There are a lot of things to look forward to when the cold temps arrive: Refreshing your wardrobe with a new winter coat, sitting around a fire pit with friends or celebrating the holidays by exchanging gifts with family. What isn’t as exciting is all of the home maintenance that comes with heavy snowfall and freezing temperatures. Aside from trying to clear your driveway with a snow blower or getting ice off your windows, your home may occasionally feel drafty or (worse) your pipes might potentially freeze over.
This is why learning how to insulate your home is key. I spoke with home improvement, appliance and HVAC experts to learn more about different ways to insulate your home, especially with affordable and accessible tools and supplies available online or in stores.
How I picked the best products for insulating your home
There are a few important factors to keep in mind when choosing items to help insulate your home, especially if you plan on installing them yourself. Here’s what our experts recommends thinking about:
- Installation process: Before buying any gadgets, you should first consider the limitations and infractures of your home. If you’re a homeowner, then you have a lot more liberty to make permanent changes. For example, you could have a professional install fiberglass in your attic, which heavily influences how your home maintains heat, according to Lou Manfredini, a home expert at Ace Hardware. If you rent and/or live in an apartment, then you’ll have fewer options, though there are still several renter-friendly options to try. With this in mind, I made sure to include products that are suitable for both renters and homeowners.
- Reversibility: All of the products on this list are removable and/or reversible when the time comes to move out or simply uninstall during a different season. I also included items that are relatively easier to install regardless of skill level.
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The best products for insulating your home in 2025
All of the products below are either recommendations from our experts or staff, or have at least a 4-star average rating from 500 reviews or more on Amazon.
One of the easiest (and also one of the most affordable) ways to help insulate your home is by using a draft guard, according to Manfredini. Also called draft stoppers, door sweeps and draft snakes, these products are extremely straightforward: They block wind from creeping under your door and creating a draft throughout your home. With that said, there are a few different types of draft guard, such as this one from GroTheory, which has two long panels that attach to each side of your door. Each panel, which adheres to the side of the door, can cover up to a 1.5-inch gap between the floor and the bottom of the door. The panels are 39 inches long, but you can use scissors to adjust the size to fit your door. You can either place one panel on one side of the door or put one on each side, and installation takes only a few minutes, according to the brand.
This door sweep serves the same purpose as the GroTheory one mentioned above, but it has a different structure and form of installation. Instead of two panels that block each side of the bottom of the door, this door sweep has two foam padded blocks that fit around the sides of the door, but the bottom is a small flat panel that goes directly under it. This type of draft guard is best for doors that don’t sit super high from the ground, but still let in a substantial amount of wind or cool air in. It fits door frames that are between 30 inches and 36 inches, according to the brand. Plus, each of the foam blocks fit in a cover that seals closed with Velcro.
Another way to insulate your home, whether you’re a homeowner or apartment dweller, is using blackout curtains, according to Dan Raysby, an HVAC manager at Abt Appliances and Electronics. “If you have a home that is older and has old windows, installing thermal curtains can make a big difference,” he says. “Installing throw rugs or carpeting insulates and helps keep the cold out as well.” These curtains aren’t only for blocking out light — they have thermal properties thanks to the way they’re woven and they have a sun-reflective coating that helps balance temperature indoors, according to the brand. It measures 52 inches x 84 inches and loops on the back that hide the rod.
Another effective and easy way of insulating your home via weather stripping is by using a peelable and removable sealant (called weather stripping), which usually comes in a roll, similar to packing tape or a material similar in texture to caulk. Manfredini recommends applying weather stripping around windows and doors, as well as caulking the base trim to the floor with clear caulking to reduce drafts. You can apply this sealing tape around the edges of your window frame to prevent drafts from getting through. Similar to tape, you can use scissors to get it to the preferred length. Aside from windows, this seal is ideal for preventing drafts around window air conditioners, vents and door frames, according to the brand.
While this may resemble a form of crown molding, it functions similar to a caulk or a piece of weather stripping tape. It’s a polyurethane material that comes in the form of a roll and has a wedge shape that allows it to fit securely between cracks. It has an adhesive strip in the back to attach it to a surface, like your window or door frame. You can also adjust the length and shape of the adhesive strip to help it fit more securely, such as around corners or edges.
This caulk, which comes recommended by Manfredini, functions in the same way as regular caulking that you might use to seal the edges around fixtures in your bathroom, such as a toilet or bathtub, except it is clear, removable and meant for window frames and vents. You apply it around the cracks on a window frame and allow it to dry for about 10 minutes. If and when you have to remove it, you can simply strip it away. Aside from drafts, it also helps block water and it’s suitable to use for both indoors and outdoors.
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How to shop for home insulation products
Before deciding on a product to help with home insulation, follow these steps to help you make the right decision.
Consider your home type
Depending on whether you’re renting or owning your home, you may only be allowed to use certain types of products or complete certain renovations.
For homeowners, the most important and effective place to start is the attic, according to Manfredini. “Like wearing a hat outdoors in the winter, the heat in your home rises,” he says. If your home doesn’t have adequate insulation, “the heat you paid for is just leaving through the roof.” If you have a home with an attic, the most important thing to do is make sure it has a sufficient amount of fiberglass installed, which may be best done by a professional.
If you don’t have an attic or aren’t a homeowner, Manfredini recommends trying a few easier-to-install (and remove) products such as window sealants or caulking, which I mentioned above.
Call a professional
While many of the products above can make a huge difference in the overall warmth of your home, for a long-term and reliable solution, Raysby also recommends talking to a professional to look over your heating and cooling system. This includes your furnace, boiler, air conditioner and the fiberglass installed in your attic.
Meet our experts
At NBC Select, we work with experts who have specialized knowledge and authority based on relevant training and/or experience. We also take steps to ensure all expert advice and recommendations are made independently and without undisclosed financial conflicts of interest.
- Lou Manfredini is a home expert at Ace Hardware.
- Dan Raysby is an HVAC manager at Abt Appliances & Electronics.
Any inclusion of products from Ace Hardware was made independently of Manfredini.
Why trust NBC Select?
I’m a commerce editor at NBC Select, where I write about deal and sale events, including ones at home improvement brands like Home Depot and Lowe’s. I also write about home appliances, cleaning and organizing. I interviewed two home appliance experts for their guidance for this story.
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