We love our four-legged friends, but one issue that tends to arise? Pet dander in the air — and sometimes a smell or two that is more on the “odor” end of the scent spectrum. For that, there are air purifiers: They act as filters for your room or house (different air purifiers cover different amounts of airspace, usually measured in square feet) and help remove irritants from the air.

But air purifier talents don’t end with pets. Air purifiers also help to remove germs and pollutants, which is great, but be careful of those germ claims: The EPA says: "When used properly, air purifiers can help reduce airborne contaminants including viruses in a home or confined space. However, by itself, a portable air cleaner is not enough to protect people from COVID-19." (Emphasis theirs.) And honestly, it makes sense: It seems highly unlikely that an air purifier can trap germs in time to prevent infection.

But air purifier aficionados will tell you that they do really help with all sorts of allergens and with reducing the impact a city’s air quality has on your indoor living conditions. Air purifiers with HEPA filters can remove particles as small as .3 microns, much smaller than the usual dander that floats around your home — they’ll even suck pet hair out of the air.

The best place to keep air purifiers in your home is as close as possible to the source of the odor and dander — if you have a dog or cat that spends a lot of time snoozing in their beds, put the air purifier close by there so the dander and allergens are filtered out right at the source. The most important thing is to match the air purifier to the size of the room (or area, if it’s a super-open floor plan) so you know that the air purifier is covering an adequate volume of space.

One thing to keep an eye on? The air filters inside the machines. Some machines have removable ones that you just vacuum off; other machines have you replace the filters every so often, such as those with odor and/or HEPA filters. While just vacuuming or wiping them off with a cloth is a more eco-friendly option, many pet owners want to start fresh every so often with a just-out-of-the-package filter. And carbon filters do help much more with odor. As far as the rest of the maintenance goes, it’s up to the manufacturer’s instructions, which you should be sure to read before your air purifier kicks into high gear.

Air purifiers are designed to remove particulates from the air, which range from pollen to dust but also include pet dander and fur. For people sensitive to or allergic to some particles in low-quality air like smoke, pet dander, or pollution, this decreases the appearance of allergic symptoms and generally makes it a bit easier to breathe.

For families or living situations where someone has a pet but someone else has an allergy, air purifiers can help keep the air clean and reduce allergy symptoms like sneezing and headaches by filtering particulates like dander, fur, and dust from rabbit or guinea pig bedding. They can also help eliminate pet odors, so if you have a few pets, the air in the house will be a little fresher. Not every air purifier removes dander and fur, though, so be sure to check and make sure the one in your cart does before buying.

There are a lot of different types of filters used in air purifiers. Some are reusable (often by vacuuming or wiping them down), others you have to replace every six to eight months or so. Many air purifiers use HEPA filters, which are among the type that catch particulates down to micron-level size, but there’s no reason that’s a must-have — some air purifiers, including some of this list, have their own proprietary filtration system that remove particulates even a HEPA filter can’t.

We’ve rounded up some of the best air purifiers for people with pets — check them all out below.

While we fully respect the internal engineering of air purifiers, when it comes to their exterior, it’s hard to rate an air purifier we’d be embarrassed to keep out in the living room (since, you know, it’ll be kept out in the living room). Coway’s Mighty Air Purifier brings a ton of efficiency with a heaping helping of modern design. We like that it helps give us one less thing to think about with a filter-change indicator and scheduling options so it’s only working when it makes sense. 

Toppin’s relatively new on the scene, but this “health and happiness brand for the modern homeowner” has pretty much nailed air purifiers right off the bat. The four-layer filtration system has a nylon pre-filter that removes pet hair and dander, while an H13 HEPA filter kicks on at the third stage to get tiny tiny airborne particulates gone. The air quality is noticeably different after a few hours, especially when it comes to pet odors, and you can even drop some oils into the aromatherapy tray for some good scents. 

Other thoughtful details make this a joy to use: At-a-glance indicators in green, yellow, or red give you a quick notification about current air quality, while a sleep mode keeps the decibels quiet as it filters as you sleep. It’s also easy to tote around the house: It weighs just 11 lbs. and has a convenient carry handle for moving it from, say, your living room during the day to your bedroom at night.  

Sure, you might usually shy away from air purifiers that don’t come with a HEPA air filter, but what if the purifier did you one better? This one from Airsoap claims to have an advanced air purification system that more than handles every bit of pet dander and pet hair — it even claims to filter 99.99 percent of airborne viruses and bacteria, thanks to a filtration system that can trap viruses down to 14.6 nanometers. (HEPA filters, on the other hand, can only get down to 300 nanometers). (Again, we must emphasize that air purifiers are not to be relied on for any kind of infection prevention whatsoever.)

Beyond its filtration superpowers, the Airsoap is compact for small apartments and small rooms (despite filtering up to 400 square feet) — and it has a super inoffensive design so you can keep it out by your bookshelf, too. While it’s not great on odors — some reviewers say it might struggle to get rid of something strong like pet urine, for example — it’ll work for that general “pet smell.” 

For people who like to travel with their pets (but don’t love a dander-filled car situation after a long road trip), the mini version of Pure Enrichment’s air purifier is perfect for bringing on the go. An activated carbon pre-filter takes the first stage of work, while the true HEPA filter gets rid of dander, odors, and dust. 

The battery lasts up to 12 hours (depending on the fan) without recharging, and while it’s not great for open spaces like open-plan offices, it works really well in closed conditions like cars or hotel rooms that you’re sharing with your furry friend. At .6 lbs. it’s light enough to throw in your suitcase for flights, too. 

Large enough to cover many apartments’ floor space, this Alen Classic Air Purifier is pricey but efficient — and it looks sharp in a living room, too. Thanks to its medical-grade Pure True Hepa Filter, it removes particles like pet fur and dander in sizes down to .1 micron from the air. It also gets rid of bacteria, dust, and allergens so your home is a comfortable place to breathe. Besides its stunning good looks, it also has handy touches like an advanced color-coded particle sensor on the front so you always know what your air quality is like. 

This Levoit air purifier comes from one of the best brands in the field — and it’s been specifically developed to take care of pet dander and hair. The H13-Grade True HEPA filter, made from non-woven fabric, is more effective than other pre-filters at capturing pet fur, hair, and dander. It also has a specific pet lock button so your dog or cat won’t accidentally shut it off when they go to investigate the new addition to the house. 

While the filters are replaceable (not reusable), the machine makes it easy to stay on top of replacements, with a check filter that indicates when it’s time for a new one (typically every six to eight months). We also love the sleep mode and timer that allows you to tone down the noise while keeping the filter going. 

Large enough for many apartments, this Rabbit air purifier has customized filters so you can choose the one that fits your lifestyle best — which is great for people who have family members with pets that visit but you have other filtration needs the rest of the time. 

It’s a sleek, powerful machine that has an aesthetic sense, too: You can mount it on the wall (or leave it on the floor), and you can buy covers with images by Vincent Van Gogh, Katsushika Hokusai, Claude Money, and others. Beyond the pet filter, you can also choose between germ defense, toxin absorber, and odor-remover filters.