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Best handheld and neck fans 2026: portable fans to keep you cool
Sam – an ex-science teacher – uses his physics degree and five years of experience at Which? to test everything from beard trimmers to electric bikes and trampolines.
How our tests find you the best
Noise
Keeping cool shouldn’t mean you sacrifice your hearing. We measure each fan’s loudness and quality of the noise to find the silent blowers.
Range of speeds
Too fast, too slow. We use an anemometer to measure wind speeds on low and high settings, so you can find the setting that is … just right.
Battery life
Don’t get caught out by a heatwave. We measure how long each fan lasts after a quick five-minute charge.
We also test...
How pleasant the breeze feels (no matter the setting), how easy they are to use and how they withstand accidental drops.
The best handheld fans keep you cool on the move, and the best neck fans let you tackle the summer heat, hands-free.
These travel fans come in all shapes and sizes, so we put them through a wide and varied testing regime. The best have a broad range of speeds, while being quiet and simple to operate; the worst give you limited options and can be irritatingly noisy.
We tested portable fans from John Lewis, Boots, Shark, JisuLife and more. One handheld fan and one neck fan blew away the competition to earn our Best Buy recommendations. We also found two Great Value options for those on a budget.
The handheld fans and neck fans we tested
The biggest brands and the most popular seven handheld fans and four neck fans are listed below.
Only logged-in Which? members can view the test results for these handheld fans and neck fans.
Join Which? to get instant access to our test results, and our Best Buy and Great Value recommendations.
| Handheld and neck fans | Price | Score | Quietness | Wind speed range | Battery life | Pleasant breeze rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sign up to reveal Get instant access to this and all our scores and recommendations Unlock tableGet Digital access £9.99 per month, cancel at any time. Already a member? | 84% | |||||
| 78% | ||||||
| 76% | ||||||
| 74% | ||||||
| 74% | ||||||
| 73% | ||||||
| 71% | ||||||
| 68% | ||||||
| 67% | ||||||
| 54% | ||||||
| 51% |
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Date tested: June 2026. Page last checked: June 2026. We are not able to show every retailer and cheaper prices may be available.
Quietness is measured in decibels at the highest and lowest settings, and assessed by the quality of the noise produced.
Wind speed range is based on the difference between the measured wind speeds at the highest and lowest settings.
Battery life is based on stated battery life on full charge and how long it runs off a 5-minute charge on its highest setting.
Pleasant breeze rating is based on a blindfolded panel's assessment of the fans' low, medium and high settings.
A selection of the handheld fans and neck fans we tested are listed in alphabetical order, below.
Only logged-in Which? members can view the best handheld fan and neck fans from our tests.
Join Which? to get instant access to our test results, and our Best Buy and Great Value recommendations, below.
Boots Menopause & Me Neck Fan
Claimed battery life: Up to 3 hours (on low speed)
Claimed charge time: 3 hours
Need to know: 201g, three speed settings, charges by micro-USB
Bush Handheld and Foldable Desk Fan
Available from Argos (£12)
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 4 to 12 hours
Claimed charge time: 4 hours
Need to know: 192g, three speed settings, charges by USB-C, can be used as a desk fan, other colours available
EasyAcc Handheld Fan
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 3 to 10 hours
Claimed charge time: 4 hours
Need to know: 179g, three speed settings, charges by USB-C, can be used as a desk fan, comes with a strap, other colours available
Gaiatop Portable Handheld Personal Fan
Claimed battery life: Up to 6.5 hours (on low speed)
Claimed charge time: 4 hours
Need to know: 110g, three speed settings, charges by USB-C, built-in LED torch, comes with a strap, other colours available
JisuLife Life 3 Neck Fan
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 4 to 16 hours
Claimed charge time: 5 hours
Need to know: 275g, five speed settings, charges by USB-C, other colours available
After something bigger to cool your home? Read our best desk, tower and pedestal fan reviews
JisuLife Pro1S (2025)
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 19.5 to 40 hours
Claimed charge time: 3 hours
Need to know: 286g, 100 speed settings, charges by USB-C, comes with a strap, other colours available
John Lewis Handheld and Foldable Desk Fan
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 4 to 10 hours
Claimed charge time: 5 hours
Need to know: 191g, three speed settings, charges by USB-C, can be used as a desk fan, other colours available
John Lewis Neck Fan
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 3.5 to 11 hours
Claimed charge time: 3 hours
Need to know: 224g, three speed settings, charges by USB-C, other colours available
MenKind Be Cool! Bladeless Neck Fan
Available from Argos (£15)
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 3 to 5 hours
Claimed charge time: 4 hours
Need to know: 212g, five speed settings, charges by USB-C
Shark ChillPill FA022UK Portable Fan
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 1.5 to 11 hours
Claimed charge time: 3.5 hours
Need to know: 241g, 10 speed settings, charges by USB-C, can be used as a desk fan, comes with misting and cool-plate attachments, other colours available
VonHaus 3 in 1 Handheld Fan
Claimed battery life (high to low speed): 3 to 9 hours
Claimed charge time: 1.5 hours
Need to know: 138g, five speed settings, charges by USB-C, can be used as a desk fan, comes with a strap
Need something more powerful and permanent for your home? See our expert reviews of air conditioners
How we test handheld fans and neck fans
We buy the bestselling handheld fans and neck fans and put them through our tough tests. We don't accept freebies from product manufacturers or retailers.
We regularly revisit the handheld fans and neck fans on sale to see if there are any more popular models that need testing, and when we find them we do.
- Noise: We use a decibel meter to measure how loud each handheld fan and neck fan is on low and high settings. We also have a panel of testers who rate the quality of noise, penalising a portable fan if it makes whiny, rattly or other potentially unpleasant sounds.
- Wind speed: We use an anemometer to measure wind speed (in metres per second). The best portable fans offer a noticeable difference between their low and high settings.
- Pleasant breeze: A panel of blindfolded testers rate each portable fan on various settings, assessing how strong the fan feels relative to the chosen setting, and if the airflow is continuous or feels intermittent.
- Battery life: As well as rating each handheld fan for its full-charge battery life, we time how long each lasts from a five-minute charge on its highest setting. Some last over 10 minutes, while others give up the ghost after four.
- Ease of use: We run through all the settings, rating how easy they are to control and operate.
- Durability: Simulating accidental drops, we drop each fan multiple times to see which ones are the most robust.
Why you can trust us: at Which? we're free from manufacturer and retailer influence. Find out more about our impartiality and how your support helps us to stay editorially independent.
Handheld fans vs neck fans: pros and cons
You wear a neck fan around your neck like a travel pillow (they can also resemble headphones). They blow air upward, along the side of your head.
As their name suggests, handheld fans – also known as portable or travel fans – are designed to be held in your hand.
Both types of fan will take the edge off a sweaty summer day, but one may suit your needs more than the other.
Handheld fans
Pros
- Compact and portable: Easier to stow away in your bag.
- Flexible: You can point them anywhere and many have foldable handles so they can double as a mini desk fan.
- More powerful: We found that you'll typically get a stronger breeze from a handheld fan than a neck fan.
Cons
- You need to hold them: This makes them harder to use if you're doing anything with your hands while trying to cool down.
- Noise: While distance matters when it comes to how loud we perceive a fan to be, the most powerful handheld fans are loud and could annoy anyone standing or sitting nearby, such as fellow commuters.
Neck fans
Pros
- They're hands-free: Perfect if you're carrying shopping, working in your garden or walking on a hot day.
- Gives you a consistent breeze: You don't need a steady arm to keep it pointing at you.
Cons
- Fixed or limited redirection: You can't easily adjust where the air is blowing.
- Bulkier than handheld fans: This makes them harder to store away in a bag while on the move.
- Fan is near your ears: Most of our testers found the noise from a neck fan more irritating than that from a handheld fan.
Does a fan help with hot flushes?
Common symptoms of menopause include hot flushes and night sweats. A fan can help ease these by cooling down the skin.
You can't carry a tower fan around with you, of course, so a portable travel fan could be just the ticket for on-the-move relief.
The Boots Menopause & Me Wearable Neck Fan is specifically marketed as helping with hot flushes.
To see how it scored in our tests, log in or join Which?