Honeywell FC100A1037 vs Filtrete 1900
Bottom line
In our scoring the Honeywell FC100A1037 comes out ahead at 6.0/10 to the Filtrete MPR 1900's 3.9/10, though in practice they answer different questions. If you have the media cabinet, the Honeywell costs about $39 a year against $92, gets handled once a year instead of four times, and restricts airflow far less as deep media. The Filtrete's genuine advantage is capture: MERV 13 catches finer particles than MERV 11, and it fits the 1-inch slot nearly every house has. We mark the Filtrete down for leading with the proprietary MPR number and for putting a high MERV in a thin panel, not for what it filters.
The first thing to settle is that these are not interchangeable. The FC100A1037 is a 4-inch media cartridge that sits in a media cabinet, specified on Honeywell's F100 datasheet; the Filtrete MPR 1900 is a 1-inch panel for a standard filter track. If your furnace has the cabinet, the Honeywell is the cheaper and gentler filter: true MERV 11, replaced about once a year, roughly $39 a year, and deep media puts far less strain on airflow. The Filtrete is a true MERV 13 (MPR 1900 is 3M's own scale), so it captures finer particles, but in a 1-inch panel changed four times a year it runs about $92. One honest caveat on the Honeywell: its own datasheet contradicts itself, with the cover and parts list saying MERV 11 while the efficiency table on the same sheet lists this part as MERV 10, so we hold it at Partial confidence.
| MERV 11 | True MERV (ANSI/ASHRAE 52.2) | MERV 13 (sold as MPR 1900) |
| 5.0 | Verified Filtration30% | 7.0 |
| 6.0 | Total Cost of Ownership25% | 2.5 |
| 8.0 | Rating Honesty20% | 5.0 |
| 6.0 | Airflow Fit15% | 0.0 |
| 5.0 | Practical Fit10% | 2.0 |
FAQ
- Is the Honeywell FC100A1037 (4-inch media, MERV 11) better than the 3M Filtrete MPR 1900 (Premium Allergen)?
- In our scoring the Honeywell FC100A1037 (4-inch media, MERV 11) rates 6.0/10 and the 3M Filtrete MPR 1900 (Premium Allergen) 3.9/10. In our scoring the Honeywell FC100A1037 comes out ahead at 6.0/10 to the Filtrete MPR 1900's 3.9/10, though in practice they answer different questions. If you have the media cabinet, the Honeywell costs about $39 a year against $92, gets handled once a year instead of four times, and restricts airflow far less as deep media. The Filtrete's genuine advantage is capture: MERV 13 catches finer particles than MERV 11, and it fits the 1-inch slot nearly every house has. We mark the Filtrete down for leading with the proprietary MPR number and for putting a high MERV in a thin panel, not for what it filters.
- Can I use a Filtrete panel instead of the FC100A1037?
- Not in the same place. The FC100A1037 is a 4-inch media cartridge for a media cabinet; the Filtrete MPR 1900 is a 1-inch panel for a standard filter track. Some homes have both a cabinet and a return-grille slot, but the two filters are not substitutes for each other in the same opening.
- Which one filters more?
- The Filtrete. It is a true MERV 13 against the Honeywell's MERV 11, so it captures a wider range of fine particles. What it gives up is airflow and cost: MERV 13 in a 1-inch panel is restrictive, and four changes a year at $22.99 each works out to about $92 against the Honeywell's $39.
- Why is the Honeywell only at Partial confidence?
- Because Honeywell's own F100 datasheet disagrees with itself on this part. The cover and parts list label it MERV 11 while the efficiency table on the same sheet lists it as MERV 10. We score the labeled MERV 11 but hold our confidence at Partial and flag the discrepancy rather than pretend the documentation is clean.