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Blue air purifier surrounded by smoke

Do Air Purifiers Help with Smoke?

Have you ever sat in a smoke-filled room and felt your lungs slowly close up? Just the smell of secondhand smoke can be harmful to your health. Whether you're dealing with cigarette smoke, cigar smoke, or secondhand smoke it's important to take steps to protect yourself.

According to the World Health Organization, of the more than 8 million people who die from tobacco each year, over 1.2 million of those deaths are the result of non-smokers being exposed to second-hand smoke. If you’re a smoker or live with one, then cleansing the air of smoke particles is incredibly important to protecting your health. Air purifiers are a popular recommendation for removing harmful smoke particles from the air, and giving you clean air in which to breathe. But do air purifiers really work?

In this article, we'll break down:

So let’s dive in!


How Would an Air Purifier Help with Smoke?

According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), indoor air can be two to five times more polluted than outdoor air. With smoke particles a major source of indoor air pollution, it’s important to take steps to protect yourself and your family from the risk of developing long-term health problems. One of the most effective ways to combat smoke particles and improve indoor air quality is with an air purifier.

Air purifiers work by pulling in airborne pollutants like smoke and ash and filtering them out before recirculating clean air back into the room. Most smoke air purifiers use a High-Efficiency Particulate Air (HEPA) filter, which is designed to capture particles as small as 0.3 microns in diameter. With smoke particles, on average, 0.3 to 0.5 microns in size, they’re easily caught by the filter.

In your search for the best air purifier for smoke, you’ll see other filter types like activated carbon, and UV-C light. Each filter works differently to remove different types of contaminants from the air, but some are better suited to removing smoke than others.

  • HEPA filters are the most common type of air purifier filter and are highly effective at removing smoke and ash
  • Activated carbon filters work best at soaking in smoke-related odors and hazardous chemical fumes
  • UV-C light filters use ultraviolet light to kill airborne bacteria and viruses that may enter your home

You’ll also notice in your search that it’s common for smoke air purifiers to use a combination of different filter types to remove smoke from the air. For example, the AllerAir AirMedic Pro 6 HDS Smoke Eater uses a tar-trapping pre-filter to remove sticky tar particles, a Super HEPA filter to remove 99.99% of airborne particles 0.1 microns in size and larger, and 27 lbs of activated carbon to soak in smoke smells for years.

White air purifier in living room cleaning the air of smoke

Do Air Purifiers Help with Cigarette Smoke?

Air purifiers are very effective at helping to reduce cigarette smoke in your home. If you smoke or live with a smoker then you know how bad cigarette smoke can make you feel. Whether it's the strong odor that lingers in the air and sticks to your clothes, or the harmful health effects that come with breathing in smoke particles, air purifiers can help a lot in giving you clean air to breathe.

HEPA filters are the most effective type of filter for capturing cigarette smoke, trapping up to 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns. As air passes through the filter, these smoke particles and tar are trapped in the filter, preventing them from circulating back into the air and hurting your health.


Pro Tip: A common question we receive is, “Do air purifiers help with cigarette smoke smell, too?” And the answer is “Yes!” High-quality air purifiers for smoke will use a combination of filter types to solve a cigarette smoke and smell problem. For example, the Austin Air Healthmate Plus uses two pre-filters to capture tar and ash, a medical grade HEPA filter to remove smoke particles from the air, and 15 lbs of activated carbon to soak in cigarette smoke smells as well as toxic fumes to give you a fully-encompassing solution.


However, it’s important to remember that air purifiers are not the only answer to reducing cigarette smoke in your home. You still need to properly ventilate and clean your home which means opening windows if you smoke inside, vacuuming frequently with a HEPA filter to get rid of ash, and removing old furniture and carpet to get rid of deeply held smoke particles.


Do Air Purifiers Help with Cigar Smoke?

Air purifiers are very effective at helping to reduce cigar smoke in your home. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cigars contain the same toxic and carcinogenic compounds found in cigarettes, so the way you get rid of cigar smoke will be the same process as for cigarette smoke. So if you smoke both, then an air purifier is going to be a solid solution.

When searching for the best air purifier for cigar smoke, it's important to choose a model with a quality HEPA filter and a densely packed activated carbon filter.

  • HEPA filters are designed to filter out smoke particles as small as 0.3 microns from the air. Given that cigar smoke particles average around 0.3 microns, this type of filter is great at capturing them.
  • You’ll need the activated carbon filter as well to soak in the odors and fumes to get rid of cigar smoke smells and cancerous chemical fumes. Without it, you’ll only be filtering out the smoke particles and still have odors and chemical fumes in the air.

A final thing to note, an air purifier isn’t an end all fix for the elimination of smoke in your home. You still need to perform regular cleaning and maintenance to get rid of existing smells, and properly ventilating your home whenever you smoke.

Three men smoking cigars in suits and drinking whisky

Do Air Purifiers Help with Tobacco Smoke of All Types?

Yes, air purifiers are very effective at helping to remove tobacco smoke from the air. So if you prefer to smoke tobacco in a pipe, hookah, or vape then an air purifier can be a great solution to preventing the smoke from spreading throughout your home.

To get rid of tobacco smoke and tobacco smoke smell you’ll want an air purifier that’s equipped with:

  • Medical-grade HEPA filter that helps capture and filter out all the smoke particles like ash and tar to prevent them from sticking to surfaces in your home
  • Activated carbon filter to remove the odor by soaking it into the filter and preventing it from spreading throughout your home. An activated carbon filter will also capture secondhand tobacco smoke fumes that can be cancerous as well.

Good to Know: When searching for an air purifier for tobacco smoke it’s important to know that most units will use a combination of filter types to clean the air. It’s not uncommon for an air purifier to use a pre-filter to capture large particles like tar and ash, a HEPA filter to capture small particles like smoke, and an activated carbon filter to remove smoke smells from the air to give you the results you’re looking for.


Finally, remember that air purifiers are not a complete solution to reducing and preventing tobacco smoke in your home. No matter if you smoke a pipe, hookah, or roll your own, regular cleaning, and proper ventilation when smoking can help a lot in reducing the number of tobacco smoke particles in the air.


Do Air Purifiers Help with Secondhand Smoke?

Air purifiers are very good at helping remove secondhand smoke from the air. If you live with a smoker, then you know how difficult it can be to deal with the negative effects of secondhand smoke. The strong odor that can linger for days, and the constant worry of potential health risks associated with breathing it in are probably what got you here. So, if you’re wondering, “Will an air purifier help with secondhand smoke?”, then you can breathe easy because air purifiers are great at it.

However, not any air purifier will work. When looking for an air purifier for secondhand smoke, you’ll want to make sure it has both a HEPA filter and an activated carbon filter. HEPA filters are great at capturing secondhand smoke particles like tar and ash, with the ability to trap up to 99.97% of particles as small as 0.3 microns in size. Since smoke particles on average are 0.3 microns in size, they’re easily captured by the filter.

As for those awful secondhand smoke smells and potentially cancerous smoke fumes, an air purifier equipped with an activated carbon filter is going to be your best bet at getting rid of it. Activated carbon filters work by using densely packed carbon to soak in secondhand smoke smells and chemical fumes that are pulled through the air purifier. This prevents them from being recirculated back into the air and gives you cleaner, fresher air to breathe.

While air purifiers are a great solution for removing secondhand smoke, it's important to remember that they are only one piece of the overall strategy. When smoking begins, it’s best to open windows and provide proper ventilation to get rid of the majority of secondhand smoke. 

Woman smoking a cigarette and blowing the smoke in the air

Do Air Purifiers Help with Smoke Smell? Yes!

Air purifiers are a great tool for reducing smoke and smoke smells while improving indoor air quality in your home. They’re designed to pull in and filter out tiny particles from the air such as tar, smoke particles, and harmful chemical fumes, then recirculate clean air back into the room. However, it's important to keep in mind that air purifiers are not a complete solution to your smoke problem, and you should continue to take additional measures to reduce smoke in your home. Proper ventilation, running your air purifier on high while smoking, and regularly cleaning your house can help a lot in reducing the number of smoke particles and smells in the air.

But choosing the right air purifier for smoke can make all the difference in improving the air quality in your home. Before making your purchase it’s crucial to consider the size of the unit to the size of the space as a small air purifier may not have enough power to effectively capture all the smoke particles and odors in a larger room.

To get the best results, manufacturers recommend selecting an air purifier that is rated for at least 1.5 times the size of the room it will be used in. This ensures that it has enough power to clean the air several times over every hour, effectively removing smoke particles and other harmful pollutants. This can maximize the benefits of your air purifier and create a healthier living environment for you and your loved ones.

Investing in an air purifier for smoke can make a big difference in your quality of life and for people who suffer from secondhand smoke or respiratory issues like asthma. Ultimately, the decision to buy an air purifier is a personal one. But if you're a smoker or live with one and looking for ways to improve indoor air quality, an air purifier is worth considering.


Want to purchase an air purifier for smoke, but unsure of where to start? Check out our latest list of the best air purifiers for smoke to find the perfect unit for you.

Still, have questions? Speak with our team of world-class air purifier experts at (877) 791-8083 or send us an email at support@wellnesjunction.com and we’d be happy to help.

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