Let’s be clear: I’m a candle lover. Maybe even a candle snob? I do have a whole series where I share and review my favorite candle of the month.
I love when my home smells vibey and cozy… or sometimes bright and fresh if it’s a summer day, or like leaves and apples in the fall. But, candles aren’t always safe to use (I’m also a wine snob and I have a strict no wine and lit candles policy).
When I discovered Pura smart devices on TikTok last year, I had to take a chance and try them out. Especially since I just opened my Whimsy Homes cabin Airbnb and really wanted to have a signature pine scent for the mountain home.
This is my honest Pura review after 30 days of using these smart diffusers so you can decide if they are worth a purchase, or not.
What Makes Pura Smart Fragrances Different
Growing up my family would sometimes buy those Glade outlet things that you plug into a wall and the scent would just pump out nonstop forever until it was used up.
Pura isn’t like that. The Pura Diffuser is on its 4th generation now, and it’s come a long way since V1 to truly secure itself in a smart home lineup.
Now there’s a whole Pura app that allows you to custom schedule for scents, along with the option for 2 different capsules that don’t have to be the same scent
A smart fragrance diffuser uses innovative smart features paired with premium, clean scents to give you the most modern, customized, and high-end scenting experience possible. We love the variety of scents available, the custom colored light settings and how subtle these devices are.
- Affordable
- Easy to use app
- Smart colored light built in
- Works with Alexa
- SO many scents
- Need multiple for large spaces
- Takes up entire outlet
. The 4th generation even has a colored lightbulb setting option, which allows you to have complete control of your smart home fragrance and ambiance.
Pura devices are also different from other competitors, like Aera, since it’s cheaper and plugs directly into an outlet, vs a long cord that needs to be run to plug in. This makes them sleeker to hide, but does also mean you need to have direct outlet space to use them (more on that later)
Choosing Pura Scents For My Cabin
My main motivation for branching into the smart fragrance world is I wanted to give guests at my new Whimsy Homes cabin good smells, but I don’t trust them with a candle (not trying to burn the place down.)
Those reed diffusers are good, but not great (and are prone to being knocked over) so I read a lot of Pura diffuser reviews, watched a lot of content and decided Pura was the right choice to test out.
I liked how I could have 2 scents locked and loaded in, which Is good since I wanted to have a summer scent and a winter scent. It’s located in Arnold, California in the mountains, with snowy winter and long, hot summers filled with lake days.
I tried out a few various scents – pictured here I have another pine scent and a pumpkin one. But in the end, I went a with the Icy Pine for winter, and Asian Woods for the summertime to compliment each season’s vibe.
I liked the app control Pura offers since I can schedule when the device will turn off and on. Right now I have it running for a couple hours each evening and a couple of hours in the morning for guests, but it turns off in the day when they are gone.
At home in my San Francisco apartment, I have been loving testing out various scents. Pura just launched a Disney collab which has been smelling fantastic so far, and I think I’ll be weaving in more seasonal smells to switch things up.
There Are SO MANY Pura Scents Available
Pura sells so many fragrance bottle options that is almost can feel overwhelming. But really, it’s a good thing since everyone can find at least one favorite scent.
I also love using scents to mark seasons. Like, literal seasons but also the seasons of my life – I think the youths would call that an “era”. Right now I’m in my pine and winter chalet era but I have a feeling come springtime I’ll be in my blossom era. And Pura will have plenty of scents for me.
Pro-Tip: Grab Pura Sample Scents
A little Pura fragrance hack is to buy samples. There are so many times I looked at a scent’s description and thought “yes, I would love that” only to get the sample and not like it.
In fact, one of the signature scents I picked for my cabin is something I didn’t even think I would like. Asian Woods came in a sample packet and surprised us all when we smelled it – it was instantly a group favorite but for some reason online it didn’t catch my eye.
Scents Fill Small Rooms Quickly
But not so much large rooms. When I put the Pura in my cabin, I tested it out near the dining room / kitchen, and then also on the opposite wall by the couch in the seating area.
The scents quickly fill the area they were in, but when I walked to the other side of the open floor plan, I couldn’t smell anything. To be fair, it’s a large space.
The amount of time to fill a small room is short – perfect for my apartment. However, you will need multiple devices for larger rooms in order for the scents to fill all the spaces.
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Pura Fragrance Diffuser Double As A Night Light
If you couldn’t tell from my cabin’s green living room, I’m a girl who loves color and am obessed with this option to have the Pura double as a night light with fun colors. You don’t have to use this option, but I do.
At the cabin I leave it green, to make the theme, and lets guests know that it’s on and running.
In my apartment, I change the color a lot to match my mood for the day or the scent it’s running. You can also program the light to be on without the scents running if you wanted it to be a literal night light. How fun!
What I Don’t Like About Pura Smart Home Fragrance Diffuser
Hey, it wouldn’t be a proper review post if I didn’t share good and bad! Over all I am very happy with the diffusers but there are a few aspects to consider…
I wish the app let you unschedule timers. You can set a schedule for scents to turn on and off, but there is no way to have an end day (ie I want scents to turn on at 3pm and off at 9pm, but only for 5 days and then I want them to stop altogether when I know I will be out of town next week.)
I find myself having to set Google cal reminders to manually tweak scent schedules to make sure they aren’t running when nobody is home. Would love to see more robust scheduling options in the future!
The most annoying thing to consider, though, is how this device puls directly into a wall outlet, vs using a cord. This makes it hard to find available outlets, at least when you live in a smaller space like my apartment and already don’t have enough outlets for all the times we plug in.
Because of the design of the Pura, it needs to remain upright in order to properly pump the scents into the air – trust me from mistakes, it can’t be sideways or upside down as the scent capsules leak all over the place.
This means you can’t plug it into a flat extension cord. It needs to be in an outlet.
Lastly, the scents don’t linger as long as with candles. When the device isn’t running, the scents aren’t smelling. Unlike candles, where some brands have strong aromas that linger in the air after being blown out, the Pura scents don’t linger very long.
I Tried The Pura Car Diffuser, Too!
This smart fragrance diffuser can also be used in your car! I grabbed a car device and the famous Capri Blue Volcano scent for a road trip to Mendocino. Holy cow – my car has never smelled better!
The scents instantly fill the car and last a really long time since you don’t need them running very long to get those good smells.
The only downside is, they HAVE to be plugged into a USB outlet to work. I wish they had a charging capability since it’s fard for older cars like mine who do not have extra USB outlets.
I have to choose to either charge my phone or run the Pura. But this product is perfect for newer cars that have more outlets available.
Not a lot of customer reviews mention this so I guess everyone has a way newer car than I do (she’s only a 2012 but hey, only got one USB outlet!) I guess I need to get one of those usb extender things.
Finally, good smells are delivered to your car via a smart diffuser.
- Small, can fit in cup holder
- Fills car with scent FAST
- Premium scents available
- Needs to be plugged into USB to work
Final Verdict – Is Pura Worth The Money?
If you’re a girlie who loves the vibes and smart home devices, the Pura is a great smart home diffuser. It doesn’t totally replace the ritual of candle lighting for me, but it’s designed well and does the job of delivering good smells.
I do hope we see more robust scheduling options within the app but the Pura 4 is totally worth the purchase. I have one in my cabin and two in my apartment (plus the car diffuser!)
It also connects with Amazon’s Alexa so you can bypass the app entirely if you want!
@whimsysoul Decorate my San Francisco apartment with me for Christmas 🎄❤️ She’s small but sure is cozy for the holidays 🎄🎄🎄 My mom started a Christmas tradition with us as kids – we get a new ornament every year to represent that year. I have a slice of pizza ornament for my first real job at a pizza shop. A bear in a cast for when I broke my arm in Kindergarten. I keep up the tradition and collect ornaments throughout the year — this year we hung a new toolbox to represent our year renovating @Whimsy Homes Cabin !! I bought my cat, Twyla, a new stocking this year from etsy, and I’m excited to have Pura pine scents pumping all December hehe. This the damn season… shop direct link here: liketk.it/4oKJw Have you decorated yet? #christmasdecor #whimsysoul #christmas #christmastime #christmastree #pura #etsy @Pura @Etsy #holidaydecor #sanfrancisco #sanfranciscolife #sanfranciscoliving #sanfranciscoapartment #bayarea #norcal #sanfranciscohome #cozychristmas #californialiving #whimsysoul #whimsyhomes ♬ Winter Wonderland – Michael Bublé
Frequently Asked Questions About Pura
What Is Pura Returns Policy?
Customer service says they have 30-day returns so if something isn’t working for you, you can easily return it!
Is Pura Diffuser Safe?
Yes! PURA fragrances are non-GMO and free from parabens and phthalates so they are safe to run in your home for children, pets and your own personal health.
They aren’t using essential oils here, which are bad for pets.
What Are The Best Pura Scents?
People love the Capri Blue Volcano and that’s always making their 5 star list. Pura partners with well known brands like Nest to bring customers their favorite scents, so you can probably find all your candle favorites here.
Personally? I love seasonal scents for my home and in the winter when I am writing this post, am obsessed with all the pine scents.
How much does Pura cost per month?
This varies on how much you use your fragrance device. If you have it running a lot, you’ll need to replace capsules more often. Pura cartridges last between 100-350 hours, depending on the level of intensity you have going.
You’ll need to play around with settings and your use to figure out patterns. But I would estimate you can expect cartridges to last at least a month. More cartridges are about $15 each, so you can do the math from there.
In my cabin, we run our Pura device on set schedules and aren’t anywhere close to running out of scents. We’re expecting them to last a long time.
How Long Do Pura Scents Last?
Pura scents don’t linger in rooms too long after the device is turned off, unlike some candle brands.
How Many Pura Diffusers Do I Need?
This totally depends on your space! If you are putting the device in a home office, bathroom, bedroom or apartment you probably just need one for that space.
But if you live in a larger house with a large open floor plan, you will need more devices to ensure the scents can be cast throughout the whole space.
I hope this helps you decide if Pura is for you! I love our devices and can’t wait to try out more scents this year.
If you have questions or your own Pura reviews to add, drop a comment below so everyone can see.
9 comments
Although it was time-consuming for me to read through all of the comments, I thought the article was quite interesting. It ended up being quite beneficial to me, as I’m sure it will be to everyone else who comments on this post. It is always a pleasure when, in addition to gaining knowledge, one can also be entertained.
This game, inspired by Wordle, features a calming soundtrack and visually appealing graphics.
In the gameplay, your music knowledge is tested as you listen to a segment of the beginning of a song and attempt to guess the title
I notice the diffuser holds two scents. Do the two blend? Or do you choose to run one or the other, at separate times?
They don’t blend! Only one is pumped at a time, it’s handy having two slots so you can change scents easily without changing the pods
Thank you for sharing such a helpful post.
I’m so glad I stumbled upon this review! I’ve been considering purchasing Pura Smart Devices for my home, but I’ve been hesitant due to all the negative reviews online. It’s great to see a real-life review from someone who has actually used the product for 30 days. I’m definitely going to give it a try now! Thank you for sharing your honest experience.
The product works decent – my wife likes it. Word of warning – don’t order directly from Pura, they have the rudest, least helpful, combative and confrontational customer service I’ve ever had the displeasure of dealing with.
I’ve never been the guy that says “go to wal-mart, go to amazon” – in this case, go to those places. Any minor shipping problems become massive headaches dealing with Pura directly.
Your content always adds so much value thank you!
Thank you for providing such valuable information.