· By Diego Gómez
How to heat a home office cheaply when you work from home
Heating the whole house all day just for one desk gets expensive. What it costs to warm a home office with a space heater, a personal heater or a heated throw at 2026 US electricity prices.
If you work from home, the furnace or heat pump runs all day to keep an empty house warm while you sit in one room. A few changes can keep you comfortable at your desk for much less.
What each option costs
At the US residential average of 18¢/kWh (EIA Electric Power Monthly; check your own bill, since rates vary a lot by state), for an 8-hour workday:
| Option | Power | Per hour | 8-hour day | 21 workdays |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heated throw on your lap | 100 W | 1.8¢ | $0.14 | $3.02 |
| Personal heater on low under the desk | 750 W | 13.5¢ | $1.08 | $23 |
| 1500 W heater, thermostat cycling about half the time | ~750 W average | 13.5¢ | $1.08 | $23 |
| 1500 W heater on high nonstop | 1500 W | 27.0¢ | $2.16 | $45 |
Make it pay off
- Turn the central thermostat down a few degrees during work hours. The space heater only saves money if the rest of the house uses less. Whether it's worth it depends on your fuel: see space heater vs. central heat.
- Close the office door so you're heating a small room, not the hallway.
- Heat yourself first. Cold feet and hands make you feel colder than the room is: a heated throw plus a small heater at your feet is often enough at 64–66 °F.
- Use a heater with a thermostat and timer so it warms the room before you sit down and shuts off at the end of the day.
- Block drafts under the door and around old windows.
Safety at the desk
Keep the heater at least 3 feet from paper, curtains and the trash can, don't tuck it under a desk crowded with cables, and plug it straight into the wall, not into the power strip with your computer. Our space heater picks all have tip-over and overheat protection. Run your own numbers in the heating cost calculator.
Recommended
BLACK+DECKER personal ceramic heater
- 750/1500 W
- about 7.5 × 6.3 × 9 in
- low, high, fan
A simple personal heater for under a desk or a home office.
Heated throw blanket 50×60 in
- 50 × 60 in
- 9 heat levels
- 2–10 h
Popular heated throw for the sofa, with an auto-off timer.
DREO 1500W ceramic space heater
- 1500 W (PTC ceramic)
- digital
- tip-over and overheat protection, child lock
One of the best-selling space heaters on Amazon: a quiet 1500 W ceramic heater with a real digital thermostat, tip-over protection and a child lock.
Affiliate links: if you buy, Amazon pays us a small commission at no extra cost to you. More info