Space heat: 5 Best Portable Heaters

When it comes to buying the best portable heaters, they have the ability to warm an average sized room for a very affordable price all while saving you money on your energy bills.

Our goal with this article is to make buying one of the best space heaters currently available a simple decision. We do all the research on the space heaters we’ve listed below while also providing you with important and useful information about these portable heaters. You can find the guide after the following portable heaters.

Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater with Adjustable ThermostatLasko 754200 Ceramic Heater with Adjustable Thermostat

Our top pick for the best space heater you can buy for smaller rooms is the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater with Adjustable Thermostat. Not only is it our top pick for an affordable space heater, it’s also a best-selling space heater on Amazon with over a thousand reviews to back it up.

Note: It’s possible that during Winter you will see stock sell out and/or prices fluctuate wildly for the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater with Adjustable Thermostat. If it happens that the Lasko 754200 is sold out, then refer to the other heaters we’ve listed like the Lasko 5307 Oscillating Ceramic Tower Heater or the Vornado VH10 which are also great space heaters for warming smaller rooms.

The Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater is best suited for bedrooms and offices. You can quickly warm up small spaces with this cheap space heater that’s far more affordable than other heaters. The Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater is very light, has a compact size, is easy to use, provides a great warranty, and performs like you would expect it to.

Because of its compact size the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater is simple to move from room to room. And because it’s so small and light weight, it’s simple to take with you during your travels.

When it comes to safety, the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater is a very safe space heater. It has been tested at long durations of running time coming away with some of the lowest surface operating temps compared to a lot of other space heaters.

A low surface operating temperature is important to have in a heater if you have children and pets in your home. The Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater also comes with additional safety features like an overheat switch. If the heater for some reason starts to run dangerously high, the overheat switch will automatically turn off the Lasko.

If you’re looking to cut back on your energy bill, the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater has an estimated energy cost of about $4.00 a month. That’s if you run it every day for an hour during the entire month. No matter what, it’s a very reasonable savings over running your entire home heating system.

Lastly, one of the great things about the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater is its warranty. Lasko provides a 3 year limited warranty. For a portable heater like this which is already inexpensive, that’s another great reason to buy the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater.

Why you should buy the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater

If you’re looking for a light weight, compact space heater to quickly warm your small bedroom or office then you should buy the Lasko 754200 Ceramic Heater.

It’s a powerful heater that can easily be picked up and moved around from room to room with absolute ease. It’s one of the best portable indoor heaters that will give you really great performance for an incredible value.

If you plan on using a space heater for only a few months out of the year, then this is perfect for you.

Purchase

Lasko 5307 Oscillating Ceramic Tower HeaterLasko 5307 Oscillating Ceramic Tower Heater

Another one of the best space heaters you can buy is the Lasko 5307 Oscillating Ceramic Tower Heater. There’s a reason why we added another Lasko heater to our list of the best portable heaters and that’s customer satisfaction.

The Lasko 5307 Oscillating Ceramic Tower Heater has over 1,000 positive reviews and is a best-selling portable heater on Amazon. And just like the Lasko 754200 we listed above, the Lasko 5307 is ideal for heating smaller rooms quickly.

The compact and durable Lasko 5307 is one of the most popular space heaters with consumers. Despite its compact size, the Lasko 5307 produces more heat compared to a lot of similar space heaters. The tower for the heater features a lengthened ceramic plate that produces warm air around the room giving you a comfortable heated living space to relax in.

The safety features for the Lasko 5307 are designed to make it a safe and easy heater for you to operate. To minimize the risk of burns through contact, the Lasko 5307 comes with a cool-touch housing that covers the heated elements on the heater. There’s also an overheat protection system that will turn off the device if the temperatures inside the Lasko ever get too high.

One of the many features you’re sure to appreciate is the adjustable thermostat that comes with the Lasko 5307. If you’re looking for an optimal room temperature, you’ll be able to manually select it on the thermostat, allowing the Lasko to self-regulate a high heat setting until the desired temperature is reached. Once reached, the heater will turn off and continue to maintain the selected temperature by occasionally turning on when the temperature falls below a certain level.

The Lasko 5307 also comes with a push-button oscillating fan. This feature will distribute heat evenly throughout the room. The powerful built-in fan helps to circulate the heated air so that there are no warm spots created.

Why you should buy the Lasko 5307 Oscillating Ceramic Tower Heater

This is a very compact built space heater that can be used on the floor or a stable surface like a table. The carry handle on the device gives it the portability you need to go from room to room. And this is a heater that works right out of the box requiring no additional assembly.

Overall, there are a lot of great things to say about the Lasko 5307 Oscillating Ceramic Tower Heater. From the three heating settings for quick and easy comfort to the quietness of the device, this is a fantastic Tower heater and definitely one of the best space heaters for smaller rooms.

Purchase

Vornado VH10 Vortex HeaterVornado VH10 Vortex Heater

Usually every Winter popular portable heaters become out of stock due to demand. If it turns out that the first two space heaters we listed are sold out, we’ve added a third alternate space heater for you to buy that works very well at heating small rooms. Just be aware that this heater is somewhat more expensive but it is actually slightly better than the Lasko heaters we listed above.

One of the only reasons we’ve listed the Vornado VH10 Vortex Heater as an alternative is because of the price. It’s a bit more expensive than the Lasko 754200 and the Lasko 5307 but the Vornado is an excellent portable heater to buy for small rooms.

The Vornado VH10 Vortex Heater is a large and powerful space heater that comes equipped with a built-in timer.

So how does the Vornado VH10 Vortex Heater compare to our Top Pick the Lasko 754200? Well, in some cases, the Vornado is a better heater than the Lasko heaters we’ve listed. Test have shown that the Vornado heated up areas faster than the Lasko. And when run for long periods, the maximum surface temperature on the Vornado would stay much cooler than the Lasko as well.

There’s also the fact that the Vornado is a bit quieter than the Lasko 754200. Plus, the Vornado comes with a 5-year warranty instead of Lasko’s 3-year warranty.

Why you should buy the Vornado VH10 Vortex Heater

So why is the Vornado VH10 Vortex Heater not our Top Pick for space heaters? One reason, the price compared to the Lasko heaters we listed.

If you want a really great space heater for small rooms and don’t mind paying more, then you should definitely buy the Vornado VH10 Vortex Heater. It’s quite, powerful, performs really well and has a 5-year warranty. But we figured most people would rather pay less for the Lasko 754200 which is a really good heater that works almost as well as the Vornado.

Purchase

Lasko 751320 Ceramic Tower Heater with Remote ControlLasko 751320 Ceramic Tower Heater with Remote Control

There’s a couple of reasons why we chose the Lasko 751320 Ceramic Tower Heater with Remote Control as our Top Pick for the best space heater for medium sized rooms. As always it comes down to price, customer satisfaction, and features.

The Lasko 751320 is a very popular remote controlled ceramic tower heater with consumers. The inexpensive price makes it a very affordable heater that most won’t pass up. It’s a #1 best-selling heater on Amazon and the over 2,000 reviews of this portable heater prove why it’s so popular.

Lasko has produced a really advanced ceramic heater with the Lasko 751320. There are older elements from past models as well as new features that make this an excellent space heater for mid-sized rooms. Some of the more beneficial features you’re sure to enjoy include:

  • An electronic thermostat
  • A seven-hour timer
  • Two quiet comfort settings
  • Wide oscillation option

The electronic thermostat is programmable so you can set your desirable room temperature whenever you like. This gives you much more flexibility and control when it comes to creating a more comfortable room temperature whenever it gets cold.

When it comes to keeping your living space warm and pleasant, the Lasko 751320 Ceramic Tower is an excellent portable heater. It does and incredible job of heating areas up to 300 square feet and more very quickly. It produces heat faster and more effectively than heaters in the same price range by means of its elongated ceramic heating element.

The high-velocity oscillating fan in the Lasko 751320 pushes warm air throughout the room, distributing the air evenly across a wide area. The fan is actually strong enough to blow the warm air into the center of the room. And the even distribution helps to alleviate cold spots or hot spots. Another thing to note is that the fan combined with the oscillation feature produces little noise.

Why you should buy the Lasko 751320 Ceramic Tower Heater

When it comes to a portable heater for medium sized rooms, the Lasko 751320 comes highly recommended.

The remote that comes with the unit can control all the features the heater provides which is a big plus. The heater comes with a wide oscillation feature to cover more area than other heaters while at the same time evenly heating the whole room. There’s a 7-hour timer that will shut the device down automatically and the Lasko 751320 has a built-in handle so you can easily carry it from room to room.

It’s powerful, feature packed, and comes fully assembled so you can use it right away. So if you’re looking for a space heater for a medium sized room, then we highly recommend buying the Lasko 751320 Ceramic Tower Heater with Remote Control.

Purchase

DeLonghi EW7707CM Safeheat 1500W ComforTemp Portable Oil-Filled RadiatorDeLonghi EW7707CM Safeheat 1500W ComforTemp Portable Oil-Filled Radiator

If you’re someone who is looking for the best oil-filled radiator heater for a small to medium sized room, then you’ll definitely want to take a look at the DeLonghi EW7707CM.

Please be aware that this is a very different type of heater than the previous ones we’ve listed above. But if you’re serious about buying the best portable radiator heater for small to mid-sized spaces, then let’s take a look at what makes this DeLonghi so great.

The DeLonghi EW7707CM is a very efficient and almost silent portable radiator heater that over the years has proved itself to be worthy of a purchase. This is an Oil-filled Radiator heater that was built to maximize radiant heat flow all while providing a noiseless operation.

This is a device that will heat your room quite effectively all without drawing too much power so your energy bill will not be too affected. The reason why is that DeLonghi uses a patented technology called ComforTemp which automatically maintains a desirable room temperature. At the push of a button, you can switch the device into energy-saver mode. This allows the heater to maintain a room temperature of 68 to 70 degrees Fahrenheit. This in turn saves energy and saves you money.

Now, although the DeLonghi EW7707CM is an energy-efficient, oil filled radiator unit that’s great for heating small to medium-sized rooms, there is one catch. A radiator heater like this works well once it gets going as these type of heaters have a slow warm-up period. But the positive is that the DeLonghi EW7707CM provides long-lasting heat even when turned off.

When it comes to safety features, the DeLonghi EW7707CM provides several important ones. The DeLonghi radiator heater is designed so that it minimizes the surface temperature to prevent burns from accidental bumps. And to prevent the device from overheating, there is an automatic thermal shutoff valve.

Why you should buy a DeLonghi

Again, this is the type of heater that is slow to warm because it is a radiant heater. So if you’re in need of instant warmth, we recommend you check out one of the space heaters we’ve recommended above. But if you’re looking for a radiator heater that will provide long-lasting heat for a small to medium sized room, then definitely buy the DeLonghi EW7707CM.

One of the big benefits you’re sure to love is that you don’t have to ever worry about changing the oil in the DeLonghi EW7707CM because of its seven permanently sealed fins that have pure diathermic oil in them. There’s also an anti-freeze setting which will activate the heater automatically if the temperature drops below 44 degrees Fahrenheit.

There are a lot of great reasons to own this radiant space heater. From safety to energy saving features, you’ll be glad you purchased the DeLonghi EW7707CM.

Purchase

 

What is a space heater?

So what exactly is a space heater? Now understand when we talk about portable heaters and space heaters on this page that we are talking about the same thing.

A space heater is a portable heating unit that gives you the convenience or placing it in any room or area you choose. You can position it in multiple ways, place it on a variety of level surfaces, and take it with you if you travel.

The thing that makes a space heater so great is that they are designed to heat a small to medium space quickly. Whether it’s a bedroom, bathroom or an entire living room, space heaters give you a lot of flexibility or portability.

There are space heaters that run on fuel but the more common and safer portable heaters that we will be listing are Electric heaters.

Space heaters come with different wattages and a multitude of sizes. So it’s always a good idea to know what you want to get out of the heater you plan to buy. Just know that different heaters work best at heating different size rooms and areas.

 

Why buy a portable heater?

Buying a space heater comes with some immediate benefits that are sure to justify your purchase. With the cost of heating and utility bills just being so expensive, it’s no wonder so many people opt for a portable heater.

 

So what are some of the benefits of a space heater?

  • If used correctly, space heaters can save you money
  • A reliable way to heat areas of the house/apartment
  • Saves energy instead of wasting it to heat an entire home
  • The ability to take your space heater when you travel

There are a lot of benefits to using a space heater. From saving money to saving energy a space heater gives you a lot of options.

Ever went to visit family and they keep the house freezing? You can take your space heater with you and keep your room warm instead of having to suffer through the visit.

Want to save money on your gas and oil bills? Well, with a space heater you can. Instead of having to heat your entire house, you can just heat up the room or area you are currently in. When you move to a different room, take your heater with you. Simple right?

 

The advantages of using a fan heater

Now a fan heater is simply a space heater with a built-in fan. When you buy a space heater, consider the advantages of a portable heater with a built-in fan.

Fan heaters are very affordable and work by distributing warm air throughout the room. A lot of fan heaters are very safe to use and also provide great portability (meaning you can carry them from room to room with ease).

Fan heaters are usually very compact and are easy to use and store away when not needed. These are the type of portable heaters you can conveniently bring on vacation, camping trips, and RV trips.

Let’s take a look at why you should consider a portable heater with a fan:

  • They are very effective at warming rooms
  • When the unit is turned off the room will stay warm due to an even dispersal of heat
  • They are great at providing a heated environment
  • Some come with adjustable thermostats providing you with temperature control options
  • They have different power settings for better heating preferences
  • Some models provide a fan-only mode without the heater on (doubles as a summer fan)

It’s quite clear that fan heaters are very convenient to use because they come with a variety of functions. Oscillation, automatic timers, a carrying handle, a remote control and more benefits that make getting a fan heater a very attractive purchase.

 

Things to look for when buying a portable heater

When buying a space heater, one of the first things you want to look for is a label from a known testing laboratory.

These include:

  • Underwriters Laboratory
  • Intertek
  • Canadian Standards Association

You want to make sure that the space heater you plan to buy meets the U.S. safety standards for performance and construction.

Note: You should always choose an electric space heater over a fuel-burning space heater. Why? Well, because fuel-burning space heaters are obviously more dangerous. It’s only a good idea to buy and keep a fuel-burning space heater for emergency purposes like power outages during the winter season.

According to the experts at the National Fire Protection Association, the following safety advice should be kept in mind:

  • If you have a heater plugged into an outlet/extension cord, it’s best to not plug in another electrical device into the same outlet to avoid overheating.
  • Do not use a heater around gas cans, paint, matches or anything flammable.
  • Make sure to keep the outlet in use for the heater clear.
  • Don’t leave the heater unattended when it’s plugged in.
  • Do not place heaters on furniture or surfaces that are unstable

You can find a lot more safety advice on heaters as well as download a Heating Safety pdf by the NFPA.

 

What type of heater should I buy?

Choosing the right type of heater doesn’t need to be complicated.

There are two type of space heaters we’re going to talk about. The Electric heaters and the Propane/Kerosene heaters.

 

About Electric heaters

When it comes to Electric heaters, they are the most widely and safest to use compared to Propane and Kerosene heaters.

The convection models for Electric heaters are really good at warming up your entire room. The reason why is because they are able to spread the heat they produce over a large/wide area. The Electric heaters built with a fan provide the benefit of spreading the heated air much quicker and farther. The only problem is the fan can add noise to the heater’s operation so be aware of this.

The radiant versions of Electric heaters are perfect for spot heating. These type of heaters utilize a quartz tube or electric-ribbon element to produce heat.

 

About Propane and Kerosene heaters

The Propane and Kerosene heaters work differently than Electric heaters because the open flame they use produces exceptional heat. The problem with this is that these type of heaters run the risk of producing carbon monoxide poisoning. There is also the possible consequences that come with handling the fuel needed for the heater.

It’s recommended that you not use these type of heaters indoor unless you’re in a well ventilated area. And these type of heaters should really only be used during an emergency where you have no way to use an Electric heater or other source of warmth.

Here are a few tips to help you buy your next portable heater:

  1. Buy a fast spot-heating space heater for warming yourself and others quickly as opposed to a heater that is built for heating a room full of people over time.
  2. Look for heaters with safety features built-in. Some heaters include sensors that shuts them off when they start to overheat. And some taller heater models have a built-in switch that will shut them down if they fall over.
  3. Buy a heater that comes with a fan. The fan will help distribute the heat a lot quicker than a heater without one. Even better, get a heater with a fan that does oscillation.