HOMCOM Electric Stove Heater Review: a cheap fake-fire heater that actually does the job

I’ve been using this HOMCOM electric stove heater for a few weeks now in a small living room, roughly 18–20 m². I bought it mainly because I wanted that fireplace vibe without tearing the place apart or dealing with real logs and smoke. So this is coming from someone who just wanted something simple: plug in, get some heat, get a bit of cosy light, and that’s it. No fancy expectations.

First reaction when I unpacked it: it’s lighter and more “plastic” than I imagined from the photos. The pictures online make it look like a cast-iron stove. In real life, it’s clearly a budget unit. But once it’s on the floor and especially once the flames are on, you don’t stare at the details that much. It passes the test visually from a normal distance of a few metres.

I mainly tested it in the evenings, using the flame effect most of the time and the heat when the temperature dropped. I also moved it once to a bedroom around 12 m² to see how it handled a smaller room. I didn’t baby it: I switched it on and off, changed power levels, and left it running for a few hours straight to see if anything rattled or overheated.

Overall, it’s not perfect, and you can feel it’s an entry-level heater, but it does what it says: it heats and it looks like a small fake fireplace. If you expect premium materials and absolute silence, you’ll be disappointed. But if you just want something that looks nice and keeps you warm without a big installation, it’s honestly pretty solid for the price.

On value for money, this HOMCOM stove sits in a pretty sweet spot. It’s clearly cheaper than the premium brands, and you feel that in the materials and lack of extra features. But on the flip side, you’re getting a 2 kW heater with a decent flame effect and ERP energy-saving certification, which is not bad at all for what you pay. A lot of users mention catching it on sale, and that’s where it becomes a very good deal.

Let’s be clear: this is not a long-term “investment piece” like some high-end electric fires. It’s more of a practical, budget-friendly solution. If you compare it to a basic fan heater with no visual effect, you’re paying a bit more, but you also get that fake fireplace look, adjustable flame brightness, and a form factor that actually adds something to the room. For someone who rents or doesn’t want to install a real fire, that’s worth something.

In terms of running costs, 2 kW is 2 kW – any electric heater at that power will cost roughly the same to run. The ERP energy-saving side mainly comes from the thermostat and the ability to choose between 1 kW and 2 kW, so you’re not always blasting full power. If you use it smartly (flame only when you just want ambience, lower power when possible), it can be a relatively cost-effective way to heat one room instead of turning on the whole central heating.

So, is it good value? I’d say yes if you want both heat and looks on a limited budget and you’re okay with plastic build and basic features. If you only care about raw heat and don’t mind something ugly, a plain fan heater might be cheaper. If you want something that looks and feels high-end, you’ll need to put more money on the table for brands like Dimplex. This one sits in the middle: affordable, decent, and gets the job done without pretending to be luxury.

Design-wise, from a normal viewing distance, it does the job. The black stove shape, the little front door, and the fake logs with flames behind tempered glass give a pretty cosy feel. Put it in an old fireplace opening or against a wall with a chair and a rug, and it looks like a small wood burner at first glance. That’s probably why a lot of reviewers say it gives the room a cosy look – it really does once it’s on.

Up close though, you can see where they saved money. The body and door are plastic, and you can tell when you touch it. The rear plate is metal, but the front doesn’t give the impression of real cast iron, despite what the specs say. It’s not ugly, it just feels budget. If you’re the type who inspects every little detail, you’ll notice the cheaper finish. If you just sit on the sofa and enjoy the overall look, it’s fine.

The controls are tucked behind the front door, which is both good and slightly annoying. Good because you don’t see the switches all the time, so visually it’s cleaner. Slightly annoying because you always have to open the door and bend down to change anything. The cable is also on the short side, just like one of the reviewers said. If your socket is not nearby, expect to use an extension lead or rethink where you place it.

In terms of space, the footprint is fairly compact, so it works in smaller rooms or flats. It’s a pedestal form factor, so it stands on four legs and looks like a mini stove rather than a flat panel heater. Overall, the design is visually pleasant from a distance, but obviously cost-cut when you’re up close. For the price range, that trade-off is pretty normal, but don’t expect premium build or fancy detailing.

The product page mentions cast iron, but in reality, the feel is mostly plastic with some metal parts. The body and door are plastic, the rear plate is metal, and the front window is tempered glass. When you knock on the sides, you don’t get that solid, heavy metal sound; it’s clearly a lighter, cheaper construction. That being said, once it’s assembled and placed in position, it doesn’t feel flimsy or about to fall apart.

The tempered glass front is a plus. It gives a clear view of the flame effect and feels safer than some cheaper units that use thinner or questionable materials. When the heater is running on 2 kW, the glass gets warm but not scalding hot in my experience. You still shouldn’t let kids press their hands on it, but it’s not like a real wood burner that can burn you instantly. The auto shut-off for overheating is also reassuring, even if I never managed to trigger it during normal use.

The legs are where you really feel the budget side. They’re plastic, attached with three screws each. One reviewer mentioned the holes not lining up perfectly, and I had a similar experience: I had to fiddle a bit to get the screws in straight. Once tightened, they hold fine, but don’t expect heavy-duty, industrial-grade legs. You move this heater gently; you don’t kick it around the room.

In short, the materials are clearly entry-level, but for a heater in this price bracket, it’s not shocking. If you want real metal, heavier weight, and a more solid feel, you’ll have to spend quite a bit more on brands like Dimplex. If you accept that this is mostly plastic with decent glass and basic metal parts, then it’s perfectly usable and doesn’t feel unsafe or overly fragile in normal use.

Durability is always a bit tricky to judge without years of use, but I can at least share what I’ve noticed after regular use and what the general feedback suggests. First, the unit has been around on Amazon since 2012 and still has a 4.4/5 rating over hundreds of reviews. That usually means it doesn’t fall apart instantly for most people. My own unit hasn’t shown any weird behaviour so far: no burning smells after the initial first use, no flickering flames, and the fan still runs smoothly.

The weak point, if anything, is the plastic body and legs. You can tell this is not built to be thrown around or moved every single day. It’s light and a bit hollow-feeling, so I wouldn’t drag it by one leg or shove it around with my foot. Treated like a small appliance – lifted properly and placed down gently – it should be fine. The screws on the legs haven’t loosened so far, but I can imagine checking them once in a while if you move it often.

The tempered glass front and the internal flame mechanism seem solid enough. No rattling noises developed after several hours of use, and the light effect stayed consistent. The safety auto shut-off is there in case of overheating, which is reassuring for long-term use, even if you hopefully never trigger it. I ran it for a few hours in a row on 2 kW and the casing got warm but not worrying, and the unit didn’t show any sign of stress.

So my honest take: it’s not built like a tank, but for the price, it holds up decently if you’re not rough with it. If you want something that feels truly robust and heavy-duty, you’ll have to spend more. If you just want a heater you’ll place somewhere and mostly leave it there, used a few hours most evenings in winter, this should last a fair while with normal care.

On the performance side, this is where the HOMCOM unit actually surprised me in a good way. For a small heater, the heat output is strong. With the 2 kW setting on, my 18–20 m² living room went from slightly chilly to comfortable in about 10–15 minutes. On the 1 kW setting, it’s more of a gentle background heat; it holds the temperature rather than aggressively warming a cold room. For a bedroom around 12 m², even the lower setting was enough after a short while.

The fan noise is there, you do hear it, but it’s not crazy loud. It’s roughly like a regular fan heater: a constant whoosh, not a high-pitched whine. I could still watch TV with normal volume while it was running. If you’re very sensitive to noise, you might find it a bit annoying over time, but for me it was acceptable for evening use. When you only use the flame effect without the heater, it’s much quieter, basically just a faint hum.

The thermostat is basic but works. You set it, the heater runs until the room reaches the rough temperature, then it cycles on and off. Don’t expect perfect precision like a smart thermostat; it’s more of a “good enough” control. I also like that you can run the flame effect on its own, with the heater off. I used that more than I expected, just to get that cosy light in the room without actually heating it.

In practice, the performance is simple: it heats quickly, especially on 2 kW, it’s fine for small to medium rooms, and the fan noise is standard for this type of product. Nothing fancy, no silent mode, no timer, but it does what you want from a plug-in heater: it warms the room without waiting half an hour.

Out of the box, the HOMCOM electric stove is basically a small black freestanding unit, roughly 54 cm high, 45 cm wide and about 28–29 cm deep. So it’s not huge, but it fills a fireplace opening nicely or sits against a wall without taking over the whole room. It weighs around 4.6 kg, which is light enough to move with one hand, but heavy enough that it doesn’t feel like a toy once it’s on the floor.

You get the main body, the legs, and a small set of screws. No remote, no fancy accessories. The controls are hidden behind the little door on the front: a power switch for the flame effect, two switches for the heat (1 kW and 2 kW) and a simple thermostat dial. Nothing smart, no Wi-Fi, no app, just basic physical switches. Personally, I like that: less stuff to break, but it also means you have to get up to change anything.

In terms of power, it runs at 240 V and you choose between roughly 1 kW and 2 kW. According to the specs and my use, it’s suitable for rooms around 15–30 m². In my 18–20 m² living room, the 2 kW setting warmed things up in about 10–15 minutes from a cool-but-not-freezing starting point. The 1 kW setting is more for maintaining temperature rather than quickly heating from cold.

So in practice, what you’re buying is: a relatively compact, plug-in electric heater that looks like a stove, with a decent flame effect you can use without heat. No hidden surprises, no advanced features. It’s a straightforward, budget-friendly unit that aims to mix looks and basic heating in one small box, and it sticks to that brief pretty clearly.

Effectiveness here is really about two things: does it look like a decent fake fire, and does it actually warm the room. On both, I’d say it’s good for the price, but with a few limits. The flame effect is honestly one of the nicest parts. It’s not on the level of high-end systems like Dimplex Opti-Myst, but for a budget heater, it looks convincing enough. The fake logs glow, and the flames move in a way that doesn’t look too repetitive or cheap. You can also adjust the brightness, which is handy if you don’t want it too bright in a dark room.

In day-to-day use, I found myself using the flames without heat quite often. For example, after work, I’d turn just the flame on for a couple of hours while watching TV. It made the room feel cosier without turning the place into an oven. When the temperature dropped properly in the evening, I’d then switch on the 1 kW or 2 kW heating. That separation between effect and heat is a simple but really practical feature.

In terms of heating effectiveness, it’s clearly better than a small cheap fan heater I had before. That older heater blasted air but didn’t feel as efficient at actually warming the whole room. This HOMCOM unit seems to spread the heat a bit better, probably because of the size and the way the fan pushes air out. It’s still direct electric heat, so don’t expect miracles on your electricity bill, but for taking the edge off the cold in a specific room, it works well.

So overall, as a decorative heater that actually heats, it ticks the main boxes. If your main goal is to cut your total heating bill drastically, this alone won’t do it. But if you want a mix of visual effect and solid spot heating in one unit, it’s effective enough to justify the purchase, especially if you catch it in a sale like some reviewers did.