Cedar Sense Articles
Wood, Electric, Wi-Fi or Gas: How to Choose a Sauna Heater
The heater decides how your sauna feels, what it costs to run and what you need to install it. Here’s the short answer: electric is the easiest for a backyard or indoor sauna, Wi-Fi electric adds the convenience of starting it from your phone, wood gives the classic soft steam and works off-grid, and gas heats a sauna where there’s no electric service. Below we walk through each one, with the heaters we carry and what to plan for.
The four types at a glance
| Electric | Wi-Fi electric | Wood | Gas | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power needed | Dedicated 240V circuit | Dedicated 240V circuit plus Wi-Fi | None | Propane or natural gas line |
| Install | Electrician | Electrician | Chimney and clearances | Licensed gas installer |
| Feel | Even, easy to control | Same, ready when you get home | Classic soft steam, crackling fire | Fast, strong heat |
| Upkeep | Low | Low | Firewood, ash, chimney cleaning | Annual check |
| Best for | Backyard and indoor saunas | Busy schedules, rentals | Cabins, lakes, off-grid | Mobile and off-grid saunas |
Electric heaters
Most home saunas run on electric. Turn a dial or press a button and the stones come up to temperature with no firewood and no smoke. The trade-off is power: nearly every full-size sauna heater needs a dedicated 240V circuit, so plan on an electrician.
Heaters are sized by the volume of the room in cubic feet, and every heater page on our site lists the room size each model is rated for. Glass walls, a bigger door or a cold outdoor location can call for a step up in size. If you’re not sure, call us with your sauna’s dimensions and we’ll help you pick.
Harvia KIP Sauna Heater with Built-In ControlsFrom $1,283
HUUM CORE Built-In Sauna HeaterFrom $1,880
Scandia Electric Sauna HeaterFrom $950Wi-Fi electric heaters
A Wi-Fi heater works like any electric heater, with one big upgrade: you can start it from your phone. Turn it on when you leave work and the sauna is hot when you pull in the driveway. That’s also why vacation rental owners like them, since they can check and control the sauna remotely.
HUUM DROP Sauna HeaterFrom $1,334
Harvia KIP Sauna Heater for Wi-Fi ControlFrom $1,060
Harvia Xenio Wi-Fi Sauna ControlFrom $1,081Wood-burning stoves
For a lot of our customers, a wood fire is the whole point. Wood stoves give that classic sauna steam, they need no electricity at all, and they’re the natural pick for a cabin, a lake lot or anywhere power is hard to run.
Inside feed or outside feed?
An inside-feed stove sits in the sauna and you load it from inside the room. An exterior-feed (or through-the-wall) stove is loaded from outside, so you never carry wood or ash through the sauna. On our Setri barrel saunas, the external wood fire option is Setri’s own in-house stove built for exactly that.
Every wood stove needs a proper chimney and safe clearances to the walls and benches. Follow the stove’s manual and your local code, and add the chimney kit made for your stove.
HUUM HIVE Flow Wood-Burning Sauna StoveFrom $2,898
Narvi NC Black Wood-Burning Sauna StoveFrom $1,695
Harvia Legend 150 SL Wood-Burning Sauna Stove$2,436Gas heaters
Propane and natural gas heaters heat a sauna with no electric service at all, which makes them a strong fit for mobile saunas and off-grid builds. They do need proper venting and should be installed by a licensed gas professional.
From our shop: on the Setri barrel saunas we deliver, you can choose any of these, from the external wood fire to Harvia electric, HUUM Wi-Fi, an IKI internal wood stove or Scandia gas. You can also pick “no heater” and choose any other heater from our heater lineup. See all the options on the 4-person Setri barrel.
Quick picks
- Backyard sauna, power nearby: electric, or Wi-Fi electric if you want to start it from your phone.
- Cabin or off-grid: wood.
- Mobile sauna or no electric service: gas or wood.
- Vacation rental: Wi-Fi electric, so you can control it remotely.
Sauna heater questions
What size sauna heater do I need?
Heaters are rated by room volume in cubic feet. Multiply your sauna’s inside length, width and height, then pick a heater rated for that size. Glass, a cold climate or an outdoor sauna can call for the next size up. Each heater page on our site lists its rated room size.
Does an electric sauna heater need its own circuit?
Almost always. Full-size sauna heaters run on 240V and need a dedicated circuit sized for the heater. Have a licensed electrician install it.
Can I put a wood stove in a barrel sauna?
Yes. Barrel saunas are built for wood stoves, with either an inside-feed stove or an exterior-feed stove loaded from outside. Use the chimney kit and clearances the stove’s manual calls for.
Which sauna heater works without electricity?
Wood-burning stoves and propane or natural gas heaters both heat a sauna with no electric service.
Questions? Talk to a real person.
Cedar Sense is a family sauna business in Waubun, Minnesota. Since 2019 we’ve sold and delivered hundreds of saunas to customers in more than 40 states. Call or text 218-760-2041 or send us a message.
