How we test fans and portable air conditioners at Ideal Home
We review every fan and portable air conditioner we recommend to you, testing them in our own homes. This is how we do it and why you can trust us
Here at Ideal Home, we take our product recommendations very seriously. After all, we've be doing it for more than 100 years.
As Ideal Home's Renovation and Home Energy Editor, it's my job to share tips, tricks and products that will help keep your home a comfortable temperature all year round. And that includes reviewing the best fans and best portable air conditioners you can buy.
Article continues belowHow we test fans and portable air conditioners
We assess fans and portable air conditioners through various stages, including:
- Unboxing and set up
- Appearance
- Specification
- Ease of use and effectiveness
- Cleaning and maintenance
- Running costs
- How it compares with similar products.
Our initial testing window is a minimum of two weeks, but we will carry on using the products over longer periods and we often write about our experiences 12 months+ down the line.
How we assess unboxing and set up of fans and portable air conditioners
With so many of us ordering fans and portable air conditioners online, then how they arrive at our homes really matters. As well as assessing how well the products are packaged, and ensuring that they arrive in pristine condition, we also check how much of the packaging is recyclable at home.
We also pay close attention to how easy the fans and portable air con units are to assemble, and whether they can be done by one person or whether you need a second pair of hands for some or all of the process.
How long it takes to go from getting the products out of the box to when it is up and running is also an important consideration, so we make sure to time this so you have a realistic idea of what's required.
How we assess looks
If you are going to have a fan or portable air conditioner out in your home, then it should be effective and ideally look good at the same time.
When it comes to fans, we make sure we test a range of fan types, from pedestal to tower, and from more traditional to cutting edge designs. If the fans are height adjustable, we make sure we try the fan out in all of its variations to see which might be most suitable for your home.
For both fans and portable air conditioners, we make sure we track the dimensions for every product we test so that we can make accurate recommendations on which are suitable for small spaces and those that will need a bit more room.
On top of that, we also look at details like display screens and control panels, in addition to any accessories.
How we assess the specification
For every single fan and portable air conditioner we test, we carefully track the specification details, including recommended retail price, dimensions (which we verify), wattage, room size suitability and how noisy it is (which we measure ourselves using a decibel meter app).
This not only ensures we can readily compare similar products to save you the hassle of having to do it yourself, but it also means we can check the manufacturers claims against our real world experience.
How we assess how easy and effective fans and portable air con units are to use
Some elements of our testing process come down to personal opinion, but as we make sure that our team of reviewers are experienced in testing certain types of products, you can rest assured that they are sharing their informed insight.
We make sure our testers use the products for a minimum of two weeks before they even start writing the review so they really get to grips with it. If feasible, we'll test the product in multiple rooms of our homes so that we can best advise where it would best suit your home. We'll always share the specifics around where we tested the products and how big the rooms were. If there are different ways of operating the fan or portable air con, via on board controls or a remote control for example, we will try both ways to see which we prefer and why.
Our testers are also tasked with being really explicit in their reviews as to how it feels to use the fans and portable air con units they are testing. How quickly can they feel the effects, how far away and what does the room feel like while the product is running. Those things are ultimately why you might be looking to buy a new fan or portable air con unit, so we try our best to explain exactly how you might find it in your own home.
How we assess cleaning and maintenance
Effective maintenance is essential in order to keep your fan and portable air conditioner in good working order. And so this is an important part of our testing process.
We check manufacturer guidelines and see how often we need to clean the product during out initial testing window of at least two weeks. We also try out the maintenance that might be needed after longer periods of usage, and assess how easy it is and how long it takes.
How we assess running costs
Running costs are important considerations, so as well as tracking the wattage of the fans and air conditioners we test, we'll also work out exactly how much they will cost you to run for an hour. In our in-depth buying guides, we will compare these running costs (based on the current energy price cap) alongside things like room size suitability and price so you can easily compare out top picks.
How we compare with other products
As we put all of the fans and portable air conditioners we test through the same process, it means we can compare them of a level playing field so you can have full confidence in our recommendations. Our recommendations are always based on our in-depth knowledge and personal experience so we're well-versed in what good looks like, and what it takes for us to think a fan or portable air conditioner is great.
We also assign each item we review a dedicated star rating, which is a key factor in determining whether a fan or portable air conditioner we've reviewed is impressive enough to make it into our best of the best buying guides.
This is how our star ratings work:
5 stars - a supremely impressive fan or portable air conditioner that exceeds our expectations and cannot be faulted in any way.
4.5 stars - an impressive fan or portable air conditioner, but it leaves us wanting a bit more, so it doesn’t quite hit the 5-star mark.
4 stars - a high-quality fan or portable air conditioner that is worth your money but may need some fine-tuning before it suits every customer and every home.
3 stars - a good fan or portable air conditioner that works well but doesn't blow us away with its specs or price tag. In some cases, it may not heat a room as effectively as competitors.
2 stars - an affordable fan or portable air conditioner that will suit most budgets but is under-specced and lacks key features.
1 star - we would not recommend this fan or portable air conditioner as it is underwhelming and does not work as intended.
Our reviewers
As Ideal Home's Renovation and Home Energy Editor, I'm in charge of all of the site's heating and cooling content, which includes our heater, fan and air conditioning reviews and advice. A seasoned pro when it comes to product reviews, I'm a stickler for effective products that offer great value for money.
Jenny spent years testing all matter of small appliances for the House Manual section of Idealhome.co.uk, including fans and portable air conditioners. She now focuses on putting dehumidifiers and air purifiers through our rigorous testing process.
Lauren may be Ideal Home's Certified Vacuum Expert, but she's also spent countless hours testing fans for the brand. Lauren also leads on our air care content, which includes air purifiers, so she's a key reviewer for any dual purpose fans with air purification capabilities.
A homes journalist with more than 20 years experience, Natasha has an exceptional eye for detail which makes her incredibly thorough when it comes to product testing in her own home.
Rachel Tompkins is a freelance reviewer who helps the Ideal Home team put products, including portable air conditioners, through their paces to find the top recommendations for our readers.
After completing a Home Economics degree, Helen went on to work for the Good Housekeeping Institute and has been reviewing home appliances ever since, including some of our portable air conditioners.
Zoe is a freelance journalist and content strategist with almost – gulp – 20 years of experience. She's worked for the BBC, STYLIST, Marie Claire, heat, Wallpaper*, InStyle, The Sunday Times Style, Ocado, Christie's and more. Zoe started product reviewing in 2021, and has since tested around 1,000 products, including portable air conditioners, to find the best.
A regular contributor to Ideal Home, Rebecca has also put portable air conditioners through their paces in her family home.
Caroline has reviewed portable air conditioners for Ideal Home, bringing her background in ecommerce and technology journalism to the homes world since the start of 2021. She has been in the industry for more than a decade, working for magazines and websites across industries as including IT Pro, Expert Reviews, Coach and The Week.
Joanne is a freelance journalist who regularly reviews household and garden appliances for Ideal Home, including some of the best fans on our list.