Best Winter Thermostat Settings for Comfort & Savings

You know the scene: you walk downstairs in January wearing a hoodie, and someone has cranked the thermostat to 74 because they were cold last night. Your heating bill arrives and it’s $50 more than last month. The house feels stuffy, you sleep poorly, and you’re basically burning cash to feel warm for five minutes.

There are concrete numbers that work for most homes. The trick is knowing what to set at different times of day, why those numbers work, and how to make the changes stick without freezing your family out. In this article, I’ll give you the specific settings, the reasoning behind each one, and the smart tools that make it all automatic.

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A programmable or smart thermostat does the heavy lifting for you. The ecobee Smart Thermostat Essential lets you set a schedule and adjust it from your phone. It’s Energy Star Certified and claims up to 23% savings (compared to holding 72°F). It works with most systems and includes a color touchscreen. If you’ve got an old manual thermostat, swapping it out is the single easiest step to lock in these settings and stop arguing over the temperature.

What temperature should you set your thermostat in winter?

Industry consensus lands on 68°F when you’re awake and at home. That’s the sweet spot the Department of Energy recommends. Every degree you go above that adds roughly 1% to your heating bill. So if you normally keep the house at 72, dropping to 68 saves about 4%. Doesn’t sound huge on one bill, but over a four-month heating season it adds up fast.

When you’re asleep or away, drop it lower. 65°F is good for bedrooms at night — cooler temperatures actually help you sleep deeper. If you leave the house for more than four hours, knock it down to 62°F. Some people go as low as 60, but you risk pipes freezing if your house loses heat quickly. I’d stay at 62 as a safe minimum.

One catch: if you have a heat pump, a big setback (like 10 degrees) forces the auxiliary electric resistance strips on. That kills savings. With a heat pump, keep the setback to 2-3 degrees and let the system run longer. More on that in the table below.

Does turning down the thermostat cost more to reheat?

This old myth refuses to die. The idea is that letting your house get cold, then reheating it, uses as much energy as just keeping it warm all day. That’s wrong. Heat loss depends on the temperature difference between inside and outside. The colder your house is relative to outdoors, the slower it loses heat. By letting it cool down, you reduce the average heat loss rate over many hours. Reheating takes a burst of energy, but it’s a smaller burst than the cumulative energy lost by maintaining a higher temperature all day.

Think of it like a bucket with a hole. The bigger the water level difference from the outside, the faster water leaks out. Lowering the water level (temperature) reduces the leak rate. You save money every hour the house is cooler. Period.

The same logic applies overnight. Don’t worry about reheating in the morning — it might take 30-45 minutes to come back up to 68, but you saved energy all night.

How to find your own best settings (with a table)

Your home insulation, climate zone, and heating system all matter. But here’s a starting point I’ve seen work for hundreds of homeowners. I’ll put it in a table so you can compare your situation.

If you’re still tweaking, start with these numbers and adjust up or down by 1 degree every few days. Track your bill. That’s the only way to know what works for your specific house. For more depth on this, check out the heaterguides thermostat advice page.

Humidity, smart schedules, and why you should automate

Temperature is half the story. Humidity makes a huge difference in how warm 68°F actually feels. Dry winter air saps heat from your skin. If your indoor humidity is below 30%, bump it up with a humidifier. Moist air holds heat better, so you can keep the thermostat at 67°F and still feel comfortable. Most smart thermostats don’t control humidity directly, but they pair well with a whole-house humidifier.

That’s where a smart thermostat like the ecobee shines. It learns your schedule and adjusts automatically. You can set different temperatures for morning, work hours, evening, and sleep — all from an app. It also gives you usage reports so you see exactly what each degree change costs. I’ve used one for three winters. The only downside is the initial setup: it took me about an hour to wire it into my old system (and I needed the Power Extender Kit because my house lacks a C-wire). But once it’s running, you forget about it. The savings pay for the thermostat inside two seasons.

If you’re still manually fiddling with a dial, you’re leaving money on the table. A simple programmable thermostat works too, but a smart one gives you remote control and data. For winter comfort, that data matters — you can see which setting actually saves the most without freezing your family. Pair it with a winter comfort heater for extra warmth in one room without raising the whole house temperature.

Frequently asked questions

Should I turn the thermostat off when I leave the house in winter?

No. Turning it off completely lets the temperature drop to whatever outdoor temp is — below freezing in many climates. That invites frozen pipes, burst plumbing, and costly water damage. Instead, set it to 62°F (or 55°F if gone for days). That keeps pipes safe while saving plenty of energy.

Is 65°F too cold to set the thermostat during the day?

That depends on your tolerance and your insulation. A well-insulated home at 65°F can feel comfortable if you wear a sweater. But if your house is drafty or you’re sedentary, 65°F might be uncomfortable. Try 68°F as your base. If you find yourself still cold, check your windows for leaks before bumping up the thermostat. Sealing drafts is cheaper than heating the outdoors.

Does a smart thermostat really save money compared to a manual one?

Yes, but only if you use its programming features. A smart thermostat sitting on a hold temperature saves nothing. The savings come from automatic setbacks — when you sleep, when you’re at work, when you’re on vacation. The ecobee I mentioned earlier claims up to 23% savings, but that’s compared to holding the temperature steady at 72°F. If you already manually adjust your thermostat, the savings are smaller. If you never touch it, a smart thermostat can cut your bill by 10-15% easily. The real benefit is convenience: you don’t have to remember to change the temperature.

What’s the best thermostat setting for sleeping in winter?

Between 60°F and 65°F. Your body’s core temperature drops during sleep, and a cooler room helps that process. Studies show people fall asleep faster and wake up less in rooms around 65°F. If you’re cold, use a thicker blanket or a heated mattress pad rather than raising the whole house temperature. The room you sleep in can be cooler than the rest of the house — just close the door.

Should I use a permanent hold or a scheduled setback?

Use a schedule, not a hold. A permanent hold keeps the temperature at one setting 24/7. That’s what your old manual thermostat did — wasteful. A schedule automatically sets 68°F during waking hours and 62°F at night and when away. Most smart thermostats let you fine-tune each time block. Set it once and forget it. If you need to override it temporarily, use the temporary hold feature. That way the schedule resumes at the next change.

What to do right now

• Set your home thermostat to 68°F when you’re awake and at home. Drop to 62°F at night and when away for 4+ hours. Adjust 1 degree at a time if needed.
• If you have a heat pump, keep setbacks under 3 degrees to avoid expensive auxiliary heat. Set it to 66°F instead of 62°F.
• Install a smart thermostat like the ecobee to automate the schedule and track your usage. It pays for itself in savings.
• Check your home’s humidity. Use a humidifier to keep indoor humidity between 30-50%. That lets you stay comfortable at a lower temperature.
• Seal drafty windows and doors before you tweak the thermostat. Caulk and weatherstripping cost pennies and save more than any thermostat adjustment.
• For more fine-tuning, read the thermostat settings guide on this site. It walks through programming schedules for different lifestyles.
• Don’t chase perfect temp numbers blindly. Your house is unique. Track your bills over two months with these settings, then adjust based on actual cost — not guesses.