10 Best Space Heaters in 2024 – Reviews & Top Picks

A space heater is used to heat up a space or area of a property or room. They might be used to heat a single room or area of a room without the need to put the heating system on, or they can be used to bring a little additional heat to an area that is still cold even with the heating on. There are different styles, and while some heaters are designed to heat a small area very local to the heater, others can project warmth across a greater distance.

Below, you will find reviews of 10 of the best space heaters, along with a brief guide to help you choose the one that best fits your heating requirements.

A Quick Glance at Our Favorites (2024)

Rating	Image	Product	Details
Best Overall		Vornado VHEAT Vintage Metal Heater	Tiltable head enables control of heat direction Vintage design looks good Variable heat and thermostat settings	CHECK PRICE
Best Value		Lasko Heating Compact Space Heater	Very cheap Portable and lightweight Cool housing means it is safe for use on the desk	CHECK PRICE
Premium Choice		Dyson HP02 Wi-Fi Enabled Air Purifier	Heats, cools, and purifies air Can be controlled via the machine, app, and even Alexa Very effective at spreading warm air through a room	CHECK PRICE
		Lasko CD08200 Portable Space Heater	Cheap Decent amount of heat from a small device Very easy to control	CHECK PRICE
		Dr Infrared Heater Portable Heater	Remote control Thermostatically controlled to maintain desired temperature Variety of safety features including tip-over protection	CHECK PRICE

The 10 Best Space Heaters

1. Vornado VHEAT Vintage Metal Heater – Best Overall

Vornado launched its first space heater in 1945, and the Vornado VHEAT Vintage Metal Heater is a reimagining of the company’s first effort. It uses modern technology, offering a choice of 750 or 1,500 watts of heat power, and combines it with the same vintage look of the first heater.

The company’s Vortex Action fan does a good job of circulating heat through a room so that it evenly spreads warmth, rather than blasting heat. It has an adjustable thermostat with 10 settings and the head can be tilted so that you can direct the warmth exactly where you want it without being restricted to the unidirectional flow of more rigid heaters. As well as a safety grille to prevent fingers and tails getting hurt, there is an automatic shut off that will stop the heater if the airflow becomes blocked.

It looks good, it heats well, and it offers good control, and although it is a little on the expensive side for a heater that lacks a remote control and advanced features, it is our choice as the best overall space heater.

2. Lasko Heating Compact Space Heater – Best Value

If you only have a small area to heat, you only need a small space heater, and the Lasko Heating Compact Space Heater fits that bill. It measures 4.3 x 3.8 x 6.1 inches which means that it’s about the size of a desktop speaker. Despite being small, it offers 682 BTU of heat from 200 watts of power and is ready to use straight out of the box.

As well as being small and lightweight, the Lasko Compact Space Heater is also really cheap. It lacks the power and heating capabilities of other heaters but is ideal if you’re looking for something to warm your workspace or desk in your home office. It has overheating protection, and its housing remains cool to the touch, so it is perfectly safe to use. It is also quiet, so, as well as being suitable for home use, you can take it into the office and heat your own workspace without causing office disruption.

It is basic, only has one setting, and it won’t heat an entire room, but its low price and convenience makes the Lasko Heating Compact Space Heater the best space heater for the money.

3. Dyson HP02 Wi-Fi Enabled Air Purifier – Premium Choice

The Lasko Compact Heater is cheap and has very limited, basic controls. The Dyson Pure Hot + Cool Link HP02 Wi-Fi Enabled Air Purifier is the opposite, and that’s because it is not just a space heater. It combines the features of a heater, fan, and even an air purifier. It includes a remote control, has seemingly endless controls and features, and it is even Wi-Fi enabled so that you can control it via your smartphone or other device. It is an advanced piece of equipment that even monitors air quality and adjusts to its own findings. It does a very good job of maintaining heat at the level you want, and its unique, bladeless fan does a very good job of spreading that heat around a room.

The Dyson is a very expensive device, and there are some issues with placement because it needs to be placed a distance away from walls so performs at its best in the middle of a room, but it enables you total control over the air in your room, including everything from the temperature of the air to the air quality. Plus, it offers control through a variety of methods including app and Wi-Fi.

4. Lasko CD08200 Small Portable Ceramic Space Heater

The Lasko CD08200 Small Portable Ceramic Space Heater is a portable space heater that weighs less than 4 pounds and can cover an area of just over 200 square feet. It is targeted at bathroom heating, is really inexpensive, and it is easy to control. There is a single control button that lets you choose low heat, high heat, or to receive a 1-hour boost of heat. Because it’s designed for use in the bathroom, it includes a safety plug with other safety features, including overheat protection and cool-touch housing.

It is a small heater and is cheap and easy to use, but the lack of temperature control means that it is basic compared to most of the other heaters on this list. It is a good option for the bathroom, however, where temperature control is perhaps less important and for other situations where you might want just a one-hour boost of heat.

5. Dr Infrared Heater Portable Space Heater

The Dr. Infrared Heater Portable Space Heater is a unique looking infrared heater that is quite expensive compared to ceramic heaters but offers convection heating that claims to do away with hot spots and cold spots. It is quiet, has three power settings, and also features an automatic thermostat so that you can set the desired temperature and let the thermostat cycle the power on and off to maintain a level temperature. It also has an infrared remote control so it can be controlled from the comfort of the sofa.

The Dr Infrared is heavier than a lot of the other space heaters on our list, but it does have caster wheels that make it easy to move around and shift into position. The Dr Infrared has tip-over protection so it will shut off if the device is tipped onto its side or front. It also has overheating protection to ensure safety as well as warmth.

6. Mr Heater F232000 MH9BX Buddy

Whether you have an RV, outdoor eating area, or some other outdoor or unpowered space that you want to heat, a standard indoor space heater won’t do the job. The Mr Heater F232000 MH9BX Buddy is an outdoor space heater. It uses propane, which isn’t provided with the purchase, to provide between 4,000–9,000 BTU of heat and is capable, according to the manufacturer, of heating up to 225 square feet of space with radiant heat. Although it is an outdoor heater, it is also rated as safe for indoor use, so it can be used in garages or other areas where access to electricity is limited.

The Mr Heater is reasonably priced, is one of the few that can be safely and effectively used outdoors, and it has a propane burn rate of 0.099 gallons per hour, so it uses propane reasonably. However, while it is a good option for camping or for emergency use during power outages and is rated safe for indoor use, it relies on radiant heating, so it doesn’t use a fan to push heat out around the room and will be very warm around the heater but less warm away from the immediate vicinity.

7. De’Longhi Ceramic Tower Heater

The De’Longhi Ceramic Tower Heater is a ceramic fan heater that offers just over 5,000 BTUs of heat and claims to offer instant heating from its ceramic heating element. It has a remote control, enables a good degree of control over temperature, and it also has an oscillating setting that enables you to more evenly radiate heat around a room or space. The manual timer means that you can set and forget the heater, and safety features like thermal shut-off and tip-over switch mean that it is safe to do so. It also has De’Longhi’s Quiet System that reduces noise by half, ensuring that the noise of the fan won’t drown out the TV in your room.

The fan is a little on the expensive side, but it does have advanced control features and its oscillation and quiet noise are beneficial. Also, while it does a good job of heating small spaces, it struggles to dissipate heat around larger areas, so you may need to look elsewhere if you’re trying to heat a bigger space.

8. Lasko Ceramic Adjustable Thermostat Space Heater

The Lasko Ceramic Adjustable Thermostat Space Heater is a small and portable space heater that is reasonably priced and offers 11 temperature settings. It also has three modes with low, high, and fan-only settings. Lasko claims that the heater will warm spaces up to 300 square feet in area and that it has a cool-touch housing so the carry handle can be safely used to move the heater even when it is in use.

The heater is reasonably priced and has decent temperature settings, but it is lightweight and doesn’t automatically switch off if it is tipped over. It also lacks a remote control, although that should be expected at this price point.

9. Vornado TAVH10 Electric Space Heater

The Vornado TAVH10 Electric Space Heater is another fan heater from Vornado. This one offers three modes: low power (750 watts), high power (1,500 watts), and fan only. It has automatic climate control to maintain the desired temperature without having to manually adjust settings. It uses the company’s vortex tornado fan system which twists air to circulate it around a room without the excessive noise that can be heard from a lot of fans. It also has a basic remote control so it can be controlled from the sofa or anywhere else and safety features ensure that the device turns off automatically if tipped over or if it overheats.  However, it is expensive and doesn’t do a great job of heating rooms.

10. De’Longhi TRD40615T Full Room Radiant Heater

The De’Longhi TRD50615T Full Room Radiant Heater is a radiant heater which means that it has no fan to push air around the room, but it is a fairly big heater that produces a reasonable amount of heat. The lack of a fan does mean that it is quieter than fan-assisted heaters, and it features an adjustable thermostat with a timer and a good variety of heat settings. The antifreeze standby setting prevents the heater and its pipes from freezing over in cold weather.

However, it is a little pricey and because it doesn’t use a fan. This oil heater struggles to heat the full room, and you will get the best results when placing the radiator in the middle of a room, which isn’t always practical. And, while the heater heats silently, the timer does make an audible ticking noise that can be heard when the room is quiet and can be especially irritating at night.

Buyer’s Guide: Picking the Best Space Heater

Space heaters are relatively simple heaters that are designed to heat spaces or single rooms. They differ from a heating system because they are individual units and typically draw power from the electricity, although there are some outdoor space heaters that use propane instead of electricity. There are various features to look for, including automatic thermostatic settings and remote controls, but the most important factor of any space heater is how well it heats. Read on for more information on these home heaters and how to choose the one that best fits your requirements.

Pros of a Space Heater

Cons of Space Heaters

Types of Space Heater

There is a fairly limited range of space heater types available. The majority use a ceramic heating element and then use fans to distribute the heat around a room. However, there are some radiant heaters. These produce heat at the unit and rely on natural dissipation to spread the heat.

Fan heaters usually do a better job of spreading heat more evenly so that you don’t suffer hot and cold spots, but you will have to deal with the noise of the fan, whereas radiant heaters are quieter but may not offer the same heat distribution.

Although space heaters are usually used to heat indoor areas, there is a limited number of outdoor space heaters that can sometimes be used for camping too, although you should always ensure that a heater is safe for use in a tent and that you situate it properly and safely. These run on propane or another gas and can also be beneficial in areas where there is no access to power or in emergencies. For example, during power blackouts.

Features to Look For

There is no single space heater that can be considered the best for all circumstances. When shopping, consider the following features to ensure you choose the best space heater for you and your space.

Settings

Very basic heaters have an on and off setting, but most have more settings than this. Look for heaters with multiple heat settings such as low and high heat. And if you want advanced heating features, consider one with an automatic thermostat and timer features. These settings not only enable you to control the amount of heat you get, but to automate the heating of your space, although they do attract a higher cost.

Controls

Heaters always have controls on the unit itself. The controls may be analog dials or digital buttons. Some also offer remote control—a small handheld device that can be used to turn the heater on and off, control the temperature, and determine any other settings such as timers. Those that are Wi-Fi enabled usually offer controls via a smartphone app and may even connect to your Alexa or other voice assistance so that you can “tell” your heater to turn on and off. The more advanced the controls, the higher the price of the heater.

Oscillating Heaters

Fan heaters push heat forwards. Some push air in a very limited angle while others can offer almost 180° coverage, but if you are looking to heat a larger area, an oscillating heater will automatically turn back and forth so that it can cover space in front and behind the fan and provide a much greater dispersal of heat through a room.

Safety Features

Space heaters can be dangerous. They should always be used away from other items and most manufacturers recommend that they are kept away from walls. Even then, they do rely on a heating element that can reach intense heat, so safety features should be considered important, especially if you have children or pets that might get close to the heater. Look for devices that switch off automatically if they tip over, those that switch off if they are overheating, and also ensure that fans have grilles to cover the blades and that the housing unit remains cool enough to touch in order to prevent burned fingers and pets.

Conclusion

Space heaters can do a very good job of heating individual rooms or small spaces, although heating multiple rooms using multiple space heaters can prove expensive. Different heaters have different features and settings, with some of the most advanced rivalling a central heating system in their complexity and room coverage. While compiling the reviews above, we found the Vornado VHEAT to offer a great combination of affordability and heating, while the Lasko Compact Heater is a really cheap heater that is still effective at heating a desk or small area in a room.

Featured Image Credit: New Africa, Shutterstock