Considerations when choosing an air compressor
Forget about choosing the best air compressor – choosing any air compressor for any task requires you to know a few key things. You need to understand what CFM means, how circulation rate affects your airflow, and what form factor you need (portable stack, pancake, stand tank, etc.). When it comes to choosing the best air compressor for your home garage, we lean toward upright tanks. However, we do recognize that some people don't want (or need) to buy multiple air compressors, so we'll make some choices in the portable category as well. Before you choose, please understand your special needs through the following content.
Editor's Note: You may also want to check out our recommendations for the best air compressors overall.
air compressor type
The first thing you have to decide is what type of air compressor you want. Some may want a stand tank that never moves from the corner of the garage or shop, while others may want something more portable. If you decide to go with a stationary cylinder, the longer air hose lets you go where you want. However, if you plan on breathing air to get work done on the road, a stand tank won't help. Stand air compressors also take up a permanent place in your garage, so you lose some flexibility when it comes to storage.
A good compromise might be a larger 4-8 gallon jobsite air compressor. They make these in a variety of styles, some offering lots of airflow and short cycle times to refill the tank. If you decide to go portable, another decision involves choosing between a "hot dog" style air tank or a "pancake" style air compressor. Hot dog compressors generally work best in the garage, in our opinion, since they usually have wheels (at least models that are 4 gallons or higher). The Pancake Compressor never includes wheels and has a low center of gravity and wide base for use on rooftops or anywhere you don't want it rolling off.
Airflow or cubic feet per minute (CFM) or (SCFM)
You don't need a lot of airflow or CFM when operating a finishing nailer. However, if you want the best air compressor for your home garage, you may want to favor air tools such as impact drivers, air ratchets, and air sanders. These require quite a bit of airflow or CFM. There are many? Assuming 90 PSI, you only need 0.3–0.5 CFM to drive a small hardcover stapler. Compare that to an air ratchet that requires 3-7 CFM, depending on its size. Want to use an air sander? This requires 11 to 13 CFM or more. If you want to support higher cubic feet per minute needs, you'll need a larger tank. Plan and buy accordingly.
Pressure or PSI (pounds per square inch)
In terms of PSI ratings, most air compressors can handle the air pressure requirements of basic air tools. Many tools work well around 90 PSI. Some tools, like framing nailers, require more – around 100-120 PSI for maximum penetration into LVL and similar hard materials. You may see many air compressors with an airflow (SCFM) rating of 90 PSI. These CFM rates will drop as you start using more air pressure.
If you plan to use pressure-resistant tools like tire inflators, grease guns, and framing nailer(s), make sure your compressor is big enough to keep up with the pressure. This also leads to our next specification and consideration.
duty cycle time
Duty cycle (or cycle time) refers to the amount of time between two consecutive compressor refills. If your compressor produces air but has no air tank, it will run at 100% duty cycle. Some compressors are rated for 100% duty cycle, which means they can continuously deliver the specified pressure at rated PSI. However, that doesn't mean they can run forever. At some point – unless you have a "continuous run" compressor, the system has to stop and give the piston a break.
With regards to duty cycle time, you need to make sure your compressor is able to provide the proper pressure and volume of air for the tool you plan to use. This means that if you want to use a 13 CFM air sander at 90 PSI, you'll probably want a tank that's just the right size so you don't have to stop and wait for it to refill if you blow through all the available air quickly.
A pneumatic nailer can withstand shorter duty cycles because it only needs a burst of high pressure. Continuous tools such as air ratchets, grinders or tire inflators require faster tank fill rates, or larger tanks to meet the demands of the tool. Of course, this leads directly to our next feature.
Best Tank Sizes for a Home Garage
We've covered some of these above, but the size of your air compressor tank determines how much air must be used before it needs to be refilled by the compressor. Our top picks for the best air compressors for home garages include a larger tank—perhaps as much as 60 or 80 gallons. You can go higher, of course, but 60-80 will suffice for many applications in a garage or small workshop.
If you want something that delivers a lot of air but is still portable, an 8 or 10 gallon model might be more suitable. They are either "trolley" style (see our Makita large bore air compressor review) or portable upright tank style. The latter almost looks like it has an integrated trolley. The third type resembles an oversized "hot dog" style compressor.
If all of this seems too big and you have no use for demanding tools, then having a 4-6 gallon portable hot dog or pancake air compressor in your home garage may be the perfect solution for you.
Check out our Best Air Compressors article to see our top picks for a variety of applications and uses.
Best Home Garage Air Compressor Overall – Our Top Picks
Campbell Hausfeld 2-Stage 60 Gallon. Stationary electric air compressor
The "dirty little secret" about air compressors is that not many companies make them. So you'll see a lot of very similar designs. Usually, you'll pay some premium for a particular name. That being the case, we've always liked the value that Campbell Hausfeld presents. Our picks for the best home garage air compressors overall combine performance, air supply, and value.
Add it all up and you get a 60-gallon Campbell Hausfeld two-stage compressor (XC602100) for about $999. This 240V single phase compressor gives you 175 max PSI and 7.6 SCFM at 90 psi. If that's not enough for your needs (perhaps you plan to run an air sander), check out our selection of larger capacity air compressors for home stores below.
If you've never heard of Campbell Hausfeld, you're probably unfamiliar with air compressors. The company has a very wide range of solutions from budget systems to tall 80 gallon solutions. In fact, pretty much all they do is make and sell pneumatic products (and some other products like welders). This particular model was even assembled in Litchfield, Kentucky using global materials. It comes with a 3-year limited warranty.
Ideal for: Air ratchets, nailers and medium demand air tools.
Ingersoll Rand 80-gal 5 HP 230V Single Phase Air Compressor
We've used many stationary air compressors over the years and Ingersoll Rand remains one of our favorite manufacturers. When you need an air compressor for your larger home store, IR will quickly come to mind.
They offer reliability, great features, and you have plenty of models to choose from. For example, while we recommend the single phase 80 gallon 2475N5 with an air delivery of 17.8 SCFM, you could easily use a 40 amp model with an output in excess of 24 SCFM. You can also choose between single phase and three phase (if you happen to have one). better? Many of their products are assembled in the USA.
While Ingersoll Rand's aren't the only game in town (check out Northern Tool and Equipment's Northstar compressors for an alternative), we like their reliability. This out-of-the-box compressor costs about $2,570 and features industrial-grade bearings and a cast-iron pump. It comes with a 1-year warranty.
Ideal for: Air ratchets, grinders, polishers and demanding air tools.
The Best Portable Air Compressors for Your Home Garage
Rolair VT25BIG 2.5HP 5.3-gal Compressor with Folding Handle
We reviewed the Rolair VT25BIG Portable Air Compressor a few years ago and it remains our favorite high output portable air compressor. Why? Well, for less than $400, you can get a 5.3 gallon 2.5HP air compressor with a 100% duty cycle motor . That should get you over 5000 hours of use and well past the warranty period.
The Rolair VT25BIG 2.5 HP compressor provides excellent air delivery while still being paired with a direct drive motor. Performance and build quality are also excellent. The 108-pound weight is offset by a balanced and well-designed frame, making portability even easier. Of course, we also like the folding handle.
For running a pneumatic nailer, you can easily run a dual trim and framing nailer. A roof nailer is fine, but two might be ahead of the airlift. With its design, build quality and performance, the Rolair VT25BIG definitely gets our recommendation as the best portable air compressor for your home garage.
Ideal for: Smaller air ratchets, nailers and less demanding air tools.
Best 30 Gallon Air Compressors for the Home Garage
Husky C304H or Craftsman CMXECXM301 Portable Vertical Compressor
Equipping your home garage with a 30 gallon air compressor can save a lot of space if you want to stay on the small side. They also give you some portability since they usually include wheels (on upright models). This size is also popular for gas powered truck mount designs, but we won't cover those in this article. Our picks for the best 30 gallon air compressors for the home garage received mixed votes. The reason is because both models are licensed. For around $569, you can get the Craftsman CMXECXM301 30-gallon portable upright compressor at 6.2 SCFM at 90 PSI.
Or, for $649, you can get the Husky C304H 30-gallon portable upright compressor with the same SCFM rating. Both use 2 HP motors putting out 175 max PSI. Look closely and you'll see that both compressors are likely from the same factory – which is why we don't make too much distinction as to which one you choose. our suggestion? See which ones are on sale.
Ideal for: Air ratchets, nailers and medium demand air tools.
Air Compressor Maintenance Tips
A little regular maintenance can keep your shop or home garage air compressor working for years. We also recommend checking more often than usual if your environment tends to be dirtier or full of dust and debris. Here's a good idea of the type of maintenance schedule you want to maintain on your oil-filled compressor:
| Daily | weekly | per month | every 100 hours | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| check safety valve | x | |||
| Drainage channels | x | |||
| check pump oil level | x | |||
| check air filter | x | |||
| Replace pump oil | x | |||
| Check for oil leaks | x | |||
| Check drive belt | x | |||
| Check drive belt tension | x | |||
| Check pulley/freewheel alignment | x | |||
| Check for abnormal noise/vibration | x | |||
| Air leak check | x | |||
| clean look | x |
Manufacturers may recommend more frequent air filter inspections and drive belt inspections, etc., out of excessive caution or for legal reasons. Our recommendations are slightly looser to accommodate practical use of these tools in non-commercial settings. If you use your home garage air compressor on a daily basis, there are some routines you may need to perform more often.
One thing we would note is that you really should change the oil on your air compressor pump after the first 20 hours. This eliminates any early problems associated with manufacturing and breaking in the unit, really extending the life of the pump. For compressors using oil in the pump, change the oil after break-in with synthetic SAE30 oil without detergent.
how we choose
When looking for the best air compressors for your home garage, we based our selections on a few specific key metrics. We realize that – given the wide range of products available – our best picks are somewhat subjective. Even so, each selection was carefully considered and represents the result of careful consideration and our collective experience as a team of reviewers. Over the years, we've honed our process into a system that we believe helps us provide reliable options when it comes to recommending products, accessories, and even power and hand tools.
Each of us has used and reviewed various compressors over the decades. So we have a lot of personal experience to draw on when it comes to choosing the best air compressor for your home store and garage. In the end, we feel that you can really rely and trust the models we have included in this article.
Options and Features
When looking at an air compressor, there are often options that don't come to your mind. To us, "options" mean those features that make an air compressor easier to use and maintain. On a portable device, this equates to the size of the wheel and the way the device is moved. For stationary installations, this may be a maintenance feature (such as a magnetic oil plug that catches foreign matter before it messes up the pump).
As mentioned above, we also compared fuel tank capacity, airflow, noise output and duty cycle of similar (or similarly priced) models. Considering multiple brands together, we can determine which products stand out for important features.
Duty Cycle and Run Time
No matter what size air compressor you choose, you want one that can run the tools you need to run. If you drain the tank too quickly and the compressor's pump can't refill the system fast enough, performance will be lost. Your tool won't work the way it was designed to. This means raised nails, swirl marks, etc. You need to match the air compressor to the application.
In a home garage or shop, things get even more complicated because you can do more than drive nails. Grinding, buffing, using an air ratchet – all these opportunities require adequate tank size and CFM to get the job done. The recommendations on this page include useful information to give you an idea of what these compressors can handle.
value
Value always matters. How much you want to invest in a solid air compressor should be related to the type of work you want to do. However, we don't just end up comparing SCFM numbers and tank sizes. For example, a $129 8-gallon 1.8HP hot dog compressor will perform quite differently than a comparably sized 5HP 220V model that puts out 18.5 CFM.
You shouldn't mind paying more for a higher build quality or a quieter running compressor. For this reason, we look for products with exceptional build quality or features. Of course, you can go above and beyond all of our recommendations. We tend to prioritize affordability over premium "Ferrari" solutions that barely overdeliver or run at what we consider commercial levels.
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