You're likely opting for a portable air con unit because you would like it to be... portable! However, in reality, even the best portable air conditioners are both bulky and heavy, weighing from 20kgs for a smaller 'lightweight' air conditioner to 30kgs+ for more powerful units. There's no doubt it looks the part, making a very welcome change from the usual portable air conditioners that tend to be white, boxy, and pretty visually pretty unappealing. Instead, the Duux North 9K Smart Air Conditioner's curved grey front looks sleek and modern, and although it's still fairly sizeable, its curved edges help it to feel a lot visually slimmer, meaning it feels less bulky and more unobtrusive in a room. However, a higher BTU also means a higher price tag, and likely higher running costs, so it's a balancing act of investing as much as you can for better performance against how much you're willing to pay upfront for a unit. Room size Digital Display, Timer & Remote Control: The easy-to-use digital LED display and remote control allow you to have full control of all operational modes. The built-in Timer provides a 1-to-24-hour turn-on. As such, we've rounded up the key features to look out for when sourcing the best portable air conditioner for your home. BTU (British Thermal Units)

This has the effect of dramatically reducing the temperature in the room. In our tests, we found the best portable air conditioners, used in a well-sealed room, could reduce the temperature by up to 10 degrees in under an hour.

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The 7000BTU air conditioner's 20.5kg weight, whilst not insignificant, makes it far lighter the 30kg average, and means this unit is much easier to move around the home than most. Plus, its 780W power consumption is one of the lowest of all the air con units we've tested, meaning it offers lower running costs too.

It's generally recommended to close doors and windows in the room that you're trying to keep cool, so if you only want to keep a small bedroom cool then you can opt for a cheaper lower BTU unit, however an open plan space will require a much more powerful appliance with a larger BTU. Portability You might also want to consider whether you want your portable air conditioner to come with a timer, remote control, or WiFi connectivity. Most portable air con units come with an energy rating stated on their energy label to help you compare how many kW per hour the unit will use. How we test portable air conditioners A powerful portable air conditioner that looks good, is easy to use, is relatively quiet in comparison to most, has WiFi connectivity, and – most importantly – can cool down a room fast, as long as you don't mind its slightly higher running costs.

The best portable air conditioner units for 2023 are:

A portable air con unit uses both a fan and a compressor to cool the air, and that's a noisy process, meaning you're likely to have to turn the TV up quite a few notches if you have one running in a living space. And, if you're a light sleeper, then you may struggle to sleep whilst the air con unit is running. In an ideal world, all of our homes would be better insulated and able to remain cool in the summer without the additional energy use or expense of an air conditioner.However, for many of us this isn't the reality, and if you struggle to keep your home at a bearable temperature during the summer months, then a portable air con unit could help. Relatively affordable, lightweight and compact, energy efficient and easy to use, there's a lot to love about the MeacoCool MS Series portable air conditioners. Which is why we think they're the best portable air conditioner to invest in if you're looking for an affordable all-rounder. Personally, we'd sacrifice some chill (and save a lot of cash) and opt for the Duux Whisper Flex Ultimate Fan over the North Smart every time. Especially if you're looking for ways to keep a bedroom cool as the fan's silent operation won't disturb your sleep. Whilst the fan won't actively lower the room temperature like the North Smart can, all those who've tested the Duux Whisper Fan now swear by it's oh-so-silent 'natural-feeling' breeze, reaching for it as a go-to sleep aid whenever the mercury soars.