If you’re looking to buy a new air conditioner to ensure that your home is the perfect retreat from the heat outdoors, you’ll be delighted to find that the large selection of brands on the market nowadays has something to fit all types of budgets.

However, when deciding on the best air conditioner for your home, your focus shouldn’t be on brand, but rather on the complete compatibility of design and function with your actual requirements.

There are several types of air conditioners to choose from and based on their design and function, as well as cost, you can determine which among them is the perfect fit for your abode.

• Window type – This is perhaps the most common choice if you just need to cool a room or two. It’s ideal for small spaces, although there are designs that have enough cooling power or a higher horsepower for a really big room. If you don’t mind creating a hole in the wall to hold the unit, you won’t have any problem with this type of air conditioner. To get the most out of this unit, you really need to determine the most ideal place in your home for its installation.

• Split type – This is another popular type of air conditioner units. Not only does it have strong cooling power, it also has a sleek design that can fit almost anywhere and doesn’t require a big hole in the wall for installation. Therefore, it’s more expensive than a window unit. If you live in an apartment building wherein you’re not allowed to create a hole in the wall for your air conditioning, this is the better alternative to a window type. It’s likewise ideal for small spaces because it doesn’t take up much room.

• Portable type – If you’re looking for an AC that you can easily move from one room to another for concentrated air conditioning, the portable type is the smart choice. This is rather expensive, however, because it has the mobility that window and split type units have; plus, most designs have both cooling and dehumidifying functions. However, it doesn’t cool as efficiently; therefore, if you live in a location where it’s often hot and humid, this AC may not be as quickly effective in creating an ideal indoor climate.

• Centralized air conditioning system – This is the perfect choice for big homes, particularly those in a naturally warm location. It can easily cool all rooms of the house. Another advantage to this system is that it can be integrated with a forced hot air heating system during cold months. With the much bigger space it can cool, needless to say, it’s the most expensive — not only is the complete system pricier, nut installation has to be done professionally too, especially if the system requires special ductwork for better “cooling management.”