The 6 Best Electric Fireplace Heaters of 2020

• 01 of 06

  Best Overall: Duraflame Infrared Quartz Fireplace Stove

  Very Good

  Buy on Amazon

  

  The Duraflame Infrared Quartz Fireplace Stove is a durable, portable electric fireplace heater that will warm up your home and provide the ambiance of a real fire. The Fireplace Stove is available in several colors to match your decor, but the standard black model is by far the best value.

  The Duraflame Infrared Quartz Fireplace Stove is 24 inches and 23 inches high and has a sturdy metal frame, as well as side viewing windows and a glass door that you can actually open. This product uses 3D flame effect technology to create a realistic-looking fire with several brightness settings. In addition to its aesthetic appeal, the stove can warm spaces up to 1,000 square feet, and since it uses infrared heat, it maintains the room’s natural humidity—that means no harsh, dry air! What’s even better, the Duraflame Infrared Quartz Fireplace Stove doesn’t get hot to the touch like a real fireplace, so it’s completely safe for kids and pets to be around it.

  You can control this electric fireplace stove with its included remote or put it on an automatic timer. Overall, the Duraflame Fireplace Stove is a great value, as it’s not only aesthetically appealing but highly functional in large spaces.

  Duraflame Infrared Quartz Fireplace Stove Review
• 02 of 06

  Best Small: Puraflame Clara Portable Electric Heater

  Buy on Amazon

  

  This small fireplace heater has all the features of a full-size model at a significantly lower price. The PuraFlame Clara Portable 1500 Watt Electric Cabinet Heater measures 9 x 5.7 x 12 inches and it can provide supplemental heat for a room up to 400 square feet. The heater has an adjustable thermostat, as well as an LED-lit fake fire for you to enjoy. Because this electric fireplace is so compact, it’s easy to move from room-to-room as needed, and it even has a back handle for easy transport.

  As for safety features, the PuraFlame Mini Portable Electric Stove Heater has both tip-over and overheating protection to keep your home safe. Overall, this compact heater is a reasonably priced option for heating smaller rooms.

  The 8 Best Radiant and Convection Space Heaters of 2020
• 03 of 06

  Best TV Stand: Ameriwood Home Chicago Fireplace TV Console

  Buy on AmazonBuy on Walmart

  

  The Ameriwood Home Chicago Fireplace TV Console features an electric fireplace heater built into a sleek TV stand, making it easy to incorporate the heater into your living room or bedroom. This product can heat spaces up to 400 square feet, and it can support a flat-screen TV up to 50 inches.

  This electric fireplace is part of a beautiful TV console in a dark espresso finish. The console is 31 inches high and 47 inches wide, with several storage spaces, including two glass doors. It’s perfect for displaying your TV and its various accessories, and the built-in fireplace heater will lend a welcoming ambiance to the room. The fireplace is powered by an LED light that lasts up to 50,000 hours, and its heating unit can provide supplemental warmth to a medium-sized room.

  There is some assembly required for this TV console, but once you’ve put it together, you’ll have a stunning piece of furniture that’s highly functional. The Ameriwood Home Chicago Fireplace TV Console is a solid purchase if you want to seamlessly integrate an electric fireplace heater into your room’s decor.

• 04 of 06

  Best High-End: Lifesmart Easy Large Room Infrared Fireplace

  Very Good

  Buy on Amazon

  

  This electric heater is so lifelike that it could probably pass as a real fireplace. The Lifesmart Easy Large Room Infrared Fireplace is one of the best electric fireplace heaters that uses infrared technology.

  If you want a faux fireplace in your home, the Lifesmart Easy Large Room Infrared Fireplace is a great option. The heater is more than 25 inches tall and 31 inches wide, and it includes a gorgeous mantle made from oak. The fireplace includes realistic embers and “dancing” flames to give off the ambiance of a real fire, and its infrared heating technology is designed to warm up large rooms with less energy. The Lifesmart Fireplace even includes a remote control that lets you adjust the heater from across the room—perfect for use in bedrooms or living rooms.

  This high-end fireplace heater instantly upgrades your home with its realistic appearance and impressive warming capabilities. However, it’s a fair bit more expensive than many other products and features similar heat output.

  LifeSmart Infrared Quartz Fireplace Heater Review
  Continue to 5 of 6 below.
• 05 of 06

  Best Faux Woodstove: Pleasant Hearth 400 sq. ft. 20 in. Electric Stove

  

  Buy on Home Depot

  

  The Pleasant Hearth 400 sq. ft. Electric Stove looks incredibly similar to a real wood stove, making it a charming addition to your rustic or old-world decor. This freestanding electric unit boasts a glass panel on the front side, allowing you to view its "flames" and handcrafted logs from across the room.

  The matte black finish, traditional legs, and working door all add to the rustic charm of this faux wood stove. It measures 20 x 23 x 11 and comes fully assembled so it can be used right out of the box. Perfect for a bedroom, small living room, camper, or patio, this model can provide supplemental heat for rooms up to 400 square feet, and the adjustable thermostat allows you to pick the perfect temperature for your home.

  The 10 Best Electric Heaters for Your Home in 2020
• 06 of 06

  Best Realistic: Southern Enterprises Calvert Electric Fireplace

  Buy on Amazon

  

  For those yearning for a true fireplace in their home, Southern Enterprises’ carved electric fireplace is a great option. It features a traditional carved mantel and a realistic 3D flame effect, with all of the benefits of more advanced heaters—including a remote-controlled operation, which enables you to adjust the thermostat and set timers. This model also has several safety features, including a child safety lock and exterior protective glass that remains cool even during use.

  The fireplace uses a standard 120-volt electrical outlet and outputs a maximum of 1500 Watts and 5000 BTU’s. According to the manufacturer, it can heat a 400 square foot room in around 24 minutes. The flames operate separately from the heat, so the unit can also be used purely for ambiance in the warmer months. Though it's smaller than your traditional fireplace mantel, it can still accommodate up to 85 pounds—enough for a flat-screen TV, or a piece of art. 

  Note that the unit does require assembly, but reviewers say that it’s pretty painless, taking less than three hours.

Products Tested by The Spruce

How We Tested

We bought four top-rated electric fireplace heaters that our reviewers tested for more than 125 hours. We asked our testers to consider the most important features when using these fireplace heaters, from their heating capacity to their safety features. We’ve outlined the key takeaways here so that you, too, know what to look for when shopping.

What to Look for in an Electric Fireplace Heater

Heating capacity While electric fireplace heaters shouldn’t be your primary source of heat, they can provide an impressive amount of supplementary heat in your home. If you want to use your fireplace heater to warm part of your house, consider its recommended heating capacity. Most units clearly state what size room they’re designed to be placed in.

Style Fireplace heaters come in a wide variety of styles, from sleek, modern, wall-mounted units to rustic, wood stove-inspired models. You’ll want to consider your decor and how the heater will fit into the room as you shop.

Safety features Electric heaters are a common cause of house fires, which is why it’s important to find a product that has built-in safety features. Look for a model that automatically shuts off if it overheats, and if you have young children or pets, you may want a product that stays cool to the touch.

Test Results: Duraflame Infrared Quartz Fireplace Stove (Best Overall)

Very Good

Buy on Amazon

What We Like

• Great ambience

• Heats room

• Good value

What We Don't Like

• Difficult to adjust temperature settings

Our testers loved how much this product looks and feels like a real fireplace. In addition to providing heat, the “fake flame really adds ambience to the room,” according to one of our reviewers. One of our testers gushed, “It has really brightened up our living room and it adds cheer to our apartment during fall and winter.” The only negatives mentioned were not being able to control the temperature from the remote and not having a way to turn down the heat without scrolling up through all the available temperatures. However, that didn’t take away from the general consensus: “This product is well worth the cost,” one of our testers declared.

Test Results: Lifesmart Easy Large Room Infrared Fireplace (Best High End)

Very Good

Buy on AmazonBuy on Walmart

What We Like

• Provides good heat

• Convenient remote

• Rolls easily

What We Don't Like

• Dated design

• No color options

Our testers found this electric fireplace heater to be effective and also liked that it can double as a piece of furniture. In addition to “realistic and beautiful flames” and a remote control that “provides quick and easy functions so you don't have to get up from the couch,” one of our reviewers liked that it can simply be rolled from room to room. Our testers did wish for more color choices so you could match the unit to the decor of your home and noted that some might find the design a bit dated. One of our reviewers summed it up, though, saying, "The heater's gentle warmth permeates the room, the wood cabinet looks like furniture, and it's ready to be used right out of the box."