The invention discloses an air purifier with an external filter element, and belongs to an air purifier. The air purifier comprises an upper shell, a fan is mounted in the upper shell, the lower portion of the upper shell is mounted on a supporting column, the supporting column is mounted on a base, a first air duct is arranged in the upper shell and communicates with an air outlet, a second air duct is arranged in the supporting column, and the second air duct communicates with the first air duct; an air inlet is formed in the supporting column, the outer side of the supporting column is sleeved with a filter element body, the air inlet is covered with the filter element body, and the air inlet communicates with the outside through any position of the filter element body. The supporting column is sleeved with the filter element body, so that the filter element body is exposed outside, airflow can enter the second air duct of the supporting column from any position of the filter element body, the dust containing space of the filter element can be increased under the condition that the size of the filter element is not increased, the air filtering effect is improved, wind noise caused by narrow air inlet holes can be avoided, the air purifier is simple in structure, convenient to use and low in manufacturing cost, industrial production is facilitated, and the popularization is easy.