Heated Hats, Scarves and Balaclavas: Which Heated Headwear Is Warmest?

The piece that covers the most skin is not the piece that runs the hottest. ActionHeat balaclavas top out at 130°F. The knit hats, the neck gaiters and the cable knit wrap scarf all top out at 150°F. If you pick heated headwear by how much of your face it hides, you will end up with less heat than the person wearing a beanie and a gaiter.

This post puts every hat, scarf, gaiter and balaclava on the same table, using each product's own published temperature and runtime figures, then tells you which one to buy for tailgating, hunting, shoveling and the walk to work. The full range of heated headwear sits behind that link if you already know what you want.

• Which heated headwear is actually warmest
• Heated hats: 130°F or 150°F, and why it matters
• Heated scarves and gaiters: the longest runtime in the range
• Heated balaclavas: coverage over peak temperature
• Use-case matrix: pick by what you are doing
• The battery is the real spec
• Four mistakes buyers make
• What to do next
• Frequently asked questions

Which heated headwear is actually warmest

Two numbers decide this, and they pull in opposite directions: peak panel temperature and runtime. Here is every non-bundle piece in the ActionHeat headwear line with its own published figures.

Read the low column, not the high column. The 5V Heated Fleece Scarf with Pockets holds 125°F for 7+ hours. That low setting is hotter than what three other pieces produce on their maximum setting, and it lasts nearly three times longer than a balaclava on high.

So the honest answer to "which is warmest" has two halves. Highest peak heat: the knit hats, both gaiters and the cable knit wrap scarf, all at 150°F. Most total warmth across a day: the fleece scarf, by a wide margin.

Heated hats: 130°F or 150°F, and why it matters

Every ActionHeat heated hat puts its panels over both ears, runs on a 5V power bank hidden in a pocket at the back of the head, and gives you three settings from a touch button. What separates them is the fabric and the ceiling.

The three knit hats, the cable knit at $89.99, the standard knit at $79.99 and the waffle knit at $49.99, share one spec sheet: 150°F on high for 2.5+ hours, 130°F on medium for 3+ hours, 110°F on low for 5+ hours. Pick between them on look and price, not on heat.

The 5V Heated Winter Hat is the outlier. It is a fleece-lined water-resistant softshell rather than a knit, and it runs cooler: 130°F on high for 1.5+ hours, 90°F on low for 4.5+ hours. You buy it for the weather-shedding shell, not the temperature.

The practical rule with hats is that high is a warm-up setting. The panels reach temperature in seconds. Run high until your ears stop complaining, then drop to medium and you turn a 2.5 hour hat into a 3 hour hat with almost no loss of comfort.

Heated scarves and gaiters: the longest runtime in the range

This is where the range gets interesting, because the scarves are the only headwear that ships with a bigger battery.

The ActionHeat 5V Battery Heated Fleece Scarf with Pockets is 65 inches long and 6 inches wide, with heating panels at the neck and inside both hand pockets. It comes with a 6000mAh power bank. Everything else in the headwear line ships with a 3000mAh pack. That single difference is why it posts 3+ hours on high and 7+ hours on low while a gaiter on the same shelf posts 2+ and 5+.

The NFL team scarves at $99.99 use the same fleece build and the same 6000mAh pack, so they carry the same 145°F, 135°F and 125°F triple. ActionHeat is an official NFL licensee, so these are licensed team products rather than generic prints. Browse the full set of heated scarves to see which teams are stocked.

Gaiters trade runtime for bulk. The knit and fleece gaiters both hit 150°F on high and both hold 100°F for 5+ hours on low, in a piece you can pull up over your nose and push down under a collar. At $49.99 the knit gaiter is the cheapest way into 150°F heat in the whole catalog.

The AA Battery Heated Fleece Scarf at $39.99 is the odd one out. It has a single setting, 120°F for 4+ hours, and runs on three AA batteries per pack instead of a rechargeable bank. It is the right pick if you want spares you can buy at a gas station and the wrong pick if you want three settings.

Heated balaclavas: coverage over peak temperature

Both balaclavas run the same numbers: 130°F on high for 2+ hours, 110°F on medium for 3+ hours, 90°F on low for 5+ hours, from a 3000mAh pack in a pocket at the back of the head. The panels sit over both ears and the elements reach temperature in under 10 seconds.

You are not buying peak heat here. You are buying coverage and configurability. The standard ActionHeat 5V Battery Heated Fleece Balaclava at $99.99 wears five ways: full balaclava, hood, facemask, doubled-over scarf, or cinched shut as a bag. The stretchy fit traps your own heat, which is why the lower panel temperature still feels warm on your face.

The Hunting Fleece Balaclava at $79.99 is the same heat system in Realtree Edge camo, which is the version to buy if concealment matters. Both sit in heated balaclavas alongside open box stock.

Use-case matrix: pick by what you are doing

The battery is the real spec

Nine of the eleven pieces above ship with the same 3000mAh 5V power bank. Two ship with a 6000mAh. Look back at the table and you can see that difference doing all the work: the pieces with the bigger pack are the ones posting 7 hour low settings.

That also means your runtime is upgradeable. Headwear runs on the standard 5V system, the same one the jackets and vests use, so a larger 5V pack from the ActionHeat range drops straight into the same pocket. Every ActionHeat battery is UL certified, which is worth confirming on any lithium pack you plan to wear against your head for an afternoon.

One caution: the pack has to be slim enough to sit in a head or neck pocket without you feeling it. A large brick-style bank works electrically and is miserable to wear.

Four mistakes buyers make

Buying on peak temperature alone. High is a burst setting. Nobody runs 150°F for four hours. Compare the low column, because that is the setting you will actually spend the day on.

Assuming a balaclava is the warmest thing available. It covers the most and runs the coolest. If you want maximum heat on your ears, a knit hat plus a gaiter beats it on both numbers and lets you drop the face cover when you go inside.

Ignoring where the battery sits. Hats and balaclavas hold the pack at the back of your head. Scarves and gaiters hold it at the back of your neck. If you wear a hood or a helmet, the neck position is far more comfortable.

Buying headwear and stopping there. Warm ears and cold hands is a bad trade. The same 5V system runs the heated gloves and the heated jackets, so you can standardize on one battery type across everything you wear.

What to do next

Start with how long you will be outside. Under two hours and any 150°F knit hat or gaiter is enough. Half a day and you want the 6000mAh fleece scarf, or a knit hat with a spare pack in your pocket. All day in the cold and you want coverage plus capacity: a balaclava on low, with an upgraded 5V pack.

ActionHeat has been building heated apparel since 2014, has sold more than 2 million units and stocks gear in over 5,000 retail locations. The headwear range is where most people start, because it is the cheapest way to find out whether heated gear works for you.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a scarf that heats up?

Yes. The ActionHeat 5V Battery Heated Fleece Scarf with Pockets is 65 inches long with carbon fiber heating panels at the neck and inside both hand pockets, powered by a 6000mAh USB power bank tucked into a neck pocket. There is also a cable knit wrap scarf, an AA battery version with a single setting, and officially licensed NFL team scarves.

What is the temperature range of a heated scarf?

It depends on the model. The 5V fleece scarf and the NFL team scarves run 125°F on low, 135°F on medium and 145°F on high. The 5V cable knit wrap scarf runs 110°F, 130°F and 150°F. The AA battery fleece scarf has one setting at 120°F. Every figure is the panel temperature, not the air temperature inside the scarf.

Are there heated hats?

Yes, four of them. The cable knit, standard knit and waffle knit hats all reach 150°F on high for 2.5+ hours and hold 110°F for 5+ hours on low. The fleece-lined Heated Winter Hat reaches 130°F for 1.5+ hours and 90°F for 4.5+ hours. All four heat both ears and run on a 5V pack at the back of the head.

How do you wash a heated scarf?

Unplug and remove the power bank first, then machine wash on a gentle cycle. The NFL team scarves specify gentle cycle and lay flat to dry, and the 5V fleece scarf and both balaclavas are listed as machine washable on gentle. Never wash the power bank or the charging cable, and make sure the garment is fully dry before you reconnect the battery.