The physics, and who backs it
The mechanism is real and it's confirmed by two separate Australian government energy bodies, not just fan manufacturers with a reverse switch to sell. Sustainability Victoria describes it plainly: "the reverse function allows the blades to turn in the opposite direction; in winter, this can be used to push hot air up towards the ceiling and back down around the edges of the room to mix with cooler lower-level air, breaking up the layer of hot air at ceiling level and making it warmer where you need it to be." NSW's own Climate and Energy Action guidance agrees on the setting: run the fan clockwise on low speed to push warm air back down. Heat rises and pools at ceiling height whether a room has a heater running or not, so a slow, reversed fan is doing a genuinely different job in winter than the same fan does blowing air down at you in summer.
What this costs, state by state
A standard DC fan on low (under 5 W, the same figure our calculator's own page cites) run 6 hours a night for a full 90-night winter, against a single hour of the 2.4 kW oil column heater our heater running cost calculator uses as its own default.
| State | Rate | Ceiling fan on low, whole winter (90 nights) | One hour of a 2.4 kW oil column heater |
|---|---|---|---|
| New South Wales | 32.4¢ | 87¢ | 78¢ |
| Victoria | 29.8¢ | 80¢ | 72¢ |
| Queensland | 31.2¢ | 84¢ | 75¢ |
| South Australia | 38.1¢ | $1.03 | 91¢ |
| Western Australia | 33.6¢ | 91¢ | 81¢ |
| Tasmania | 28.9¢ | 78¢ | 69¢ |
| Australian Capital Territory | 27.4¢ | 74¢ | 66¢ |
| Northern Territory | 31.7¢ | 86¢ | 76¢ |
Reference rates for 2026–27. Your row is highlighted once you set your location.
What we can't tell you
Neither government source above puts a dollar figure or a percentage on the heating bill this actually saves, and we're not going to invent one. The real saving depends on things a single number can't capture: ceiling height (a raked or high ceiling traps far more warm air up top than a standard flat one), how well the room's insulated, and what kind of heater is doing the work. What we can say without guessing is the cost of testing it yourself, using this site's own figures rather than anyone else's estimate: running the fan on low for the entire 90-night winter costs about the same as running the heater it's helping for one extra hour. If reversing the fan buys back even a fraction of a degree of comfort at the thermostat, it's already paid for itself many times over, and if it does nothing in a particular room, the cost of finding that out is close to zero.
Common questions
Does reversing a ceiling fan actually save money on heating?
The physics is real and confirmed by both Sustainability Victoria and NSW's energy department: running the fan clockwise on low pushes warm air pooling near the ceiling back down into the room. Neither publishes a dollar or percentage saving for it, since the real effect depends on ceiling height, insulation and heater type. What's certain is the fan itself costs almost nothing to run while you test it.
What speed and direction should a ceiling fan run in winter?
Low speed, running clockwise when viewed from below (the reverse of the anticlockwise direction used for summer cooling). Most fans switch this with a toggle on the motor housing or a button on the remote.
Is it worth trying if I'm not sure it'll help?
Yes. Running a standard DC fan on low for an entire 90-night winter costs about as much as running a 2.4 kW oil column heater for one single hour, on any state's current rate. There's very little to lose by testing it in your own room.
Are there other near-zero-cost habits worth trying alongside reversing the fan?
Yes. Our cheapest way to heat a room guide covers the other free-to-try lever, sizing and running a plug-in heater correctly, and the one paid lever that actually changes the physics: reverse cycle air conditioning heats a room for about a third of what any resistive heater costs.
Sources
Reverse-function mechanism and winter guidance: Sustainability Victoria, Fans and NSW Climate and Energy Action, Ceiling fans, both fetched directly July 2026. Fan low-speed draw (under 5 W): the same figure our ceiling fan running cost calculator cites. Oil column heater wattage (2.4 kW): the same default our heater running cost calculator uses. Electricity rates: AER Default Market Offer and each state's regulated reference tariff, current for 2026–27. All fetched July 2026.