As we talked about above, keeping your home between 62 – 72 at all times will be the best solution. In fact, having a period of a lower temperature (about 8 hours) at night when you're tucked up in bed (or when you're out at work during the day) could help you reduce your
General recommendations of long standing are that 72F is comfortable in most conditions for most people. I am ok with 78F when I am in the daytime summer hot. I frequently buy in cold at night by lowering the thermostat for my AC. In the winter I often buy in warm the same way only in the daytime.
Location and severe climates can affect this range, but between 68 and 72 degrees is the general recommendation. 68 degrees is best because lower temperatures reduce the amount of energy needed to keep the house warm.
64 degrees is the minimum it should be and that still has complication. Anything lower can cause health concerns. If your parents in law are elderly you're putting them at risk. And I'm on their side at 70. For reference in my city landlords have to keep their homes/apartments at a minimum of 68 degrees.
Setting your air conditioning to 72°F is generally considered a comfortable indoor temperature for many people. It strikes a good balance between comfort and energy efficiency, making it a popular choice for residential settings.
Best AC Temperature Settings While You Are Home
As you consider the most comfortable room temperature for your lifestyle and family, keep in mind that for each degree that you set your thermostat above 72 degrees, you can save up to 3% on your energy bill.
Energy.gov suggests that 68 degrees is a good room temperature while you're awake at home but recommends lowering it while you're asleep or away.
The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends setting your thermostat no lower than 64 degrees (F) in the Winter months while people are in the home. If there are infants or elderly individuals, they recommend keeping the temperature at 70 degrees at a minimum.
Why does 70 inside feel different in the winter compared to summer? There are multiple factors but the main reason is the dry air. Dry air causes evaporation of the moisture from our skin which in the process makes us feel cooler. Meanwhile humid air hinders evaporation doing the opposite.
The Energy Saving Trust says: “For most, the lowest comfortable temperature to set your heating to is between 18°C–21°C (64°F–70°F), as the World Health Organisation advises.” Lawless says: “The average thermostat setting in the UK is 20.8°C (69.4°F).
Avoid constantly changing your thermostat settings, and instead, aim for a steady temperature that keeps your home comfortable without causing your HVAC system to run inefficiently. Don't wait.
To save money, aim to have your temperature set around 68-72 degrees Fahrenheit when you're at home and awake. This is a comfortable temperature for most with the help of a light sweater. Overnight and when you're out, around 64 degrees Fahrenheit will keep your home at a good temperature.
Energy Saver recommends setting your air conditioner to 78 degrees when you wake up, 85 degrees during the day, and 82 degrees when you're sleeping to save the most money. Kureczka suggests bumping the temperature up to the highest setting you're comfortable with.
ASHRAE, unlike the EPA, specifies an ideal number to set a building's thermostat to. It's a range, actually: around 23°-26°C, or 73.4°-78.8°F, in the summer.
Since 72 degrees is generally agreed upon to be an ideal indoor temperature, most people would probably still feel comfortable setting their AC units slightly higher than this, perhaps at around 75.
The National Sleep Foundation says 60-67 is a good temperature for sleep, but that might be too cold for you and increase your cooling bill. As a compromise, 70-plus degrees is a good setting.
While there are occupants in the house, it is advised for homeowners to set their thermostats between 68 and 72 degrees to promote maximum comfort. A pleasant temperature for everyone in the house, regardless of the apparel they are wearing, is between 68 and 72 degrees, which is neither too warm nor too cool.
Keeping your home warm in the winter is essential for one's comfort and also to keep pipes from freezing. However, you should be mindful of energy consumption as well. According to the Department of Energy, the optimal temperature setting for homes during freezing weather is 68 °F.
Common Baseline Temperatures
A common temperature to keep your home at during the winter is 68 degrees Fahrenheit. However, you can also keep it between 70 and 78 degrees, depending on your home type and what you're personally comfortable with.
The World Health Organization recommends a thermostat setting no lower than 68 degrees while you're home. If you have children or seniors in your house, that number increases to at least 70 degrees. If your house is too cold, it can cause problems with blood pressure and circulation, as well as affect your heart rate.
Cooling a house from 90 degrees to 72 degrees typically takes about 2 to 4 hours, depending on various factors.
The best room temperature for sleep is approximately 65 degrees Fahrenheit (18.3 degrees Celsius). This may vary by a few degrees from person to person, but most doctors recommend keeping the thermostat set between 65 to 68 degrees Fahrenheit (15.6 to 20 degrees Celsius) for the most comfortable sleep.
For most customers, we recommend turning on your furnace when the weather is consistently below 18° Celsius, which usually happens to be around the end of September, or early October. Some homeowners try to put off turning on their furnace as long as they can to save money, which is okay if you're healthy adults.
Is 74 too hot for a house? It is OK to set your thermostat to 74°F if you're happy with that temperature. However, many people find temperatures between 68°F–72°F more comfortable for everyday living. If efficiency is a concern, you might want to consider lowering the temperature by a few degrees to save energy.
Keeping your home at a constant temperature generally means that your HVAC system will run constantly to meet it. This means that your furnace or air conditioner may run when you're asleep, at work, or out of the house. This wastes more energy than the minimal amount that you might save by having it constantly run.