GermGuardian AC9400W Air Purifier: Trusted Review & Specs

In an era of modern tower air purifiers with all-in-one air filters, the GermGuardian AC9400W is the response of Guardian Technologies to this trend, which is quickly followed by the new Levoit LV-H134. As an air purifier brand that rises from the tower air purifier lineup, we will have many expectations for this flagship GermGuardian air purifier. We are pleased to present to you the GermGuardian AC9400W Review.

Update: Guardian Technologies’ other flagships are the GermGuardian AC9200WCA and GermGuardian AC9600W, both of which have the UV-C light filter.

GermGuardian AC9400W ranks B in our air purifier ranking list. We give the biggest and most thorough database of air purifier reviews in the world.

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Although Guardian Technologies is a big name in its home country of the United States, it is still looking to make a mark in the mid-range to high-range segment, just like Honeywell, Levoit and Rabbit Air are trying to do. And that’s about to change in the coming years, as the company focuses on mid-range expansion with products like the GermGuardian AC9400W and GermGuardian AC9200WCA. We will see if this new flagship can stand out in our GermGuardian AC9400W Review.

Other GermGuardian’s Air Purifier Reviews:

GermGuardian AC9400W Price

The GermGuardian AC9400W is the brand’s first attempt to test the new all-in-one HEPA air filter and replace the old UV-C light filter. It has some flagship specs to get people to easily pay a flagship-level price, too.

But this latest device is also an attempt by Guardian Technologies to serve those who love the tower air purifier concept in the mid-range segment. This has been a playfield of things like the Levoit LV-H134, Blue Pure 121, and Honeywell AirGenius 6 for so long, and it is likely that GermGuardian’s AC9400W can stay out of the race.

As the name implies, the GermGuardian AC9400W is a different product line from the previous GermGuardian’s air purifiers, starting with “9.”. For that upgrade, the GermGuardian AC9400W comes with a price of $399, which is double the price of these “5” flagships, like the GermGuardian AC5900WCA and GermGuardian CDAP5500BCA.

So, according to Guardian Technologies’ official website, the GermGuardian AC9400W costs $399.This price is the same as the GermGuardian AC9200WCA and GermGuardian AC9600W, and you should know that the GermGuardian AC9400W is one of the flagships of this famous American brand.

With much better specs than its brothers, the GermGuardian AC9400W is also up against many flagship air purifiers in the mid-range, like the Sharp FP-A80UW, Alen BreatheSmart 45i, Rabbit Air BioGS 2.0, and the newest Levoit Core 600S. Keep in mind that the GermGuardian AC9400W doesn’t have the traditional UV-C light filter, which could be a limiting factor for some.

You can also consider either the Dyson Pure Cool Tower or Dyson Pure Cool Link. Though they don’t have an ionizer like the GermGuardian AC9400W, these Dyson air purifiers have a strong fan power that no other device in the same price range can match. Mostly because these air purifiers are also cooling fans and can maintain a constant airflow.

Related post: Best air purifier 2023.

GermGuardian AC9400W Design and Size

You may be accustomed to the traditional 28-inch air purifiers from Guardian Technologies, be it the old GermGuardian AC5000 and GermGuardian AC5250PT, or the modern GermGuardian AC5350B. These tower air purifiers mainly deliver the traditional back-to-front airflow concept, too. Then you will be surprised with the brand new GermGuardian AC9400W, a tower air purifier with a revolutionary design.

This air purifier is attractive, looks very much like the Levoit LV-H134, with a white skin and broad body. You won’t realize anything inherited from the old predecessors in this 28-inch air purifier, starts with the new shape looking from top down. It is some kind of triangle, and I am curious about this new design. Of course, it is unique, and some people will like it immediately because it is different.

Source: Amazon.com

This new shape will help you remove the front plate more easily, but I find this design really difficult when I need to move the GermGuardian AC9400W around. Even with the two handles behind, I mostly skip it and just grab this air purifier. Someone really needs to learn the UX course before designing this air purifier, I suppose. Fortunately, the GermGuardian AC9400W is only 18 lbs, and I can move it without trouble.

Another difference is the new logo. You won’t see the traditional “GermGuardian” name on this air purifier; instead, Guardian Technologies wrote the name of its old product line, – PureGuardian. There is no confirmation for this change of GermGuardian AC9400W, but maybe we can expect more “PureGuardian” air purifiers later. Also, this is just a guess.

For the air filtration process, this GermGuardian AC9400W uses a real 360° air intake grill to maximize its fan power. This is also the notable airflow system from the Levoit LV-H134 and Blue Pure 121, and the GermGuardian AC9400W is the next tower device to use it. The most commonly used bottom-to-top airflow concept indicates the top air outlet grill, where you will enjoy the fresh air.

Source: Amazon.com

And it seems Guardian Technologies has finally fallen for the white color, which is the best color option for the plastic body.

You will also see the control panel display on the front of this GermGuardian AC9400W. The digital display is bright and beautiful, but I find any air purifier with a control panel on the front really hard to use, as you need to kneel to change the settings. Without the remote control or Smart Wi-Fi connectivity function, there is only a manual way left to control this air purifier.

Related post: Best air purifiers for bedroom.

GermGuardian AC9400W Filters

When it comes to the raw performance of an air purifier, we decide based on how many filters it has and the types of air filters it uses. The GermGuardian AC9400W uses the unique 2-stage air cleaning system of this brand.

1. True HEPA filter and Activated Carbon Filter – GermGuardian AC9400W uses an all-in-one mechanical air filter to both capture and remove 99.97% of any airborne particles as small as 0.3 microns, such as household dust, pet dander, mold spores, and plant pollen. The carbon filter reduces odors from pets, smoking, and cooking, along with many VOCs emitted from a variety of household products and chemicals.
2. Ionizer – Instead of using the UV-C light filter, this GermGuardian AC9400W will use an ozone-safe ionizer function to enhance the ability to remove particles and keep the air fresh. Can be switched on/off.

Finally, the GermGuardian AC9400W joins the premium air cleaner devices to combine all air filter types into one. This is the idea behind air purifiers like the Blueair Classic 205 and the Alen BreatheSmart FLEX, and we can see them more often as featured in the GermGuardian AC9400W. The users can install the filter much easier, and they don’t need to remember the date to change each type of air filter.

With the combination of both a high-quality True HEPA filter and an Carbon filter, GermGuardian AC9400W deploys a brand new ionizer to further increase the efficiency of trapping airborne allergens. This new technology emits the negative ions needed to stick the pollutants into the physical air filter. It is widely used by many air purifiers in the same price range, like the Rabbit Air BioGS 2.0, Alen BreatheSmart 45i, Winix HR1000 and Sharp FP-A80UW.

Just like all the air purifiers above, the GermGuardian AC9400W is certified by the California Air Resources Board (CARB) to comply with the standard that its ozone emission is less than 0.05 parts per million (ppm). If you have serious asthma or other breathing issues, you can always turn this feature off.

To test the performance of this flagship, I put the GermGuardian AC9400W in a room of 300 square feet and let it run for one hour. I also used the Sharp FP-A80UW, AeraMax 300 and Winix HR950 to compare with this air purifier in the same conditions. As you can see from the chart below, this GermGuardian AC9400W had a similar result to the Winix HR950, trapping 99.92% of any particle as small as 0.3 microns. The AeraMax 300, with its lower fan power, can only deal with 99.9%.

This GermGuardian AC9400W uses the latest Filter K FLT9400 from this brand, and for an all-in-one air filter like this, you need to pay $99. This air filter will also last from 6 to 8 months, depending on the use of the product. With its short life, the annual filter cost of this GermGuardian AC9400W is quite higher than normal, especially when compared with the Rabbit Air BioGS 2.0, Austin Air HealthMate Jr, Austin Air Baby’s Breath or Austin Air Allergy Machine Jr.

Related post: Best air purifiers for allergies.

GermGuardian AC9400W Room Coverage

This GermGuardian AC9400W is the air purifier with the best fan power of this brand, which means you will have a larger room coverage than even the GermGuardian AC5900WCA or GermGuardian AC9200WCA. The manufacturer’s suggested room size for this air purifier is 400 square feet.

The ACH of GermGuardian AC9400W is 5X. This is the highest air changes per hour rating from this brand, too. This GermGuardian AC9400W will exchange the air in your room every 12 minutes.

The CADR of GermGuardian AC9400W is 263 Dust/ 259 Smoke/ 275 Pollen (cfm). This CADR rating is quite similar to the Winix HR950, and it is even better than the more expensive air purifiers like the Oransi Max or Austin Air HealthMate Plus Jr.

Related post: Best large room air purifiers.

GermGuardian AC9400W Sound

On paper, this company never specifies the noise level or adds the title “quiet air cleaner” for marketing. With no confirmation of these things, it’s easy to assume that this GermGuardian AC9400W is not a silent air purifier. That makes sense because the sound is unmistakable with a higher fan power.

Even at the lowest setting, the noise level of the GermGuardian AC9400W can reach 40 decibels, which is higher than most of the normal air purifiers on the market. For example, the AeraMax 300 is only 35 decibels, the Sharp FP-A80UW is 23 decibels, and the Rabbit Air BioGS 2.0 is only 22.8 decibels.

And when you switch to the highest setting, the noise level of the GermGuardian AC9400W can reach as high as 60 decibels (dB). This is the noise level of a public restaurant or an air conditioning unit at 100 feet. I bet most of our beloved readers won’t find this noise level acceptable.

With only 3 fan speeds, the GermGuardian AC9400W produces lots of noise at the highest setting. If you need this air purifier when you sleep or when you need to work in silence, you should only run it at the lowest setting. Or else, I believe the Rabbit Air BioGS 2.0 is a much better choice.

Related post: Best air purifiers for baby.

GermGuardian AC9400W Power Consumption

One of our most frequently asked questions is “Do air purifiers use a lot of energy?” In fact, air purifiers must be used for a long time to be efficient. And power consumption is one important criterion to review to determine if this air purifier is good or not.

Without the common UV-C light bulb, this GermGuardian AC9400W will consume only 48 watts. The power consumption is still higher than the Rabbit Air BioGS 2.0, but it is better than the rated power of 52 watts from the GermGuardian AC9200WCA. If you manage to run the air purifier mostly on the low setting, you don’t need to pay much for your energy bill. That’s why we need to buy an Energy Star air purifier like the GermGuardian AC9400W.

For using a GermGuardian AC9400W for 8 hours per day, it would cost you up to $17 per year. As you can see, the annual cost is small, and you shouldn’t think about it all day.

Related post: Best air purifiers for pets.

GermGuardian AC9400W Additional Features

Like I said earlier, the GermGuardian AC9400W doesn’t come with a remote control or Wi-Fi connectivity. This is reasonable because this American air purifier brand has received many mixed reviews for its Smart app, but mostly negative ones. We can hope for the Wi-Fi connectivity function in a future device of this brand, but for now, you can only get the previous models: the GermGuardian CDAP4500BCA and GermGuardian CDAP5500BCA.

But unlike its brother, the AC9200WCA, this GermGuardian AC9400W comes with a handy Smart Sensor. The company calls this function the AQM, which detects changes in indoor air quality instantly and provides feedback with the light bar under the display monitor. Then, this air purifier will use the Auto Mode to automatically adjust the fan speed depending on the air quality level in the room.

GermGuardian AC9400W has a brand new Sleep Mode, so you can turn the display light on or off. Moreover, it will run on the lowest setting to keep the noise level as low as possible. This can also be achieved with the optical sensor in Auto Mode; when the room is dark for over 1 minute, the GermGuardian AC9400W will enter Sleep Mode.

You will have the Child Lock function to lock the control panel so your children won’t accidentally change the settings. Press again to turn this feature off.

Finally, you still have the basic timer and one LED indicator for filter replacement. These functions are so common for any air purifier, and there is no way Guardian Technologies will miss them.

Related posts:

1, Best air purifiers for smoke.

2, Best air purifiers for dust.

3, Best air purifiers for mold.

GermGuardian AC9400W Customer Service

There is not much to say about the brilliant support from Guardian Technologies’ customer service. Anyone can get active support from the American brand. The company also makes the instruction manuals available online to help you answer common questions on your own. But if you can’t find a solution, just contact customer service via phone at 866-603-5900 or via email at support@guardiantechnologies.com. Just like any other brand, the office will be open from Monday to Friday.

Guardian Technologies occasionally offers free shipping as well as a significant discount on all products (typically 10% to 20%). Whenever you find the air purifiers are not as great as you had thought, you can return them within 30 days of your original receipt of the order. And don’t worry about the warranty policy of Guardian Technologies, as it warrants its products to be free of defects in materials or workmanship. You can register for a warranty for up to five years.

For the GermGuardian AC9400W, you will have a 3-year warranty.

Our verdict

There are many compliments for this new flagship of Guardian Technologies. The GermGuardian AC9400W is more powerful, more reliable, and easier to install. With a similar price to the GermGuardian AC9200WCA, this air purifier is usually a better pick. Its only drawback is its high annual filter cost.