These aren’t competing purchases — used together, they can genuinely complement each other.
A fan helps distribute cooled air
An air conditioner cools the air near it most directly; a fan like the DREO DR-HPF002 helps circulate that cooled air more evenly through the rest of the room, reducing hot and cold pockets.
It can let you ease off the AC’s setting
Because moving air feels cooling on its own, running a fan alongside an air conditioner can let you set a slightly higher, less aggressive target temperature while feeling equally comfortable — a real effect, though neither manufacturer quantifies it precisely.
Fans are also useful when the AC is switched off
Overnight, or in a room the AC doesn’t reach, a fan continues to help even without any cooling appliance running, simply by keeping air moving rather than stagnant.
The reverse isn’t quite true
A fan alone, without an air conditioner, has real limits in genuinely hot weather — see our guide comparing the two — so owning a fan doesn’t remove the case for a proper air conditioner if the room gets hot enough.
What we would not do
Suggest a fan is a substitute for an air conditioner once temperatures get high. They complement each other well; one doesn’t replace the job the other does.
The questions that keep coming up
Will running a fan alongside an AC save money?
It can — evenly distributed cool air can let you set the air conditioner's target temperature slightly higher while feeling equally comfortable, since a fan's airflow adds a cooling sensation on its own. Neither appliance's manufacturer publishes a specific saving figure, so treat this as a plausible, not guaranteed, effect.
Last reviewed 24 August 2026