Cheap electric heaters can be surprisingly hard to come by during winter, though, with many going out of stock, so you might find it hard to track down a particular heater that you're after if you wait until the coldest spell to buy or when the next Beast from the East strikes.
We've noticed that prices tend to edge up the closer to colder weather we get - we've seen some price increases over the last few weeks. So if you want to get a cheap electric heater, our advice would be not to hang around.
We've found some of the cheapest heaters available right now and shared some tips on what makes a heater truly good value.
How much do portable electric heaters cost?
The priciest portable electric heaters will set you back around £150 or more. Some are more expensive because they have extra features, such as air purification claims and wi-fi connectivity.
You still don't want to spend more than you need to, though, and many cost less than £30 to buy.
Electric heater running costs
The cost of a cheap heater can soon mount up once you factor in the running costs.
Several of the cheapest electric heaters we've tested have thermostats that detect the ambient temperature and adjust the heater's output according to your preferred setting.
Not many of them have specific temperatures in degrees °C, though, so rather than programming specific temperatures on the thermostat you'll need to experiment with your heater's settings and find the coolest setting that still gives you the warmth you're looking for.
Once that desired temperature is reached, the heater won't run constantly anymore. It will toggle on and off sporadically to maintain that temperature.
Cheap heaters usually have fewer features
Cheaper electric heaters tend to have fewer features than more expensive ones. Compared with more expensive ones, a cheap heater is less likely to have:
How important these features are is down to personal preference. If all you want is something to keep you warm when there's a nip in the air, and you don't care about how it looks or require the ability to control it at a distance, a decent budget electric heater should be perfectly adequate.
Cheap fan heaters
Fan heaters generate heat and blow it around the room. They get going much more quickly than other types of heater.
We've found that convector heaters and oil radiators can take more than half an hour to raise a room's temperature significantly, but a good fan heater can do this in half the time.
Be wary of fan heaters if you need something really quiet though - their internal fans can be noisy.
Beldray EH0569SSTK Portable Fan Heater
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You won't find many electric heaters cheaper than this Beldray fan heater and it weighs very little at less than 1.5kg.
It has feet on the side as well as the bottom, so you can set it up flat or upright as a very mini tower heater.
Our stability tests found this heater much more secure when it was laid flat, though. When stood upright, it falls over quite easily if knocked.
Challenge 2.4kW Upright Oscillating Fan Heater
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You'll usually need to pay more for tower heaters with oscillating fans. However that's not the case with this Challenge heater.
It also has a cold air setting which might come in handy in the summer months.
Spreading heat evenly is less of a challenge for this heater too thanks to its oscillating setting.
De'Longhi Capsule Hobby 2.4kW Fan Heater
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This 2.4kW fan heater stands stationary on an elevated surface and blows hot air in whichever direction you face it.
It's useful year-round because of its cold-air setting, where the fan operates without the appliance generating any heat.
It does make noise, but it's not so loud that it'll drown out the TV.
Logik L20THW22 Portable Ceramic Fan Heater
This small and cheap-to-buy tower heater has an oscillating setting, so you can set it to rotate and spread the heat more evenly around the room you're heating.
You can choose specific temperatures on the thermostat for it to aim for, but it only has two power settings - most heaters have three.
Fan heaters tend to be noisy but we were surprised to find this one to be quieter than most we've tested.
Cheap convector heaters
Convector heaters heat up the air in your room in a different way to fan heaters. They have an exposed heating element which warms up cold air that passes through.
They're not quite as cheap generally as fan heaters - the average convector heater tends to cost between £50 and £100. However, they tend to be more thorough, managing to heat rooms evenly from corner to corner, floor to ceiling.
Challenge Diamond 2kW Convector Heater
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Argos own-brand Challenge's convector heater is cheap to buy and simple to use.
Its low price is reflected in its lack of features, but it does still have a manual 24-hour timer and three heat settings to choose from.
The handles at each end on the top also make it easy to move it around.
DeLonghi HSX2320 Convector Heater
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This mid-range convector heater has a simple design despite being more expensive than the cheapest heaters, but that simplicity might appeal.
It has three power settings to choose from, a frost protection setting, and a basic thermostat.
We found it stable when it had the feet attached, and it's quiet as a mouse when it's running.
Glen 500W Wall Mounted or Freestanding Skirt Heater
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This short but wide convection heater could be a more discreet addition to your home. It's only just above 20cm high and you can wall-mount it if you'd like it even more out of the way.
It has a timer program that lets you customise times it'll run throughout the week, which is far more flexible than most of the timers we've come across on the heaters we've tested.
Igenix IG5250 Portable Convector Heater
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This 2kW Igenix convector heater has three power settings, a programmable timer and lip handles at each end to assist with moving it around your home.
In our tests we found it stable once assembled, but it was a little bit fiddly to attach feet to the base.
Logik L20CHTW21 Convector Heater
Logik's cheap convector heater has more of the features you find on more expensive ones, such as a 24-hour timer, a programmable thermostat and a digital display.
Similar to to most convector heaters it runs quiet as a mouse, so it shouldn't disturb you while it's running.
Russell Hobbs RHCVH4002 Convection Heater
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This heater is in demand and has drifted in and out of stock frequently over the past couple of years.
It's another no-frills convector with a mechanical timer and an adjustable thermostat that doesn't list specific temperatures in degrees °C.
It doesn't have full size handles, but there are little hand-holds on the sides to help you grip while moving it.
Cheap electric oil heaters
Oil heaters or oil-filled radiators aren't seen in shops quite as often as other types of electric heaters.
They warm up oil inside the heater that acts as a heat reservoir that tends to warm rooms up at a slower, but longer-lasting, rate.
They're usually among the largest electric heaters, so they're rarely the cheapest. We've found and tested ones for less than £100, though.
Daewoo Mini Oil Filled Radiator
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This oil-filled radiator really is mini - it's not much bigger than some of the smallest heaters we've tested.
With that in mind, you won't be surprised to hear that you'll need to run it for a bit longer than other heaters to benefit from the heat it gives out.
It's as simple as can be, with a single dial to switch it on and dial the heat up or down.
John Lewis Digital Oil Radiator
John Lewis' own-brand oil-filled radiator is surprisingly cheap for a heater of this type.
It has plenty of features you normally find on more expensive heaters too, such as a programmable thermostat and timer and integrated cable storage.
The wheels will help on flat surfaces but it's reasonably bulky, so if you've got a lot of stairs in your home you might find it tricky to move around.
Russell Hobbs RHOFR5002B Portable Oil-Filled Radiator
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The wheels do make this heater easier to push around, and it's also only 9.5kg, which is light compared to several other oil-filled radiators we've tested.
It's pretty basic in its controls. It has three power settings and a thermostat that ranges from non-specific cool to hot temperatures.
We found the handle on the side extra helpful when moving it around, especially when needing to take it up or down stairs.
Zanussi ZOFR5005 Portable Oil-Filled Radiator
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This oil-filled radiator is at the pricier end of our selection of cheap heaters, but you do get more features for your money.
It has a digital display and 24-hour timer, a thermostat that lets you select specific temperatures between 5°C and 35°C, and it comes with a remote control.
The wheels also help make it easier to move around. It is quite heavy if you need to lift it, though.
Cheap halogen heaters
Portable halogen heaters are often cheap to buy - all of those we've tested cost less than £50.
They're also among the cheapest types to run. They don't oscillate and don't do much to warm up a room (though you will feel heat if you hold up your hands in front of one), so you might find their usefulness limited.
Belaco Halogen Electric Heater BEL-HHC19S
This simple halogen heater lacks any digital features but does have three power settings. Pushing all three power buttons will give you maximum heat output.
As it's quite light at just 1.8kg, we do find it can be easily pushed over if knocked. Make sure to set it up in a spot out of the way.
Beldray 1.2kW Halogen Heater EH0197
This halogen heater is simialarly simple and cheap to buy as the others we've tested, and has three power settings to choose from.
The lip handle on the back isn't especially useful for moving it around, but the heater is so light that it doesn't need too firm a grip to lift it anyway.
Daewoo Oscillating Halogen Heater HEA1416
This cheap halogen heater has an oscillate setting, so you can set it to rotate while it runs, spreading its heat over a wider area.
As is the case with the other halogen heaters we've tested, though, it doesn't have a thermostat for choosing specific temperatures to heat to.
Igenix IG9509 Portable Halogen Heater
This halogen heater doesn't oscillate, so you'll need to make sure it's angled the way you want when you switch it on as the heat will only go in one direction.
It's a very simple-to-use product, though. There's just two buttons on it, which are on/off switches for the two halogen lamps on the heater.
Warmlite WL42005 3 Bar Halogen Heater
There are three halogen lamps on this heater, so you can choose any combination of each to adjust how much heat you want it to pump out.
We like how quiet this halogen heater runs. It's pretty much silent, so you won't be disturbed if you've got it running while you're watching TV.
Live more sustainablyAre cheap electric heaters less effective than expensive ones?
Not necessarily. Heaters can be highly efficient at turning electricity into heat regardless of their price. You don't necessarily need an expensive heater to get 'more' out of the electricity you draw.
That said, plenty of cheap electric heaters are quite poor at doing the basic job of keeping you warm.
Paying more doesn't guarantee good quality either, though.
Compare the .Choose the right heater for your needs, regardless of price
Regardless of price or type, portable electric heaters aren't designed to be used to heat your entire home. Trying to do so will be an exercise in frustration and high costs.
Use an electric heater selectively, as a top-up or a fallback option. Here are some things to consider.
Is a portable heater the correct heating solution?Do you want short bursts of heat, or something to keep you warm over several hours?Will there be any electric heater deals in the sales this year?
Joel Bates, Which? senior researcher for electric heaters says:
'As you might expect, interest in electric heaters reaches its peak in the winter months. Over the last few years they've flown off the shelves as the nights have drawn in, even after having their prices hiked up rather than cut.
'With demand so high, many electric heaters end up out of stock for weeks at a time, so there's no real incentive for retailers to drop their prices for the seasonal sales. Hence you're unlikely to find many among the Winter deals.
'The heaters we've highlighted in this article are still at the cheaper end of the scale, even though they're mostly at full price. If you're determined to find cheap electric heater deals, the summer months are often when they have their prices slashed.'
Save money on your central heating
If you have a combi boiler, you can make money savings right now by running it more efficiently. Boilers are able to run as low temperature systems, but many are set up to run at full tilt, costing you extra money.
A central heating system running efficiently and proportionate to your heating need is the best way to heat your home and keep your bills down.
This story was first published on 7 October 2021 and is updated regularly to reflect new heaters we've tested as well as changing prices and availability of heaters. We're not able to show every retailer and cheaper prices may be available. Prices and availability last updated 4 January 2024.source https://www.which.co.uk/news/article/cheap-electric-heaters-for-2023-apTMt6P91fwW