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Electric panel heater or central heating

Updated: 22 October 2026

Your boiler already heats radiators elsewhere, yet one room stays cold and a glass panel looks like a quick fix. Electric panel heater vs central heating is not one answer: electricity can cost more per unit, and one occupied room can still be the cheaper evening. This page uses the Ofgem cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026 and does not invent an annual bill for your postcode. Listings are in the [panel radiators comparison](/hub/heating/panel-radiators). Peter F. checked amazon.co.uk prices and public UK sources. There was no lab test. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Your boiler already heats radiators elsewhere, yet one room stays cold and a glass panel looks like a quick fix.

Our top picks

NRG NRG 1600x408 mm vertical single

Best overall

NRG NRG 1600x408 mm vertical single
9.4/10about £97.95
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Devola Devola DVPW2000B

Rank 2

Devola Devola DVPW2000B
9.2/10about £139.95
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Devola Devola DVS2000W

Best value

Devola Devola DVS2000W
9.0/10about £99.95
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.What you are comparing
  2. 2.Cost of one hour at full output
  3. 3.One room versus the whole house
  4. 4.Stay on the wet panel when

What you are comparing

A plug-in panel here is a shelf price from about £70 to £245, plus electricity every hour the element runs. Most electric listings are 1500 W or 2000 W. The NRG vertical at about £97.95 is a different purchase: a working circuit, valves and installer time, with heat from gas or a heat pump, not from a 13 A plug. Ofgem’s Direct Debit cap for 1 October to 31 December 2026 averages 7.97 pence per kWh for gas and 26.32 pence per kWh for electricity, about 3.3 times the gas unit rate. A boiler still heats rooms you are not using. Direct electric avoids that only when you occupy one zone.

Cost of one hour at full output

A 2000 W panel at full output for one hour is 2 kWh, so 52.64 pence at 26.32 pence per kWh, before the daily standing charge of 54.83 pence. A 1500 W panel at full output is about 39.5 pence for that hour. A thermostat or a ceramic core can lower the duty cycle. Neither changes the rate while the element is on. Gas at 7.97 pence per kWh is cheaper per unit of fuel, and the boiler still loses heat in pipework and in rooms you are not using. Centre for Sustainable Energy guidance separates one occupied room from a house left cold for long periods, which can raise damp risk if ventilation is poor. Lot 20 rules do not cut the unit rate. They constrain controls on fixed electric heaters. They are not a discount.
NRG NRG 1600x408 mm vertical single

Testsieger

NRG NRG 1600x408 mm vertical single
9.4/10about £97.95
View offer

One room versus the whole house

Picture four hours in a home office while the rest of a three-bed semi is set back. A 2000 W panel at full output for those hours is about £2.10, four times 52.64 pence, before the standing charge. That can still beat firing every radiator. If most rooms are already occupied, the panel duplicates gas heat, and electric almost always loses. Energy Saving Trust notes that a proper electric install can cost several hundred pounds beyond a retail panel. These boxes are plug-in, so the install is small and the unit rate is not. A ceramic core that stays warm after switch-off still drew full-rate power while it charged. Use a panel when one room is isolated in time, or when there is no wet circuit to extend. Do not treat plug-in panels as whole-home heat across winter weeks at 26.32 pence per kWh.

Stay on the wet panel when

Existing 1/2 inch pipes and a TRV location make a steel panel the durable fix, once output is read at the right Delta T on what size panel radiator you need. If the 55°C design in England applies from 15 June 2022, the job may be a larger emitter, not a 2000 W plug on the same wall. Stay on wet when several rooms need heat the same evening, when a gas combi already runs hot water and space heat, or when bathroom heat should come from a towel radiator on the circuit. Short cycling and a cold zone from balancing are a heating engineer’s job. If you still choose electric, read the IP claim on panel heater in a bathroom. A shelf price is not a fitted price. Fixed wet work, and Part P wiring in England and Wales, cost more than the box.

Common questions

How much does a 2000 W panel cost per hour?
About 53 pence at the Ofgem Direct Debit average of 26.32 pence per kWh for 1 October to 31 December 2026, if it runs flat out for a full hour. That is 52.64 pence before the daily standing charge. A thermostat does not change the rate while the element is on.
Is gas central heating always cheaper?
Not when you would otherwise heat the entire system for one occupied room. It is usually cheaper per useful kilowatt-hour when most rooms need heat, before you count boiler and pipe losses.
When is one electric panel the better evening?
When one room is used for known hours, the rest of the house is set back, and you accept the electric unit rate for those hours only. If most rooms are already occupied, the panel usually duplicates heat the boiler would have provided.
Does Lot 20 cut the unit rate?
No. Regulation (EU) 2015/1188, which listings call Lot 20, sets control requirements on fixed electric heaters above 250 W. It does not change your supplier’s pence per kWh, and it is not a running-cost discount.
What about a ceramic core that stays warm after switch-off?
It can feel smoother, but the element still consumed electricity at the full unit rate while it was heating. Running cost averages down only if the total kilowatt-hours drop. Stored warmth after switch-off is not free heat.
Will heating only one room cause damp elsewhere?
It can, if the rest of the house stays cold and poorly ventilated for long periods. Centre for Sustainable Energy warns about cold, unheated spaces alongside focused electric heat. One evening in a set-back house is a different case from leaving rooms cold all winter.
Is the Amazon price the same as having a panel fitted?
No. Shelf prices here are for plug-in heaters or a DIY wet panel, from about £69.99 to about £244.99, without a full install quote. Fixed wet work and Part P bathroom wiring in England and Wales cost more than the box.

Related pages

Panel radiator buying guide

Best panel radiator

Panel radiators

Bathroom panel heater: UK zones, IP24 and the plug

What size panel radiator do I need: Delta T and watts

Sources

Public UK sources named below. amazon.co.uk prices, stars and review counts on these ten listings were taken from the listing files read on 20 October 2026. Page updated October 2026.

  1. Screwfix radiator buying guide (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  2. HHIC on BS EN 442 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  3. BSI, BS EN 442-2:2014 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  4. legislation.gov.uk, Regulation (EU) 2015/1188 (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  5. BEAMA Part L heating controls note (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  6. SELECT bathroom zones pocket guide (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  7. Electrical Safety First, bathrooms (retrieved 20 October 2026)
  8. Ofgem price cap unit rates (retrieved 20 October 2026)