Hearth & Lawn

The best heated clothes airers for UK homes

Last updated: · By the Hearth & Lawn team

How we chose these: We haven't tested these airers ourselves. Our picks are based on manufacturer specifications, UK retailer listings, independent tests (mainly The Telegraph, The Guardian and Tech Advisor) and patterns in owner reviews. Where sources disagree, we say so. Prices were checked on 18 October 2026.

A heated airer is a clothes horse with warm bars. It uses about as much electricity as a few old-style light bulbs, roughly 5–9p an hour at the current price cap, and it can dry a load in an afternoon or overnight instead of two or three days.

It isn't a mini tumble dryer. Thick jeans and towels still take hours, and all the water from your washing ends up in the room. Pair it with a cover, a window open a crack, or a dehumidifier and it works far better.

Quick picks

Pick Best for Drying space Power Price checked 18 Oct 2026
Lakeland Dry:Soon Deluxe 3-Tier Best overall, with timer 21m, 15kg 300W £199.99, or £194.98 with cover
Dunelm 3 Tier Heated Airer Best value tiered airer 20m, 15kg 330W £76 (was £95)
Minky SureDri XL Winged, with cover Sheets and long items; cover included 18m, 20kg 260W £79.99–£89.99
Lakeland Dry:Soon Mini 3-Tier Small flats 13m, 15kg 198W £129.99

How to choose a heated airer

Tiered or winged?

  • Tiered (tower) airers stack three shelves on each side. They take up less floor space for the amount they hold, and you can lay jumpers flat. Most fold to about 8–10cm deep.
  • Winged airers look like a traditional clothes horse with fold-out wings. They're better for sheets, towels and long items, and usually cheaper, but they take more floor space.

Is a cover worth it?

Usually, yes. A cover traps the warm air around the clothes, so they dry faster and you use the airer for fewer hours. The Guardian's tester found the Dry:Soon Deluxe with its cover dried "almost as fast as a tumble dryer". A cheap alternative is draping a bed sheet over the top, leaving the bottom open so moist air can escape.

Timer, cable length and thermostat

  • Timer. Lets it switch itself off. Lakeland's Deluxe has a 1–12 hour timer; most budget airers don't.
  • Cable. Many are short (about 1–1.4m). Plug straight into a wall socket rather than using an extension lead, and keep the cable where nobody trips on it.
  • Thermostat. Bars are designed to get warm, not hot, so they're gentler on fabrics than a radiator.

Where does the water go?

A typical wash load holds about 2 litres of water, and it all goes into the air of your home as it dries. In a small or poorly ventilated room that means condensation on windows and, over time, mould. Dry in a room with an extractor fan or a window open slightly, keep the door shut, or run a dehumidifier alongside. We compare the costs in the cheapest way to dry clothes indoors.

Running costs

At the Ofgem price cap of 26.32p per kWh (average direct debit electricity, 1 October to 31 December 2026), using each maker's or retailer's rated power:

Airer Power Cost per hour 6 hours
Lakeland Dry:Soon Mini 198W 0.198 × 26.32 = 5.2p 31.3p
Minky SureDri XL Winged 260W 0.260 × 26.32 = 6.8p 41.1p
Lakeland Dry:Soon Deluxe 300W 0.300 × 26.32 = 7.9p 47.4p
Dunelm 3 Tier 330W 0.330 × 26.32 = 8.7p 52.1p

These assume the airer draws its full rated power the whole time, which is the worst case. Dunelm quotes "approx. 4p per hour" for its 330W airer, which is less than the full-power sum gives. We can't see how Dunelm worked that out, so we've used the rated figure.

For comparison, a condenser tumble dryer uses about 4.5–5.2kWh per cycle (about £1.18–£1.37 a load), and a heat-pump dryer about 1.8–2.1kWh (about 47–55p).

Work out your own figures with our running-cost calculator

The best heated airers in detail

1. Lakeland Dry:Soon Deluxe 3-Tier: best heated clothes airer overall

Price checked: £199.99 for the airer alone at Lakeland; the Deluxe airer and cover bundle was £194.98, cheaper than the airer on its own, when we checked on 18 October 2026. Lakeland had it at £169.99 in a September sale.

Key specs (Lakeland, The Telegraph):

  • 21m of drying space on 36 heated bars; holds up to 15kg (about two wash loads)
  • 300W (The Telegraph measured 0.331kWh in an hour)
  • Built-in 1–12 hour timer; top handle; optional castors
  • About 70 × 74 × 132.5cm open; folds to about 8cm deep; 5.9kg
  • 3-year Lakeland guarantee

The Dry:Soon Deluxe is the best-known heated airer in the UK, and it tops both The Telegraph's and The Guardian's guides. The timer is the stand-out feature: set it for a few hours and it switches itself off. The front is open, so it's easy to hang things without a bar in the way.

The common complaints are the short cable (about 1m) and the floor space it takes when open. Testers found T-shirts dried in two to three hours, but jeans and bulky items took 5–12 hours. Buy the cover bundle; it speeds things up and currently costs less.

Pros

  • Big capacity
  • Timer
  • Cover available, and the bundle is currently cheaper than the airer alone
  • 3-year guarantee

Cons

  • Expensive
  • Very short cable
  • Big footprint when fully open

2. Dunelm 3 Tier Heated Airer: best value

Price checked: £76 at Dunelm (was £95), 18 October 2026.

Key specs (Dunelm):

  • 20m drying space; holds up to 15kg
  • 330W
  • Open: 138 × 72 × 78cm; folded: 10.5cm deep
  • Aluminium frame; matching cover sold separately

The Telegraph named this its best-value heated airer. It gives you nearly the same capacity as the Deluxe for well under half the price. You lose the timer, so plug it into a timer socket or remember to switch it off.

Dunelm sells a newer 3 Tier Heated Airer too (300W, £95). Check which one you're buying.

Pros

  • Big capacity for the price
  • Folds flat
  • 4.4/5 from more than 1,100 Dunelm reviews when we checked

Cons

  • No timer
  • Highest power draw here
  • Dunelm's "4p per hour" claim doesn't match its 330W rating

3. Minky SureDri XL Winged Heated Airer with Cover: best for sheets and towels

Price checked: £79.99 at Minky (was £89.99); £89.99 at Currys (18 October 2026).

Key specs (Minky, Currys):

  • 18m drying space; holds up to 20kg
  • 260W; 1.4m cable
  • Cover included
  • 146 × 55.5 × 6cm folded; 1-year guarantee (Currys listing)

The winged shape suits long items such as sheets, duvet covers and towels. The cover is in the box, which you'd pay extra for with most tiered airers. The Telegraph picked a Minky SureDri XL as its best winged heated airer.

Currys' owner score was lower than the others, at 3.8/5 from 55 reviews when we checked, and the guarantee is shorter.

Pros

  • Cover included
  • Good for sheets
  • Lowest-power full-size airer here

Cons

  • Takes more floor space than a tower
  • Shorter guarantee
  • Mixed owner reviews

4. Lakeland Dry:Soon Mini 3-Tier: best for small flats

Price checked: £129.99 at Lakeland, 18 October 2026. A cover bundle is also sold.

Key specs (Lakeland and the user manual):

  • 13m drying space; holds up to 15kg
  • 198W
  • About 60 × 63 × 113.5cm open

If floor space is tight, the Mini gives you the same three-tier design in a smaller footprint, at a lower running cost. You get less hanging space, so large families will find it fills up quickly.

Pros

  • Small footprint
  • Cheapest to run here

Cons

  • Pricey for its size
  • No timer

Safety

  • Plug the airer straight into a wall socket. Don't use an extension lead or adaptor for heating appliances.
  • Don't cover the airer with anything other than a cover designed for it, a sheet left open at the bottom, or the maker's recommended accessories.
  • Never dry clothes on or near a portable heater. Electrical Safety First warns this is a fire risk. A heated airer is designed for the job; a fan heater or oil-filled radiator isn't.
  • Lakeland itself advises against leaving any electrical appliance running unattended overnight. If you dry overnight, use the timer.

FAQs

How long does a heated airer take to dry clothes? Usually 4–12 hours, depending on the fabric, the load and the room. Lakeland quotes 4–12 hours for its Dry:Soon range. Thin items dry much faster than jeans and towels, and a cover cuts the time.

Is a heated airer cheaper than a tumble dryer? Per hour, much cheaper. Per load, it depends on how long it runs. Six hours on a 300W airer is about 47p, compared with about £1.18–£1.37 for a condenser dryer and about 47–55p for a heat-pump dryer.

Can I leave a heated airer on overnight? Makers' advice varies. Use one with a timer, plug it straight into the wall, and keep it away from curtains and bedding.

Do heated airers cause damp? They don't create moisture, but the water from your washing goes into the room. Ventilate or use a dehumidifier, especially in small rooms. See how to stop condensation on windows.

Heated airer or dehumidifier? They do different jobs. An airer warms the clothes; a dehumidifier removes the water from the air. Together they're quickest. If you can only have one and condensation is already a problem, a dehumidifier is usually the more useful first buy.

Sources