The Best Space Heaters for Apartments – Consumer Reviews for 2023

Winter is around, cold is around, Apartments are getting cold, everyone wants to get warm, and I know for sure what would be running through your mind at this time; it will definitely be getting a space heater. Hence, you would want to ask for the best space heaters for apartments.

A space heater is the best option for heating a space area in your apartment. You might want to ask me why; I got my first heater last year, and my energy bill has been greatly reduced and I don’t even have to pile up blankets since I can just heat only the bed space.

The normal average body temperature is around 36.5 degree Celsius. However, the room and atmospheric temperature in colder climates are far lesser than that (especially during winter) and hence the need for a space heater to keep the room temperature in most apartments within normal range.

Since you don’t have centralized heating in your apartment, you can use space heaters of the portable sizes to enable you to move it around. Most of these heaters are electric, built to consume less energy. Most of the best space heaters for apartments or anyone that is used in residential spaces often utilize a convective method of heating in which heat is circulated into the air in the apartment by convection or radiation.

In a Hurry? we’ve picked Vornado  TAVH10 Vortex Heater as the best for apartment

 

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why? 

• It is a ceramic Heater
• It comes with 2 heat settings and also an additional fan only option
• Its a portable device that gives output temperature of about 140 deg
• It dislaces others on the list with a confirmed mechanical auto climate temperature control
• It covers the whole room

What are the best and safest space heater?

When it comes to space heaters, the best for you always depends on your specific needs. This is what we mean; the convection heaters work by distributing convection currents across a heating element positioned in the heater (ceramic plate or an electric coil, for example), which in turn flows out into the environment, warming it up eventually.

The infrared heaters work by passing electricity through a wire, which with time through radiation, releases heat that is absorbed by objects in the room, and the oil-filled heater or radiators have the same principle, but filled with oil which acts as the primary source of heat that would be radiated. Mica thermic, on the other hand, releases both convection and radiant heat through mica sheets that are used enwrapping a heating element.

Would you rather like your air heated up than the objects in your room instead? Then the look at all heaters other than the infrared type, for pretty quick heating up, then the convection heater is best, though the mica thermic and oil-filled heaters would also do a good job. Infrared heaters are best if you want the heat to directly affect your skin.

As per safety, all you need to look for are specific features in the device, which would be discussed shortly. These features include the auto-shutoff that kicks in as soon as the heater starts to overheat, alongside the tip over function that does the same when the heater is knocked over.

It is also essential you get a Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI) plug that prevents electric shock in case there are some fault, and if you intend using your heater without one, keep the water very far away from it. Experts also advise you not to use extensions as a permanent source of power supply for a heater, as it could cause overheating problems.

Overall, ceramic heaters are widely regarded as the safest and the best space heaters for apartments these days.

Why are ceramic heaters the best?

Ceramic heaters are widely preferred heaters today due to the right balance of electricity consumption as well as output performance. Though they might not generate nearly enough heat as the gas-powered type, they do just fine, and being electrically powered would save you a whole lot of running costs as opposed to buying fuel every now and then.

They are widely regarded as the safest heaters for you due to the proper casing of the heating element in the unit, hence a slight fire hazard risk.They also generate heat in a very clean way and are environmentally friendly, producing no form of pollution, and are energy efficient.

For my apartment, what type of heater are the cheapest to run

If cost is your primary priority when choosing heaters (of course, with performance criteria too), then the ceramic heater as earlier stated would be just perfect for you. They perform in an admirable fashion, producing enough to heat up their recommended room size, and consumes very little energy in the process compared to their counterparts.

Types of Heaters in Apartments

The 2 commonest heaters For Apartments are:

• Radiant space heater (Infrared)

The radiant space heater releases heat into the room, directly heating up objects around it. It is most effective in small rooms and when the target object isn’t too far from the device. i.e., spot heating.

If you prefer rapid heating effect in a short period, then you should go for a radiant type heater because it is efficient in short periods, works quietly and has a reduced risk of catching fire. The major drawback about this heater is that when turned off, the heat dissipates very quickly

• Convection Space heaters

When it comes to rooms of enormous sizes, that contains numerous objects or humans in need of warmth, this is the best type for you.

Convection space heaters heat the air around and circulate them around the room, for faster and more proper circulation, you should purchase the device with a fan. Models without fans are slow to heat but models without and can be noisy and expensive.

Top 7 Best Space Heaters for Apartments

1) DeLonghi TRD40615T Full room Radiant heater

Special Features:  Adjustable thermostat, Durability, 24 on/off timer, smart snap wheels, safe heat features
This device radiates a considerable amount of heat for its size, and would heat your room or apartment to your comfort, although it has no blowers or fans, saving your electric bills. It is also built with a timer function that can be set to turn the heater off and on a schedule of your choosing.

It is a bargain for the comfort it renders and running it on a low for about 6 hours daily raises your electric bill to just about $30 a month.

The device has a well built, excellent and good looking design and when placed in a 500sqft room, you would feel warm as far as you are within 3-feet although it could serve rooms of about 700sqft. For a unit with such a small footprint, it does an excellent job of heating such an area quietly and cost efficiently.

• silent operation,
• anti-freeze feature,

• hot to touch,
• suitable for the small to the medium sized room.

2) Honeywell UberHeat Ceramic Heater – Most portable, efficient space heater

This little but efficient heater offers an excellent heat supply and is designed stylishly, with modern manufacturing products. It is easy and simple-to-use, it has heat and thermostat settings which can be adjusted as desired.

It has good portability and can be placed on tabletops; it also comes with 3 years’ warranty and can be used for personal needs. It has a temperature gauge in such a way that when the electric heating gets to the temperature that was set, it will stop blowing heat and seem as though it isn’t working

Honeywell Uberheat ceramic heater helps save energy cost and is eco-friendly; it also has a lightweight with white noise when used. The cool to the touch shell is a big plus for this tiny heater because it has overheated protection on the outer housing.

I would highly recommend this to anyone in the market because of the amount of heat it generated as tiny as it is. Even when you put it on the lower settings, it is efficient to heat up my room within 20 – 30minutes

• extreme portability,
• safe,
• value for the money and
• Has customizable settings

• Thermostat and heating element fault

3) Vornado VMH600 Whole Room Stainless Steel Heater – Safest electric space heater

Special features: Vortex heat, dual heat setting,  autoshutoff, tip over  protection,  touch sensitive control, dust reducing  inlet  grill,  and  exit  air  temperature.This nice looking rounded edge heater provides a height of maximum comfort while managing power efficiency alongside noiseless feature. It comes with easy to read digital temperature display and a remote control that makes it easy to control from a distance.

Vornado MVH heater also comes with discreet cord storage where its wire cord can be packed when unused. A unique airflow named Vortex action helps to heat the air in the room uniformly. The product comes with a dimension of 11.7 x 9.2 x 9.4 Inches with a weight of 9.8 lbs. with a 5-year warranty

This room heater has an electric heating element of dual display with energy sync to save electricity costs and can easily be viewed. An automatic shut-off sensor system in case of overproduction of heat and guarantees its safe use in the house.

Another safety feature of Vornado is the 2-step shutting off, i.e., when the switch button is turned off, the heater cycle into 8 seconds cooling period before turning off eventually.

The heater is cool to touch even after putting it on for more than 90mins. The heater is cool to touch. I noticed that the front grill is just a little bit warm, even though it’s metal. This heater also has a climate control feature that responds to environmental changes. This makes Vornado one of the safest to use in apartments with pets and children.

• Highly Efficient,
• Quality part,
• silent,
• Confortable Heat and Safe

• Not fast enough with heating a whole room

4) Lasko 5309 Electronic Oscillating Tower Heater – Most energy efficient and Quiet

Special Features: very easy to use, widespread oscillation, adjustable thermostat and versatile size

This product is built with high-technology machines to provide warming comfort for its users. It is very portable and has automatic overheating (thermostat) protection control,

The oscillating feature is the more significant advantage it has over any other heater in the market because it distributes heat efficiently in the apartment without focusing only on space. It is easy to grasp because it has little weight and very portable, and it can even be moved from room to room wherever there is a personal need for heat in an apartment.

It has a ceramic space heater with multiple easy-to-use function control. It weighs 5.15 lbs with product dimensions of 5.95 x 5.56 x 16.25 Inches. It has an 8 hours’ energy-saving timer to function maximally at reduced energy consumption at 1500 watts.

It also offers cool touch housing (protective heat guard). It is noiseless when compared to other space heaters. The major plus of this heater is its energy management feature, i.e., I never noticed any spike in the energy bill even after using it for a month.

• quiet,
• safe,
• energy efficient, and
• good power output

• Might overheat

5) Lasko 6405 Designer Oscillating heater – Best heaters for small apartments

Special Features: Adjustable thermostat, automatic shut off timer, and widespread oscillation

If you are looking to more than efficiency but also a bit of added beauty, then the Lasko 6405 fits your specification perfectly. It slick and curvy compact design ensures it looks pleasant to the eyes and beautifies the home.

It is most suitable for small rooms, and when placed in a trailer of about 27feet, it heats the air within 20-30 minutes, averaging only about $35 per month on electric bill.

In a 12 x 15 feet bedroom, it keeps you warm and toasty with the doors closed, and it could go as far as serving a 15 x 18 feet living room comfortably. You can get all these qualities and performance service at a little cost which is one of the reasons why the heater appears on our list.

• 3-year warranty,
• cool to touch exterior,
• auto-shutoff timer,
• cost friendly.

• suitable for an only small room,
• not to be placed on soft surfaces.

6) Vornado AVH2 Whole Room Vortex Heater – Quiet Portable Heater

Special Features: Vortex technology, Auto climate control, digital display with push button, Advanced safety, and dual heat settings

This product has a distinctive feature of automatically adjusting itself to circulate the required amount of uniform heat in an apartment due to its high tech specifications; it is best used in the bedroom apartment and can also be used as a fan during warmer climatic periods

It also has advanced safety qualities like surface heat guard such that feels cool when the heater case is touched, and an automatic shut-off sensor system in case of overproduction of heat and that guarantee its safe use in the house.

Its heat setting is between 750 watts to 1500 watts, and the product comes with a five-year warranty; it lightly weights 4.1 lbs. With product dimension of 11.9 x 9.5 x 11.8 Inches.

What I like most about this product is the auto climate control that helps adjust the heat output, and it also has a fan that can blow at a set speed to actually maintain the desired temperature. The digital display feature with push buttons controls put it on a class of best space heaters.

Unlike other AVH2, this space heater doesn’t shut off once its temperature has been reached. Instead, it keeps blowing the fan and helps you enjoy the fun of circulating the heat in the apartment space

• Heat up quickly,
• Fairly quiet,
• lightweight and
• comes with an optional fan

• Struggles to distribute heat evenly, and
• lacks basic automatic features.

7) Lasko CD09250 Ceramic Portable space heater – Best space heater for studio apartment

Special Features: 3 quiet settings, Adjustable thermostat, convenient carrying handle, and built in safety feature.

The CD09250 is a very affordable electric heater that does a fair amount of work and would heat your small room or office comfortably. It heats a 12 x 12 room very well when the doors are closed, although it produces a white noise which shouldn’t be much of a problem because it isn’t annoying when heard and it helps children sleep comfortably.

For being so small, it puts out a lot of heat, and you would be quite impressed overall and operates quietly. It can raise the temperature of a room from about 68F to about 80F in about an hour when placed in a small to medium-sized room on a higher setting. On the lower setting, it keeps the room at about 76F.

• overheat protection,
• cool touch exterior,
• 3-year limited warranty,
• quiet operation,
• portable

• suitable for small rooms,
• no tip-over protection.

Considerations for Choosing the Best Electric Space Heaters for Apartments

Safety is always a first consideration regarding space heaters, and its importance cannot be over-emphasized. According to the National Fire Protection Association, space heaters are responsible for over 40% of home heating fires and 85% of related deaths

The safety features of a heater should be your first concern. For this reason, only apartment-safe space heaters that automatically shut off when overheated are the type you should consider when buying space heaters. Hence, most of the heaters in this guide are considered safe for use.

2) Type of Heater:

The two major types of heaters has been discussed and depending on the type of heater you need, choose the product that is best for you. If you need a personal warmer, you should purchase a radiant heater type, but this article focuses more on electric ceramic heaters for apartments. In a home where you have the basement, bedroom, bathrooms and other parts of the home, it is best you go for the convection heater type.

3.)  Energy or Cost efficiency:

It is reasonable to go for an energy-efficient space heater that utilizes a lesser amount of electricity as this is the only way you can save your cost.

You must also understand that no electric space heater is a hundred percent cost effective. Energy billing is determined by the value of watts used; electric heaters with the same upper wattage limit will utilize the same proportion of energy at their higher working capacity.

However, with technological advancement, some eco-friendly electric space heaters have a self-controlled automatic thermostat that can shut off once an apartment’s occupants are warmed, which helps reduce energy consumption translating to saving or reducing energy costs.

Many of energy-efficient electric heaters are of high quality as they will heat one’s apartment as much as a non-energy-efficient heater would. This helps prevent accumulating enormous electricity bills to pay over time.

Best space heater for a large room with high ceilings

4.) Surface heat guard:

Another factor we consider when choosing the best space heater to buy is the surface heat guard, a protective screen covering that prevents one’s body parts from getting injured when coming in contact with the heating element.

Because there could be children and pets living in an apartment, it is necessary that the opening vault of space heaters be adequately protected to prevent skin burns when mistakenly or unintentionally touched.

Also, our top space heaters are rated based on the heat and thermostat settings, it is the heat dial that controls the output amount of the number of watts consumed by the heater, while the thermostat dial controls the space heater’s working temperature and indicates which temperature it shuts off when it starts producing more heat than needed. Therefore, Space heaters products with digital display panels have the edge over those without them.

4.)  Heater mobility or portability:

The predominate factor to consider when choosing or rating the best space heaters for apartments is the portability or mobility of the electric heating. Unlike the central heating system, which is usually fixed to a position, a space heater should be moveable from one room to another.

It has been dramatically acknowledged among consumers that small heaters with lightweight designs are preferable to heavy ones. In contrast, tabletop personal heaters are more portable than floor-standing models, which are then rated over them. High priority is given to portable heaters with shapes and handles that make them easier to be carried and move around in an apartment.

Best space heater for large drafty room

5.) Self-intuitive control:

This has to do with the function of the thermostat. Most of the heaters we reviewed below have a thermostat of at least 2 settings: the higher (1,500 watts) and the lower (750 watts) settings. This helps the heater to manage the heating in the apartment and also delivers mid-range heating that is safe. Hence, most of heaters have a way of shutting down once the higher temperature has been detected by the thermostat.

6.) Size of Room and Heater:

The size of the room or apartment in which you intend to place the heater would determine the space heater’s size and capacity to purchase. For an apartment with really large rooms, using a small-sized space heater makes little or no sense, as it would not be effective. This happens especially when you need it to warm up the whole house, including the bathroom, basement, etc.

7.) Noise:

If you cannot handle enough noise while asleep, you should look closely on the market for a device with a quiet operation. The most silent heaters are the radiant heaters, which release little or no noise, unlike convection space heaters. Most convection heaters release noise, especially when it has a fan for distribution purposes.

Bottom line: Best Space Heaters for Apartments in 2022

Conclusively, the best, safest apartment space heaters in 2018 have been listed above, and they offer the best value for your money.

But the overall best of all the listed is the Vornado EH1-0096-43 AVH10 Vortex Heater

This is because of its advanced safety feature with auto climate control. It is also the most efficient in its class and boasts of balanced heating to a safe temperature of 140 degrees.

Also great:

However, other products do not really meet all the criteria listed above but can still be considered when buying space heaters. Examples include

Dr. Infrared Heater Portable Space Heater,

Lasko 6435 Designer Series Oscillating Space Heater

Honeywell HHF360V 360 Degree Surround Fan Forced Heater

DeLonghi HMP1500 Mica Panel Heater

Dyson AM09 Fan Heater

Meanwhile, they were mostly found to be a little too expensive for the value they offer when cheaper products providing the same value can be opted for. That is the primary reason why people buy the products rated as the best space heaters in this article.

For example, Dyson AM09 Fan Heater, which sells for $395.95, offers almost the same heating value as Honeywell UberHeat ceramic heater, which retails for just $39.99, which doesn’t seem cost-efficient.

Having said all and considered various factors to guide buyers in deciding which space heaters are best for their apartments, the best-adjudged space heaters are

Overall best that provides the best heating:

Vornado EH1-0096-43 AVH10 Vortex Heater

2nd Runner up best electric heater:

 Honeywell UberHeat Ceramic Heater

Recommended Read:

• Best space heater for a large room with high ceilings
• Best space heater for large drafty room
• Best Space Heater for above-ground pool