Top 10 Best Room Heaters – Review & Buying Guide

Winters are up, and so everyone is now searching for the best heating appliances to get rid of the chilling cold. Read our blog on the Top 10 Best Room Heaters in India with complete price and reviews.

We started our research on some of the best room heaters for you all. In this article, you will be going to learn how you can choose the right room heater and which room heater suits you perfectly.

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Get ready to beat the freezing cold by picking out one of the best room heaters for your home. Read on for the best room heaters in India available in every price range and suitable to your pockets!

Top 10 Best Room Heaters in India

To make things easy for you, we’ve done a bit of research on room heaters for a couple of days and listed the Top 10 Best Room Heaters in India 2020 that’s in great demand now.

If you are looking to buy a room heater, look no further. We have listed and reviewed the best room heaters available here in India. We have segregated the search into various categories according to a customer’s requirements.

Best Room Heaters in India – Reviewed

About Room Heaters

Room heaters are also known as Space Heaters. When it comes to create a warm atmosphere inside your room as well as around your workplace, room heaters are the best and convenient mediums. These electric heater comes in variety of sizes as per your requirement.

Types of Room Heaters

Convection Heaters

These heaters are designed to warm an entire room. Some of them are either fan assisted or not. They work by heating the air around them. After the electrically heated coils, wires, or ceramic elements in the unit warm the air nearby, circulation must take over.

This kind of room heaters can be a great year-round option. Turn the heater off and use it as a fan in the summer months.

Radiant Ceramic Heaters

Radiant ceramic heaters still use electricity to heat the ceramic plate, but they don’t use any type of fan to bring in or blow out air. Instead, the heater radiates the heat directly at objects in its path.

Radiant heaters won’t heat the entire room like convection heaters do, but the heat is longer lasting because it resides within objects rather than in the air. In this way, radiant ceramic heaters are generally believed to be more effective at generating heat where it’s needed.

Oil Filled Heaters

Oil-filled heaters are considered safest for babies. But you should always make sure that the heater is kept out of the reach of small kids and the room temperature remains comfortable at all times. It takes power to heat up the oil, then with the help of the convection process it goes to the metal walls which produces a noise free warmer experience.

Features to remember

Wattage

The power of the heater affects its heat output, and higher wattages produce more heat. 1000 W room heaters come with a 5 Amps plug while 1500 W or 2000 W room heaters come with a 15 Amps plug.

Most households have only 5 Amps socket. So if your house does not have 15 Amps socket, go with 1000 W room heater or else you will need an electrician to change the socket to 15 Amps for 1500 W or 2000 W room heaters.

Tip over Cut off switch

Portable heaters are moved often because of their small size and light weight. This in return makes them very likely to fall or tip over when something bumps into it or when you try to move it. If you have children or pets at home chances of pushing it over and catching are even higher. To reduce any risk of fire hazards some heaters come with a cut off switch which actives when it falls and cuts off power connection to turn the device off immediately.

Room Size

The first and foremost thing is the consideration of your room size to decide upon which room heater to buy. If you want to buy a room heater for the small room, then fan heaters and radiant heaters are the ideal choice. But if you want the one for bigger area or large room, then oil-filled room heaters will be the best purchase.

Noise Level

Just like other home appliances, almost every room heater emits noise throughout the operation. However, there are few models available in the market which comparatively produces less noise.

The Criteria We Use To Rate Room Heaters?

To rate the best room heaters, we used the following criteria:

• The Heating Technology: For heaters, there are two technologies that are being used; one is radiant and another, convection. We study products in order to find out the best heaters in both categories in India.
• Cost Comparison: Keeping one eye on tech-specs, we compare the costs of the products that fall in the same category, and decide which one is the best in the given category.
• Customer Experience: When a customer rates a product, it always reflects his experience, and experience cannot lie. Therefore, there is wisdom in paying heed to it. We consider what percentage of customers has rated it highly and what percentage slightly. And if the customers’ complaints consistently pertain to a specific problem/s in a given product, it is a fair indication that the failure they highlight is technical. It is safe to avoid buying it. Their reviews also give fair idea about the after sale services which speak volumes about the quality of service centers of that company.
• Durability: Heaters, like the air conditioners or air coolers, are expected to last long. Their warranty period is a good pointer to its durability.

How to Choose a Room Heater?

It is not easy to choose a single product among hundreds of options present in the market. To simplify this process, we have provided several factors to consider while purchasing a room heater. This buying guide will help you choose the right one according to your unique requirements.

1. Heating Technology

This is the first important factor to consider before buying a room heater. There are two different types of heating technologies – convection heater and radiant heater. For more detail information, read below…

a. Convection Heater

This type of heating technology distributes warm air evenly and consistently throughout the room. They use air as the medium to increase warmth in the area. Generally, air is warmed up by blowing over a heating element which will be circulated through the room.

Usually, the heating elements can be made up of ceramic, electric-element or liquid filled. Convection heaters are perfect for closed spaces. They are preferred method of raising room temperature for extended period of time.

Convection heaters come in two different functionalities – with fan and without fan.

• Convection heaters with fan – As the name implies, they use fan as a medium to circulate air in the room. Fan present in this heater is responsible for taking the cool air, passing it over the heating element and re-circulating it into the room. They can increase warmth inside in well-insulated space much faster than convection heater without fan. However, due to the presence of fan, these devices make much noise.
• Convection heater without fan – Usually heating element in this type of heater is surrounded with oil or water. And the heating process will start a very slow pace. The heating process starts by heating the oil or water first and then later heat is slowly transferred into the surrounding air. But the heat generated can stay for long time as the liquid will stay hot for some time after switching off the device. As it doesn’t have a fan, the process is whisper silent.

b. Radiant Heaters

In this type of heaters, heat is generated from infrared radiation. Unlike convection heaters (where air in the room is heated up), this device warm up people and objects in the room.

Radiant heaters are perfect for…

• People can stay in line of its direction.
• Rooms where people stay still for long time (like bedrooms).
• Where people will stay only for few hours at a time.

As these heaters don’t warm up entire room, only people and objects near to it can reap the warmth benefits. It is beneficial for people with respiratory issues like dust allergies as it doesn’t depend on air circulation. As it is not dependable on wind, it is perfect for outdoors.

2. Room Heater Types

Based on their heating abilities, room heaters are further divided into the 3 types – ceramic, oil-filled and infrared. We have provided detail information below – read it carefully to understand which one suits your best.

Ceramic Heaters

In ceramic heaters, electric current passes through ceramic heating elements. This lets the aluminum baffle and heating elements to quickly heat up. Meanwhile during the same time, the cool air is sucked into the base from the surrounding. After that, the air will be passed over the baffles and heating elements. This heats up the air and ultimately circulated into the room using a fan. That is why, they are often referred as ceramic fan heaters.

When compared to others, they operate at lower temperatures and are capable of releasing same amount of heat across the room. Ceramic heaters are generally used for small office or heating single room.

Benefits	Drawbacks
Fan is used to provide instant hot air flow	As fan is used for air re-circulation, noise is produced. Check out the decibel level before purchase
You can aim the direction of air according to your requirements	Hard to clean so dust particles get stuck. People with allergies should avoid it
Perfect for small spaces like office room, cabins or any other	Not suitable for large rooms as it cannot maintain even temperature. Because instant heat temperature fluctuates often
Cools down quickly so a safe option for families with kids and pets
Compact and portable

Oil Filled Heaters

Oil filled heaters just look like traditional radiators however, they are very small. They contain a series of joined columns that attached at the base with a control panel. Unlike traditional ones, oil filled heaters are portable.

Inside these columns, diathermic oil is present which acts as heat reservoir. As the oil is not used as fuel for heat generation, it will not be used which means you don’t have to refill.

Working of oil filled heaters – When you plug into the socket, the electricity will directly flow to the heat reservoir. This will turn electricity into heat which will then be absorbed by the diathermic oil. Once the oil is warmed up, it will flow through the columns. The movement of oil will transfer the heat into the metal columns. Now the heat will radiate around the room using air’s natural convection.

These types of heaters take some time in heating the oil but provide generous amount of heat enough to heat up the entire room.

Benefits	Drawbacks
As fan is not used for circulating heat, operation is whisper silent	Expensive
Perfect for workplaces and bedrooms	Heavier and bulkier
Energy efficient as warmth will stay for long time even after you turn off the device	Poor choice for families with children
Best suited for heating larger rooms	Doesn’t heat up quickly as it takes 20 – 30 minutes for the oil to heat up and deliver heat
Suitable for people who have allergies like asthma
Smart features like anti-tip and auto-off are available

Infrared Heaters

They are also known as radiant infrared heaters. They use the same working principle that heats up the earth – thermal energy will be transferred as heat to any object or person present in its path. Typically, infrared heaters use two types of heating elements.

a. Quartz Tubes – These encapsulated tubes usually have Nichrome heating wire (which consist of 80% Nickel and 20% Chromium).

b. Tubular Heating Element – This type uses solid metal elements for internal heating which similar to the working principle of oven – where the metal casing is heated up first which finally lets the heat transfer directly to the objects present around.

Benefits	Drawbacks
Objects and people are heated up instead of air circulating around. So, it works instantly as soon as you turn the machine on.	Not suitable for large spaces
Uses light to transfer heat, so no noise	Cools down quickly once you switch off
As objects/people are heated up directly, no energy is wasted. So energy efficient	Heat also decapitates much faster
Compact and portable	Radiates bright orange lights which can be disturbing, especially if placed in bedrooms

3. Room Heater Size and Coverage

This is considered as one of the most important factors because – if you purchase wrong size, then you will end with overheated or less heated space. For example, if you purchase a large room heater for small room, then energy will get wasted and the room will be overheated. Just vice-versa, if you purchase a small room heater for large room, then enough heat will not be produced to warm up the room.

Appropriate room heater capability can be measure with wattage output. As a thumb rule, room heater that consumes 10Watts power will heat one square foot of area perfectly. So, if the room heater consumes 1500Watts, then you can heat up 150sqft.

So, if you want to custom calculate for your area, follow the below formula.

General Rule for Calculating Wattage and Heating Capacity in Sqft

As already mentioned, 10 watts of power lets to heat up 1sqft.

So, Total Wattage/10 = Total Sqft.

(OR)

Total Sqft X 10 – Total Wattage.

If you haven’t got much time to do the calculations, then below is a table representing, wattage and suitable coverage space.

Wattage	Sqft (With Well Insulated, 8ft Ceiling)
800 W	80 sqft
1000 W	100 sqft
1200 W	120 sqft
1400 W	140 sqft
1600  W	160 sqft
1800  W	180 sqft
2000 W	200 sqft
2500 W	250 sqft
3000 W	300 sqft
3500 W	350 sqft
4000 W	400 sqft

However, this value can fluctuate based on heating technology, room heater type, indoor temperature and some special cases that include…

• Infrared Heaters – As they don’t use air as the medium to heat up the objects or people, these room heaters have the potential to heat up large area with less power consumption.
• Ceiling over 8 Feet – If the ceiling of your room is more than 8 feet, then use the below formula
   Total Sqft X Ceiling Height X 1.25 = Total Wattage Required
• Poor Insulation – If you room is not properly insulated, then use the equation mentioned below.
  Total Wattage / 12 = Total Sqft (OR) Total Sqft X 12 = Total Wattage

4. Safety Features

Just like any other electrical device, it is better to purchase a room heater that comes with at least few safety features. We have mentioned some of them below…

• Cool to Touch – As the name suggests, it specifies that the outer casing of the room heater is heat resistant. So, even if you touch it accidently, it won’t cause any burns. This feature is not available in some of the room heater products in India. This feature is very important, especially if you have kids or pets in the home.
• Tip Over Cut off Switch – Due to their compact size and light weight features, portable room heaters are often moved from one place to another – this sometimes makes it likely to fall or tip over, especially when it bumps with any object. In some situations, kids or pets may try to catch the room heater or even try to move it. In the cases of falling over or sudden power cut off, the room heater will turn off itself immediately to avoid any potential risk of fire hazards.
• Overheat Protection Switch – Overheat protection is another important safety feature to consider. This is available in most of the room heaters present in Indian market. When internal components reach unsafe temperature, the sensors will notify the switch to turn off immediately.

Apart from these three features, also consider others like protective grills to cover heating coils and thermostats. Some modern room heater models come with motion sensors which detect and turn of the heater when a kid or pet comes too close.

5. Heat Settings

Most of the room heaters come with heat settings which help to adjust according to room temperature. Generally, 3 heat settings are observed – low, medium and high which work by altering the wattage. You can also turn off heat setting option by switching a button, if it is not suitable for your requirements.

6. Oxygen and Humidity Levels

This is an important factor to consider if you have new born baby at home. Generally, radiation heaters or fans use oxygen while heating up the air, leading to less oxygen levels and humidity loss in the room. This can lead to nausea, dry nose and itchy skin, especially in younger ones. To prevent this, we recommend to place a water bucket in any corner of the room when you are using room heater. 

7. Power Consumption

If you want to find out how much electricity does your room heater consume, then first thing to consider is the wattage. This number is usually printed on the manual or specifications on the package. Most of the room heaters consume 1500 Watts but some of them may consume slightly more or less than it. So, based on this number, lets calculate the amount of electricity.  

Electricity bills are usually calculated in Kilowatt hours which is the amount of energy consumed while running 1 kilo watt appliance for one hour.

First let’s assume, room heater you’ve got consumes 1500 watts. As 1,000 is equal to 1 Kilo watt, your heater consumes 1.5 Kilowatts of power. If you have been running room heater in your living room for 8 hours then calculation will be as follows…

• 1500 (Watts) x 8 hours = 12,000
• Now let’s divide it by 1,000 -> 12,000/1,000 = 12 (Kilowatts)
• Let’s multiply with electricity rate per unit. Average unit rate in our country is Rs.5.
  So, 12units X Rs.5 = Rs.60 per day.
• If you use 1500 Watts room heater daily for 8hours for a month, then you will get Rs.1800 electricity bill per month.

8. Power Cord

It is better to invest in a room heater that has at least 70 inches long power cord. This provides enough flexibility for power placement options. It also lets you keep it away from flammable things like beds, couch, curtains and others. Room heater without extension cord should be purchased. Heaters should be placed only on the floor for safety purposes.

Having a lengthy cord lets you use the room heater even in areas where outlets are not easily accessible. It also lets you move the heater around the room according to your preferences.

Important Note: You should never use an extension cord with space heater.

9. Noise Level

Just like any other electrical appliance, room heaters also produce some noise while in operation.Basic thumb rule when considering noise factor is – fan equipped room heaters produce noise and fan-less models produce less or no noise. Non-fan heaters (radiant or oil filled heaters ) usually operate whisper silent. So, they are perfect for bedrooms and office.

To check whether the product you choose produces noise or not, check out the decibel ratings. The higher the rating is, the louder the machine will be.

10. Thermostat

Thermostat is one of the important factors to consider while buying a room heater. Most of the room heaters have either adjustable thermostat or programmable thermostat. With the programmable thermostat you can set a desired temperature and the heater will automatically maintain the set temperature by turning the device on and off after particular intervals.

Though adjustable thermostat cannot maintain set temperature but still controls the heat output depending on your heat settings. Adjustable thermostats either have buttons or dials to let you adjust the heat setting from low to high.

11. Size and Portability

When it comes to portability, it is better to purchase a room heater with castor wheels. Because they make it easy to move the device form one place to another without any stress on the arms. It is also recommended to look out for side arms or handles, so that you can move the heater around without burning your hands.

Along with that, room heaters should be in light in weight to move it around easily and compact in size so that it can be move anywhere like under the table. Fan and radiant room heaters are light in weight, compact and easy to move around freely compared to oil-filled heaters.

12. Energy Efficiency

Room heaters cannot handle the amount of job a central heating system can do. They are designed to warm up small spaces. If you heat up large areas beyond the capacity of a room heaters, then you will have increased electricity bills.

Unfortunately, room heaters don’t come with energy efficiency ratings. And it is difficult to compare the energy efficiency of these devices as multiple factors can have an impact on their productivity. Some of these factors are indoor temperature, space size, whether the space is insulated or not, what temperature is set and others.  

But, if you want to improve the energy efficiency of a room heater, then follow these simple tips…

• To minimize drafts and maximize heat retention, we recommend to keep the windows and doors closed while using room heaters.
• If the room heater has vents, then clear the accumulated debris and dust.
• To stay comfortable, it is better to maintain the temperature at lowest level instead of highest temperature at all the time.
• Positioning the heater to the right direction lets the heat reach the target area perfectly. This will stop you from turning the device to its highest level, thus prevents any energy wastage.
• Also check out for some features like timer, adjustable thermostat and low wattage power for reducing energy consumption.

13. Price and Warranty

A high quality room heater will obviously come at higher price. High end models will have extra smart features like remote control, energy saving mode and timer. Some affordable priced room heater models may not provide great smart features but they will surely provide enough warm that is required to make you comfortable.

When it comes to warranty, it is better to choose models with at least 6 months or 1-year warranty. You can check out the warranty details in the product specifications.

Few Tips on Positioning a Room Heater in Right Place

Placing the room heater in a sensible place is an important thing to consider. If you place the heater in wrong place, then you are putting your family in danger. Below, we have mentioned few tips on where to place a room heater.

• Always Place the Room Heater on Flat Surfaces – No matter where you place the room heater, make sure the surface is flat. If the surface is not flat, then the device can tumble down or knocked over easily.
• Clearance Around the Room Heater – You have to make sure the room heater is not obstructed with anything. Unless it is a wall mounted one, it is better to have at least 2 to 3 feet away from the wall. When it comes to sides or front, make sure to maintain another 3 feet distance.
• Portable or Mounted – As the name suggests, mounted room heaters are fixed into a wall. In some cases, baseboard heaters are mounted at the bottom of the wall near the floor. If you have pets or children roaming in your home, the mounted room heaters are the best choice. They are cool to touch (while in operation). However, you should make sure they are not obstructed by anything. The most important thing to consider while installing a wall mounted room heaters is – the heat flow should not be obstructed by furniture or another wall. If you have a portable room heater, then you have to be careful where you place it. Avoid places where it can easily be knocked over. Tables and shelves are the worst places to keep portable room heaters.
• Keep the Moisture Away – As room heaters work mainly on electricity, they should never be placed in damp areas. So, never take your heaters to camping or use it in kitchen, bathrooms or anywhere else with wet surroundings. Another important thing is – never attempt to dry your wet clothes by placing them over room heaters. It is not only dangerous but also obstructs the air circulation from heater – which can ultimately start fire.
• Clear Path – You should always ensure the room heaters are not placed in the walking path. This lets you walk freely around the house. And it also keeps children and pets safe while the heater is in operation.

Safety Tips to Consider While Using Room Heaters

According to a survey, 40% of house fires are result of room heater misuse. These fire accidents are caused when flammable materials get in contact with room heater. So, while using a room heater, it is important to follow some preventive measures and safety guidelines.

• Never operate a room heater when flammable liquids are present in the surroundings. Flammable liquids include gasoline, paint, alcohol and others.
• It is also not recommended to leave magazines, newspapers, or any other paper near a room heater.
• It is not advised to leave a room heater unattended. If accidentally knocked over, it can start fire.
• Avoid placing a room heater near curtains because if curtain fabric gets sucked in, it can lead to fire accidents.
• Avoid using extension cords to connect room heater.
• If room heater has damaged parts or missed cords, then replace them before use.
• While room heater is operating, please close the windows and doors. Because rain or moisture can break the unit and cause fire.
• Make sure children are at least 3 feet away from the heater. Never leave children unattended when heater is in operation.
• It is recommended to read the manual completely before using the heater.

Benefits of Using a Room Heater

1. Portability – This is one of the most important advantage for a lot of people. If you are purchasing a room heater for your home, then you may go with portable ones as they are easy to move around. However, if you don’t want to move the heater from one room to another, then you can go with wall mounted heaters. As they are mounted to the wall, they are much safer and permanent option.
2. Versatility – Whether you want to heat up a small area or require infrared heater for zonal heating or if you want a heater for large workspace, you can find a suitable room heater for all kinds of unique needs. The market has several choices in terms of shapes, sizes, and designs – making room heaters a versatile option.
3. Effective – Though room heaters are small, these devices surprisingly provide a large amount of heat. You will often find even portable space heaters are capable enough to heat an entire room.
4. Controlability – Some room heaters are available with several controlling options than just turn on or off. Some of them come with options like turning the fan speed down and some others come with digital or manual thermostat options. Some of the modern room heaters even come with remote control option which lets you control the settings without stepping near the device.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Nothing happiness like a warm room on a cold freezing day. Staying indoors is the new adventure this season so choose from this list of the 10 best room heaters in India and be sure of warm and cozy winter this year. This winter brave sub zero temperatures like a boss!

We hope now you’re ready to buy a room heater because you know everything you need to make a smart purchase of the room heater. All the above-stated products have an honest and genuine review from our team of experts. Why you are waiting for delaying shopping is a bad idea!