allergic rhinitis.
Do I Need a HEPA Air Purifier?
When shopping around for an air purifier, you’ll come across the terms true HEPA filter or absolute HEPA filter. These terms imply that the HEPA filter has been proven to capture up to 99.97% of particles that are 0.3 microns.
For that reason, True HEPA filters are useful for preventing bacteria, venereal diseases, and other pathogenic diseases caused by poor indoor air quality.
