Methods and devices are provided for controlling an air conditioner in the technical field of smart home. The method includes that: a turning-on remote control signal sent by a smart socket is received, wherein the turning-on remote control signal is a signal generated and sent by the smart socket determining that an air conditioner is turned on, and the turning-on remote control signal contains an identifier of the smart socket. The smart socket may determine whether a rapid working mode of the air conditioner is enabled or not according to the identifier of the smart socket. When the rapid working mode of the air conditioner is enabled, a first remote control signal is sent to the smart socket, the first remote control signal being configured to instruct the smart socket to control the air conditioner to run with a working parameter of the rapid working mode.