10 Best Electric Fireplace Inserts of 2023

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These electric fireplace inserts are sure to warm up and brighten your home.

Have you ever thought to yourself, "A fireplace would really bring the room together, but I don't want to buy wooden logs?" Problem solved. Electric fireplace inserts deliver the heat and enjoyment of a fireplace without the hassle of taking care of an actual fireplace. They run completely off of electricity, and can even come in multiple colors to add some flair to your room. "The other great thing about electric inserts is they don't need to exhaust outside, the way wood-burning and vented gas fireplaces do," says Dan DiClerico, Director of the Home Improvement & Outdoor Lab. "It's a clean, convenient alternative."

The Good Housekeeping Institute reviewed more than a dozen electrical fireplace inserts. Our engineers are well versed in testing tech for your home, from smart home devices to dishwashers. There isn't a single household appliance that hasn't gone through our Labs. Using our thermal guns and our engineers' experience, we test just how safe these inserts are, as well as how easy they are to use. We picked these inserts based off our technical research and overall popular customer reviews, combined with our knowledge of popular brands.

Continue reading to find the best electric fireplace inserts for your home, plus everything you need to know about shopping for one.

Touchstone produces larger types of electric fireplace inserts. At 50 inches wide, this electric fireplace insert is meant to be recessed into a wall.

It comes with a log set and crystals, which can be swapped out at any time, so you can decide whichever medium you like best. "We did find it a little difficult to remove the glass pane and swap the medium, though," says Rachel Rothman, executive technical director at the Good Housekeeping Institute.

You can change the brightness of the flames, which vary in three ways. The colors of the flames can either be orange, blue or a combination of the two. The heat varies from 68 to 88 degrees Fahrenheit, and at any point if it gets higher than 88 it will automatically shut off to prevent any electrical or overheating issues.

You can control the fireplace using a remote or buttons that are located in between the vents at the top of the glass. It comes with a user manual as well to help with installation and use.

Slide this into a pre-existing fireplace and you are set! This electric fireplace insert does its best to look like a proper fire pit. Unlike most inserts, it doesn't come in a mantle. The log set sits free, not within a casing, on the actual part that provides heating. In order for it to start, all you need is an outlet to plug into and you are good to go.

While you can adjust the temperature and turn it on from the insert itself, it also comes with a remote you can use. It has excellent ratings on Amazon, with over 70% five-star reviews. This is a very simple insert, but because of that, it can also look less realistic. If you're looking for fancy colors, changing lights or even differing crystal mediums, another insert would be your best bet.

Go big or go home with this expensive electric fireplace insert from Modern Flames. It can be placed in either a recessed 10-inch space or in a pre-built fireplace. If the pre-built fireplace is slightly bigger than the insert, you can purchase it with a trim kit to help solidify the look. Modern Flames says it can heat up a room up to 400 square feet, and it can get up to temperatures of 88 degrees Fahrenheit. It has 10 different color variations, allowing you to have the ambiance you want. The insert has a touchscreen to control or you can use a remote that comes with it.

R.W. Flames electric fireplace insert can be manipulated to look how you want. You can change the colors of the fire and the fire bed, as well as the intensity and brightness of the "flames" themselves. You can also utilize a timer to turn it off. It can be installed recessed into your wall or wall-mounted.

You can control the fireplace by using the touchscreen controls that are on the unit itself or the remote that comes with it. R.W. Flame says that it also has a safety feature that's meant to turn off the device if it ever goes above the temperature it is supposed to be. In terms of heat, it's said to be able to heat a standard room up to 400 square feet. Because of the size of this unit, it's better to install this on a wall versus installing it in a traditional fireplace.

Even though it comes with its own mantle, it is still meant to be installed in either a recessed wall or a pre-existing fireplace. This fireplace has more than just typical flames.

It has five different color variations, and you can even change how bright and strong you want the flames in the fireplace to look. This insert uses infrared technology for heating, instead of the typical fan convention technique, which will heat the room quicker than a traditional heater.

There's a remote control and a timer as well that lets you manipulate how long you want the insert to be on. According to ClassicFlame, they utilize Safe Sensor Technology, so if it gets to a certain temperature it's not supposed to (such as due to a blockage), it will automatically shut off to prevent any electrical or product issues.

While this is a 23-inch size, there are multiple size options you can get, up to 42 inches. While it claims it can heat a room up to 1000 square feet, at 5200 BTUs of heat, that typically can only heat a room of up to 170 square feet. Double-check how many BTUs is typical per square foot before purchasing anything!

If you are looking for a unique insert, look no further! This Dimplex Opti-myst electric fireplace insert is designed to be used in a pre-existing fireplace. No need to hard-wire this one into your home, as it can be plugged into any standard household outlet. Using special Opti-myst technology, you can fill up a reservoir within the fireplace with water, which gives a misting effect that imitates smoke. "This is meant to provide the look of an actual fireplace, without the smoke and fumes that can adversely affect a home's indoor air quality," says DiClerico. A full reservoir is said to last around 14 to 17 hours before refill, but if the "smoke" effect isn't necessary for you, it can still work without it.

As a log-set style insert, this Dimplex electric fireplace insert is simply meant to go into a recessed area. It plugs into a standard outlet, so feel free to either install it in an outlet in the back of the fireplace to hide the cord, or just snake it along the wall. Visually, it looks like a traditional fireplace.

There's no housing around it, which is part of what makes it easy to install and visually appealing. Since it is a log set insert, its design is simple. It's just logs on a heater that you plug in to wall and then turn on. Nothing encases the product, and the mediums aren't changeable. It's capable of heating up a standard sized room, and comes with a remote so you can turn it on from anywhere in the room. And when it gets too hot to use the heat, just turn it off!

The lights and effects of the fireplace work independently of the heat, so even in the summer you can still use the insert without worrying about getting too hot.

CostWay's electric fireplace insert is great for any room setting you want. It can work with a pre-built fireplace, be installed in a TV cabinet or be free-standing (although it won't be considered an insert if it is free-standing). There are three different flame colors and five flame brightnesses to match the mood you want.

You can control the insert by using the buttons on it or the wireless remote that comes with it, and set up a timer if you don't want the fireplace to run for longer than eight hours. The heat goes up to 82 degrees Fahrenheit and it also has an overheat function, so if it is getting too hot, the machine will automatically turn off the heat. Be sure to pay attention of the size of this device. While it says its height is 28.5 inches, CostWay considers height to be bottom left to bottom right of the device, not top to bottom. From top to bottom of the floor, it is actually 21 inches.

Real Flame's 49-inch electric fireplace insert is a simple plug and play, so all you need is an outlet to get started. It can be both recessed into the wall or directly wall-mounted, allowing you to place it in the majority of rooms in the house.

It has multiple flame and color settings, so you can style and change the ambiance to however you are feeling. Want the look of the fireplace but it's the middle of summer? Turn off the heat and just enjoy the LED flames! This set also comes with logs and two fillers. Fillers are what go at the bottom of the fireplace, and Real Flame's provides you with both crystals and stones, allowing you to customize just how you want your fireplace to look. While this isn't the most expensive out of our picks, it is still fairly costly.

Touchstone's Electric Fireplace Insert is 42 inches long, and is meant to be recessed in the walls. It comes with a log set, crystals and driftwood, so you can change the medium that the fire comes from to look however you want. It is extremely easy to remove the front glass plate in order to change the medium.

The sideline elite has 60 different color combinations to choose from, providing you with a variety of options to use in your home. You can also control the speed of the flames, allowing for even deeper customization for your room. When you turn the heat function on, it can get to as low as 68 and as high as 88 degrees Fahrenheit. Yet, even when it gets that hot, it is still safe to touch this fireplace insert.

"This is one of the more high-tech inserts we tested," adds Rothman. "It's Alexa- and wifi-enabled, so you can get your phone to control the insert as well." If you don't want to use the app, it comes with a remote control. You need a specific router in order to properly use this device, which can be a problem if you don't know how to set up your router to use the correct frequency.

Electric fireplace inserts should be easy to install, as well as safe to be around and touch (especially if you have kids). We tested these by seeing if the mediums were changeable, and how easy it was to change them out for other pieces (logs for crystals, or crystals for logs, for example). For any smart technology, we tested the apps to see how easy it was to connect to and use. We verified the insert was able to do what it said it could, in terms of how many settings it had and how easy it was to set up. We used a thermal gun to confirm how hot the actual device got when it was producing heat to determine if they were actually safe to touch or not.

✔️ Inserts can either be hard wired or plugged in. Confirm which option you're buying before purchasing. Hard-wiring into your home's electrical system would require an electrician to do it properly, so if you don't want to do that, make sure your insert can be plugged in.

✔️ Consider your fireplace situation. While inserts are meant to be placed inside existing fireplaces, not everyone has an existing one already built. While you can create a hole in your wall to fit an insert, some can be wall mounted as if they are recessed. Make sure you understand how the insert should be installed before purchasing.

✔️ These devices create heat. While they are meant to be cool to the touch, they still produce heat to warm the room. While most devices let you use the fireplace function without the heat, it's still something to recognize as inserts can be expensive. However, space heaters can also be expensive, and a fireplace insert can replace a space heater, take up less space (as it goes in a wall) and look better than a traditional space heater.

✔️ Proper installation is key. If you do install into a pre-built fireplace, you must make sure it is properly sealed from the chimney. Rain water or dirt and debris could get in and ruin the machine, so the fireplace must be sealed properly.

✔️ There are two types of ways the insert can heat your home. There's the typical way, where it creates heat and uses a fan to push the heat out into the air, utilizing convection to heat the room. The other way is called infrared heating. Infrared heaters are typically quicker to heat up your room, as they don't heat the air directly like how convection works. Think of how when you walk outside on a sunny day, and you feel the sun against your skin. Or if you sit at a campfire on a cold night, you still feel the heat against your skin. What you are feeling is actually the infrared radiation emitted from the sun and the fire. You're not feeling the heat from the air around you, but directly from the heat source.

Electric fireplace inserts are fireplaces that get placed inside either pre-built fireplaces or recessed into a wall. That's what makes it an insert, as it is inserted into an opening. A traditional fireplace utilizes some form of venting (as wood is typically burning) that helps the smoke to vent while keeping the heat inside. These electric fireplace inserts don't need any ventilation, as they don't produce anything beyond heat. Think of it just like any electric heater you've ever owned, except with more style.

If you are worried about making a depression in your wall, many electric fireplace inserts can actually be wall-mounted. Check to see if it comes with wall-mounting capabilities if you are so inclined. (Although, it won't be technically an "insert" if isn't installed into something.)

Good Housekeeping test engineer Alec Scherma has experience testing many household products and working on different types of machinery. As a mechanical engineer by trade, he brings years worth of knowledge and information when it comes to testing and installing home products.

Alec Scherma (he/him) is the Good Housekeeping Institute's test engineer, where he helps to create and implement new product testing methodology across home, cooking and cleaning appliances, wellness, tech products and more. He graduated from Drexel University's College of Engineering with a B.A. in mechanical engineering.

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