Mold is an obvious health risk in any home, but investing in an air purifier can help limit your exposure. The best among them will ideally offer HEPA-level filtration, with this level of filtration being able to trap up to 99.97% of airborne particles down to 0.3 microns in diameter. Beyond that, any other extra features are up to you: there's no shortage of air purifiers on the market with convenience features like Wi-Fi connectivity and built-in particle sensors. These features aren't strictly necessary but can provide a more pleasant ownership experience.
If you're looking for other product recommendations, check out our picks for the best air purifiers, the best air purifiers for dust, and the best air purifiers for allergies.
Of course, if you're consistently dealing with mold, you'll need to invest in more than a household air purifier and address the root cause. If the problem is humidity, you can take a look at our recommendations for the best dehumidifiers, the best dehumidifiers for basements, and the best dehumidifiers for bedrooms.
The NuWave OxyPure is the best air purifier for mold that we've tested. This unit's main selling point is its multi-stage filtration system that uses washable instead of disposable filters. This system comprises a stainless steel mesh pre-filter that can easily trap clumps of hair, two 'Bio-Guard' filters (for mold, viruses, and bacteria), an ozone filter, and a HEPA/pellet-type activated carbon filter. Except for the HEPA/activated carbon filter, which needs replacing every year, these filters have a 20-year lifespan. As expected for something this expensive, the NuWave is jam-packed with features. You can operate it from your smartphone using the NuWave Connect companion app, which also leverages its built-in particle counter to give you an overview of ambient air quality in your home. You can also use the app to set operating schedules or change the device's settings.
Actual air filtration is very good; the OxyPure provides a very high clean air delivery rate, making it an efficient option for larger rooms. It also does a fantastic job trapping relatively large particles like mold spores. That said, there's no getting around the fact that this machine is very pricey. If you don't need any of the NuWave model's fancier features, you might be better off purchasing multiple instances of a cheaper model.
Check out the Winix 5500-2 if you're looking for an air purifier that can easily deal with mold spores without totally breaking the bank. While its clean air delivery rate falls slightly behind the NuWave, it isn't by much, and it has no trouble dealing with particles like mold spores. It has a built-in particle sensor, allowing it to change its fan speed depending on ambient air quality, so you won't have to babysit the device too much.
Unlike NuWave OxyPure, this air purifier lacks Wi-Fi connectivity, which means you can't operate it from your smartphone while away from home. It has a particle ionizer that imparts a negative charge to airborne particles, causing them to clump together and fall out of the air, where you can then clean them up later. However, ionizers produce ozone, a respiratory irritant, as a byproduct. We didn't find this system to have much impact on overall unit performance, so we recommend you leave it off.
If you want a compact air purifier for dealing with mold, the Levoit Core 200S is worth a look. While it can't compete with a full-size unit like the Winix 5500-2 in terms of clean air delivery rate, it isn't bad and will do quite well in a bedroom or office. Its main filter technically isn't HEPA-certified, but its filtration performance is still sufficient to trap particles like mold spores. One advantage over the Winix model is its integrated Wi-Fi connectivity, which allows you to run the device while you're away from home, set operating schedules, and set up reminders to replace its filters. Unfortunately, unlike the Winix, it lacks a built-in particle sensor that would allow it to adjust its fan speed automatically depending on real-time air quality.
The Honeywell HPA300 is a full-size household air purifier with HEPA filtration. It has a higher clean air delivery rate than the Winix 5500-2 but is much louder and lacks a built-in particle filtration system.
See our reviewA Corsi-Rosenthal Box is a homemade air purifier made from a quartet of air purifiers and a box fan; we built our own using this guide. This setup delivers good air filtration performance but is also loud and very bulky, making it really suitable only for unfinished basements or garages.
See our reviewOur recommendations above are some of the best air purifiers for mold for most people. We factor in the price, feedback from our visitors, and availability.
That said, there's no single best option that will suit everybody; your needs will depend on your budget, the size of your living space, your tolerance for operating noise, and whether you like having a device with convenience features like Wi-Fi connectivity. If you'd like to choose for yourself, here's the list of all our air purifier reviews.