Comparison
Levoit Core 400S vs Coway AP-1512HH
Two units within two CFM of each other on the test that matters. What separates them is not cleaning power - it is what each manufacturer is willing to tell you about wattage.
By Scooter M. · Published · Last updated
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The short answer
Buy the Coway if it will run continuously; buy the Levoit if it will run in bursts on higher speeds. Their smoke CADR figures are 231 and 233 CFM - a difference of no practical consequence. The real split is power: Coway publishes 3.7 W on speed one, which is remarkable for round-the-clock running, while Levoit publishes a single 38 W rating that is lower than Coway’s 77 W maximum. Match the figure to how you will actually use it.
| Levoit Core 400S | Coway AP-1512HH Mighty | |
|---|---|---|
| Smoke CADR | 231 CFM | 233 CFM |
| Coverage at 4.8 ACH | 358 sq ft | 361 sq ft |
| Rated power | 38 W (single figure) | 77 W maximum |
| Per-speed power | Not published | 0.3 W standby / 3.7 W speed 1 / 8.7 W speed 2 / 75.3 W speed 3 |
| Noise | 22-52 dB | 24-53 dB(A) |
| Carbon stage | Carbon layer within a combined 3-stage filter | Separate deodorization filter, 6-month life |
| Filter intervals | Not published in the specification we could find | Deodorization 6 months, HEPA 1 year |
| Extra stage | None | Bipolar ionizing device - we would switch it off |
They clean at the same rate. Stop comparing that.
231 versus 233 CFM is a two-CFM gap on a test with real-world tolerances. Under AHAM’s two-thirds rule both size to about the same room - 346 versus 350 sq ft. Anyone telling you one of these dramatically out-cleans the other is reading noise as signal. Choose on cost of ownership and on the carbon stage instead.
The figure that actually separates them
Coway publishes power draw for each fan speed. Almost nobody does, and it changes the arithmetic completely, because the spread between speeds is enormous:
- Coway on speed one, 24/7: 3.7 W / 1000 x 24 x 365 = 32.4 kWh = about $5.94 a year.
- Coway on speed three, 24/7: 75.3 W / 1000 x 24 x 365 = 659.6 kWh = about $120.97 a year.
- Levoit at its rated 38 W, 12 hours a day: 166.4 kWh = about $30.52 a year.
That twentyfold spread on the Coway is the most important number in this comparison. If you leave a purifier on a low speed permanently - which is what we generally recommend - the Coway is dramatically the cheaper machine to own. If you run in short bursts on a high setting, its 75.3 W top speed is the highest here and the Levoit is the more economical choice.
The uncomfortable part is that we cannot make the same comparison in reverse. Levoit does not publish per-speed figures, so its low-speed draw is unknown to us and we are not going to estimate it. If you are not sure a large-room unit is what your space calls for, start with what size air purifier do I need.
Filters: known versus unknown
Coway publishes both intervals - deodorization filter every six months, HEPA every year - which lets you count three parts a year and price them before you buy. For the Levoit we could not find a published interval at all, so the annual filter cost is not something we can compute for you. Neither approach is wrong, but one is predictable and one is not, and for a purchase you will own for years that is worth something.
The stage we would switch off
The Coway includes a bipolar ionizing device. Where an ionizing stage is optional we switch it off and rely on the mechanical filtration, which is the part with a measurement standard behind it. Our reasoning is at air purifier vs ionizer. The Levoit has no such stage, which is a point in its favor if you would rather not have the option at all.
Buy the Levoit Core 400S if...
- The unit will run in bursts on a mid or high speed rather than continuously
- You want the simplest possible machine with no ionizing stage to disable
- Odor is not part of the problem you are solving
Buy the Coway Mighty if...
- It will run continuously - the 3.7 W speed-one figure is the whole argument
- Cooking smells, smoke or pet odor are part of the complaint
- You want published filter intervals you can budget against
Buy neither if...
Your room is under about 220 sq ft, where both are more machine than the space can use, or your actual problem is humidity rather than particles. Start at which device do I need if you are not certain which of those you have.
What we would actually do
Decide how the machine will live in the room before comparing anything else. A purifier that runs quietly at a low speed all day removes far more particulate over a week than one switched to high for two hours, and on that pattern the Coway costs roughly six dollars a year to run. If instead it will be switched on when symptoms appear and off again, the Levoit’s lower rated draw and simpler filter stack make it the better buy.
What we would buy for this
Chosen from the same registry as our roundups, on published specifications and computed running cost.
Levoit Core 400S
Living rooms and open-plan spaces
The one to buy if you want a purifier that genuinely covers a living room, and one of the few spec sheets in this bracket that publishes coverage at a useful air-change rate rather than only the flattering one.
#ad Price as of October 18, 2026, from Amazon. Prices change. How we make money.
Published specifications
| Specification | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| CADR | 231 CFM | Levoit published specification |
| Coverage | 358 sq ft at 4.8 air changes/hr (1,718 sq ft at 1 ACH) | Levoit published specification |
| Rated power | 38 W | Levoit published specification |
| Noise | 22-52 dB | Levoit published specification |
| Filtration | 3-stage: pre-filter, HEPA, activated carbon | Levoit published specification |
| Dimensions | 10.8 x 10.8 x 20.5 in, 11 lb | Levoit published specification |
What it costs to run
About $25-30 a year in electricity at 12 hours a day, before filters.
38 W / 1000 x 12 hours x 365 days = 166.4 kWh. At 18.34 cents/kWh that is $30.52 a year at rated power - and the unit only draws its full 38 W on the top fan speed, so a mid setting lands nearer $25. Add the replacement filter, which you should price before you buy rather than after.
What is good about it
- Levoit publishes coverage at both 1 ACH and 4.8 ACH, which is unusually straight - most brands quote only the flattering 1 ACH number
- 38 W is low for this CADR, which is what keeps the running cost down
- 22 dB on its lowest setting is quiet enough to sleep beside
- Carbon, pet-allergy and smoke-specific replacement filters are sold for the same body
What is not
- We could not find a published filter replacement interval in Levoit's specification, so we are not quoting one
- The 1,718 sq ft headline is a single air change per hour, which is not a useful rate for allergies
Who should skip this
Skip this if your room is under 200 sq ft. The Core 300S covers that at lower power and lower cost, and the extra CADR buys you nothing in a small bedroom.
How it scored
- Clean air per watt9.0
- Honest coverage claim9.5
- Quiet operation8.5
- Filter economics7.5
Overall 8.6 / 10. This is our editorial score from published specifications and computed running cost. It is not a test result, and it is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data.
Coway Airmega AP-1512HH Mighty
Running continuously in a medium room
The most efficient unit here at low speed - 3.7 W on speed one - which matters enormously if you leave a purifier running all day and almost not at all if you do not.
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Published specifications
| Specification | Value | Source |
|---|---|---|
| CADR (smoke) | 233 CFM | Coway published specification |
| CADR (dust) | 246 CFM | Coway published specification |
| CADR (pollen) | 240 CFM | Coway published specification |
| Coverage | 361 sq ft at 4.8 air changes/hr (1,748 sq ft at 1 ACH) | Coway published specification |
| Power draw by speed | 0.3 W standby / 3.7 W speed 1 / 8.7 W speed 2 / 75.3 W speed 3 | Coway published specification |
| Filtration | Pre-filter, odor filter, Green True HEPA, bipolar device | Coway published specification |
What it costs to run
About $6 a year running 24/7 on speed one, or $121 a year running 24/7 on speed three.
Speed 1: 3.7 W / 1000 x 24 x 365 = 32.4 kWh = $5.94 a year. Speed 3: 75.3 W / 1000 x 24 x 365 = 659.6 kWh = $120.97 a year. That twenty-fold spread is the most important number on this page, and it is why we chase per-speed figures instead of accepting a single rated wattage.
What is good about it
- Coway publishes power draw per fan speed, which almost nobody does and which is the only way to compute a real running cost
- 3.7 W on speed one is remarkable - cheaper to run continuously than most nightlights
- Coverage published at 1, 2 and 4.8 air changes per hour, so you can size it honestly
What is not
- 75.3 W on speed three is the highest draw here; how the auto mode behaves decides your bill
- The bipolar device is a stage we would rather do without; check it can be disabled
Who should skip this
Skip this if you only run a purifier for an hour or two at a time. Its whole advantage is low-speed efficiency over long hours, and short bursts on high speed give that straight back.
How it scored
- Clean air per watt9.5
- Honest coverage claim9.5
- Quiet operation8.0
- Filter economics7.5
Overall 8.7 / 10. This is our editorial score from published specifications and computed running cost. It is not a test result, and it is deliberately not marked up as a rating in this page’s structured data.
How we ranked these
We have not tested these units. Nobody here owns one. What we did was compile each manufacturer’s published specifications, check the coverage claims against AHAM’s room-sizing rule, and compute what each one costs to run for a year at the current US average electricity price. Every figure on this page is attributed to whoever published it, and the arithmetic is shown so you can redo it.
How we rank these sets out the full method, including what would change a ranking.
Questions people ask
+−Is the Coway Mighty better than the Levoit Core 400S?
Not on cleaning rate - 233 versus 231 CFM smoke CADR is effectively a tie. The Coway is better if the unit runs continuously, because it publishes a 3.7 W speed-one draw, and better if odor matters, because its carbon stage is separate and separately replaceable.
+−Which is cheaper to run?
On continuous low-speed running, the Coway by a wide margin: about $5.94 a year against the Levoit’s $30.52 at 12 hours a day. On high speed the Coway is the more expensive of the two, at about $120.97 a year running 24/7.
+−Do they cover the same room size?
Effectively yes. Levoit publishes 358 sq ft at 4.8 air changes per hour and Coway 361 sq ft at the same rate, and AHAM’s two-thirds rule puts both at about 350 sq ft.
+−Should I turn off the Coway's ionizer?
We would. The mechanical filtration is the part with a published measurement standard behind it, and where an ionizing stage is optional we switch it off and rely on the filters.
+−Which has cheaper filters?
We can only answer half of that honestly. Coway publishes its intervals - three parts a year - so you can price them. Levoit does not publish a replacement interval for the Core 400S, so its annual filter cost cannot be computed.