These are the best desk fans I swear by while working from home, and they’re ideal for small spaces too

Whether you work from home, are short on floor space, or simply prefer a fan that sits on a table top, you'll need one of the best desk fans if you want to stay comfortable over the summer months.

The UK has already experienced it's first heatwave of the year, with temperatures exceeding 30°C at the end of May. And that's before the summer even hits, and so ensuring you have one of the best fans to keep you cool at home has never been more important.

But with so many desk fans on the market, how do you know what's worth spending your money on? That's where I come in. It's literally my job put desk fans through their paces, compare them and share with you the ones I think are worth your money.

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Remember though, fan are brilliant at circulating the air which can make you feel cooler, but if you are looking for something to actually lower the temperature in the room, a portable air conditioner may be better.

Best early Amazon Prime Day deals

There's still a few days before Amazon Prime Day starts, but deals are starting to drop already.

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Remember you need an Amazon Prime membership if you want to take advantage of Prime Day discounts, but there's still time to sign up.

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Duux Whisper Flex 2: was £179.99 now £134.99 at Amazon

Adaptable between a desk fan and pedestal fan, and offering smart controls, 30 speed settings and whisper-quiet operation, this is a great price for a great fan. I've also spotted the non-smart version, Whisper 3, as an early Prime Day bargain too.

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Quick list

This is a quick look at the best desk fans we've tried and tested here at Ideal Home, and you can carry on scrolling for a deeper dive on why each of these desk fans made the list.

Best desk fans

Best overall desk fan

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It's a combination of various factors that lands this Morphy Richards desk fan at the top of this list. It's compact enough to easily fit on a bedside table, desk or sideboard, offers a decent scope when it comes to wind speed (from a nice gentle breeze to a powerful gust) and great oscillation and is available for under £80.

When I tested this in my own home, I loved the most gentle setting while it was on my desk — it was just enough to keep me comfortable without drying out my eyes while I worked. In the lower speeds, it's quiet enough to not distract, but as with all fans, they get more audible on the higher fan speeds.

It's very straightforward to use, with a clear control panel on the base and an easy to use remote control. I'm always misplacing remotes, so I definitely appreciated that this one is magnetic and can be stored on the base behind the neck of the fan.

It has three different modes (normal, natural and sleep) and eight speed settings, but it's the oscillation that really impressed me. You can set it to oscillate from left to right where the base moves from side to side, but instead of vertical oscillation, the fan head spins on it's axis, going from pointing forwards, to the side, up to the ceiling and across to the other side and back again. Combining this 360° oscillation with the horizontal movement means this little desk fan can get the air moving around the whole room.

In terms of using this as a bedroom fan, it wasn't quite as whisper-quiet as other desk fans I've tried, so it wouldn't be my first choice for a bedroom. However, if you don't mind a bit of white noise when you're dropping off to sleep, this fan also has a timer you can set to switch it off, and you can turn all the lights off on the display.

For more details, my full review is coming soon.

Best battery-powered desk fan

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If you have a larger budget for your desk fan, then you can't go wrong with the Meaco Sefte Pro Table Top Air Circulator.

First up, it's quiet, powerful and very easy to operate via either the onboard controls, the magnetic remote or the connected app. It oscillates well, comes with 12 speed settings, as well as Eco and Night modes, so it's really easy to personalise the settings to your ideal comfort preferences.

What's more, this fan can be run off the rechargeable battery or mains power, so you have loads of flexibility around when and where you can use it. The wind speeds are more powerful when it's connected to the mains, but it still creates a decent breeze when running off the battery. Depending on the settings you have the fan on, you can get up to 40-hours use out of a single charge.

While the Sefte Pro is a bit of an investment, it's one that will last you. The rechargeable battery is also replaceable, so when it reaches the end of it's life you can simply buy a new battery instead of a whole new fan.

Read my full Meaco Sefte Pro Table Top Air Circulator review for more details.

Best desk fan for bedrooms

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Duux's Whisper range of fans are ultra quiet which makes them a great choice for the bedroom. And for me, the best Duux desk fan (although adaptable to a pedestal) is the Whisper Flex 2 smart fan. It really is super-quiet, which is essential for me when I'm trying to fall asleep, but it's got loads more going for it too.

As well as looking brilliant (I've got it in Stone, and I love the aesthetic), it's got a whopping 30 different speed settings, plus different modes to create the Goldilocks of comfort levels. The natural mode, which mimics a real breeze, has to be my favourite. While I didn't necessarily feel a marked difference between all the speed settings, it's so nice to be able to customise the wind speed to such a degree.

It oscillates well to get the air moving arounds the whole room, and is really easy to use via the control panel on the base, the remote control or the app. As the on-board control panel is located on the base, it's not that easy to see what settings you're on, especially if it's on a table top across the room. And for me, that's why the app is so brilliant (I use the app to control it way more than the remote control because it's just so easy). It's quick and simple to slide through to your chosen speed settings, and you can set the oscillation exactly how you like it, as well as switching between modes.

While a battery isn't included, you can purchase one separately (for about £60) that will give you extra flexibility about where you use it.

For more details, my full Duux Whisper Flex 2 review is coming soon.

Best affordable desk fan

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If you are looking for a desk fan on a budget, then this Vonhaus Air Circulator Cooling Fan fits the bill.

It might not have as many speed settings as other options on this list, but it does have a sub-£50 price tag, which makes it an ideal choice if you are looking for something more affordable.

While it only has three speed settings, they are surprisingly powerful and can get the air moving around the room with ease. But that power, even on the lowest setting, means that it's a little intense to have up close, so I'd definitely recommend having a bit of distance between you and the fan to keep things comfortable.

I also found this fan incredibly easy to use, with simple controls on the fan base and a remote control that allow you to adjust the fan speed, horizontal oscillation and mode. If you want to adjust the vertical tilt, that needs to be done by hand.

This fan is a little noisier than others on this list, so it's not ideal for the bedroom, but if you don't mind that, and your budget is more of a priority, then this fan is well worth a look.

For more details, read my full Vonhaus Air Circulator Cooling Fan review.

Best misting desk fan

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Our Senior Digital Editor Jenny is a big fan (pardon the pun) of the Shark FlexBreeze HydroGo. Not only will it fit neatly on a desk, but it also offers really impressive airflow meaning you can feel the benefit of it up to 20m away. It's also really lightweight and can be run off the battery or by mains power, which makes it incredibly easy to move around both indoors and out, wherever you need it.

The ultra-fine misting function is heavenly in a heatwave and won't leave you or your nearby furniture soggy. If you do choose to use it outdoors, it's also rain and UV resistant to give you additional peace of mind.

Jenny particularly loved how quiet it was when she was using it to help get her youngest child to sleep during a heatwave.

It might not be the most affordable, but it's definitely effective. It's also available in a range of on-trend colours which allow you to showcase a bit of your personality too.

For more details, read Jenny's first look of the Shark FlexBreeze HydroGo.

Best desk fan for travel

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If you want a desk fan that you can use at home and take away with you when you travel, then the Duux Rize is ideal.

It's super-lightweight (weighing just 1kg) and compact, which means it's not only really easy to move around your home, but it's easy to take away with you on holiday too.

When I tested it in my home, I loved the telescopic pole that made it really easy to adjust it from a desktop to a short pedestal fan. It could not be more simple to operate either. There is a power button and four speed settings and that's it.

The fact that the Duux Rize is battery operated (with up to 15 hours run time) means that you don't have to worry about where the plug sockets are when it comes to your ideal fan placement. It's compact proportions also mean it's perfect for small spaces.

This is very much a fan for personal comfort, rather than something that can benefit multiple people in a room. If you want something to benefit multiple room occupants, then the Meaco Sefte Pro or Duux Whisper Flex 2 on this list would be more suitable.

For more details, read my full Duux Rize fan review.

Best desk fan comparison at a glance

How we test

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At Ideal Home, we take how we test products extremely seriously. We only ever want to recommend products that we have hands-on experience with, and every desk fan on this list has been tested for at least two weeks (or sometimes more) to help us come to an honest and reliable verdict on whether they're worth the money or not.

We assess every fan we test on a variety of factors including looks, the set up process, ease of use and effectiveness. All fans are tested in our own homes so we can give you the best idea of whether it's the right solution for your home.

We also track the specs of every single fan we test, as well as those things you only know from first hand experience, so that we can compare them with each other and give you all you need to determine which will suit you best.

Find out more about how we test fans.

FAQs

How to choose a desk fan

While this guide should help you choose the best desk fan for your needs, I understand that the process can be daunting, and you may question whether an air conditioner would suit you better or whether a pedestal or tower fan would be a more practical option.

However, there are some questions you can ask yourself to make the process easier. These are:

• What size is the desk fan? If your plan is to pop a fan quite literally on your desk while you're working, you need to be conscious of how much space you have to work with. This is especially true as an oscillating fan is better than a still fan, so if you opt for a desk fan with oscillating functionalities, it needs to have space to move. You should also consider the size of the fan base, especially for those that can double up as pedestal fans, as these can be quite large.
• What type of desk fan do you want? Desk fans come in a surprising number of varieties from traditional oscillating to towers, misting to bladeless, and corded to battery operated models. Each have their own benefits and drawbacks. For example, battery operated fans are ideal if you don't want to worry about proximity to sockets, but they usually lack the power of their corded counterparts. Similarly, misting fans might offer better cooling capacity, but may not be suitable for use right next to your work computer and power cables. Think carefully about how you want to use your fan and when, so you can make the right choice.
• How many speed settings does it have? Although no fan actively cools a room, the air circulation of a fan does help to expel the hot air, cooling a room in the process. So, if you have a hot house, you should opt for a desk fan that has more speed settings.
• How noisy is it? If you're easily distracted while you're working or sleeping, you should also pay attention to the noise levels of the desk fan. This should be included within the specs of the product in decibels, and the higher the decibels, the louder the appliance. If you want a quieter model, try to opt for a desk fan that has the Quiet Mark accreditation. For context, anything in the 30s when it comes to decibels is the equivalent of a gentle whisper, up to readings in the 60s that is the equivalent of a chat among friends.
• How heavy is it? The beauty of desk fans is that they're more portable than pedestal or tower fans, and they're generally a lot lighter. This allows you to avoid the places you shouldn't put a fan and aids those with mobility issues or limited strength.

Should you buy a desk fan or a pedestal fan?

If you are unsure whether you need a desktop or a pedestal fan, the good news is that there are a lot of excellent fans that can be adapted from pedestal to desktop really easily, so it's entirely possible to get both options in a single appliance.

If you want one or the other, then it's worth thinking about how much available space you have, and how you want to use your fan.

For those short on floorspace, then a table-top fan is likely the best solution as it keeps your floors free, and can fit neatly on a sideboard, desk or bedside table. It's worth checking the dimensions of the fan to ensure it will fit comfortably on your chosen surface, with a bit of extra room to allow the fan to oscillate without obstruction. However, desk fans are usually less powerful than pedestal fans, and as such are best for personal comfort.

Pedestal fans, on the other hand, tend to be more powerful with a better reach, meaning they are ideal for getting the air circulating around the whole room, benefiting everyone in it.