Infrared Saunas

Which infrared sauna is right for your space, your budget, and how you actually plan to use it?

An infrared sauna heats your body directly instead of heating the air around you. That means it runs cooler than a traditional sauna, plugs into a standard household outlet in most sizes, and reaches temperature in a fraction of the time. If you want a sauna you will actually use on a weeknight, that difference matters more than any spec on the box.

We carry infrared saunas from Medical Sauna, Sunray, HealthSmart, Finnmark, and Halotherapy, in sizes from 1 person up to 6 to 9 person commercial cabins, in both indoor and outdoor builds. Below is how to pick between them.

Far infrared or full spectrum: what actually changes

This is the first fork, and most buyers get talked into the wrong side of it.

Far infrared uses long wavelength heaters only. It is the gentlest option, the least expensive, and the most common. If your goal is a relaxing sweat several times a week, far infrared does the job and you will not miss what you did not buy.

Full spectrum adds near and mid infrared on top of far. Near infrared is the wavelength associated with skin and tissue recovery protocols, which is why athletes and clinics gravitate to it. It costs more and it draws more power. Buy it if you have a specific recovery reason. Do not buy it because a spec sheet made you feel like you were missing out.

Hybrid cabins run infrared heaters alongside a traditional stove, so one room does both. The Finnmark FD-5 Trinity and the Medical 9 Plus are built this way. It is the right answer for a household split between an infrared person and a traditional sauna person, and the wrong answer if nobody in the house actually wants steam.

How the brands differ

Sizing: the mistake that costs people the most

Sauna capacity is measured by how many people can sit, not by how many people can sit comfortably. A 2 person cabin fits two adults sitting upright, shoulder to shoulder. It does not fit two adults who want to stretch out.

The rule that holds up: buy one size larger than the number of people who will use it at once. If it is just you, a 2 person gives you room to lie down. If it is you and a partner, a 3 person is the one you will still be happy with in two years.

Indoor or outdoor

Outdoor cabins are not simply indoor cabins left in the rain. They are built with weather rated exteriors, sealed roofing, and insulation that holds heat when it is cold outside. Putting an indoor cabin on a patio will destroy it, and the warranty will not cover you.

Outdoor is right if you have no interior space, or if you want the walk out to be part of the ritual. Indoor is right if you want the sauna to be easy enough that you actually use it on a Tuesday in February. Most people overestimate how often they will walk outside in the cold.

What we will tell you not to buy

If you are heat sensitive, new to sauna, or you mainly want somewhere quiet to sit and sweat for twenty minutes, do not buy full spectrum. Buy far infrared, buy one size up from what you think you need, and put the difference toward a cold plunge. The temperature contrast will do more for you than the extra wavelengths will.

If you want the hot, steamy, throw water on the rocks experience, an infrared sauna is not what you are looking for and no amount of full spectrum will fix that. Look at traditional saunas instead, or at a hybrid cabin that does both.

Common questions