1&2 are made by the same company, 3,4&5 are made by the same company, just different labels and sometimes slightly different controls but usually not, does that help any?

All are good it's the install and the installer that makes the difference.

It should be said about the following HVAC brands..

Trane and Am Standard are basically the same owned by the same corporate parent.

Carrier and Bryant are basically the same owned by the same parent company.

Heil and Tempstar are part of the ICP HVAC family, a business unit of Carrier Corp owned by United Technologies. And while there is a business connection and the brands share similar if not same components, I would not say Heil and Tempstar are same as Carrier and Bryant. It is a less expensive brand in the marketplace.

Rudd and Rheem are the same owned by same parent and I believe to be one of the most underrated and overlooked HVAC brands in the residential marketplace.

The brands that I would stay away from are not on your list.

IMO

Even within the same brand such are Carrier and Trane, there are low end builder's grade models. I would recommend not purchasing these either.

Agree with Mike's point about builder grade models.

Have to say though that low end builder grade models from Carrier and Trane are not the same as those from other brands.

IMO

Thanks for the input. Through research I found that some of the above models were the same company as stated. What would consider low end builder grade models, we are looking at installing a two stage unit variable speed blower. I am assuming these units would not fit that description?

Of those listed I would go Carrier two stage or modulating. Trane and AS are loosing dealers at a furious pace since Ingersoll bought them. Many that I know have moved to Carrier and are quite happy with that move and the equipment.

I would suggest that before you replace the furnace you analyze the leakage of your duct system. A third party testing company will likely tell you taht you are loosing a lot of energy through duct leakage. To get what you pay for, you need to have a properly sealed system.

Builder grade models typically have features such as single stage and 80% efficiency. The build and material quality are the cheapest.

A 2-stage variable speed furnace is near the top of features and will have better components.

Curious, why are dealers dropping Trane and AS since they were bought by Ingersol?

There are brands that are lower than Heil and Tempstar that still have carrier parts. I had an ICP air handler and Tempstar heat pump and the air handler roared like a jet engine. I think the tempstar heat pump would have been fine if it was higher seer and matched with the correct tempstar air handler. There are builders grade any brand and even lower than builders grade and I also say stay away.