Pros & Cons of Window Air Conditioners

Localized Cooling

• One benefit of window air conditioners is that they only cool the rooms near the unit. Localized cooling may allow you to save on the cost of cooling a home, because you will not waste money on electricity cooling rooms that are not in use. For example, you might have a window air conditioner in your bedroom so you can keep it cool at night. If you had a central air conditioning system, it would waste electricity cooling rooms that are not in use. However, localized cooling may be a disadvantage if you move from room to room during the day and want the air to be at the same temperature in each room.

Cost

• Window air conditioners tend to cost less than central air units, which can make them a more cost-effective method for home cooling, especially if you don't need to cool many rooms in your home. According to the U.S. Department of Energy, window air conditioners are generally less expensive to operate than central air units, but they tend to be less efficient. If you spend most of your time in one or two rooms, a window AC unit or two might be the most economical solution. If you want to cool many rooms, the cost of running several wall units will add up, so central air may be cheaper.

Uneven Cooling

• A potential drawback of window air conditioners is that they can cause uneven cooling across rooms and even within the room where they are installed. The room will tend to be coolest near the AC unit, so you may have to use a ceiling fan or table fan to circulate cool air efficiently. With central air, there can be several vents in a single room, which allows for more even cooling.

Noise

• Another potential drawback of window air conditioning units is that they tend to be noisy. Central air units cause noise but they are positioned outside the home where the noise is not a distraction. The cold air generated by central air units is routed into rooms through ducts, so the noise in rooms within the home tends to be minimal.