War der 618-Shoppingfestival für Klimaanlagen das heißeste aller Zeiten? Die Hitze trifft auf einen starken Anstieg des Kupferpreises, und "reines Kupfer" wird überraschenderweise zur größten Verkaufsargumente.

During the annual 618 special offers, one certainly cannot overlook air conditioners among the most highly sought - after product categories.

However, this time it's a bit different from previous years, especially regarding the controversy over the "replacement of copper with aluminum". Consumers are worried that air - conditioner manufacturers may use aluminum pipes instead of copper pipes to cut costs. Since it's difficult to tell from the outside, consumers may only feel the impact on quality after several years of using the air conditioner. The increased costs and special - offer prices naturally make consumers anxious. The prices of air conditioners on various platforms have generally dropped. Many 1.5 - horsepower air conditioners with first - class energy efficiency are now offered between 1,300 and 1,500 yuan.

(Source: JD.com)

In such a situation, many people will wonder whether air conditioners are really cheaper this year because of the large discounts, or whether the equipment and materials have been downgraded.

Increasing costs, great pressure on the air - conditioner market this year

Data from Aoweiyunwang shows that the sales volume of air conditioners in the first quarter of 2026 decreased by 6.2% compared with the previous year. From April to May, the decline continued to increase, and an overall weakening of about 8.5% is expected for the whole year. Against this background, brands have intensified their marketing efforts during the 618 special offers. This is not only the usual strategy to increase sales during the peak season but is also supported by government subsidies. Both factors together have caused the price drop.

Fortunately, the "unfavorable weather" may stimulate the demand for air conditioners more strongly this year than in previous years. The National Climate Center predicts that the average temperature across the country in the summer of 2026 will be higher than normal, and the number of hot days will also be above average. This is especially true for the south and Xinjiang. The data shows that the three hot summer months in 2026 will last a total of 40 days, 10 days more than in 2025. All the additional days fall in the middle - hot phase, which is just the most uncomfortable period of the year. Given the experience of 2025, the period of the 618 special offers and the hot July are the best sales periods for air conditioners.

(Source: Lei Technology)

Last year, the combination of special offers and high temperatures brought the annual sales volume to over 102 million units.

Although there is demand, one cannot ignore the increasing costs. On the one hand, the core of the current controversy is the increase in the copper price. The copper price has been rising steadily in the past five years. The LME copper price has increased by over 200% since the low point in March 2020. By the end of April 2026, the copper price in Shanghai was about 103,000 yuan per ton. Copper accounts for about 20% of the cost of an air conditioner. The copper cost of a normal household air conditioner has increased by at least two to three hundred yuan compared with a few years ago, and in some cases, even five to six hundred yuan. For mid - and low - priced models, there is hardly any profit margin.

Under the pressure of increasing costs, the industry carried out a price increase at the beginning of 2026. Many companies such as Hisense, Aux, Meibo, Midea, TCL, and Chigo have announced price increases between 3% and 10%. Fortunately, government subsidies have compensated for part of the price increase. The policy of the "old - for - new" household appliance program was continued in 2026. Air conditioners with first - class energy efficiency receive a subsidy of 15% of the selling price, with a maximum of 1,500 yuan per unit. Therefore, consumers have not directly noticed the sharp increase in air - conditioner prices because the subsidies have temporarily supported the prices.

(Source: Sina Technology)

A document jointly issued by ten ministries such as the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology in March 2025 clearly stipulated that the aluminum pipes in the heat exchangers of air conditioners are among the key areas for the "replacement of copper with aluminum". However, consumers have doubts: "Are you secretly changing copper pipes to aluminum pipes and sacrificing quality?" Interestingly, the "replacement of copper with aluminum" mainly refers to the aluminum pipes inside the heat exchanger, while the "copper pipes" best known to consumers are usually the connecting pipes between the indoor and outdoor units. These two parts are different components but are often confused in discussions.

This ambiguity has a significant impact on the sales of air conditioners during the 618 special offers this year. Consumers are worried both that the air conditioners are not cheap enough and that the quality has been downgraded. Naturally, air - conditioner manufacturers have also noticed this controversy. Therefore, almost all manufacturers are trying to set a new selling point this year: "pure copper".

"Pure copper pipes" become a major selling point for 618 air conditioners

Let's look at the 1.5 - horsepower air conditioners with first - class energy efficiency from some leading brands on JD.com during the 618 special offers. After government subsidies, the prices roughly fall into three categories: TCL and Xiaomi are between 1,359 and 1,572 yuan, the main products of Midea are between 1,614 and 1,784 yuan, and the prices of Gree are the highest, between about 2,099 and 2,379 yuan. These are the prices after government subsidies, which are usually about 15%. The original prices were higher.

TCL and Xiaomi pursue a cost - effectiveness strategy. Thanks to the Mi ecosystem and online channels, Xiaomi has quickly gained market share. In recent years, Xiaomi has been the fastest - growing among the leading brands in the domestic market. The sales volume of a certain 1.5 - horsepower air - conditioner model of Xiaomi on JD.com has already exceeded 4 million units. Midea takes a middle position. Midea has the widest range of products, from entry - level to mid - and high - end models. The mass - market models are in the mid - segment, while the profit margins are in the high - end models. Midea's prices are higher than those of TCL and Xiaomi, but the sales volume is also good. Gree has always maintained relatively high prices. At the beginning of this year, Gree made it clear that it supports the government subsidy policy and will not increase the prices of household air conditioners.

(Source: JD.com)

This means that consumers can feel a significant price drop this time. The government subsidy policy has played a crucial role here and effectively offset the pressure of rising raw - material costs. However, if the subsidy quota is used up or the policy is tightened, the prices will rise again. Therefore, the 618 special - offer period is really a good time to buy an air conditioner.

More interesting than the prices is the "battle for pure copper" during the 618 special offers this year.

Some brands have already actively used terms such as "pure copper pipes", "copper heat exchanger", or "real copper" in the product titles or in prominent positions on the product page. A certain cooperation product of TCL has directly written "pure copper pipes" in the title. Gree's customer service has issued the message "Buy a real copper air conditioner from Gree during the 618 special offers". Midea and Xiaomi have also provided the corresponding information on their product pages.

(Source: TCL JD Flagship Store)

Before the controversy over the "replacement of copper with aluminum", "copper pipe" was the standard equipment in the industry. No brand wrote it in the title because it was not necessary. Now, however, it has become a selling point and even a way to stand out from the competition. This shows that consumers' concerns have already influenced the marketing messages. If manufacturers don't prove themselves "innocent" from the start, they seem to be "hiding something".

The contradiction is that on the one hand, the industry is promoting the technological research on the "replacement of copper with aluminum", but on the other hand, it is actively pointing out "copper pipes" to consumers to ease their concerns about the materials. It follows that for manufacturers this year, it's less about low prices and more about winning consumers' trust.

Year - low price? That's not necessarily the case

Since these are the semi - annual special offers, most consumers who don't care much about the materials are mainly interested in the prices. As long as the prices are favorable, aluminum and copper are not the decisive factors. After all, leading brands such as Midea, TCL, Haier, and Hisense are all manufacturers with core technologies.

But the prices are sometimes not as they seem at first glance.

The price trends on third - party platforms show that the prices during the 618 special offers this year are not the historical low for every model. The price of the Gree Tianyi after government subsidies is currently about 2,099 yuan. However, there are entries on third - party platforms indicating that the final price after regional subsidies at the end of last year was between 1,700 and 1,870 yuan, significantly cheaper than now. For the Xiaomi Mi 1.5 - horsepower high - energy - efficiency air conditioner, there are entries on third - party platforms showing that the final price at the beginning of May 2026 was about 1,399 yuan, almost 170 yuan cheaper than the current 618 price. For the TCL - JD cooperation model, the price was already about 1,350 yuan in March 2026, almost the same as the current 618 price. This shows that the price of this model is relatively stable and remains in the same price range even during the 618 special offers.

(Source: Lei Technology)

This doesn't mean that the 618 special offers "don't work", but that the price trends of different models vary greatly at different times. Some models only become significantly cheaper during the 618 special offers, while others have low prices all the time and don't offer additional discounts during the special - offer period. If one only pays attention to the "618" label and places an order, one may miss a better buying time or pay a price that is actually not favorable.

Besides the purchase price of the air conditioner, we also need to consider the additional costs.

Newly purchased air conditioners are usually installed for free. However, if additional parts are needed or the installation conditions are complicated, additional costs will be incurred. In the fee information published by JD.com, the high - altitude work fee is 100 yuan per unit (200 yuan if hanging from the roof edge). The extension of the connecting pipe costs 90 yuan per meter, the outdoor unit bracket costs 40 yuan per piece, and drilling a hole in...