Free tool · AC sizing
What size AC do I need?
A rule-of-thumb tonnage range for a hot, humid Florida home, from a few details about your space. Free, and nothing you enter leaves your device.
Enter the square footage you cool to see a size range.
AC sizing questions
- How is AC size measured?
- In tons of cooling. One ton is 12,000 BTU per hour, so a 3-ton system is rated for about 36,000 BTU per hour.
- Why does Florida need a Manual J?
- Florida's energy code requires heating and cooling equipment to be sized from an ACCA Manual J load calculation, which works from the actual house — walls, windows, orientation, insulation and ducts. Building departments typically ask for it with a change-out permit.
- Isn't a bigger AC safer in Florida heat?
- No. An oversized system cools the air quickly and shuts off before it has removed the humidity, so it short-cycles. The house ends up cool but clammy, and the equipment wears faster.
- Can I just replace my AC with the same size?
- Sometimes the existing size is right, but not always — homes change with new windows, insulation or additions, and the original may never have been sized properly. A load calculation settles it.
Get an AC replacement estimate
Tell us about the system and your city in Miami-Dade, Broward or Palm Beach. The AC work is done by our Florida-licensed air-conditioning subcontractors.
Prefer to talk?
(954) 620-7812