If we take Amazon’s best selling electric fireplace (currently the best as I’m writing this), the Touchstone 80001 Onyx Electric Fireplace, we can see that it has two heat settings, high and low, and has a BTU output of 5118.

The higher heat setting draws 1500 watts of power, while the lower heat setting draws half that.

The customer reviews are generally very positive and comment how well the fireplace can heat the room.

Comparing Electric Fireplaces to Other Types of Fireplaces

Electric fireplaces are 100% efficient. All of the energy used to produce the heat is pushed out into your room.

Unfortunately the heat output of electric fireplaces is limited to due to the standard electrical socket in your home. The heat output of electric fireplaces is therefore usually around 5000BTUs for the majority of units.

While some electric fireplaces can produce up to 10,000BTU’s, wood-burning and gas fireplaces can produce anywhere from 7,000-60,000BTUs.

However, wood-burning and gas fireplaces that require a chimney or flue to operate can lose a majority of the heat produced straight out of your home, meaning that a higher heat output isn’t necessarily better.

There’s a whole range of pros and cons to each type of fireplace and you can read them all right here.