Rush to buy dehumidifiers

"It took me two days over the weekend to contact many stores in Hanoi to buy a dehumidifier. At first, I wanted to choose a 12-liter capacity machine, but it was out of stock. There were few models over 20 liters, so I had to buy the 28-liter version even though it was higher than my actual needs," said Ms. Thuy Anh (Co Nhue, Hanoi).

On groups using household appliances, dehumidifiers were also the "hottest" topic with a series of questions asking for advice on the machine model, how to use it, and where to buy it in stock last weekend.

"The warehouse had nearly 200 units a week ago, expected to be enough to sell until the end of February, but there were none left yesterday," said Minh Hai, owner of a home appliance store in To Huu (Hanoi). He expressed regret that he will not have any products to sell in the next two weeks because the distributors and importers have also emptied their warehouses.

Mr. Nguyen Minh Tan, Director of Giga retail system, said that dehumidifiers are one of the best-selling home electronics products at the beginning of the year. Last week, sales increased four times compared to the previous week, while on the peak humid weekends, sales increased more than 10 times.

Most systems and stores have prepared for increased demand during the wet season in the North, but consumption has exceeded expectations. "In recent years, dehumidifier sales have increased exponentially. The reason is that consumers are increasingly concerned about health, indoor air quality and better economics. Devices with obvious and easily recognizable effects are enthusiastically received," Mr. Minh Tan explained.

Dehumidifiers are usually divided by suction capacity, ranging from 10, 12, 18, 22, 28, 30 to 50 liters... suitable for different room areas. For example, the 12L model can absorb and condense up to 12 liters of water per day in the air (the actual number depends on the conditions of use). Small types are suitable for bedrooms and small apartments, while larger models can be used for the entire apartment or multi-storey house.

The survey shows that the 12-liter machine is the best-selling model thanks to its good price, suitable for most families with prices starting from over 2 million VND. This is also a segment with the participation of many brands such as Xiaomi, Lumias, NWT, Gree, Nagakawa. However, this year, consumers are also gradually choosing machines with higher capacity when the 20-30 liter models of these brands are also growing strongly.

While the segment under 6 million VND is "sold out" in many stores, the higher-end segment still has options, although not many. Prominent brands such as LG, Electrolux, Sharp recorded sales increases following the general trend of the market.

According to Ms. Nguyen Ha, Marketing Director of Hop Long E-commerce, in the past 2 years, Vietnamese people have been buying dehumidifiers more evenly throughout the year, not just concentrated in the wet season. From September 2024 to January 2025, the company distributed more than 25,000 units of many brands to the market. In the past month, about 20,000 units were delivered to dealers, mainly Lumias and NWT. In its first year of officially selling dehumidifiers in Vietnam, Xiaomi is achieving sales "much better than the company's expectations".

"Consumers previously thought that they only needed the machine during the humid season, but in reality, using it regularly throughout the year ensures that the humidity is maintained at the right level, which is not only good for health but also for electronic devices and furniture in the house," Ms. Ha explained.

According to home appliance expert Nguyen Minh Tien, the effectiveness of dehumidifiers has been proven over many years, and users can easily see the effects. However, the market is lacking good enough dehumidifier and air purifier models. Most dehumidifiers only have an air purifier function as a secondary function, and the rudimentary filter cannot handle fine dust like a specialized machine. "Users have to buy two separate machines to ensure indoor air quality, which is difficult for small areas," said Mr. Tien.

A dedicated dehumidifier has an operating mechanism with a compressor and condenser similar to an air conditioner but is compact, has the ability to control humidity precisely according to preset settings as well as easily move between rooms. In terms of power consumption and efficiency, a dehumidifier is also more optimal than an air conditioner in dry mode in controlling humidity as required.