N95 and KN95 masks both filter up to 95% of particles and create an air tight seal around the face.
Other differences between N95 masks vs KN95 masks are that KN95 masks often use the earloop method of wearing the respirator whereas the N95 masks use a two straps attachment, one that goes around the back of the head under the ears and another that goes on the top of the head above the ears. It really comes down to personal preference in terms of which one is more comfortable for the wearer.
These are just masks with similar performance standards for different countries.
- N95 is a USA performance standard - United States NIOSH-42CFR84
- FFP2 is a European performance standard - Europe EN 149-2001
- KN95 is a China performance standard - China GB2626-2006
- P2 is a performance standard for Australia and New Zealand - AS/NZA 1716:2012
Here is a chart to see the comparison better:
| Certification/Class (Standard) | N95 (NIOSH-42CFR84) | FFP2(EN149-2001) | KN95(GB2626-206) | P2 (AS/NZ 1716:2012) |
| Filter performance (Must be ≥ X% efficient) | ≥ 95% | ≥ 94% | ≥ 95% | ≥ 9 |
| Test agent | NaCl | NaCl and Paraffin oil | NaCl | NaCl |
| Total inward leakage (TIL) Tested on human subjects each performing exercises | N/A | ≤ 8% (arithmetic mean) | ≤ 8% (arithmetic mean) | ≤ 8% (individual and arithmetic mean) |
| Inhalation resistance - max pressure drop | ≤ 343 Pa | ≤70 Pa (at 30L/min) ≤ 240 Pa (at 95L/min) ≤500 Pa (at clogging) | ≤ 350 Pa | ≤ 70 Pa (at 30 L/min) ≤ 240 Pa (at 95 L/min) |
| Flow rate | 85 L/min | Varied See above | 85 L/min | Varied See above |
| Exhalation resistance - max pressure drop | ≤ 245 Pa | ≤ 300 Pa | ≤ 250 Pa | ≤ 120 Pa |
| Flow rate | 85 L/min | 160 L/min | 85 L/min | 85 L/min |
| Exhalation valve leakage requirement | Leak rate ≤ 30 mL/min | N/A | Depressurization to 0 Pa ≥ 20 sec | Leak rate ≤ 30 mL/min |
| Force Applied | -245 Pa | N/A | -1180 Pa | -250 Pa |
| CO2 clearance requirement | N/A | ≤ 1% | ≤ 1% | ≤ 1% |
