Best electric blankets & heated throws UK (2026)
Heating the person instead of the house is the cheapest warmth there is — 1p–4p an hour against 50p+ for a plug-in heater. Here’s how to choose, and six picks from brands that pass the safety testing.
The short version
For the sofa, get a heated throw (~3p/hour) — the Silentnight Comfort Control is the safe default, the Bauer is the value pick. For bed, get an underblanket (~1p–2p/hour) — Silentnight’s double for most people, a dual-control king if you and your partner disagree about temperature (everyone does). Always buy from a brand with UKCA marking and overheat protection; this is not the category for the cheapest thing on the page.
Throw or underblanket? Pick by room, not by price
A heated throw is a normal fleece blanket with fine heating wires through it — you wrap it round yourself on the sofa, and it moves wherever you do. An electric underblanket straps to the mattress under your bottom sheet and turns a cold bed into a warm one before you get in. Throws run 100–160W; underblankets 60–100W. At the current ~26.3p/kWh cap that’s 3–4p an hour for a throw and 1–3p for an underblanket — and both cycle off once warm, so real-world usage is lower still. An evening under a throw costs less than boiling the kettle twice.
The honest sequencing for a cold house: blanket first, thermostat second, heater last. If everyone’s under a throw by 8pm, the heating can go off an hour earlier — that’s where the real saving lives, and it’s why we treat this page as the first purchase on the site, not an accessory.
Heated throws — for the sofa (and everywhere else)
Silentnight Comfort Control Heated Throw (120×160cm)
- 9 heat settings
- Fast heat-up
- Auto shut-off (2h)
- Machine washable
Silentnight is one of the UK’s best-known electric blanket brands, and this is their best-selling throw: stitched channels to prevent hot spots, Heatsafe overheat protection, and a proper fleece that’s pleasant even unheated.
The 2-hour auto shut-off is the right kind of nannying — it covers the fall-asleep-on-the-sofa case that causes most electric blanket accidents.
£44.99£37.99–£44.99 since 7 Sep
Bauer Professional Heated Throw (120×160cm)
- 10 heat settings
- 1–9h timer
- Detachable controller
- Machine washable
Regularly the cheapest name-brand throw with a full-length timer — the 1–9 hour range means it works as a bed overblanket on a schedule, not just a sofa wrap.
The detachable controller turns it into an ordinary throw for summer, which is the difference between a gadget and a blanket you own for years.
Check price
Minky Luxury Heated Blanket (180×135cm)
- 10 heat settings
- 1–10h timer
- Auto-reheat thermostat
- Machine washable 30°C
The pick if two of you share a sofa blanket — the extra width matters more than any spec. Minky’s thermostat also genuinely cycles: it stops drawing power at temperature and only reheats when it cools.
Quoted running cost is ~4p/hour flat out; in practice the cycling brings a warm evening in well under that.
£34.99↓ Lowest price we’ve tracked£34.99–£39.99 since 7 Sep
Electric underblankets — for the bed
Silentnight Comfort Control Electric Blanket (Double)
- 4 heat settings
- Ultra-fast heat up
- Elasticated straps
- From ~1p/hour
The classic. Pinsonic channels keep the wires flat and evenly spaced, the straps actually hold it in place, and it pre-warms a double bed in minutes for pennies.
Put it on when you head up to brush your teeth; the bed is warm when you are. That habit alone lets most people drop the bedroom radiator entirely.
£40
EMtronics Heated Underblanket (Double)
- 3 heat settings
- Fast heat-up
- Overheat protection
- Washable at 40°C
Does the one job — warm bed, cold room — at the lowest sensible price with the safety basics (overheat cut-off) present. Thin wires you can’t feel through a sheet.
No timer, so it’s a switch-on-then-off-at-bedtime blanket rather than a schedule-it one. At this price, fair trade.
£19.99£18.99–£19.99 since 7 Sep
Dreamcatcher Fully Fitted King with Dual Control
- Dual-zone controllers
- 3 settings per side
- Fully fitted skirt
- ~4p/hour maximum
Two controllers, one per side — the feature that ends the thermostat war. Fully fitted like a sheet, so it stays put on a king mattress instead of migrating.
Each side heats independently; one of you can run setting 3 while the other switches off entirely.
Check priceThe safety bit (read this one)
Electric blankets are involved in around 40 UK house fires a year, and almost all involve blankets that are old, damaged, creased into storage folds, or bought unbranded. The rules that matter: buy UKCA/CE-marked brands with overheat protection; check each autumn for scorch marks, frayed fabric or exposed wire; never use with a hot water bottle; don’t tuck a throw in tightly or pile heavy things on a running blanket; and replace after ~10 years. Everything on this page has overheat protection and auto shut-off as standard.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an electric blanket cost to run in the UK?
Very little. A heated underblanket draws 60–100W, so an evening hour costs roughly 1p–3p at around 26.3p/kWh. A heated throw draws 100–160W — about 3p–4p an hour. Warming the person, not the room, is the cheapest heat in the house.
What is the difference between an electric blanket and a heated throw?
An electric (under)blanket fits on the mattress under your sheet and pre-warms the bed. A heated throw is a normal soft blanket with heating wires, used on the sofa or over you in bed. Throws are the more versatile buy; underblankets make cold bedrooms civilised.
Can you leave an electric blanket on all night?
Only if the manufacturer explicitly says so — look for all-night or timer-controlled models. Most makers recommend switching off or using the auto-off timer once you're in bed. Never use one with a hot water bottle, and replace any blanket with visible wear or scorch marks.
Are electric blankets safe?
Modern UK-sold blankets with overheat protection, auto shut-off and UKCA/CE marking are very safe when used per the instructions. The fires that do occur are overwhelmingly from old, damaged or misused blankets — replace every 10 years and check for scorching or frayed fabric each autumn.
See how blankets compare against every other way of keeping warm in our pence-per-hour running costs guide — and if you’re drying washing indoors this winter, pair the savings with a dehumidifier to keep the condensation away.