Need to know
- Our experts tested 39 air purifiers from brands including Samsung, Dyson, Kmart, Ikea, Breville and more to help you decide which is the best to buy
- We score how well they remove dust, smoke and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) from the air, as well as how energy efficient and quiet they are, and how easy they are to use
- Consider joining CHOICE to see our full reviews and the best performers
Thinking of buying an air purifier to help your family breathe a little easier? CHOICE experts recommend you avoid these ones like the plague.
Our expert testers have seen plenty of good options on the market, but we've encountered some models that performed so poorly you may as well be watching your cash disappear into thin air.
Considering the cost of air purifiers, their poor performance is especially disappointing.
Many people with allergies, asthma or respiratory issues rely on air purifiers to improve their quality of life by filtering out dust, pollen, smoke and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in the home.
Some people are also turning to air purifiers as a way to help keep the air in their homes clear of germs associated with viruses such as COVID-19 (a job air purifiers can indeed do, although with limitations – find out more on how effective air purifiers are against viruses and germs).
We don't want you to end up with an average appliance, so here are the ones that scored lowest in our lab tests. Consider becoming a CHOICE member to see the best performers in our latest air purifier reviews.
The worst performing air purifier
The Radic8 Hextio H-100: Bottom of the barrel.
Radic8 Hextio H-100
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 27%
- Performance score: 8%
- Price: $630
Although it won't burn quite as big a hole in your wallet as some, this $630 Radic8 air purifier won't do much in the way of purifying the air in your house either.
It received the lowest score of all the air purifiers in our test, including a truly terrible 5% for removing dust and 10% for smoke and VOCs.
It's also very noisy when operating on its lowest setting, so it'll keep you awake at night – and not just because you're wondering whether you've wasted 630 of your hard-earned dollars by buying this dud.
And then there's the yearly cost of replacing the filters: $353 (as far as we can determine from the little information online). That's more than just about every other air purifier we tested – even the top-performing models that our experts recommend.
Our advice? Avoid this one. Check out our air purifier reviews and pick up a model that actually does what it says on the packaging.
Other poor performers
These models weren't quite as terrible as the Radic8, but they definitely won't blow you away. And while three of them come in under the $250 mark, they're anything but a bargain. Our experts recommend you avoid them.
Breville the Easy Air Connect Purifier LAP158
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 43%
- Performance score: 27%
- Price: $229
b-Mola BM50
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 43%
- Performance score: 36%
- Price: $999
Air Purifiers Australia AD-06
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 43%
- Performance score: 32%
- Price: $239
Ikea Fornuftig E1916
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 50%
- Performance score: 41%
- Price: $99
Dyson Purifier Cool TP07
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 50%
- Performance score: 45%
- Price: $899
Beurer LR200
- CHOICE Expert Rating: 50%
- Performance score: 33%
- Price: $269
CHOICE household expert Chris Barnes shares tips on what to look for in an air purifier.
Stock images: Getty, unless otherwise stated.
