The Best Portable Heaters in Australia

When it’s cold, the study is freezing by mid-morning, the bedroom takes forever to warm up, and the heater you bought on a whim either roars like a hair dryer or does nothing past arm’s length. Buying the best portable heater in Australia mostly comes down to matching it to the room you’re trying to fix. For most rooms, our answer is the DeLonghi HCM2030. It’s one of the cheapest heaters here, it has a thermostat that holds the temperature you set, and 286 owners give it 4.4 out of 5.

If you want the heater on before you get home, or the room is on the bigger side, go up to the SlimStyle HSX3324FTS with its 24-hour timer. If you’re a light sleeper, look at the quiet Radia S oil column heater or the Ausclimate panel heater. And if only you need warming, not the whole room, the personal heaters near the bottom are built for that.

The short answer

The best portable heaters in Australia

• Best overall: DeLonghi HCM2030
• Best for larger rooms, with a timer: DeLonghi SlimStyle HSX3324FTS
• Best quiet bedroom heater: De’Longhi Radia S EasyTronic TRRSE0715T
• Best smart bedroom heater: Ausclimate EcoSmart Pro ACPH915
• Best for warmth at your desk or couch: Ionmax Ray ION801
• Best oscillating personal heater: De’Longhi Capsule
• Cheapest personal heater: Goldair GSFH18

Product		Price
	DeLonghi 2000W Convector Heater (HCM2030)	from $54.00 at Amazon · 3 shops	$54.00 at Amazon
	DeLonghi 2400W Convector Heater with Timer (HSX3324FTS)	from $118.00 at Amazon · 3 shops	$118.00 at Amazon
	De'Longhi Radia S EasyTronic 1500W Oil Column Heater (TRRSE0715T)	from $139.00 at De'Longhi · 3 shops	$139.00 at De'Longhi
	Ausclimate Healthy Indoor Climate Solutions Ausclimate EcoSmart Pro Large 2000W Panel Heater ACPH915	from $304.00 at Amazon · 2 shops	$304.00 at Amazon
	Ionmax Ray Far Infrared Heater ION801	from $426.00 at Amazon	$426.00 at Amazon
	De'Longhi Capsule Fan Heater (0114571002)	from $64.00 at Amazon · 2 shops	$64.00 at Amazon
	Goldair 2000W Upright Fan Heater with 2 Heat Settings and Adjustable Thermostat (GSFH18)	from $21.00 at JB Hi-Fi · 3 shops	$27.00 at The Good Guys

1. Best overall: DeLonghi HCM2030

Most people don’t need a clever heater. They need one that warms the room they’re sitting in, stays at a sensible temperature and doesn’t cost much to buy. That’s the DeLonghi HCM2030, and it’s why it’s at the top.

The thermostat is the part you’ll notice. Set it once and the heater cycles itself to hold that temperature, so you’re not getting up every twenty minutes because the room has gone from chilly to stuffy. The carry handles make it easy to move from the home office in the day to the lounge at night. And if floor space is tight, the bracket in the box lets you put it on the wall.

The owner score has real weight behind it. 286 people have rated it at The Good Guys and they’ve landed on 4.4. That counts for more than any claim on the box. Only the Goldair costs less, and the Goldair is a personal heater, not a room heater.

The catch is size. De’Longhi rates it for up to 60 m³, which is a bedroom, a study or a modest living room. Don’t buy it for an open-plan living and dining area and expect miracles.

Our verdict: For one ordinary room, buy this and stop looking. Spend more only if you need a timer or the room is bigger than 60 m³.

2. Best for larger rooms, with a timer: DeLonghi SlimStyle HSX3324FTS

Coming home to a cold house is miserable, and so is waking up to one. The DeLonghi SlimStyle fixes that with a 24-hour timer: set it to come on before the alarm goes off or half an hour before you get home, and the room is already warm when you walk in.

It’s also more powerful. At 2400W, De’Longhi rates it for up to 70 m³, against 60 m³ for the HCM2030, so it’s the better of the two convectors for a larger living room. The slim body and included wall bracket help when the floor is already full of furniture.

The owner score is almost the same as the HCM2030’s, from almost the same number of people: 4.3 from 287. So you’re paying for features here, not a safer bet. And you are paying: it costs more than twice as much as our top pick.

Our verdict: Buy it if you’ll actually use the timer or your room is a bit too big for the HCM2030. If neither is true, the cheaper model does the job.

3. Best quiet bedroom heater: De’Longhi Radia S EasyTronic TRRSE0715T

If you can’t sleep with a fan heater whirring and clicking beside the bed, an oil heater is the usual fix. The De’Longhi Radia S is the only oil column heater in this guide. The Good Guys’ listing describes it as quieter than many fan heaters and suited to bedrooms, nurseries and studies.

It pairs that with proper controls: 12 temperature settings, a thermostat and a 24-hour timer. Day to day, that means you can have the bedroom warm by the time you go to bed and set it to turn off at 2 am, so you’re not paying to heat the room all night.

Fourteen owners give it 4.6 out of 5. That’s a strong score, but it’s fourteen people, so treat it as a good sign rather than proof. At 1500W it has less power than the convectors and fan heaters here, and the retailer listing itself says it may feel underpowered in large open spaces. Keep it for a bedroom or study.

It costs a little more than the SlimStyle. Compare today’s prices below.

Our verdict: For a bedroom where noise matters, this is the one we’d buy. Skip it for the living room, where it won’t keep up.

4. Best smart bedroom heater: Ausclimate EcoSmart Pro ACPH915

Some people want to tell the heater to come on from under the doona. The Ausclimate EcoSmart Pro is for them. It works with Alexa and Google, has a 24-hour timer, and it’s a flat panel you can stand on its feet or hang on the wall.

ProductReview.com.au reviewers recommend it for quiet bedroom heating, holding a steady temperature and app control, which covers what a bedroom heater needs to do. We found no owner rating at the retailers we check, so that recommendation is what it rests on.

Ausclimate talks up a patented “Hedgehog” heating element and “Inverter Energy Technology” for energy savings. Those are big words, and the listing gives no running-cost figures to back them, so don’t buy it expecting a smaller power bill. Ausclimate rates it for medium rooms up to 30 m² of floor space, so it’s not meant for a large living area.

Price is the main objection: it costs more than five times as much as the HCM2030.

Our verdict: Buy it if you’ll use the voice or app control every night. If you’ll just turn it on with the switch, the Radia S or the SlimStyle costs much less.

5. Best for warmth at your desk or couch: Ionmax Ray ION801

Sitting still at a desk for hours leaves you cold even when the rest of the house is fine, and heating the whole room just to warm one person is a waste. The Ionmax Ray heats differently. Ionmax says its infrared heat goes straight to people and objects instead of warming the air, so you feel it where you’re sitting.

The tilt and auto swing let you aim it at your chair or the couch, and nine heat levels give you plenty of steps between barely on and toasty. ProductReview.com.au owners recommend it for exactly this: quiet, directional warmth at a desk or in front of the TV.

Two things to be wary of. Ionmax says it suits rooms up to 105 m², but heat that skips the air won’t leave a big room evenly warm. And Ionmax says infrared heaters use less electricity than traditional heaters, which is the maker’s general claim, not a figure for this model.

It’s the dearest heater in this guide, so it only makes sense if this style of heating is what you’re after.

Our verdict: Buy it if you spend long hours in one chair and want quiet, aimed warmth. If you want the room warm, a convector does that for a fraction of the price.

6. Best oscillating personal heater: De’Longhi Capsule

A small heater pointed at your legs works well until you shift in your chair and lose it. The De’Longhi Capsule oscillates, so the warm air sweeps across a wider area instead of one narrow spot. De’Longhi pitches it as a desk heater, and at that job the oscillation is the feature that matters.

It was ranked number 5 in Heating on Amazon Australia at our last check, and we found no independent owner rating at the retailers we check. So it’s here because a lot of people are buying it, not because owners have scored it.

It costs a little more than the HCM2030, which is a better-supported room heater. Think of the Capsule as a heater for you, not for the room.

Our verdict: A good buy for a cold desk if you like the heat moving around. For a whole room, put the money towards the HCM2030.

7. Cheapest personal heater: Goldair GSFH18

Sometimes you just need something warm under the desk this week and don’t want to think about it. The Goldair GSFH18 is the cheapest heater here, and Goldair describes it as giving instant heat for personal warmth and for smaller spaces. Two heat settings and a thermostat are all the controls you get, and all you need for that job.

Its place here comes from sales: it was number 9 in Heating on Amazon Australia at our last check. Owners haven’t scored it at any of the retailers we check, so you’re going on the price and a short feature list.

Keep your expectations in line with the price. It’s a personal heater, so don’t buy it to heat the lounge.

Our verdict: Buy it if you need cheap heat for one person in a small space. Skip it if you want a room heater. The HCM2030 costs a bit more and does that job.

How we chose

We haven’t tested these heaters ourselves. The picks are based on owner ratings and how many reviews sit behind them, independent recommendations where they exist, maker specifications, and price and stock checks at Australian retailers. Heaters with a solid owner rating or an independent recommendation come first. The two picks chosen on Amazon Australia sales rank come last.

Four picks are sold only through Amazon Australia in our data: the Ausclimate EcoSmart Pro, the Ionmax Ray, the De’Longhi Capsule and the Goldair GSFH18. Check the warranty and returns terms on the listing before ordering.

Electric heater buying guide

If the whole room is cold

You need a room heater, and the number to check is the maker’s room size. The HCM2030 suits medium rooms. The SlimStyle HSX3324FTS is the one for a larger living room. The Radia S and the Ausclimate are sized for bedrooms and other medium rooms.

Watch the units. De’Longhi quotes cubic metres, which includes ceiling height. Ausclimate and Ionmax quote square metres, which is floor area only. A 60 m³ figure and a 30 m² figure aren’t measuring the same thing, so don’t compare them directly. Work out your room’s floor area and volume before you choose.

If only you are cold

If you’re at a desk or on the couch and the rest of the house is fine, heating the whole room is money down the drain. Personal heaters make more sense. The Ionmax aims infrared warmth at you, the Capsule sweeps warm air across your spot, and the Goldair is the cheap, simple version.

If you need a bedroom heater

Noise is usually the problem. The Radia S is an oil column heater, which The Good Guys’ listing describes as quieter than many fan heaters. The Ausclimate is recommended by ProductReview.com.au reviewers for quiet bedroom heating. Either way, a timer matters as much as quiet. Having the heater switch off on its own after you fall asleep is the easiest way to keep the power bill in check.

If you want the most efficient electric heater in Australia

Every electric heater turns electricity into heat, so the real savings come from running it less. None of the makers here publish running costs we could compare, so we can’t honestly name a “most efficient” model. What does help is a thermostat, so the heater stops when the room is warm enough, and a timer, so it isn’t on when nobody’s there. Heat the room you’re in, close the door, and you’ll save more than any energy-saving label will.

If floor space is tight

The HCM2030, the SlimStyle and the Ausclimate all come with a wall mount. If you’re renting, check with your landlord before drilling, and read the clearance instructions in the manual before choosing a spot.

If safety is the deciding factor

Tip-over switch-off is listed for both convectors, the Ausclimate and the Capsule. Ausclimate also lists overheat protection. Where a listing doesn’t mention a safety feature, don’t assume it has one. Read the manual for placement and clearance rules, especially in a child’s room.

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