12 Best Charcoal Air Purifiers In 2022 | Reviews And Buyer’s Guide

Can’t seem to get rid of that lingering odor in your bedroom? Well, it’s time you started looking for an air purifier.

Foul or unpleasant odors are often associated with impure or unclean air inside your home. Imagine this: you go to a friend’s home, and while entering, you are hit with a heavy, stinking odor. A position you would not want to be in!

So, to spare your friends the same experience, you should get a good air purifier. More specifically, you should get a charcoal air purifier, as conventional air filters may not be able to eliminate molds, pathogens, and gases that cause bad odors.

But then, once you start looking, you will see that there are dozens of charcoal-based air purifiers available on the market today. Thus, to help you choose, we have made this list of the top 12 charcoal air purifiers.

Let’s get to it without wasting any more time!

12 Best Charcoal Air Purifiers

1. LEVOIT Air Purifier

LEVOIT is a well-known lifestyle brand that produces different home care devices, such as vacuums, humidifiers, as well as air filters. In this regard, the Levoit LV-PUR 131 air purifier is another great activated charcoal filter that you can use. It comes with high-quality natural charcoal that enhances its function considerably.

Why Did We Like It?

This air purifier has a considerably large coverage area, which is what attracted our attention. The ideal room size for this filter is 360 square feet. However, it is capable of purifying rooms that are up to 900 square feet in size with relative ease.

Furthermore, this charcoal air purifier uses only the best quality charcoal naturally sourced from coconut shells. You also get an activated carbon filter that has over 20,000 columns, which increases the surface area for absorption.

It works well with the in-built HEPA filter to remove 99.9% of pollutants. Moreover, the model comes with a filter indicator, timer functions, and an auto mode for automatic operation. All of these features help purify and filter the air in your apartment constantly. In addition, this air purifier is relatively more affordable, which provides excellent value for money.

What Could’ve Been Better?

All the features that this air purifier comes with can easily make it a practical choice for your home. However, there is one aspect that you may find somewhat troublesome. The motor and fans are relatively noisier, which can cause some disturbance, especially if you install it in your bedroom.

2. Blueair Blue Pure 211+ Air Purifier

Blueair is a brand that manufactures some of the best air filtration systems available today. The Blue Pure 211+ is the flagship air purifier of the Blueair brand and with good reason. It ensures 3-stage purification that eliminates any air pollutant, thereby making it a great choice.

Why Did We Like It?

The Blueair Blue Pure 211+ is a very efficient and powerful air purifier for large rooms. This air purifier comes with a 3-step combination filter alongside the activated carbon filter. It can effectively eliminate any particulates from the air, such as pet dander, dust, and smoke. The purifier also features the innovative HEPASilent technology that eliminates foul odors and harmful gases.

Another attractive aspect of this unit is its compact and simplistic design, which makes using this filter hassle-free. The pre-filters have a 360-degree air intake for maximum purification efficiency. It can easily eliminate 99% of all airborne pollutants from your rooms.

In addition, this filter is energy-efficient and comes with an energy star rating. As a bonus, the washable pre-filter fabrics come in two different colors, and additional colors can be separately purchased. This will allow you to customize the filter according to your preferences. 

What Could’ve Been Better?

Given some of the innovative features, this air purifier comes with a hefty price tag that can put it out of your reach if you have a small budget. However, if that’s not the case, it is a worthy option for your room.

3. Bissell MYair Air Purifier

Bissell is an international brand known for its wide range of household care products. So, here we have reviewed the MYair 2780A by Bissell, which is a compact air purifier. However, despite its size, it offers a powerful performance at a very attractive price tag.

Why Did We Like It?

The Bissell Myair 2780A is more of a personal air purifier, due to which it has a compact design. Therefore, we found it convenient to carry it around with us. You can also place this filter anywhere in your room without having to sacrifice a lot of space. In addition to its portability, this filter has a silent operation so that you are not disturbed when switched on.

As for the functionality, it comes with a 3-in-1 filter that includes a pre-filter and a high-efficiency filter in addition to an activated carbon filter. This ensures that almost all airborne particles and volatile organic compounds (VOC) are eliminated.

Furthermore, this air purifier comes with simplistic LED controls that make it easy to use and maintain. And the price of this purifier provides excellent value for your money.

What Could’ve Been Better?

Considering that this is a personal air purifier, the coverage area isn’t that large. So, if you have large rooms, then this unit will be inadequate for your needs. Also, this is not a true HEPA filter model, so many functionalities typical of HEPA filters are absent.

4. Blueair Blue Pure 411+ Air Purifier

When it comes to air filtration systems, there are only a few brands that can compete with the quality and consistency of Blueair. And so, here we are with another Blueair air purifier – the Blue Pure 411+. This is a personal air purifier with a compact form factor suitable for smaller rooms.

Why Did We Like It?

The Blueair Blue Pure 411+ is a worthy contender for a personal air purifier, thanks to its performance. An activated carbon filter acts to remove any gases or odors, while the HEPASilent filter technology removes almost all airborne particles. The combination of the two effectively provides 99.7% efficiency in purification.

In addition, the compact design increases the portability of the filter without compromising on performance. You can safely use it for your smaller rooms without needing to worry about space. 

Moreover, the model is quite energy-efficient, so you can use it for long durations. And it operates silently so that you are not disturbed. As a bonus, this air purifier is highly customizable, as it can be equipped with washable pre-filter fabrics that come in 6 different colors. 

What Could’ve Been Better?

This air filtration system obviously has a lower coverage area, so it’s inadequate for larger rooms. Also, due to its compact design, it lacks several convenience options, such as auto mode and timers. So, if you want those features, this is not the ideal choice.

5. GermGuardian Air Purifier

The GermGuardian brand, which is a part of Guardian technologies, consists of different medical-grade air purifiers that provide clean air for your home. Therefore, the GermGuardian AC5250PT is no different. It is a 3-in-1 filter that eliminates all kinds of allergens, dust odors, and airborne particulates.

Why Did We Like It?

Thanks to the different air filtration and treatment methods, this air purifier provides really clean and healthy air for your home. The HEPA filter eliminates dust and particulates, while the activated charcoal filter eliminates odors. Furthermore, the UV-C light and titanium dioxide treatment help to eliminate any germs, pathogens, and VOCs from the air.

In addition to the above, this air purifier comes with 3-speed settings that allow you to adjust the purification rate. It also comes with filter status indicators that make it relatively easy to monitor and use. So, once it is time to replace a filter, these indicators will conveniently let you know.

Another aspect of this air purifier is that it comes with a 5-year warranty. So, you can safely use this purifier without any risks of malfunction.

What Could’ve Been Better?

Despite having the above features, one major drawback of this air purifier is its minimal coverage. At most, you can use it optimally for medium-sized rooms, but if you have large rooms, then using this filter is somewhat ineffective. 

6. Bissell air320 Smart Air Purifier

The air320 smart air purifier is another high-performance air purifier from Bissell. As evident from the name, this air filter comes with a smart auto mode, which makes operating this purifier extremely convenient. Furthermore, it comes with HEPA and activated carbon filters to provide clean air for your home.

Why Did We Like It?

This air purifier has a maximum coverage of 1582 square feet, albeit at a slower rate, which we found to be the most interesting aspect. Furthermore, it has a 3-stage filtration process that eliminates 99.97% of germs and particulate matter up to 0.3 microns small.

Thanks to the pre-filter, the medical-grade HEPA filter, and the honeycomb-structured activated carbon filters, most gases, odor, and particulate matter are easily eliminated. Also, we found that the rate of purification was faster for smaller rooms.

The Automated CirQulate system makes it so that the fan speeds can be automatically adjusted by the air quality sensors. This eliminates the need for manual control, thereby improving convenience. And despite having a robust, commercial-grade fan, it is relatively easy to maintain.

What Could’ve Been Better?

As it has been advertised, this fan comes with 5 fan speeds. While the lower speeds are optimal, the highest fan speed increases the noise and power consumption of this air purifier drastically. So, this aspect can be a little problematic if you are planning to use it in this setting.

7. Instant Air Purifier

Instant is a well-known brand that manufactures a wide range of kitchen and home appliances. They have also made some forays into the air purifier market, and the AP100 air purifier is a worthy testament to their efforts. It is a compact and portable air purifier that boasts excellent performance.

Why Did We Like It?

We were pretty curious to see how the Instant AP100 air purifier performed, and we should say that we were not disappointed in the slightest. This purifier can cycle the air of a 126 square feet room 5 times in an hour. It is also capable of purifying the air of a 615 square feet room, albeit at a slower rate.

It comes with a 3-in-1 filtration system that purifies the air at 99.9% efficiency. The HEPA 13 filter removes any dust or airborne pollutants, while the carbon filter uses activated charcoal to remove any odors and harmful gases. A unique plasma ion technology complements both these filters to improve performance further.

This air purifier is relatively easy to maintain and use, thanks to the auto mode and smart sensors. It can automatically adjust fan speeds by detecting the air quality of the room. Furthermore, it indicates when a filter needs to be replaced with a new one. 

What Could’ve Been Better?

The Instant AP100 is a remarkable air purifier that performed well beyond our initial expectations. However, while using this air purifier, we encountered a minor inconvenience that can be a little annoying. Furthermore, despite claiming to be silent, this purifier generates quite some noise that you may find a little disturbing.

8. Winix Air Purifier

Winix is a brand that is quite well-renowned for manufacturing good-quality air purifiers. It develops innovative air filtration systems, and the Winix 5500-2 air purifier is no exception. This charcoal carbon filter comes with the innovative PlasmaWave technology that helps reduce odor and harmful allergens.

Why Did We Like It?

The Winix 5500-2 is an excellent charcoal air purifier that can live up to its positive user feedback. This filter comes with the innovative PlasmaWave technology that successfully eliminates any harmful allergen and breaks down chemicals to remove odor. As a result, it effectively complements the true HEPA filter that captures almost all airborne pollutants in your room.

In addition, this filter has a large coverage area of 360 square feet, which is sufficient for large and medium room sizes. Furthermore, the carbon filter is washable and uses activated charcoal to remove any odors and granular pollutants from the space.

On top of that, it comes with several convenient features, such as quiet operation, remote control, LED air quality indicators as well as smart sensors. You may find these sensors to be quite helpful, as they can automatically adjust fan speeds or turn the filter on or off.

What Could’ve Been Better?

Overall, we were pretty impressed with the performance of the Winix 5500-2 air purifier. However, one minor issue that we noticed while using it was that the remote control is somewhat erratic and prone to external interference. So, if the air filter is placed close to other remote-controlled devices, there may be some interference, which can be annoying.

9. KOIOS Air Purifier

For this review, we have the air purifier from the reputed home and kitchenware manufacturer KOIOS. The KOIOS air purifier is especially great if you have large rooms, as it has a large coverage area. It also comes with other features that you may find helpful.

Why Did We Like It?

The KOIOS air purifier can effectively filter the air of any medium or large room at a relatively fast speed. Thanks to the true HEPA filters and activated charcoal filters, all dust, smoke, and other particles are removed. On top of that, the UV-C light and ionizer eliminate any harmful pathogens to provide clean and healthy air.

It also has an air quality sensor that will inform you about the quality of the air in the room. There are 4 different fan speeds and timer settings that you can control via the remote controller. Moreover, you can see the lifetime of the different air filters so that you can timely replace them.

Furthermore, it has a very silent operation, which ensures little to no disturbance. In addition to that, it is highly energy-efficient, so that you don’t have to worry about your power bills.

What Could’ve Been Better?

KOIOS did a great job with this air purifier, as it can effectively purify the air of any large to medium size room without any issues. However, this air purifier cannot be used continuously for a long duration, as it starts to affect its performance.

10. TEC.BEAN Air Purifier

TEC.BEAN is a relatively new and lesser-known brand compared to some of the other brands in our review. However, that doesn’t mean that the TEC.BEAN air purifier is bad. It is quite the opposite, in fact, as the compact size and powerful performance make this air purifier pretty underrated.

Why Did We Like It?

The TEC.BEAN air purifier packs quite a punch for its size. Thanks to its true HEPA filter and efficient activated charcoal filter, it is able to eliminate odors, harmful chemicals, and dust particles effectively.

This air purifier is also highly compact and lightweight, which makes it very portable and convenient. You can place it anywhere in your room without needing to worry about space constraints. 

Furthermore, it comes with an adjustable night light, which, coupled with its low noise, makes it a great choice for your bedroom. It comes with a smart filter change indicator that makes it easy to maintain. On top of that, it features 3 fan speeds, adjustable timer settings, and a child lock, which adds to the convenience of this air purifier.

What Could’ve Been Better?

While this air purifier has a compact and lightweight design, we found the build quality to be somewhat poor. The materials used are not up to par, due to which, it is prone to scratches and deformations. So, you will have to use this air purifier very carefully to prevent any damage.

11. Purafide Air Purifier

The XP360 air purifier is manufactured by the renowned air purifier brand Purafide. With considerable experience in manufacturing air purifiers, the Purafide XP360 comes loaded with a range of features. This is an air purifier that can be used for large rooms, thanks to its multi-stage filtration process and high-quality filters.

Why Did We Like It?

To be honest, the wide range of features that this purifier comes with is quite overwhelming. It has an ergonomically placed display that indicates different stats such as particle sensing, humidity, temperature, and filter life besides fan speed and timer.

Furthermore, the 6-stage filter includes a pre-filter, 2 HEPA filters, UV treatment, activated charcoal, and an ionizer to ensure maximum purification efficiency. The two HEPA filters can last up to two years, and the other filters also have a long lifespan. So, this filter is capable of eliminating unwanted smells, dust, dust mites, and any other harmful particles in a large room or apartment.

In addition, this filter has 5 fan speeds, a 24-hour timer, and a child lock as well. You can also switch the UV and ionizer on or off as per your requirement. 

What Could’ve Been Better?

Since this purifier has so many features, the price is somewhat high compared to some of our other choices. So, if you are on a tight budget, then this is not a very feasible choice, even with all of its features.

12. Rabbit Air A3 Air Purifier

Rabbit Air is widely known for making premium quality air purifiers. Therefore, the Rabbit Air A3 is known for its sleek design and an equally commendable performance. It is a wall-mountable, multi-stage air filtration system that can be used for large rooms.

Why Did We Like It?

The Rabbit Air A3 truly feels like a premium purifier, thanks to its sleek design and heavy-duty performance. It can filter 8,560 cubic feet of air every 30 minutes, which is sufficient for a room of 1,070 square feet. Furthermore, its 6-stage filters include pre-filters, BioGS HEPA filter, and an activated charcoal layer, which eliminates most odor and particles to deliver fresh air.

In addition, this purifier is wall-mountable, which makes it versatile enough to be used anywhere. Being wall mountable also ensures that it cannot be damaged accidentally by pets or children. Besides, it consumes less energy and requires little to no maintenance, thanks to its durable design. However, if it still gets damaged, it is covered by a lengthy 5-year warranty.

The wifi connectivity is an added bonus, through which you can control the purifier from anywhere. Furthermore, it has a relatively quiet operation which adds to the convenience.

What Could’ve Been Better?

With the Rabbit Air A3 SPA-1000N purifier, you really get a power-packed performance and high levels of convenience. However, all of these features come with a significant price tag, which can put it out of your reach if you have a low budget.

Charcoal Air Purifiers Buying Guide

We’re sure that you have gone through our entire list of charcoal air purifiers by now. In fact, you might have noticed that all of the products we have reviewed are not just charcoal air purifiers.

That naturally might give rise to some confusion in your mind. If you want a simple charcoal air purifier, why do you need to worry about HEPA filters, ionizers, and the likes, right? A simple list of charcoal air purifier bags would have sufficed.

Therefore, to clear that confusion, we have prepared this buyer’s guide so that you can make an informed decision by considering some essential points. Some of these points make quite the difference between simple charcoal bags and specialized air purifiers.

So, read on to know what these points are.

1. Coverage Area

A critical point that you need to consider is the area that your purifier can cover. Simple activated charcoal bags do not have any electronic fans, so they have minimal coverage area unless you are using large air purifier bags that eat up your space.

So, a good air purifier has a large coverage area, thanks to its electric fans, which can effectively purify larger areas at a faster pace. In that context, the size of your room also plays an essential role in determining the best possible purifier.

2. Supporting Or Complementary Filters

A simple activated charcoal air purifying bag will do nothing more than filter volatile organic carbons and mask odors. That still leaves harmful particulates and pathogens which cannot be filtered by activated charcoal bags.

So, you should get an air purifier that comes with additional filters, such as HEPA filters, UV filters, and ionizers. These complementary filters help to purify the air more completely. In this regard, the number of supporting filters determines how effective a purifier is, with a higher number of filters offering greater purification.

3. Noise Levels

When choosing an air purifier, one of the first things you need to look up is the noise that it generates. Obviously, powerful air purifiers that have high fan speeds will create more noise, but even then, good-quality air purifiers will generate relatively less noise even at high speeds.

4. Price

The price is an aspect that you obviously need to consider when getting a charcoal air purifier. In this regard, you may think that simple charcoal bags are the most affordable. But considering the additional features of an electronic air purifier, you will get a better value for your money. 

Charcoal Air Purifiers Frequently Asked Questions ?

Do you still have some unanswered questions that are hindering your decision-making process? Fear not, for we have compiled some of the most commonly asked questions for you. We hope this will clear your confusion. Read on to know what these questions are

Top Charcoal Air Purifiers Verdict

With a rapid rise in pollution and an emergence of new diseases, it has become essential to own a charcoal air purifier. Thanks to this, at least the air in your homes can be clean and fresh, not to mention odor and smoke-free.

And so, to help you choose from the different charcoal air purifiers out there, we have prepared this comprehensive review-based guide. Now that we have arrived at the end of this, we sure hope that we have been able to help you make up your mind.

Before we go, let us mention our best choices. The LEVOIT LV is overall our top pick, thanks to its features and price. If you want more affordability, then the Blueair Blue Pure 211+ is the one to get. But if you are seeking features and reliability, then the Bissell MYair Air Purifier is a great choice.

With that being said, it is time to wrap up for now. Take care!

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