The 5 Best EPA-Approved Wood Stoves to Efficiently Heat Your Home This Winter

Unless you're among the 10 percent of American households that use wood as a primary or secondary heat source, chances are your perception of wood stoves is a bit out of date.

Today, your average wood stove for the home is a lot safer and more efficient than it was several decades ago, especially since the late 1980s, when the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued industry standards for them. EPA-certified wood stoves use less firewood, produce minimal ash, and emit just a fraction of the smoke that their predecessors once did, contributing to better indoor air quality.

Best for smaller spaces: Timberwolf 2100 Economizer Wood Stove ($1,994)

Best for bigger spaces: IronStrike Grandview 300 Wood Stove ($4,359)

Best budget: Grand Teton Collection Targhee Wood Stove ($650)

Best insert: Drolet Escape 1500 Wood Insert ($1,599)

Best pellet: Castle Serenity 12327 Pellet Stove ($1,144, was $2,000)

Using a wood stove to heat your home has several advantages over gas heating. One is pretty obvious: it's more environmentally friendly. Wood is carbon neutral and a renewable fuel source, especially if you can find SFC-certified firewood. On top of all that planet friendliness is the budget friendliness: using a wood stove can save you about 10 percent on your heating bills. Here are five EPA-certified wood stoves we love.

Get toasty with the Timberwolf 2100 Economizer Wood Stove, designed to heat smaller spaces up to 1,500 square feet. This EPA-certified stove's advanced non-catalytic combustion technology ensures a clean burn with low emissions, and its large firebox allows for extended burn times. It’s made of high-quality steel and includes a built-in blower to enhance heat distribution throughout your space.

If you're budget's limited, you can get still get a high-quality, EPA-certified wood stove. Enter the Grand Teton Collection Targhee Wood Stove, a super efficient, non-catalytic wood stove that's designed to heat spaces up to 2,200 square feet, so it hits the sweet spot for medium-sized spaces. It's made of sturdy steel with a large viewing window and an easy-access ash pan for quick cleanup.

The IronStrike Grandview 300 Wood Stove is an EPA-certified model designed for heating larger spaces up to 3,000 square feet. It has a spacious firebox, which is important for promoting long burn times and efficient heat distribution. It has non-catalytic combustion technology to ensure a clean burn with low emissions, making it both eco-friendly and budget-friendly. The cast iron constructions gives the room a gorgeous aesthetic while keeping you warm.

If you have a fireplace and want to convert it into a a high-efficiency heating system while retaining the fireplace's aesthetic appeal, invest in a fireplace insert. The Drolet Escape 1500 Wood Insert is an EPA-certified one that heats up to 1,800 square feet efficiently, making it perfect for medium-sized homes.

The Castle Serenity 12327 Pellet Stove offers a high-efficiency, programmable heating solution for spaces up to 1,500 square feet. Pellet stoves differ from standard wood stoves by burning compressed wood pellets instead of logs. This wood stove has an automated fuel feeding systems, providing consistent heat output and requiring less manual intervention compared to traditional wood stoves.