Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Air Purifier: Trusted Review & Specs

While the Honeywell AirGenius 6 is occasionally unavailable in Amazon stores, the Honeywell AirGenius 5 remains the brand’s tactical flagship, featuring an exclusive ifD air filter. Well, we are happy that we can finish the series of HFD models in this Honeywell AirGenius 5 Review (it has been 3 months to test all four of the HFD models).

Update: If you are looking for the Honeywell HFD flagship, you should look for the Honeywell AirGenius 6.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 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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As you’d expect of a flagship, this is the best Honeywell HFD model yet, and despite the small improvements, Honeywell AirGenius 5 is the ace to keep pace with Blueair Sense+ or GermGuardian CDAP5500BCA. If you own a Honeywell AirGenius 3 or a Honeywell AirGenius 4, you may be best served holding out for later, when its successor, the HFD360B is penciled in to arrive. Now, check out the Honeywell AirGenius 5 Review.

Other Honeywell’s Air Purifier Reviews:

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Price

Prepare to be confused. Just like Guardian Technologies and Blueair with their insanely similar products, Honeywell is stepping into this field with a trio of HFD Model air purifiers, including the Honeywell AirGenius 5.

With so many of the same materials being used both outside and inside, the Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 is not a price bump compared with the Honeywell AirGenius 3 or Honeywell AirGenius 4. The original starting price is around $299, and it reduces to only $209. For the current price, Blueair Sense+ and GermGuardian CDAP5500BCA are the most competent rivals with this Honeywell AirGenius 5, especially when they are packing with Smart features, something that you can only find from the best air purifiers of Honeywell, not this Honeywell AirGenius 5.

As usual, here is the latest deal on the Honeywell AirGenius 5.

Related post: Best air purifier 2023.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Design and Size

One distinguishing feature of Honeywell’s modern HFD models is that they retain the same appearance from version to version. This is mostly due to the really short life cycle of the Honeywell AirGenius 5, which is popular among the North American air purifier brands like Guardian Technologies, Honeywell and Austin Air.

Following the same patterns, Honeywell AirGenius 5 keeps the same size of 27-inch tower air purifier with the same design philosophy as Honeywell AirGenius 4, which is starting to feel a little dated. If you were hoping for something radically different, then prepare to be disappointed.

There is no difference between the Honeywell AirGenius 5 and its predecessor, and no one can tell them apart. You will still have a big air intake from the back and one air outlet grill on the front. Yeah, that’s the same airflow system concept from the very first HFD Model, and it continues on this Honeywell AirGenius 5.

Again, the minor change is only on the top controller, with a more advanced timer button and one more level of fan speed setting.

Source: Amazon.com

Honeywell AirGenius 5 is only 13 lbs, which is the same with HFD300 and HFD310. Personally, I can’t tell why Honeywell doesn’t stop selling the old models if the difference is too small to see.

Related post: Best air purifiers for bedroom.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Filters

On the air filtration front, Honeywell AirGenius 5 is using the same air filter as its predecessors, which is a 2-stage air filtration system with the core of an ifD air filter.

1. Pre-filter – Honeywell AirGenius 5 uses a normal pre-filter. This pre-filter can capture larger particles before they enter the ifD filter. Also, the pre-filter is washable and therefore permanent.
2. ifD filter – The Honeywell AirGenius 5 employs an innovative ifD filter to capture up to 99.9% of contaminant particles as small as 0.3 microns, such as pet dander, mold, viruses, bacteria, and pollen. This air filter adds an Activated Carbon filter to help deodorize the air and reduce odors.

The unique ifD air filter, which stands for Intense Field Dielectric, is running across all of these. I’d like to think they’ll all be nearly identical air purifiers in almost every way, but judging by the slightly more fan power in this Honeywell AirGenius 5, the performance rating test is a little bit lower for this air purifier. The ifD air filter is a breakthrough, permanent filtration method that is highly effective against all types of airborne particles that are larger than 0.3 microns.

Again, I set up a test in a room of 150 square feet with these Honeywell AirGenius 5 and Honeywell AirGenius 4, and let them run for 1 hour. Just as I expected, both the Honeywell AirGenius 5 and AirGenius 4 had the highest efficiency of 96% to deal with all allergens as small as 0.3 microns. This is also the Honeywell AirGenius 6‘s efficiency.

It works like an ionic air filter and, therefore, can emit traces of ozone. Once again, there is still no on/off button for the ionic feature, and I highly recommend that users with asthma or other breathing issues avoid using this Honeywell AirGenius 5 to stay safe.

The ifD air filter HRF-K2 is a permanent air filter and will remove the inevitable annual filter cost from other True HEPA devices. Also, it is only $17, so if you want to purchase a new filter, you won’t need to think twice.

Related post: Best air purifiers for allergies.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Room Coverage

The Honeywell AirGenius 5 employs the same fan as the Honeywell AirGenius 4. The room coverage is about 250 square feet, which is staying the same for the trio of HFD models.

The ACH of Honeywell AirGenius 5 is 5x. With such a high ACH rating, the Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 can clean your room every 12 minutes.

The CADR of Honeywell AirGenius 5 is 160 Dust/ 161 Smoke/ 170 Pollen (cfm). With such a CADR rating, this air purifier can clean your room a bit faster than Blueair Sense+ and GermGuardian CDAP5500BCA, but not by much.

Related post: Best large room air purifiers.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Sound

There is one advantage to not having True HEPA filter in your air purifier: the silence of its fan. It’s really difficult for a good True HEPA air purifier to deliver a quiet noise level. Luckily, thanks to the ifD air filter, Honeywell AirGenius 5 (and others in HFD Models) is really quiet.

With five fan speeds, the Honeywell AirGenius 5 is a must-have air purifier in any quiet place, such as your office or bedroom.

Related post: Best air purifiers for baby.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Power Consumption

Our most FAQ, as one of the most important criteria when deciding to buy an air purifier, is “Do air purifiers use a lot of energy?” In fact, air purifiers must be used for a long time to be efficient.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 has the same power consumption as the HFD300 and HFD310, with a maximum power consumption of only 38 watts. Despite having twice the fan power of the current best-seller, the Levoit LV-H132, this air purifier uses the same amount of energy. Well, if you really need to conserve energy, this Energy Star air purifier is good for you.

It could cost you up to $14 per year to use a Honeywell AirGenius 5 for 8 hours per day.

Related post: Best air purifiers for pets.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Additional Features

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 comes with the same typical additional features as its predecessor, like an oscillation function button to help move the air forth and back. The advanced timer is now up to 12 hours with more settings, and you still have the accent light function.

However, there are still no smart features like a smart sensor or Wi-Fi connectivity. For the same price, both the GermGuardian CDAP5500BCA and Levoit Core 400S can provide you with these luxury features. It is really a big minus for the Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320, especially when the performance rating of this air purifier is not a big jump from the previous model.

If you are looking for a Honeywell smart air purifier, you can also look for the Honeywell HPA180 and Honeywell HPA830.

Finally, we will have a LED indicator to know the filter status. It is really necessary because we don’t want to remember the date manually.

Related posts:

1, Best air purifiers for smoke.

2, Best air purifiers for dust.

3, Best air purifiers for mold.

Honeywell AirGenius 5 HFD320 Customer Service

Honeywell is a market leader in air purifiers, but its customer service is not as friendly as that of competitors. You can reach customer service via the mailbox at the Honeywell Store at 407 N. Quentin Road, Palatine, Illinois. But I suggest you call 847-701-3038 for any support questions. Or you can email sales@honeywellstore.com for any problems you experience while on the site or after buying a product. Honeywell is available from Monday to Friday.

It doesn’t have free shipping like Rabbit Air or Alen, and you must notify customer service within one business day of any problems with a third-party shipping service like USPS or FedEx. Otherwise, it will not accept liability for any merchandise damage during transit. Also, the shipment can take up to 10 business days from the date that the order is shipped.

The hardest part is when you want to return one Honeywell air purifier, as you only have 30 days from the date you receive your item to process your return. If there is no transit damage or workmanship defects, you won’t receive the shipping charge (on both the original shipping charge and the return shipping charge) and will have to pay a 10–30% re-stocking fee.

Honeywell’s warranty policy is also among the longest in the industry, with up to 5 years of coverage.

Source: Amazon.com

Our verdict

It is really difficult to tell whether you should buy the Honeywell AirGenius 5 or not. If you prefer high performance, Honeywell HPA300 or Coway AP-1512HH are some better alternatives with more reasonable prices. Or if you are looking for a smart device under $200, you should look for the GermGuardian CDAP5500BCA or Winix AM90. Whatever you value more, the Honeywell AirGenius 5 is still not for you.