Anyone have recommendations for a small bedroom AC under $200?

The reality is that $150 to $200 is a tough spot for buying a brand-new portable air conditioner. Most of what you see at that price point online are actually evaporative coolers, often labeled as "swamp coolers." They don't have a compressor or an exhaust hose; they just blow air over wet pads or ice. Unless you live in a desert with zero humidity, those won't do anything but turn your bedroom into a humid sauna. Avoid those tiny desk units entirely—they're essentially just expensive paperweights with a small fan inside.

If your window setup allows for it, a basic 5,000 BTU window unit is your best bet for staying under budget. You can ussually find a simple mechanical model at a big box store for around $160 to $180. They are significantly more efficient than portable units beacuse they don't pull air out of the room to cool the condenser, and they actually vent the heat outside properly. Even a small 5,000 BTU unit will easily drop a single bedroom down to 18 or 19 degrees even if the rest of the house is warm.

If you absolutely must have a portable unit because your window won't support a hanging unit, you should look at the used market. Check local classified listings for brands like LG, Midea, or Danby. People sell these all the time when they move or upgrade thier central systems. You can often snag a 8,000 or 10,000 BTU portable unit for $120 to $150. Just make sure you see it running and feel actual cold air coming out of the vent before you pay for it.

Since you mentioned the room gets direct sun, you also need to address the thermal gain. Spend $20 of your budget on some blackout curtains or even heat-reflective window film. If the sun is baking your room all day, it's acting like a giant radiator. Stopping that heat from entering the room in the first place will make even a cheap unit or a powerful tower fan much more effective at keeping the space livable.

Is that heat-reflective film easy to put on yourself? My window gets so much sun that I can actualy feel the heat radiating off the glass even when the blinds are closed. If I go for one of those cheaper window units, are the ones with the old-school turning knobs actually more reliable than the digital ones with remotes? I've heard the simple mechanical ones last way longer but I'm not sure if that's true.

Mechanical units are tanks. If you get one with the knobs, you can also plug it into a $15 heavy-duty smart plug. Since the physical switch stays in the 'on' position, you can trigger it remotely to pre-chill the room before you head to bed. Digital ones ussually just reset to 'off' when they lose power. Regarding the film, get the static cling type instead of the adhesive. It’s way easier to handle—you just spray the glass with soapy water and squeegee it on. If you mess up, you just peel it off and try again. It makes a massive difference in how hard the AC has to work during peak sun hours.