Identical air purifiers can have completely different effects on indoor air.
It all depends on where you place the air purifier.

The air purifier’s efficiency can be increased by as much as 20% if it is properly placed. More importantly, if you place it in a corner or behind a television, you can lose up to 50% of its capacity.
Air purifier placement is sometimes offered by companies. According to Dyson air purifier specifications, they are either ‘floor’, ‘desk’, or ‘tower’ units.
One thing we need to clarify about all other air purifiers is:
What is the best place to place an air purifier in the room?
In order to answer this question, we need to focus on where the biggest is in the room:
- Pollutant concentration (dust, smoke, mold spores).
- A purifier should be placed in the hallway where there is the most air exchange in the apartment/house (not in the corner).
You should consider these and many other factors when deciding where to place an air purifier.
Here’s the deal:
We can help an air purifier perform better simply by choosing the right location for it by considering all 7 rules.
7 Rules Of Where To Put Air Purifier (Or Where Not To Place It)
Where should I place my air purifier?
It’s important to realize that you can gain 20% efficiency from placing an air purifier correctly. But even more important is to know where not to put it; you can lose up to 50% of its air-cleaning power.
1. Place It Near Worst Air Pollutants (Smoke, Odor, Mold Source)
Placing an air purifier where there is a high concentration of pollutants is advisable. When determining where the pollutants are concentrated, an air quality specialist usually uses an air quality monitor.
However, we don’t need special help here. Each of us can use our senses to determine where air pollutants are concentrated. Examples include:
- Your eyes: Pollutants such as smoke and mold are clearly visible. For better results, place an air purifier near the mold infestation. Smoke purifiers can be placed near the smoking area. Use the powerful Blueair air purifiers to combat wildfire smoke, but move them closer to the windows where the smoke is entering your home.
- Your nose: Bad-smelling air is a sign of a high concentration of pollutants, such as tobacco smoke or oil smoke.
- Allergic reactions: Do you react to allergies more frequently in the bedroom than in the kitchen? It’s a good indicator that allergens are more concentrated in the bedroom, so it will help you choose one of the best air purifiers for allergies. The Alen BreatheSmart air purifier line is specially designed to improve sleep quality. Alen air purifiers are some of the best on the market.
When placed near the most problematic areas (with lower indoor air quality), the air purifier can improve the quality of the air quickly.
2. Put Air Purifier 3-5 Feet Off The Ground
There are two specific directions in which air circulates indoors:
- Horizontally: Door to door, for example.
- Vertically: The movement of air from floor to ceiling, caused by a slight temperature difference.
You already know that hotter air rises. When you place an air purifier off the ground (3 to 5 feet is ideal), you capture not only the horizontal air movement but also the vertical air movement. For example, smaller air purifiers such as Medify Air, Levoit, and Coway can easily be placed on the desk.
Ideally, an air purifier should be mounted on the wall. 3-5 feet off the ground, wall-mounted air purifiers can be installed in places with maximum airflow.
Therefore, an air purifier can use plenty of air. Air can be quickly cleaned by sucking it into the device.
It can be kept on your desk at the office. Smaller units (under 10 lbs) are suitable for that purpose. You can place an air purifier on the nightstand or a window sill in the bedroom.
Placing the air purifier on the wall is the best option. To hang it on the wall, you have to elevate and secure it in much the same way as you would a painting.
Simply put, don’t place an air purifier on the floor.
3. Put It In Places With Highest Airflow (Doorways, Walls, Near Window)
Air purifiers can draw in air very effectively. However, if you allow as much air as possible to flow into the air purifier, the air purifier will be able to clean the air faster.
Putting an air purifier near a window or a doorway, and especially on the walls where the air moves, makes a lot of sense.
Moving air also contains more large-sized pollutants. Moving air is powerful enough to lift dust, mold spores, and other pollutants. By using a Winix air purifier or Honeywell air purifier, we can prevent this from happening.
Pollutants are also captured near entry points, such as front doors or open windows, which act as a first line of defense against pollutants that might otherwise disperse throughout our homes.
4. Don’t Place Air Purifier In A Corner (Low Indoor Airflow)
However, it is not a good idea to place an air purifier in a corner. There are less airflows in corners. You prevent an air purifier from purifying the air effectively if you place it in a corner.
Evidently, that corner has excellent air quality. Even so, the air quality in other rooms would not be affected as severely as it would have been if the air purifier had been placed properly.
Here are three reasons why an air purifier should not be placed in a corner:
- Low indoor airflow.
- On the floor.
- Blocked in two directions.
You can seriously reduce the purifier’s ability to function if you place it in a corner. As an example, you would never place a Dyson HP01 air purifier in a corner.
5. Don’t Put Obstacles In Air Purifier Vicinity (Optimize Airflow)

Prevent obstacles from affecting Avaya. Airflow through the air purifier must be unimpeded.
You could put an air purifier behind the TV. To function at its fullest, an air purifier should have at least 3 feet of space in all directions.
Books are usually another problem. An air purifier improves indoor air quality. It makes sense that people enjoy reading books in a fresh air environment. A pile of books placed near an air purifier, however, may impede its ability to create maximum airflow.
Try to give air purifiers space as a general rule. Providing it with more space will make its job easier and faster.
6. Avoid Places With High Humidity (Bathroom, Cooking Area)
Heavy air is caused by high humidity. An air purifier spells trouble because:
- Creating airflow from heavy air requires more energy.
- Humid air will reduce the capacity of filters (especially HEPA filters).
We think that an air purifier would be useful in two places in our house:
- The kitchen. Because of all the odors. When we boil water in the kitchen, the humidity rises, reducing the effectiveness of an air purifier.
- Bathroom. A shower can cause the relative humidity to rise above 90%. Those kinds of humidity will strain the air purifier to its limits.
It goes without saying that places with high humidity are also known for being perfect breeding grounds for mold. Mold infestation will usually develop in the bathroom.
In such a case, a dehumidifier might be a better choice. Additionally, you can use an air purifier when you’re not using the bathroom actively (during the night, for instance). Keep in mind that relative humidity should not exceed 50%.
Note: If you need to increase humidity in your home (usually during the winter), you can check out the best air humidifiers for large spaces here.
7. Don’t Put It Near Electronic Devices (TV, Stereo, Microwave)
Whenever we ask, ‘Where should I put my air purifier?’ we’re usually thinking about optimizing the airflow through the air purifier.
There is one thing to keep an eye out for – and it doesn’t impede airflow – and that is electronic devices.
Microwaves, TVs, and stereos might interfere with the air purifier’s function. Avoid putting the purifier in close proximity to electronic devices. As far as electronic interference is concerned, sophisticated new tech air purifiers like Molekule Air could be particularly vulnerable.
A minimum of 5 feet should be respected.
Final Thoughts
By bringing an air purifier into the living room and baby room, for example, we increase access to polluted indoor air. If this is not addressed, the air purifier may not be utilized effectively.
You can make a bigger difference in an air purifier’s effectiveness by moving it around than by placing it perfectly in a single room.