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Updated September 26, 2026. Prices and specs checked September 26, 2026.
A tower fan is a tall, narrow fan that pushes air out of a vertical grille running most of its height. A bladeless fan, like the Dyson Purifier Cool TP07 in this tower fan comparison, hides its impeller in the base and pushes air out through an open loop, with no blades you can see or touch. On airflow per dollar, the two conventional towers win easily. The Vornado ARA works out to about $0.11 per CFM ($289.99 ÷ 2,574 CFM), and the Lasko 36″ to about $0.38 ($79.99 ÷ 210 CFM). The Dyson comes to roughly $1.05 per CFM ($649.99 ÷ about 618 CFM, converted from Dyson’s stated 77 gallons per second). Its premium pays for the sealed HEPA H13 filter, not the breeze.
I’ve ridden out hurricane season stretches in South Florida with the power out and no air conditioning for days at a time, and the difference between a fan that just hums in the corner and one that actually pushes air across a room is not subtle. That’s the lens this comparison uses: airflow first, extras second.
This comparison assumes you’ve already decided a tower fan is the right form factor for your room. If you’re still weighing tower against pedestal or bladeless designs, our fan style comparison covers that decision first.
Our verdict at a glance
- Best overall for pure airflow: Vornado ARA — the highest listed circulation of the three, by a wide margin, plus ambient lighting
- Best budget: Lasko 36″ Tower Fan — reliable cooling and a remote for under $80
- Best upgrade (if you need it): Dyson Purifier Cool TP07 — the only one of the three that also filters the air you’re circulating
Tower fan comparison: specs side by side
| Spec | Dyson Purifier Cool TP07 | Vornado ARA | Lasko 36″ (Model 2511) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | $649.99 | $289.99 | $79.99 |
| Air purification | Yes — sealed HEPA H13 | No | No |
| Listed airflow | ~618 CFM (converted from Dyson’s stated 77 gal/sec) | 2,574 CFM | 210 CFM |
| Noise range | Engineered for low turbulence; no independent dB published here | 28–60 dB | 40–55 dB |
| Warranty | 2 years | 5 years | 1 year |
| Extra features | App control, pollutant sensors, night mode | Ambient lighting, 90°/180° oscillation | 7-hour timer, remote, 60° oscillation |
These three aren’t chasing the same buyer. Lasko is selling a fan — nothing more, at a price that makes it disposable if it breaks. Vornado is selling raw circulation, with a warranty long enough to suggest real confidence in the motor.
Dyson is selling a two-in-one appliance where the fan function is almost secondary to the HEPA filtration. That’s exactly why it costs roughly eight times what the Lasko does.
Vornado ARA: the airflow winner, no frills attached
Vornado built its reputation on whole-room air circulation rather than a direct breeze, and Forbes Vetted’s figures back that up here. Forbes Vetted lists the ARA at roughly 2,574 CFM. That figure is converted from a stated air speed of 1,600 feet per minute. It is over twelve times the Lasko’s 210 CFM, and well ahead of the Dyson’s converted estimate. That’s the number that matters most if the goal is cooling a room down, not just feeling a direct stream of air on your face.
It adds ambient lighting and a choice of 90-degree or 180-degree oscillation. Vornado backs it, along with most of its fan lineup, with a 5-year limited warranty — the longest of the three.
Honest drawbacks: at $289.99, it’s roughly three-and-a-half times the price of a basic tower fan and offers zero purification. If allergens or wildfire smoke are part of why you’re shopping, this isn’t the model that helps.
Forbes Vetted also logged its noise range up to 60 dB at top speed. That’s louder than the Lasko’s top-speed 55 dB — the tradeoff for moving that much more air.
Buy it if your main goal is genuinely cooling down a larger room and you don’t need air filtration. Skip it if noise at top speed is a dealbreaker for a bedroom or office.
Lasko 36″ Tower Fan: the budget answer that still works
The Lasko 2511 is the fan most people need for a bedroom or living room. It has three quiet-rated speeds, electronic touch controls, a remote with onboard storage, and a 7-hour auto-off timer, all for $79.99. Forbes Vetted lists it at 210 CFM with a 40–55 dB noise range — the quieter top-speed number of the two fans Forbes rates here. That makes it a reasonable choice for a bedroom, where the Vornado’s higher-decibel top speed would be distracting.
Lasko backs it with a standard 1-year limited warranty. At under $80, that’s a shorter commitment than Vornado’s. But the fan is cheap enough that a full replacement doesn’t sting the way a $650 Dyson replacement would.
Honest drawbacks: 210 CFM is a fraction of the Vornado’s output, so in a larger room it will feel noticeably weaker even at top speed. Its oscillation also tops out at 60 degrees versus the Vornado’s 180 — a much narrower slice of the room.
Buy it if you want reliable, quiet cooling for a bedroom or small-to-medium room without spending real money. Skip it if you’re cooling a large open space where you’ll actually notice the lower airflow.
Is the Dyson Tower Fan Worth the Higher Price?
The TP07 is fundamentally a different product wearing a tower-fan shape. Per the EPA’s definition of a HEPA filter, a true HEPA filter must remove at least 99.97% of airborne particles 0.3 microns or larger. Dyson states the TP07 is “fully sealed to HEPA H13 standard,” meeting that bar. It also senses and reacts to pollutants like formaldehyde, PM2.5, and nitrogen dioxide in real time via the MyDyson app. Neither the Vornado nor the Lasko filters anything; they just move the air that’s already in the room, particulates and all.
Dyson backs the TP07 with a 2-year warranty. It also includes a night mode that dims the display and quiets operation for bedroom use. The 360° Glass HEPA and activated carbon filter is rated for roughly 12 months of use before replacement — an ongoing cost the other two fans simply don’t have.
Honest drawbacks: this is roughly eight times the Lasko’s price and more than double the Vornado’s. Our converted estimate of its airflow — roughly 618 CFM, based on Dyson’s own stated 77 gallons of air projected per second — trails the Vornado’s Forbes-listed 2,574 CFM by a wide margin. As a pure cooling fan, it’s not the strongest option here; you’re paying for filtration, not circulation.
Buy it if allergies, wildfire smoke season, or general indoor air quality are a real concern and you want one appliance instead of two. Skip it if you just want a room to feel cooler — the Vornado does that job better for less than half the price.
The original number: price per CFM of airflow
Sticker price alone makes the Dyson look like simply “the expensive one.” Dividing price by listed airflow shows exactly how much of that gap is airflow versus filtration — and the answer is almost none of it.
| Fan | Price | Airflow (CFM) | Price per CFM |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vornado ARA | $289.99 | 2,574 | ~$0.11 |
| Lasko 36″ (2511) | $79.99 | 210 | ~$0.38 |
| Dyson Purifier Cool TP07 | $649.99 | ~618 (converted estimate) | ~$1.05 |
The Dyson costs roughly three times more per unit of airflow than the budget Lasko, and about nine times more than the airflow-focused Vornado. That gap isn’t a markup on the fan — it’s the price of the HEPA H13 filtration system riding along with it.
If clean air isn’t the goal, this number is the clearest evidence that the Dyson is the wrong tool for the job. If it is the goal, this same number is what you’re paying for — and the comparison to a standalone air purifier’s price becomes the more useful one to run next.
How We Built This Tower Fan Comparison
This tower fan comparison weighs each model on manufacturer-published specifications — price, warranty, filtration claims — cross-checked against third-party figures, primarily Forbes Vetted’s CFM and noise-level data for the Vornado ARA and Lasko.
Dyson does not publish a directly comparable CFM figure for the TP07, so our airflow estimate is a unit conversion of Dyson’s own stated “77 gallons of air projected per second” spec, not an independent lab measurement — we’ve flagged it as an estimate throughout rather than presenting it as tested fact. HEPA filtration standards referenced above come from the U.S. EPA’s official HEPA filter guidance. If you’re weighing whole-home options instead, our whole-house fan comparison covers that decision, and our quiet window AC comparison covers active cooling if a fan alone won’t cut it.
Prices are approximate, current as of publication, and change frequently — confirm the latest price with the retailer before buying.
Frequently Asked Questions About This Tower Fan Comparison
Is the Dyson Tower Fan Worth the Higher Price?
Only if you specifically want HEPA H13 air purification bundled with your fan. As a pure cooling fan, our converted airflow estimate puts it well behind the Vornado ARA, which costs less than half as much.
Does a Tower Fan Cool a Room, or Just Move Air?
A fan doesn’t lower the room’s actual temperature — it moves air across your skin, which speeds evaporation and makes you feel cooler. Higher CFM (cubic feet per minute) generally means more noticeable cooling. That’s why the Vornado’s much higher listed airflow outperforms the Lasko and the Dyson on pure cooling power.
What Does HEPA H13 Mean?
Per the EPA, a true HEPA filter removes at least 99.97% of airborne particles 0.3 microns or larger. Dyson states the TP07 is fully sealed to that H13 standard; neither the Vornado ARA nor the Lasko 36″ filters air at all — they only circulate it.
Which of these three is quietest for a bedroom?
Based on Forbes Vetted’s measurements, the Lasko’s top-speed noise (up to 55 dB) is lower than the Vornado’s (up to 60 dB). Dyson doesn’t publish a directly comparable independent dB figure for the TP07 in the sources we reviewed. It does include a dedicated night mode for quieter bedroom operation, though.
Which Tower Fan Wins This Comparison?
If moving the most air for the least money is the goal, the Vornado ARA wins outright. If you just need a bedroom or living room to feel cooler without spending real money, the Lasko 36″ does that job for $79.99 and nothing more. The Dyson Purifier Cool TP07 only makes sense once air purification, not airflow, is what you’re shopping for. Browse more climate-control comparisons in our Heating & Cooling category.
