16x20x5 air filter: actual size, MERV, and price

A 16x20x5 is a five-inch-class media filter for a dedicated cabinet — not a 1-inch return slot. Buy the printed size 16x20x5. Do not substitute a 16x20x1. Do not substitute a 16x20x4 by title alone. Most 16x20x5 Honeywell-replacement SKUs are about 4⅜ inches thick; that is the same cartridge depth as a Honeywell FC100/FC200 16x20 media pack, which Honeywell still often labels 16x20x4. Measure the old cartridge.

Same panel, swapped axes: 20x16x5. We treat 16x20x5 as the canonical label. Order 16x20x5. Nordic Pure’s live 16x20x4 copy tells Honeywell 4⅜-inch buyers to order their 16x20x5 Honeywell replacement (published 15.88 × 19.75 × 4.38 on that note). A Nordic Pure 16x20x4 (~3⅝ inch actual depth) will sit short in that cabinet.

Actual size by brand

These numbers are copied from manufacturer or merchant product copy, not from a competitor size chart. Thickness is the fit: a Honeywell F100/F200 cabinet takes a ~4⅜ inch cartridge. Nordic Pure’s own 16x20x5 specs and Honeywell-fill note do not print the same face length — compare them to the old filter, not to the nominal 16x20x5 stamp.

If the old cartridge is about 4⅜ inches thick, this is the size Nordic Pure tells Honeywell 16x20x4 buyers to order. If the old cartridge is about 3⅝ inches thick, that is a different 16x20x4 cut — not this 16x20x5 Honeywell replacement. Filtrete has no 16x20x5 SKU we could find (16x25x5 and other 5-inch Filtrete pages exist). Aprilaire has no 16x20x5 listing (their media cabinets use other face sizes). Amazon Basics has no 16x20x5 SKU with a printed actual. Measure the old filter. Full method: how to measure.

MERV 8 vs 11 vs 13 (facts only)

MERV is ASHRAE 52.2, as summarized by EPA. Higher MERV captures a larger share of smaller particles. It also adds resistance. EPA says to pick at least MERV 13 or as high a rating as your system fan and filter slot can accommodate, and to ask an HVAC technician if you are unsure. A 5-inch-class MERV 13 is not HEPA. We do not claim health outcomes.

Source: U.S. EPA, “What is a MERV rating?”, last updated 14 Jan 2026. Nordic Pure 16x20x5HM12 is labeled MERV 12 — between the EPA 11 and 13 rows above; EPA also publishes a MERV 12 line (≥35% of 0.30–1.0 µm; ≥80% of 1.0–3.0 µm; ≥90% of 3.0–10.0 µm). We do not invent capture numbers beyond that table.

Pack prices checked 30 Aug 2026

Amazon rows re-checked 27 Sep 2026 against the live featured-offer buy-box in a headed browser (Buy links now open the exact listing named in each row). Other merchants keep their own stamps.

These are public shelf/cart prices we recorded on 30 Aug 2026. They are not live. Shipping, subscribe-and-save, and store-only deals will move them. Per-filter math is pack price ÷ count, rounded to the cent.

Observed range that day for 16x20x5 Honeywell-replacement pleats: about $21.28–$26.10/filter at MERV 8 in Nordic Pure multi-packs, $29.99 at MERV 8 for the Filterbuy 2-pack, AIRx MERV 11 2-pack currently unavailable on Amazon (checked 29 Sep), $21.50–$26.55 at MERV 12 in Nordic Pure multi-packs ($36.99 for the Amazon MERV 12 single), $35.60–$37.35 at MERV 13 in Nordic Pure multi-packs. Honeywell FC200E1003 OEM media was $94.50 as a single on Air Quality Honeywell Store (that page still prints nominal 16x20x4); Atomic Filters’ FC200E1003 16x20x5 page listed $73.95 sold out, so that pack price is omitted. Filtrete, Aprilaire, and Amazon Basics have no 16x20x5 SKU with a printed actual. FilterOutlet AIRx ALLERGY 2-pack printed actuals and a $129.15 pack price; that row is omitted from the table because the Amazon AIRx 2-pack already covers MERV 11 at a public featured offer. Walmart product pages were not used for a price row. Nordic Pure Buy buttons go through Awin to nordicpure.com. Factory cart pack prices for listed MERV 8 and MERV 12 and MERV 13 2/4-packs were verified 15 Sep 2026 from nordicpure.com (pick MERV and pack on the factory page).

Where to buy

• Honeywell Store OEM FC200E1003 media, exact 15⅞ × 19⅞ × 4⅜, MERV 13 (page prints nominal 16x20x4): FC200E1003 16x20. Honeywell Home’s current CF200A1620 is a 16x20x4 listing, not this 16x20x5 SKU.
• Amazon Nordic Pure MERV 12 1-pack with printed actual 15⅞ × 19⅝ × 4⅜: B0G3BDJCJ2. Filterbuy MERV 8 2-pack with printed actual 15.75 × 19.75 × 4.38: B00NVF4Q3S. AIRx MERV 11 2-pack with printed actual 15.75 × 19.5 × 4.375: B0718YFRMT. Search this size: 16x20x5 furnace filter.
• Walmart Size search: 16x20x5 air filter.
• AirFilters.com Custom and stock cuts: airfilters.com.
• Nordic Pure Factory page (via Awin); published actual ~15.88 × 19.63 × 4.38 and Honeywell-fill note 15.88 × 19.75 × 4.38: Nordic Pure 16x20x5HM13-4.

No ranking. Stock and price change. If the slot is an odd fraction that none of these actual sizes match, measure first — that is not a 16x20x5 SKU. A 16x20x1 or a 16x20x4 is not a substitute by name alone.