The 9 Best Heating Pads of 2021

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First Look

Best Overall: Pure Enrichment PureRelief Heating Pad at Amazon

"Ideal for those with neck and back pain, the heating pad features loops and a belt for a snug fit as you go about your activities."

Best for Back Pain: Sunbeam Contoured Back Wrap at Amazon

"The versatile pad offers a wide range of heat therapy options and can be sprayed with water for a moist heat option."

Best for Neck Pain: Huggaroo Neck Wrap Microwavable Heating Pad at Amazon

"You don't have to choose between heat and cold therapy with this plush pad, which can be microwaved OR placed in the freezer."

Best for Period Cramps: Mighty Bliss Electric Heating Pad at Amazon

"With low, medium, and high settings, it heats up quickly and can be used for moist or dry heat therapy."

Best Wearable: MaxKare Large Heating Pad for Back and Shoulder Pain at Amazon

"The non-slip, hands-free pad is wearable as you do your daily household activities and is complete with an auto shut-off design."

Best Microwavable: ComfortCloud Microwavable Heating Pad at Amazon

"With this two-in-one pack, you can experience the benefits of both heat and cold therapy and relieve inflammation and stiffness."

Best for Targeted Pain Relief: Sunbeam GoHeat Portable Heated Patches at Amazon

"Though they may not be able to cover large areas, these heated patches make up for their size by providing deep, targeted comfort."

Best for Joint Pain: Comfytemp Wrapping Heating Pad at Amazon

"Personalize heat therapy by choosing from three temperature settings, dry or moist heat, and various positions due to its straps."

Best Full Body: Beautyrest Cotton Blend Heated Mattress Pad at Bed Bath & Beyond

"With five heat settings, this mattress pad helps you sleep comfortably while simultaneously soothing sore joints and muscles.""

Aches and pains in your muscles and joints can make it debilitating to go about your daily routine. Investing in a heating pad is a medication-free way to address this pain without leaving the comfort of your own home. These pads offer swift and effective heat to the areas of concern within minutes, immediately alleviating soreness you’re experiencing. Not to mention, these heating pads can keep you warm as the winter months draw nearer.

When selecting a heating pad, it is important to think about what your specific needs are for the product. There are a variety of styles of heating pads–whether it be hands-free, microwavable, or targeted pain–and they work differently depending on your own aches and pains. To help you decide what product might be best for you, we’ve laid out our top recommendations based on customer reviews and consumer reports.

Our Top Picks

Best Overall: Pure Enrichment PureRelief Heating Pad

Pure Enrichment Heating Pad — Courtesy of Amazon

Struggling with aches and pain all over your body? Well, we have a solution for you. The Pure Enrichment PureRelief Heating Pad is not only wearable, but it can cover large areas of the body–such as the back, neck, abdomen, and legs. All it takes is wrapping the heating pad on whatever area is causing you pain to experience swift relief.

Not only does the heating pad provide flexibility for how you wear it, but it also can be set at four different temperatures to best suit your needs. The four settings, ranging from 110 degrees to 140 degrees Fahrenheit, quickly soothe aches with the press of a button. The heating pad’s cover is also machine-washable and comes with an extra-long cord.

Best for Back Pain: Sunbeam Contoured Back Wrap

Sunbeam’s heating pad provides targeted muscle and pain relief all in the form of a back wrap. The pad, which latches around the abdomen, uniquely sculpts to the contours of your back to best soothe aches. Looking for pain relief that penetrates deeper? You can spritz the pad with water for a moist heat option.

What makes this heating pad optimal is its hands-free option, allowing you to continue with your daily tasks whether you are sitting or standing. With four different heat settings, the pad can cater to your specific needs. It also has a two-hour shut off setting so you can have some peace of mind when using at night.

Best for Neck Pain: Huggaroo Neck Wrap Microwavable Heating Pad

Say goodbye to neck pain with the Huggaroo Neck Wrap Microwavable Heating Pad. As the name suggests, the product can be placed in the microwave to deliver 10 to 15 minutes of deep heat to the neck. An additional 10 to 15 minutes of use will bring warmth to still soothe the aching muscles.

This product, which wraps snuggly around the neck, makes it easy to wear around the home as no cords are needed. Not only is the heating pad easy to wear, but the plush material makes it comfortable against the skin. Looking to cool the neck or other parts of the body? You can place the pad in the freezer and use it as a cold compress.

Best for Period Cramps: Mighty Bliss Electric Heating Pad

Period cramps can come on quick without much notice, making it hard to go about your day. Luckily, heating pads provide a quick and soothing solution once the cramping starts. Mighty Bliss electric heating pad is made with soft microplush fibers that will feel gentle against your skin.

When using, you can select between three different settings to ease aches and pains. The heating pad also lets you use it moist or dry to best fit your pain needs. Customers say they feel relief within minutes of use.

Best Wearable: MaxKare Large Heating Pad for Back and Shoulder Pain

Don’t let aches and pains stop you from accomplishing your daily tasks. The wearable heating pad from MaxKare seamlessly wraps around your front to provide relief to the neck, back, and shoulders. The pad provides a hands-free relief option through weighted edges and fixture straps, preventing it from slipping or falling off when wearing around your home.

Besides being wearable, the heating pad also has five different temperature levels with two adjustable auto-off timer settings for your convenience. If you’re looking for relief on the abdomen or legs, you can also wear the heating pad across your front.

Best Microwavable: ComfortCloud Microwavable Heating Pad

Cloud is in the name of this product for a reason. Customers rave about the heating pad’s ultra soft outer shell, which feels soothing against the skin while easing aches and pains. Inside the heating pad are natural clay beads divided in sections to provide flexible muscle relief for areas of the neck, shoulders, joints, legs, and other parts of the body.

All it takes is popping the heating pad in the microwave for a couple minutes and then wrapping it around the injured area to feel direct pain relief that’s long lasting. If you’re looking for cold relief instead, stick the heating pad in the freezer for an hour before use.

Best for Targeted Pain Relief: Sunbeam GoHeat Portable Heated Patches

Sometimes large heating pads are not enough to properly ease aches and pains in one specific area of the body. That’s where Sunbeam’s heated patches come in. The portable patches provide deep relief to one targeted area causing you problems. All it takes is placing the adhesive heated patches directly to the skin.

Once applied, you can select between three different heat levels for a 20-minute heat cycle. The patches provide a total of eight hours of heat before they need to be recharged through the rechargeable battery, which is also provided upon purchase. Customers say these patches are simple, comfortable, and most importantly, effective.

Best for Joint Pain: Comfytemp Wrapping Heating Pad

Joint pain is not always easy to address, as joints in the shoulders, knees, and other parts of the body can make it hard to access deep relief. But the Comfytemp Wrapping Heating Pad makes it simple with a flexible design that includes a strap, allowing you to be hands-free.

The heating pad molds to your joints–whether it be your shoulder or other parts of the body–and offers three different heat settings to best suit your personal needs. Once molded around the joint, the pad provides deep and penetrating heat to ease the aches. If that’s not enough, the heating pad can also be used damp.

Best Full Body: Beautyrest Cotton Blend Heated Mattress Pad

Targeted heating pads are phenomenal, but what if you're experiencing aches and pain throughout the entirety of your body? That’s where Beautyrest Cotton Blend Heated Mattress Pad comes in. The pad fits around your mattress to provide swift pain relief when resting or lounging on your bed.

Choose between five different heat temperatures to suit the weather and your aching limbs. Worried about the pad staying on all night? It was created with a 10-hour auto off function so you can feel warmth while you sleep without worrying about it never turning off.

Final Verdict

If you’re looking for a flexible heating pad to use on multiple areas of your body, we recommend the Pure Enrichment PureRelief Heating Pad. If you’re looking to address targeted pain, then we recommend the Sunbeam GoHeat Portable Heated Patches.

What to Look for in a Heating Pad

Size: When it comes to heating pads, size is important because it better determines how it will target the area of your body in need. Focus on what areas of your body you want to alleviate aches and pain the most and then choose a heating pad that would best form to that area.

Flexibility: If you have aches and pain across multiple areas of the body then a heating pad with a flexible design is a must. This way you don’t have to buy multiple products. Look for heating pads that can mold to multiple areas of your body for best results.

Heat settings: Heat, of course, is an important factor when looking into heating pads. For some people, they need a wider range of options, while for others, an auto-off setting is important. So look at what each product offers for heat setting and select one that best suits your individual needs.

Why Trust Verywell Health

As a seasoned health writer, Danielle Zoellner knows the importance of finding just the right product to fit your medical needs. Throughout her career, Danielle has interviewed a variety of experts in the medical and health fields while reviewing dozens of products. Her experience and knowledge in the field work together to help readers like yourself find the best products for your daily life.