Have you recently purchased an air conditioner?
Wondering what air conditioner temperature is best?
When people ask this question there are usually two main factors on their minds:
- They want to know the best air con temperature for comfort.
- Whilst achieving comfort they also want to avoid a huge power bill.
To help you find the best air conditioner temperature for you, let’s consider both factors.
The Best Air Conditioner Temperature For Ultimate Comfort
If you are not worried about the cost of running your air conditioner and just want to know what the best temperature setting should be, the answer is pretty straightforward. It is up to you!
Most guides will tell you mixed information. Some will say 21-23 degrees is the best setting for ultimate comfort but at the end of the day it comes down to personal preference.
It is important to keep in mind that some people tend to feel cold more than others. This is especially true for the young and old and can also be due to other factors such as health.
Also, not all air conditioners produce the same cooling effect.
As such, how a room feels can be heavily affected by the type, brand and model of the air con, the size of the room, the efficiency of the insulation and overall installation.
For this reason, the exact same air conditioner brand, make and model can produce different cooling effects in different installation scenarios. Even when set at the same temperature.
You may have experienced this yourself:
For example, when you were last on holiday you may have found that 23 degrees on the Mitsubishi model in the small studio apartment was perfect.
However, in your friend’s large holiday house their model needs to be set at 21 degrees for you to feel the same comfort.
This is why it all comes down to personal preference. To find the ultimate comfort setting for you, you need to play around with each air conditioner.
Finding the ideal temperature for you in that environment is all down to trial and error.
The Best Air Conditioner Temperature For Affordable Power Cost
Running your air conditioner at the ultimate comfort level for you and your family will keep you cool all year round. However, it may lead to a nasty shock when the electricity bill arrives.
Here are some tips to ensure you can still stay comfortable throughout the year without losing your cool from high power bills.
To keep your electricity costs down, it is said that you should not try to cool the outside temperature by more than 8 degrees.
For example, if the outside temperature is 30 degrees, the lowest you should be setting your air conditioner is 22 degrees.
By staying at 8 degrees cooling or under you will not be asking too much from your air conditioner and this can keep costs down.
Of course, there will always be those days when you need to go over this 8-degree limit.
For example on those sweltering 40+ degree summer days. Setting at 32+ degrees is not going to really create that nice cool room that would be comfortable.
However, having the odd day here and there should not affect your power bill too much if you are sticking to the 8 degrees or under rule on most days.
Best AC Temperature in Hot Summer Months
During the summer months when the outside temperature is warmer it is recommended to keep your air conditioner in the mid-20s.
Depending on where you live in Australia this could be anywhere from 23-28 degrees. Again this comes down to personal preference.
Keep in mind that it is estimated that every 1 degree of change you are asking from your air conditioner to cool your property, equates to an extra 10% of electricity usage.
For this reason, you want to limit the amount of change you are asking from your air conditioner to reduce your power bill.
Best AC Temperature in Cold Winter Months
During winter months when the outside temperature is lower it is recommended to keep your reverse cycle air conditioner around 20.
Again depending on where you reside in Australia this could be from 18-22 degrees and will again be personal preference.
The good news is that air conditioners cost less to heat a home than to cool a home, so you should not feel like you have to avoid heating when it is needed.
However, it is still not recommended to set your air conditioner too warm in winter as this will increase your power bill unnecessarily. Check out this article if you want more information about your winter setting.
What Air Conditioner Temperature Is Best For You?
First and foremost you should consult the owner’s manual for your air conditioner. There you may find some suggested settings.
But at the end of the day, you have full control over your unit so it will always come down to personal preference.
Finding the best air conditioner temperature for you will depend on you, your family or other housemates.
Have a play around with the settings yourself and see what everyone finds most comfortable.
If energy usage is of concern to you, which it is to most, then keep in mind our tips above. Also, make sure everyone in the house understands the impacts of this.
What you will most likely find is that everyone will have a different ideal comfort level.
So you may need to compromise and choose a happy medium for everyone when everyone is in the same room at once.
Also, you may find that the ideal temperature will change as the outside air temperature changes.
Finding the best temperature for you will also most likely change and be dependent on the size of the room, air-con type, brand and efficiency of the system.
As mentioned previously, your ideal temperature in your home may be different to your friend’s house, workplace or holiday rental.
The best way to find what the ideal temperature for you will ultimately come down to trial and error.
