Wood-Fired vs Electric Hot Tub Heating: Which Should You Choose?

A wood-fired hot tub is heated by a stainless steel stove, mounted either inside the tub (integrated) or next to it (external). An integrated stove saves space around the tub and keeps the whole setup compact. An external stove leaves more seating room in the water and is easier to load with firewood — even mid-soak.

You light the fire, add wood every so often, and the water typically reaches bathing temperature in roughly 2–4 hours, depending on tub size, the season and whether the tub is insulated. No electricity is needed at any point, so a wood-burning hot tub works anywhere — an off-grid garden, a lakeside sauna spot or a remote cabin.

For many owners the fire is half the pleasure: lighting it, hearing it crackle and watching the smoke rise is a ritual in itself. The trade-off is that temperature is managed manually — you control the heat by how much wood you feed the stove.

An electric heater turns hot tub heating into a set-and-forget affair. A thermostat keeps the water at exactly the temperature you choose, and once the tub is warm the heater simply maintains it. In our configurator you can choose from 13 electric heater models to match your tub size and how quickly you want it to warm up.

With the optional WiFi control module you can start heating from your phone — leave work, tap a button, and step into warm water when you get home. Heating is typically slower than with a strong wood stove, but it takes zero effort: no firewood, no tending, no ash.

The one hard requirement is a proper electrical connection at the tub's location, installed by a qualified electrician.

Here is how the two options feel in day-to-day use:

• Heat-up time: a wood stove typically heats a tub in roughly 2–4 hours; an electric heater is usually slower but completely hands-off.
• Effort: wood needs lighting, feeding and ash removal; electric needs a button press — or a tap in the app.
• Temperature control: with wood you adjust the fire manually; electric holds a precise temperature via thermostat.
• Location: wood works anywhere with no power at all; electric requires a proper electrical connection.
• Atmosphere: real flames and woodsmoke versus silent, invisible convenience.

Insulation deserves a special mention: an insulated tub heats up noticeably faster with either system and keeps its warmth overnight, which makes the next day's soak far quicker and cheaper.

With a wood-fired tub the running cost is firewood. If you have your own supply, heating is close to free; if you buy wood, costs stay modest, but you need dry storage and a little planning. Add-ons such as a chimney extension (to carry smoke above head height) and a poker and ash shovel set make everyday use easier.

An electric heater draws power for several hours per heat-up, so costs depend on your electricity price. Its strength is routine: because the thermostat can maintain temperature, frequent users often keep the tub warm and pay only for top-up heating.

In both cases the biggest single saving is insulation — a well-insulated tub simply needs less energy, whatever the source.

You don't actually have to choose. A Wild Tubs specialty is the combo setup: a wood-burning stove and an electric heater configured together in one hot tub. Our online configurator was rebuilt specifically so that both can be selected at the same time.

The logic is simple: fire up the wood stove for a fast, atmospheric heat-up, then let the electric heater hold the temperature for as long as you like — no more feeding logs at midnight. With WiFi control you can also pre-heat electrically on days when you don't feel like lighting a fire at all.

The combo is especially popular with holiday-home owners and rental operators, who want the wood-fired experience for guests plus automated, predictable temperature control between bookings.

An honest summary, based on what our customers actually do:

• Choose wood-fired if your tub will stand somewhere without electricity, you enjoy the fire ritual, or you want a fully off-grid setup by the lake or the sauna.
• Choose electric if convenience matters most — spontaneous evening soaks, no firewood logistics, or a rental or guesthouse where automation saves daily work.
• Choose the combo if you want the best of both: fast wood-fired heat-up, electric temperature holding, and the freedom to pick either mode on any given day.

Every Wild Tubs hot tub is handmade in Lithuania, configurable online down to the exact heater model, and delivered across the EU direct from the manufacturer — with hot tubs starting from around €1,440.