Sauna Heater Buying Guide: How to Choose the Right Heater

To choose a sauna heater, start with three questions: is your sauna indoors or out, do you have power or firewood, and how big is the room? Electric heaters suit most homes and indoor saunas; wood-fired heaters suit outdoor saunas, off-grid sites and people who love the fire. Then size the heater to the room, allowing extra for glass and solid log walls. In our store at the time of writing (October 2026), electric heaters cost $500 to $4,800 and wood-fired heaters $1,750 to $5,350, at regular prices.

This guide walks through the buying checklist, sizing with worked examples, the heater types (electric, wood-fired, gas and infrared), installation and running costs.

How to Choose A Sauna Heater?

Every heater warms the room, but each gives a different sauna. An electric heater is simple: switch it on, set the temperature, and it holds it. A wood-fired heater takes more effort, but brings the crackle, the smell of woodsmoke and works without power. See electric vs firewood sauna heaters for a side-by-side.

Sauna Heater Buying Checklist

• Is the sauna indoors or outdoors?
• Do you have power nearby (and single or three-phase), or easy access to firewood?
• What does your council allow, especially for wood heaters?
• How big is the room, and how much glass does it have?
• What is your budget, including installation?

Sauna Location

Indoor saunas almost always use an electric heater, because running a flue through a house is hard. Outdoor saunas can use either. If running power to the backyard is costly, a wood-fired heater can work out cheaper overall, so get a quote from an electrician before you decide.

Does my sauna have access to electricity? Do I have easy access to firewood?

In town, electric is usually the easy choice: no wood to buy, store or burn. On a rural block or at a shack with no mains power, wood-fired is often the only option, and a good one.

Are There Limitations or Regulations on the Location of My Sauna?

For wood heaters, check your council's rules on wood burning, smoke and flue height, and follow the heater's clearances to timber exactly. For electric heaters, a licensed electrician must install and connect the heater, usually on its own circuit. That is the law in every Australian state.

How Much Does a Sauna Heater Cost?

Prices are in Australian dollars and include GST. Add the electrician's cost for an electric heater, and the flue kit and any protection panels for a wood heater, if they are not included. The price on each product page is always the current one.

What Size of Heater Do I Need for My Sauna?

Heaters are rated for a range of room sizes in cubic metres (m³). For example, a 6 kW Harvia Spirit is rated for rooms of 5 to 8 m³, and the 9 kW version for 8 to 14 m³. To choose:

1. Work out the room volume: length × width × height. A room 2 m × 1.5 m × 2 m is 6 m³.
2. Add for glass and cold walls: many heater makers ask you to add about 1.2 m³ for every square metre of glass or uninsulated wall, and more for solid log walls, which soak up heat. Check your heater's manual for its exact rule.
3. Pick a heater whose range covers that number, ideally in the middle of the range rather than at the top.

Example, a well-insulated indoor sauna: 2 m × 1.5 m × 2 m = 6 m³, with a glass door of about 1.4 m² adding roughly 1.7 m³, gives about 7.7 m³. A heater rated for around 6 to 9 kW suits it.

Example, a small barrel sauna: 1.5 m long and 1.8 m across is about 3.8 m³ (π × 0.9² × 1.5). But the walls are solid timber and the front is glass, so after the makers' allowances it behaves like a larger room. Small barrels commonly take a heater of around 6 kW. If you are unsure, ask us and we will match a heater to your sauna.

Sauna Heater Types

Traditional Sauna Heater

A traditional heater warms the air and a load of stones. Pour water on the hot stones and you get a burst of steam (löyly), which makes the room feel hotter and softer. Traditional saunas usually run at 70 to 90°C. Electric, wood-fired and gas heaters all work this way.

Electric Sauna Heaters

The most popular choice for home saunas. You set the temperature on a controller (many now have Wi-Fi and an app), and the heater holds it. Small heaters can run on single-phase power; larger ones often need three-phase. Your electrician will tell you what your home can supply.

Wood-Burning Sauna Heaters

The traditional way to heat a sauna. Lighting the fire is part of the ritual, and a wood heater puts out plenty of heat for medium and large saunas. It needs no power, but the temperature is harder to control, and you will need to clear the ash and keep dry wood on hand. Read how a wood-fired sauna works.

Gas Sauna Heaters

Gas sauna heaters exist, but they are rare in Australian homes. They suit some commercial saunas that run all day. A gas heater needs a licensed gasfitter, a flue and the right gas supply, and models sold here must be certified for use in Australia. We sell electric and wood-fired heaters, which suit almost every home sauna.

Infrared Sauna Heaters

Infrared panels warm your body directly rather than the air, so the room stays cooler, around 45 to 60°C. They usually come built into an infrared sauna rather than sold separately. Our Aura infrared saunas use low EMF carbon panels and plug into a standard power point. See infrared vs traditional saunas.

Popular Sauna Heater Brands

We stock heaters from Harvia (Finland), HUUM (Estonia) and SAWO, plus our own Shym wood-fired heaters. Harvia is one of the best-known sauna brands in the world, and HUUM is known for its open stone designs that hold a lot of stones for soft steam.

Harvia Spirit E Electric HeaterIn stockFrom$1,980Made in EuropeHUUM Drop WiFi Electric HeaterIn stockFrom$3,100Harvia M3 Wood Heater, 16.5 kWIn stock$1,7505.0(1)SHYM2 Round + Flue Kit, 17 kWIn stockFrom$2,090

Additional Buying Tips

Shipping and Delivery

Heaters and stones are heavy. Pick-up from our warehouse is free, and we deliver across Australia.

Installation Services

Budget for installation: an electrician for an electric heater, and for a wood heater, someone confident fitting the flue to the manual, or a professional.

How To Install A Heater For Your Sauna

Always follow the heater's manual. Every model has its own clearances, mounting and wiring rules.

Guidelines For Electric Sauna Heater

• A licensed electrician must install and connect it, usually hard-wired on its own circuit.
• Power is typically 230 V single-phase or 400 V three-phase, depending on the heater.
• Some heaters mount on the wall and some stand on the floor; keep the clearances in the manual.

Basic Installation Guide For Wood-Fired Sauna Heater

• Use the protection panels and keep the minimum clearances to timber in the manual.
• Stand the heater level on a non-combustible base, so the flue runs straight.
• Seal the flue where it passes through the roof or wall with the kit the maker recommends, and fit a spark arrestor if your area needs one.

Tips and Tricks for Getting the Most Out of Your Sauna Heater

• Heat-up time: roughly 30 to 60 minutes for wood-fired, 30 to 45 minutes for electric, and 10 to 15 minutes for infrared.
• Running cost: a 6 kW heater uses up to about 6 kWh an hour while heating, and less once it reaches temperature and starts cycling. At around 35 cents per kWh, that is up to about $2 an hour. Check your own power price.
• Stones: check them once or twice a year and replace any that crack or crumble.

Wrapping Up

The heater is the heart of a sauna. Choose electric or wood-fired to suit your site and your style, size it to the room with an allowance for glass and log walls, and have it installed properly. Not sure which one fits? Ask our team, or browse all our sauna heaters.

Related Articles

• How Does a Wood Fired Sauna Work?
• Electric vs. Firewood Sauna Heaters: What's Right for You?
• Infrared vs. Traditional Saunas

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