In this video we’re breaking down the five best portable air conditioners in 2021. For you I’ve included options for every type of consumer. If you’re looking for a portable air conditioner for your personal space, small to medium-sized rooms or even larger spaces, I’ll have the product for you.
The fifth product on our list is the Evapolar evaCHILL. This is our best portable personal air cooler. The Evapolar evaCHILL is perfect for cooling your personal space whether it’s at your desk or by your bedside. You can feel cool and refreshed for about 100. The evaCHILL is actually a three in one device that cools, humidifies and even cleans dust particles from the air giving it exceptional value for the price.
The six-and-a-half-inch square cooler barely takes up any space and it’s completely portable with a built-in carry handle, so you can easily take it from room to room. And I really like that it’s USB powered, so you can even use a power bank giving almost unlimited options on where you can use it including in the backyard poolside, picnics, and even camping.
It’s definitely a convenient way to control your personal microclimate up to about 45 square feet for added comfort. While cheaper USB fans just blow the same hot air back at you, I think it’s great how the Evapolar evaCHILL has its own cooling system so you can actually enjoy cool air making it perfect for those hot summer nights.
The LED lighting is really soothing especially by the bedside keeping you cool while you sleep since it runs whisper quiet. It uses a tank of water and the power of evaporation to cool the air. There’s no pump to move the water and instead uses a cartridge that sucks up water using capillary action. There are different speed modes so it’s handy for different uses from low, medium, high and even turbo fan mode.
Each cartridge will last anywhere from three to six months depending on use and additional cartridges cost about thirty dollars. The Evapolar evaCHILL is a great way to control your personal space, so it’s cool and comforting. And the fact that it’s so portable and can be powered by a USB power bank means you can be cool just about anywhere.
The fourth product on our list is the BLACK+DECKER BPACT10WT. This is our best portable air conditioner for small to medium rooms. The BLACK+DECKER BPACT10WT is a powerful portable air conditioner to keep your small to medium-sized spaces cool with the added benefit of easily moving it from room to room where you need cooling the most for about 380 dollars.
Installation is easy, just use the simple window kit, plug it in, turn it on and just chill. You get 10 000 btu of cooling power to cover about 150 to 250 square feet which is about a 15 by 17-foot room making it ideal for apartments, dorms, cabins, offices and even different rooms in your house. With the integrated carry handles and four caster wheels it’s easy to move from one room to another, its compact size doesn’t take up much room and measures just 16.5 by 11.5 by 26 inches.
The 3 in 1 design lets you operate it in cooling fan and I really like that it can be used as a dehumidifier as well to cut down humidity making your space more comfortable. Unlike a lot of portable ac units, the b-pack 10 WT is bucket-less and has a self-evaporating operation that makes your living space cool, clean, and dry. But keep in mind that this unit needs to be next to a double hung or sliding window.
The B-pack 10 WT comes with some nice features like precision programming and the electronic controls are clearly shown on the LED digital display. Plus, you get a 24 hour on and off timer as well as a convenient sleep mode.
The filters are really easy to remove, and you can just wash them in the sink. And what I like about this unit is that at the end of the summer season it’s easy to store without much hassle. The black decker b-packed 10wt has 10 000 btu of cooling power and its three-in-one functions plus portability make it an appealing budget option for those looking to cool small and medium-sized spaces.
The third product on our list is the SereneLife SLACHT128. This is our best portable air conditioner and heater combo. The SereneLife SLACHT128 is an excellent portable air conditioner that I think will appeal to a lot of people. It gets top marks for quality and performance and offers more cooling capacity than the black decker, but what sets it apart from most portable ACS is the added heat function in addition to the regular cool, fan, and dehumidifier features, so it’s useful all year round for about 520 dollars.
It’s got a very sleek design despite having a 12 000 btu air conditioner 12 000 btu heater and a 1.8 liter per hour dehumidifier all built in. The portable air conditioner and heater combo is great for making rooms up to about 425 square feet feel comfortable all year long. I like that it features a swing mode with a moving wind vent so whether you’re cooling or heating your space you’re getting faster and maximum air circulation.
The setup is easy and similar to the black decker using a window kit that comes included. The wheels make it convenient to move from room to room allowing you to cool one room, dehumidify another room and even heat a different room at different times of the year. It has a low noise level motor but it’s still going to be noticeable at times.
It’s rated to operate around 56 to 59 decibels which is just a little louder than the hum on most refrigerators so it should be okay for most environments. The control panel is simple to use with an easy-to-read led display and the included remote with a digital touch button control panel lets you conveniently control the unit, including setting the 24-hour timer or sleep mode.
The SereneLife SLACHT128 is a powerful portable air conditioner and heater combo offering 12 000 btu for both cooling and heating as well as having fan and dehumidifier modes making it an excellent investment for year-round use.
The second product on our list is the Whynter ARC-14S. This is our best overall portable air conditioner. The Whynter ARC-14S is considerably bigger than the serene life but the monolithic size is able to put out 14 000 btu of cooling capacity and able to comfortably cool up to 500 square feet plus it’s also got some pretty impressive features for around 520.
I think it’s a great option for cooling large offices, classrooms and definitely living rooms in a short period of time. Unlike most portable ACS that only use one hose the winter uses two for better airflow and faster cooling. It works fast and efficiently on only 1250 watts making its efficiency ratio much higher than most, so it uses less energy that results in lower electrical bills compared to other units in its class, but even with this much cooling power it doesn’t really get any louder than the serene life.
Like the black and decker, the winter also gives you the three different operating modes so you can run it as an air conditioner, fan, or dehumidifier. It also uses a similar window kit for setup and the operation is easy and straightforward, especially with the convenient LCD screen.
You can select mode, adjust the temperature and control the fan speed according to your needs. It also has a 24-hour timer plus a thermostat control, and you can control it all with the included remote control. I like how the winter uses a dual filter system. There’s a pre-filter to remove dust from the air and a second activated carbon filter to help neutralize smells in your home and improves the overall air quality of your space.
Measuring 19 by 16 by 35.5 inches the winter arc 14s is definitely on the larger side of portable ACS but you’re getting a powerful 14 000 BTUS of cooling capacity and is one of the best portable ACS around making it ideal for anyone that needs to cool larger spaces up to 500 square feet in a short period of time.
The first product on our list is the LG LP1419IVSM. This is our best smart portable air conditioner. The LG LP1419IVSM isn’t just lg’s best portable air conditioner. It’s also one of the best available with its smart features and unique dual inverter setup making it up to forty percent more effective and energy efficient than non-inverter types for about six hundred seventy dollars.
It matches the winter arc 14s with a 14 000 btu cooling capacity so it’ll efficiently cool the same size of space up to 500 square feet, and although the winter is one of the more energy efficient models around with an energy efficiency ratio of 11.2, the LG edges it out with an EER score of 13.8 for better cost savings.
Now what I really like about the LG is the smart functionality. In addition to the included remote you can use LG’s SmartThink app, which is good, but it still requires you to pull out your phone which can be inconvenient. If you have a smart home, you’re going to love that the LG works with google assistant and amazon Alexa, plus depending on how your smart home is set up you can program all sorts of routines to really personalize the LG to cater to your preferences.
Like the serene life and the black decker, the LG also has a three in one operation letting you run the ac, fan, or dehumidifier depending on your needs. It also features an auto swing air vent to help with airflow allowing your space to cool faster.
Even though it has the same power as the winter the lg runs much quieter between 44 to 53 decibels depending on the fan speed, so it’s a great option for bedrooms too. The LG LP1419IVSM has a powerful 14 000 btu cooling capacity and with its dual inverter setup is one of the most energy efficient portable air conditioners around and if those aren’t reasons enough it also has smart functionality to work with google assistant and amazon Alexa. It’s a little pricey but I think the power performance and features definitely make it worth the investment.
