The 4 best space heaters in 2022

The Lasko Ceramic Portable Space Heater is a practical, no-frills miniature heater with enough juice to turn your chilly home office into a cozy, warm nook of productivity. 

Pros: Compact, incredibly efficient, easy to use, housing stays cool to the touch, overheat detector 

Cons: No tip-over safety switch, no temperature display 

The Lasko Ceramic Portable Space Heater is one of the smallest heaters on this list at just about 10 inches tall but pulls a powerful 1,500 watts of power to heat efficiently for its miniature size.

There are three settings (low, high, and fan) and an adjustable temperature dial. The temperature dial uses dots instead of specific temperatures, so it's not terribly intuitive to adjust the unit — I ended up watching a YouTube video. Once I got it working, the heat cycling feature kept me comfortable for hours, and quietly so: I didn't feel the need to shut it off during Zoom calls.

Keep in mind that it's not a whole-room heater, though. It only increased the overall temperature in my office by about three degrees Fahrenheit in my testing. However, sitting close to the heater, I felt much, much warmer.

The heater has cool-touch housing, which didn't heat up during use, but the front grille gets quite hot (though you can expect this with most space heaters). It'll also shut off automatically if it detects overheating. The manual didn't specify at what temperature this function triggers, and I didn't encounter it during my testing.

There's no tip-over safety switch, but the unit is quite stable. I really had to shove it off my desk for it to tip over.

Overall, it's a great option when you're unwilling to turn on the furnace. It's easy to store and tote around the house.

The Lasko Cyclonic Digital Ceramic Heater is a full-size space heater that takes up minimal space and delivers an effective dose of warmth. 

Pros: Lightweight, accurate internal thermostat, overheat protection

Cons: No fan-only option, no tip-over shutoff 

This is the model I recommend to my grandfather, who was looking for a space heater for his bedroom. At almost two feet tall, it's a full-size floor model, but it is surprisingly lightweight, so it's easy to move around from room to room.

The light-up control panel is legible from afar and allows you to choose your desired room temperature, select high or low heat settings, and set a timer. You can also adjust the angle of the airflow if you don't want hot air blowing directly on you. 

The unit automatically cycles off and on when it reaches the right temperature. This function was accurate when I compared its temperature display to my reference thermometer. It's quiet for such a large machine, and it heats up a room quickly without blowing uncomfortably hot air. On a chilly morning, the heater was able to warm the air by six degrees Fahrenheit in under an hour. 

Unfortunately, this unit doesn't have a fan-only option. While there's a thermal overload detector to prevent overheating, there's no tip-over shutoff.

Unlike other space heater models I tried, this model can be placed against a wall because of the way the air enters and exits the machine. Safety experts usually recommend keeping the backside of a space heater clear, but I did confirm that no hot air was blowing out the back of the machine, and it never overheated during use.

Dyson's HP04 Pure Hot+Cool's features, like air purifying, app compatibility, and some cooling capability, make it an expansive home appliance that does much more than heat. 

Pros: Air-purifying feature, cool to touch, 360-degree oscillation, automatic shutoff for excessive heat and tipping, app control, smart assistant compatibility

Cons: Replacement filters are expensive

This Dyson unit is ultra-fancy. It's a full-size heater with a unique oblong, donut-shaped design.

Setup is straightforward; just click in the filters and plug in the unit. You can use the remote or an app (iOS or Android) to control and adjust the airflow speed, oscillation, temperature, airflow direction, and turn on the sleep timer or night mode, which adjusts brightness and speed.

There's also a "cooling" mode, which is really just a fan, and barely made a dent in room temperature, though the breeze did make me feel more comfortable. 

The heating function is where the Dyson shines. The room started warming almost immediately, and the heat was effectively dispersed throughout the room. Within an hour, the temperature increased by six degrees Fahrenheit.

The heater has an auto-shutoff that prevents overheating, and it will turn off if it falls over or detects that the heating mode has been active for more than nine hours. It's also the only heater where no part of the exterior is hot to the touch, making it safe for use around kids.

The air purifier is another great feature, and it was so efficient that it helped keep pet hair and dander from exacerbating my asthma.

If you're just interested in basic heat, though, you'll get similar heating power from the cheaper, if noisier picks in this guide.

Read our full review of the Dyson Hot + Cool.

The Honeywell Versa Two Position Heater is a space-saving heater with a powerful fan and thoughtful safety features. 

Pros: Powerful fan, cool-touch housing, overheat protection, unique safety features intended to prevent electrical fires 

Cons: Noisy, no heat cycling, no tip-over switch

The "two-position" feature of this heater means you can place the unit upright or on its side so you can use it in a variety of spaces and situations. I primarily used it in the upright position and was impressed by how this little rectangular heater warmed my office by three degrees very quickly.

It uses a fan to push heat around, and the warmth spreads evenly throughout my office instead of being concentrated in one area. Since the heat disperses so well, it didn't leave me sweating while I was waiting for my office to warm, unlike some other models I tried.

In addition to being a good feature for dispersing heat, the fan can also keep you cool. While the fan is powerful on its own, this feature does make a fair bit of noise, which I could hear from adjoining rooms. 

I also appreciated the thoughtful safety features of this space heater. While it doesn't have a tip-over sensor, the unit stays cool to the touch, and the wiring is thermally insulated to prevent the cord from overheating.

It also has an overheat sensor and an ALCI plug like those found on many blow dryers, which reacts quickly to shorts as a surge protector does. Overall, it's a great space heater for those who are safety conscious and those who want a product they can also use in warmer weather.

In addition to interviewing two safety experts about space heaters, I relied heavily on my experience reviewing heating devices like patio heaters and portable outdoor heaters for this guide. I put all eight space heaters through the same set of standard tests and used a reference thermometer to collect temperature data. Here's what I looked for with each test:

Ability to heat: This is the most important function of a space heater. I tested every heater in my 100-square-foot office. I used a reference thermometer positioned on the corner of my desk in the middle of the room. I placed the heaters diagonally from the thermometer — compact units sat on my desk while full-sized ones were placed in the far corner of my office. I tried each heater's various settings and took notes about the accuracy of internal thermostats. I was also looking for how well the heaters could hold the room at my desired temperature — usually around 70 to 72 degrees Fahrenheit — without blasting me with heat. To the best of my ability, I made sure that I didn't turn on my thermostat throughout testing except when there was a risk of pipes freezing or danger to my parrot's health. Most of the time, testing began when the temperature in my office was hovering somewhere between 60 and 64 degrees Fahrenheit. 

Time to heat: I used an indoor thermometer and a timer to evaluate how long it took for the space heater to bring the room up to my ideal temperature. Some models operate by blasting heat higher than your target temperature to get the room hot faster, but I found these made me sweaty. Units that were too slow left me shivering a few hours later. Units with an accurate cycling feature received bonus points for maintaining comfort levels in my office. 

Easy-to-use controls: While safety experts recommend reading the manual cover-to-cover before using a space heater, I tried to figure out the unit on my own before referencing any manuals. I looked for controls that were intuitive and easy to figure out.

Size: In a small office, there's not much extra room. Extra points went to units that were powerful but still compact, lightweight, and easy to fit in a confined area. For those who have larger spaces to heat, we did include picks for full-size heaters.

Noise: Every space heater made some noise, but some were a bit quieter than others. I docked points from units that I turned off for Zoom meetings or phone calls. 

Safety features: I verified whether safety features were functional (except for the overheating functions, since that would have presented a safety hazard), including tipping the units over to test for automatic shutoffs.

All the heaters I tested worked as intended, quickly raising the temperature in my office by several degrees. A few just missed the mark for inclusion in our top picks. Here are the others we tested:

What else we recommend and why:

Honeywell Uberheat Ceramic Heater: This is a sleek little heater with an attractive aesthetic that looks more like a designer speaker than a space heater. It takes up minimal desk space and has several key safety features like a highly sensitive tip-over switch and an overheat detector. However, the cycling function didn't do a great job at maintaining a consistent temperature. More often than not, I felt uncomfortably hot. The front grille also gets very hot, so I had to be extra careful when handling the unit, though the rest of the housing does stay cool to the touch. Still, if you use the heater without the cycling function, it produces a fair bit of warmth and looks good doing it. It's a great heater for the design-conscious individual. 

What we don't recommend and why:

Taotronics Space Heater: The moderate size of this heater was surprising, especially since marketing photos on Amazon make it look much bigger than it actually is. In reality, it's a little under a foot-and-a-half tall. When I used it on the floor, I felt like only my lower legs were warmed. When I used it on my desk, it was impossible to adjust and check the heat settings while seated, since the controls are at the top of the unit. It's likely why the unit comes with a remote, but it only serves to clutter up my workspace. It heats fine, looks sleek, and swivels, but it's an awkward size and shape for a space heater.

Trustech Ceramic Space Heater: Straight out of the box, this unit intrigued me with its streamlined design, but as soon as I put it on my desk, I changed my tune. The heater has an oscillation feature with a spinning disc on the bottom of the unit, but it makes the heater feel unsteady compared to other models I tested. While it does have a tip-over switch, I never quite felt comfortable using this heater because of how wobbly it is. It heats up fine but no better than other heaters I tried and not enough to justify the design concerns.

Vornado Velocity 5: This square-shaped heater looked rugged and powerful with its large fan placed prominently on display, but it was surprisingly underpowered. It didn't do a good job of dispersing heat, and I often felt chilly sitting right near it if it wasn't pointed directly at me. The crisp display is one of the most legible of all the heaters I tested, but the built-in thermostat is very inaccurate. Anytime I checked my reference thermometer, the reading on the heater's display was at least 3 to 4 degrees off the mark.

Space heaters convert electricity into heat and contain a fan that helps disperse the heat throughout the room. Most space heaters share a few standard functions, like a power button and high- or low-temperature settings. However, we've found a few key features to consider when shopping for a space heater:

Power: Most heaters in our guide have 1,500 watts of power, which is pretty standard for space heaters. More-powerful heaters are usually marketed as "garage heaters" and either need to be hardwired into your electrical circuit or run on a special appliance circuit. Fortunately, a heater with 1,500 watts should be enough to heat a room of about 150 square feet. 

Heat-cycling function: For comfort and energy efficiency, you'll want a space heater with a heat-cycling function. It allows you to select the desired temperature that the unit then attempts to maintain by cycling on and off when the temperature is above or below the threshold. This is similar to how a built-in thermostat works in your home and prevents you from having to manually turn the unit on and off to maintain comfort levels. Not all cycling features work well, however; our picks above outline models with cycling features that are accurate and easy to use. 

Size: A small space heater is great for desktop use in a home office, dorm room, or office building. It'll usually heat just the area right around the heater comfortably, which is good enough if you're just looking for a small bubble of personal comfort. A space heater with a bigger footprint has a larger fan, which helps blow air around the room and is ideal for heating large spaces like garages or full rooms. Opt for a full-size heater if you have a lot of space to heat.

Safety: We outline more safety features to look for in the section below, but overheat protection is a must.

Space heaters are ultra-convenient, but the safety experts we spoke to said they can also be dangerous if not used properly. According to a 2018 report from the National Fire Protection Association, space heaters cause 44% of US fires due to home heating and 81% of related deaths. 

Both Matthew Griffith, fire prevention section chief with the Montreal Fire Department, and Dan Mock, brand manager of Mr. Sparky, an electrical services company, said the number one rule for using a space heater is to never leave it unattended. 

Griffith said customers should look for a space heater that's certified by the Underwriter's Laboratory (UL or ULC in Canada) and has safety features like an auto-shutoff and tip-over switch. Mock also recommends reading the instruction manual cover-to-cover and inspecting the device before running it. It's also a good idea to keep the packaging so you can store the heater and keep it dust-free during the warmer months. 

Griffith said not to put a space heater too close to walls or flammable materials and keep the backside of the heater clear, as the unit can overheat if blocked.

Mock also warns against using extension cords or overloading circuits with these types of appliances. 

Do space heaters use a lot of power?

This depends on what you consider to be "a lot." Most space heaters use 1,500 watts of power. To put that in context, if you were to use your space heater eight hours per day for a month, it would add $50.36 to your energy bill, based on the current average electricity rates.

Are space heaters dangerous?

When not used properly, space heaters are a serious fire hazard. You can reduce the risk of fire by never leaving the heater unattended, reading the user manual, inspecting the device before running it, and never putting it close to walls or flammable materials.

Read the above slide about space heater safety for more info.

How long can I keep a space heater on?

Modern space heaters have a variety of features that make them safe to use for prolonged periods of time (over hours). However, you should still take the precautions mentioned above and turn the space heater off before you go to sleep.

How long do space heaters last?

Generally, the length of a manufacturer's warranty can tell you how long an item is expected to last. The space heaters in our guide have warranties of 1 to 3 years, but with proper care, they can last you for more than a decade.

Heating a large house gets expensive. And, when you spend most of your time in one or two rooms, it's just not worth it. This is where a space heater comes in handy. You can keep your thermostat low while the space heater keeps you warm where you need it most. 

A good space heater will pay for itself in energy savings, but you can speed up the savings by getting a good deal. It won't surprise you that they tend to go on sale in the spring as the weather heats up. Yet, you can also find deals on Black Friday and Cyber Monday. For example, the Lasko Ceramic Portable Space Heater was only $10 during one recent Black Friday weekend.

If you don't know what to look for when shopping space heater deals, we have you covered. We've compiled a list of the best deals on the space heaters we recommend. 

Read more about how the Insider Reviews team evaluates deals and why you should trust us.

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