For most established bases, the Hearth is the best all-round heat source in Valheim. Its warmth reach is broad, it adds more comfort than a Campfire or Bonfire, and it can carry several cooking stations. The Campfire is the practical early-game choice. The Bonfire is worth building when you need a larger warmth area and more cooking space and can place it on ground or stone.
How the three main fires compare
The table below lists the values for each fire as reported by the community-maintained Valheim Wiki on Fandom. Those values are reference figures, not measurements we took in-game, and the wiki gave no publication date for them. Game updates can change them, so check the wiki or the in-game tooltip before you commit to a layout.
| Heat source | Fire-effect range (wiki) | Comfort | Cooking | Build requirements | Main drawback |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Campfire | About 8 m | 1 | Can sit under a cooking station or cauldron | Available early; build cost not stated in the reference used here | Smaller warmth area; needs smoke clearance indoors; weather can put it out |
| Hearth | About 12 m | 2 | Multiple cooking stations; can serve as the fire under a cauldron | Stonecutter and 15 Stone; needs wood fuel | Needs rain cover and a suitable support surface; needs smoke ventilation |
| Bonfire | About 15 m in favorable conditions; about 12 m when rain or strong wind is not adequately blocked | 1 | Multiple cooking stations; the wiki says a cauldron does not work over it | Must be placed on ground or stone; needs fuel right away | Reach drops in exposed weather; placement is limited |
| Braziers | Smaller coverage than the three fires above; exact figure not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated | Not stated |
Braziers appear in the wiki as heat sources with smaller coverage, but their placement rules and costs are not established in the reference we used, so they are not part of the recommendation below.
Why the Hearth is the default for established bases
The Hearth is not the fire with the longest reach. The Bonfire can reach farther in good weather. The Hearth wins because it balances three things: a reach that covers a typical hall or shelter, a comfort value that the Campfire and Bonfire do not match, and a layout that handles several cooking stations without fuss.
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Comfort
The Hearth provides comfort 2, while the Campfire and Bonfire provide comfort 1. Fire-category comfort does not stack across multiple fires, so adding a second Hearth does not double the bonus. Shelter and other furniture add comfort separately, which means a Hearth placed inside a well-furnished room gets the most benefit.
Cooking layout
The Hearth supports multiple cooking stations and can act as the fire source beneath a cauldron. That makes it the most flexible kitchen fire of the three in the reference values. If your base is built around a long cooking line, the Hearth lets you keep several stations on one heat source.
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The trade-offs
The Hearth asks more of you. You need a Stonecutter and 15 Stone to build it, it burns wood, and it needs rain cover and a suitable support surface. It also produces smoke, which is covered below. If you are still gathering materials, a Campfire is the better first step.
When a Campfire is the better choice
A Campfire is the early-game option. It gives you basic warmth and a fire to cook over, and it is usable before you have the Stonecutter materials the Hearth requires. Its warmth area is the smallest of the three, and its comfort value is 1, so it is best treated as a temporary or supplementary heat source once you can build something stronger.
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When a Bonfire earns its place
A Bonfire is the choice when you need the widest warmth area and several cooking stations, and your site allows it. Two conditions limit it. It must sit on ground or stone, which rules it out for many elevated or wooden floor layouts. And its reach depends on the weather: exposed sites lose range, as the table shows, so a Bonfire placed on an open hillside will not perform like the wiki figure. Shelter it from rain and wind if you want the range it advertises.
How the Fire effect works
All three fires provide the Fire effect. It removes the Cold and Freezing effects and shortens the duration of the Wet effect. Because the Fire effect is what keeps you from freezing in cold biomes, the range figures in the table tell you how much of a room or area will be covered. Check that the spot you need to warm falls inside the listed range before placing the fire.
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Cooking and cauldrons
A cauldron only works when a fire source sits directly beneath it. The wiki lists a Campfire and a Hearth as valid examples. The Bonfire entry says a cauldron does not work over it, even though a Bonfire supports multiple cooking stations. If you plan a cauldron, build it over a Campfire or Hearth, or test the Bonfire placement in-game before you commit materials.
Smoke and indoor placement
Active Campfires, Hearths and Bonfires all emit smoke. Smoke needs enough open space to clear. When it accumulates indoors, it can damage players and stop nearby structures from working. For an indoor setup, plan a chimney or an open route to the outside before you place the fire. This matters most for the Hearth, which is the fire most often placed inside a kitchen or hall.
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Eggs and the other meaning of “heat source”
Some players search for “heat source” while trying to hatch eggs rather than to warm a base. Chicken and Asksvin eggs need a heat source to hatch. Which specific fires qualify, and how close they must be, is not established by the sources available for this guide. Before building an incubation setup, confirm the requirement in-game or in a current dedicated guide.
Choosing by priority
- Early game, few materials: build a Campfire. It needs no Stonecutter requirement in the reference used here and it is enough for basic warmth and cooking.
- Permanent base with a kitchen: build a Hearth. It offers the best mix of comfort, cooking stations and reach for most layouts.
- Largest warmth area in good weather: build a Bonfire on ground or stone, and shelter it from rain and wind.
- Cauldron-based crafting: place the cauldron over a Campfire or Hearth, not a Bonfire.
- Indoor fire: plan smoke ventilation first, then place the fire.
These recommendations follow the wiki-reported values and the trade-offs above. If your build depends on an exact range or egg-hatching rule, verify it in-game, since those specifics can change with updates.
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