A quick guide to finding the best portable air conditioner in Australia (and what makes them the best).
Australia’s best portable air conditioners: Rated and ranked
Every year as the Australian Summer starts to heat up (typically hotter than the last,) split-system air conditioner specialists are run off their feet and often booked up well into the New Year. That's why so many Australians turn to a trusty portable air conditioner to get the job done.
Portable air conditioners can be moved from room to room and are easily installed and operated. But as many people who have previously invested in portable air-con would tell you, some products simply don't have the power required to combat the harsh Australian Summer, and sometimes the ones that do can do some serious damage to your energy bill.
With that in mind, we've rounded up the best portable air conditioners currently available in Australia based on their coverage, noise levels, budget and cooling efficiency.
\\ Quick links
- Best portable air conditioner: De'Longhi Pinguino Air-to-Air
- Next best portable air conditioner: Dimplex 4.5kW Portable Aircon with Dehumidifier
- Best portable air conditioner deal: Kogan 2.6kW Smarter Home Portable Aircon
- Cheap cooling deals under $200
What you need to know
- Cooling capacity indicates how much space the portable air conditioner can cover, and how powerful it is. Whereas energy consumption refers to how much electricity is required to operate the device.
- Portable air conditioners need access to a door or window to operate effectively.
- If your current portable aircon isn't working as well as it used to, you may just need to clean it out.
- Portable air conditioners are generally more expensive to run than split-systems.
How we pick the best portable air conditioners
Price
Not only do we look at the outright price of the air conditioner, but we also look at how much it will cost you to run over the season. The cheaper both of those price points are, the higher we score this category.
Features
Apart from just switching on, we look at whether the device has timers, scheduliung, app monitoring, and if it includes a dehumidifier. If it does we take into account the volume of moisture the air conditioner can extract from the air per hour. More litres equals less of that sticky humid feeling.
Performance
When testing portable air conditioners we look at the cooling capacity, its coverage and the cooling efficiency. We take into account the power consumption, and cooling capacity, which we use to calculate the efficiency in a percentage. The higher this percentage is, the more an air conditioner punches above its weight (and the cheaper it is to run).
Expert testing
Our expert testing assesses how long it takes for the air conditioner to efficiently cool a room, the complexity of the set up, its size and weight, and the overall user experience of using the device.

- Georgia Dixon
Content Editor
The De’Longhi Pinguino Air-to-Air is a super quiet portable air conditioner that’s powerful enough to keep a large bedroom or small living room space cool, works as a standalone or combi-mode dehumidifier (an impressive 1.7L/hr) and is also eco-friendly. However, it's not the cheapest model out there.
If you’re sensitive to noise, the Pinguino Air-to-Air gets a solid tick for its standout quietness. At a minimum noise pressure level of 47dB, it’s well below the level of normal conversation (around 60db) according to Safe Work Australia and on the lower end of the average sound level of portable air conditioners in our market selection (around 56dB). That said, you'd be hard-pressed to find a truly silent portable air conditioner, so expect the usual humming and fan noises.
We also loved the use of low-emission refrigerant R290 and the inclusion of an ultra-smart remote, which can sense the humidity and temperature of a room and adjust the system’s output accordingly.
A cheaper option
DeLonghi portable air conditioners aren't exactly cheap, but you can save a bit of money by opting for the Pinguino Compact instead. The device comes with 2.1kW of cooling capacity, and a smaller stature - as the name suggests. It won't handle as big of a space as the Air-to-Air, but if you're hoping to shave off a few bucks, it is still going to be a reliable option.
Next best all rounder

Coverage: Up to 34sqm
Dehumdifier: Yes
Cooling wattage: 4500w
Hourly running cost: approx. $0.25
To control the temperature in a large space, you generally have to spend quite a bit more money. Case in point: the Dimplex 4.5kW Portable Air Conditioner. It comfortably cools areas up to 34 square metres and also functions as a dehumidifier (a market-leading 2.9L per hour) and is self-evaporative (meaning no drip tray or drainage hose).
Now, you might be thinking more power means more noise, but in Dimplex's case, that's not necessarily true. It's rated at about 56dB, which is a little noisier than our top quiet picks (understandably), but still well below some of its less-powerful competitors.
Notably the operating wattage of this device is only 1,800 watts but the cooling capacity is 4500 watts. This means the Dimplex air conditioner cools at around 250% efficiency, making it more efficient (and cheaper) to run over the course of the Summer.
A cheaper option
Again dropping down the kWs can help you save a good chunk of change. The Dimplex 2.5kW Portable Air Conditioner is significantly cheaper, but it will only handle rooms up to 20 square metres. For smaller spaces, or smaller budgets, it should be just as reliable as the bigger Dimplex, but leave you with some cash to spare
Best portable air conditioner deal

Coverage: Up to 18sqm
Dehumdifier: Yes
Cooling wattage: 2600w
Hourly running cost: approx. $0.14
Cheap portable air conditioners are usually not that great for power efficiency, but Kogan's Smarter Home 2.6kW aircon bucks that trend. The 2600 watt cooling capacity uses only 1050 watts of power, making it much cheaper to run overall. It should only cost you around $0.15 per hour to run, which is an absolute bargain. The device also comes equipped with a dehumidier that can handle a solid 0.9L of moisture per hour.
In our testing we found it could be slow to cool the room, but it was still better at cooling the space than a ceiling or pedestal fan. Plus it can connect through the Smarter Home app so let you control it entirely remotely. Nothing beats coming home to a cool bedroom after a long day at work. You'll also get timers, scheduling, and a sleep mode for quieter operation.
A cheaper option
If you don't need as high of a cooling capacity, the Kogan 2.0kW portable air conditioner should give you all the best bits from the bigger version. Along with the cooling, it can handle 0.7L of moisture removal per hour. It doesn't have the best efficiency with a 2000 watt input power, but it is cheaper to buy outright.
Cheap cooling deals under $200
Sale price valid until withdrawn by Amazon
Sale price valid until withdrawn by Amazon
Sale price valid until withdrawn by Kogan
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